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There's never a dull moment in the City of Roses; here are a few spots that you must check out.

Cover image by Steven Morgan and licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0  via Wikipedia

Hidden Gems In Portland

This large nature preserve has scenic trails that are great for hikers of all experience levels.

Forest Park is one of the largest urban nature preserves in the U.S., stretching for 8 miles and covering 5,157 acres of land. It was formally opened in 1948 after decades of effort by Portland civic leaders. While Forest Park is a popular destination for visitors to experience hiking in The City of Roses, there are more than enough trails to make you feel far from the city.

Beat the biggest crowds in Forest Park by heading to the northern end, where trails offer great views for bird watching and wildflowers. One recommended trail is Northwest Newton Road; this moderate hike features views of the Willamette River. If you're looking for an easy hike, the Wildwood Loop Trail offers the same peaceful solitude. A little side path leads into Kielhorn Meadow, where you can have a picnic and spot wildlife, such as birds, deer, or even elk.

Want to relax with a drink after your hike? Trek over to Skyline Tavern near the intersection of Skyline Boulevard and Germantown Road. This saloon-style pub, which was once a speakeasy, has been a gathering hub for over 80 years. Skyline Tavern offers a lovely view of the Tualatin Valley and the northern Coast Range.

The Forest Park Conservatory is the leading organization involved in efforts to preserve and educate the public on Forest Park’s ecological diversity and health. Through education and volunteer work, The Forest Park Conservatory also encourages responsible recreation.

You can take guided hikes throughout the year to learn more about the biodiversity within Forest Park. One example is a “shroom stroll” where folks learn to identify different mushrooms and what they do for forest life. Folks can also learn about the history of Forest Park and take pictures on group photo walks.

Forest Park Conservancy offers educational and recreational programming

Cover image "Forest Park" by www78 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0. 

Forest Park

Enjoy a cup, but be careful when the ghosts mess with your table.

The Rimsky-Korsakoffee House (or “Rimsky’s” to locals) is a great place for music lovers and ghost hunters to relax over coffee. Rimsky’s is in Portland’s Buckman neighborhood and serves coffee and desserts in the living room of a reportedly haunted craftsman-style house built in 1902.

Owner Goody Cable opened the coffee shop in 1980, supposedly to stop cleaning her home for classical music parties. Indeed, Rimsky’s often provides live music for guests. 

To understand the audience Rimsky’s is for, you don’t have to look much further than Cable herself; in 2015, for instance, VICE Magazine reported on her creative experiment in eating foods and beverages according to the alphabet for a year. 

By opening Rimsky’s and refusing to place an outdoor sign on the business, Cable aims to create an artistic and eccentric corner that passersby can discover by accident.

Rimsky’s decor encourages the creative and the bizarre. The interior has been described as pseudo-elegant and whimsical, as though one has stumbled into a fortune-teller’s tent at the circus. The bathroom has an under-the-sea theme that includes unusual decor such as a lifelike doll in a small kayak and mannequin limbs hanging from the ceiling. 

Each table is named after a different composer, and a few are “haunted.” One table, for instance, rises 18 inches every so often, another table shakes when a button is pressed in the kitchen, and yet another table can disappear entirely through a slit in the wall. Take a peek at the shop here:

One thing is clear, this coffee shop is definitely not your average Starbucks. Operating hours are between 7:00 pm to midnight, and you would be the odd one out if you break out a laptop or ask for a Wifi password. The shop encourages conversation among its quirky clientele.

Cover image by Luriko Yamaguchi is made available on Pexels.

Rimksy-Korsakoffee House

A renovated school is now a memorable hotel with classrooms as hotel rooms, bars, and a movie theater.

At this school, sleeping in a classroom is encouraged. The Kennedy School is owned and managed by McMenamins, a family-owned chain of historic hotels, pubs, breweries, and venues in Oregon and Washington. The Kennedy School was once the John D. Kennedy Elementary School, which was built in northeast Portland in 1915. By the 1990s, the school had been abandoned. Mike and Brian McMenamin bought the school in 1997 and funded a full renovation to create one of Portland’s most unique hotels.

The Kennedy School is in a prime location for field trips, with the hip Alberta Arts District nearby. You can rent bikes and cycle around the city, or discover hiking trails and snowy slopes year-round.

The school itself, however, is quite an adventure.

At the Kennedy School, guests can stay in one of the 57 converted classrooms, many retaining their original chalkboards and cloakrooms. Pets are also welcome, for an extra $15 per night. 

Guests have the option of staying in one of the 22 rooms in the English Wing. Each room is named after a literary piece of work, such as the Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, and Tropic of Capricorn by Henry Miller.

This hotel's charm is that it makes folks actually want to attend school, with a full-blown restaurant where the student cafeteria used to be. 

Take a look at the incredible artwork that adorns the walls, ceilings, floors, doors, and more. Give yourself a chance to soak in the hotel’s saltwater pool. Catch a movie in the school’s elaborate theater, or watch an event or live performance in one of the hotel’s converted rooms like the Gymnasium. 

You can bar crawl within the campus; explore the Boiler Room, the Detention Room, and the Honors Hall—all of which serve their own menu of cocktails and drinks. If you call ahead, beer enthusiasts can enjoy a tour of the Concordia Brewery in what used to be the girl’s bathroom. 

The Kennedy School asks that you refrain from running in the halls, however. You might spill your drink!

Classrooms at the Kennedy School are never boring

Cover image “Kennedy School - Hallway” by Jesse Means is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. Info courtesy of the Kennedy School.

McMenamins Kennedy School

At this speakeasy disguised as a neighborhood home, bringing a Bible is optional.

Museum-Like Prohibition Era Bar Serves Southern Charm

Over in Sellwood in southeast Portland, there’s a great neighborhood bar...if you know where to look. Speakeasies have a glamour about them, invoking a sense of adventure. Sometimes, though, it’s a lot of effort just to find a hidden passage or remember the evening’s password. Other times, it’s enough to know that you’re heading to a secret spot. 

On the outside, Bible Club looks like a quaint yellow-painted home. But when visitors step through the doors of this 1922 house, they walk into a pre-Prohibition time capsule. Everything from the bar stools, the furniture, the light fixtures, and the bar itself is nearly a century old.

All are welcome at the Bible Club PDX. Bringing an actual bible, though, is optional. Check out the video to see the journey of how Bible Club PDX came to be:

Co-Owner Ryk Maverick, a jeweler, has designed restaurants in Los Angeles and shows around the world. His eye for design is felt throughout the premises, where one can look up to see a ceiling made from hundreds of 3-inch, 24-carat gold leaf squares. 

Bible Club’s cocktails include popular Prohibition-era references. Check out the video to see Bible Club make a cocktail:

One of the more memorable cocktails is “Remember the Maine” with James E. Pepper 1776 Rye Whiskey, Carpano Antica Vermouth, Cherry Heering, and Lucid Absinthe. Other notable drinks are “Suffragette,” “Brown Derby,” and “Pennies From Heaven.” 

Feeling hungry? Bible Club also offers hearty, elevated bar eats, including a charcuterie board, bruschetta topped with seared pork, and a smoked pork plate.

Cover image "The Root of All Evil" by Alexander (The Great) Arebalo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Bible Club PDX

This secluded park is an open secret that's profoundly loved for its views of the Portland skyline.

Skidmore Bluffs
A Lookout To Look Out For

One spot you shouldn’t miss on a trip to Portland is Mocks Crest Park, aka Skidmore Bluffs. This grassy park offers a stunning view of the rolling Willamette River, the ritzier West Hills, the rail yard, and a portion of Portland's southern skyline. The best time to take in the scene is around Golden Hour, the time of day shortly before sunrise or sunset when the light appears rosier and softer. 

Take caution, however. The edge of the overlook doesn’t have a guard, and there’s a risk of falling.

The park is named after John Mock, an entrepreneur who walked the Oregon Trail as a teenager in 1852. John created an empire in Portland, with mining, transportation, farming, and real estate ventures. He developed the neighborhood around Skidmore Bluffs.

Many folks visit the bluffs, and you’ll come across people picnicking, enjoying beer and wine, playing guitar, sketching, and more. And because Portland is full of people who embrace the quirky side of life, you might see some interesting scenes when you visit. Residents shared some of their more interesting memories with the Oregonian about a wedding on stilts, drum circle sessions, and groups dressed up as gnomes.

Skidmore Bluffs became a beloved spot because of its seclusion. Since Mocks Crest Park can only be accessed via Skidmore Terrace and Skidmore Court, the Skidmore Bluffs felt like a well-kept secret. In recent years, however, folks eager for aesthetic views often crowd the park. Unfortunately, this led to vandalism and disturbances in the neighborhood. Residents request that visitors be respectful as they take in the sight.

Cover image "Reading on a park bench" by sama093 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.

Skidmore Bluffs

While the bar itself is well-known, there's more to this whiskey haven than its selection of bottles.

While you might not find the Dewey decimal system at the Multnomah Whiskey Library (MWL), their massive collection of whiskey from around the world will amaze you. Opened in 2013 in a historic building, the Multnomah Whiskey Library holds nearly 2,000 bottles of whiskey in its inventory. Drinks range from affordable bourbons to single shots that cost $1,800 each. The real gem of the library isn’t necessarily in the drinks but rather the experience.

While the Library is the star of the venue, so to speak, MWL’s downstairs Green Room provides a lounge for folks to wait. True to its name, the Green Room is just as aesthetically pleasing as the Library but has a more relaxed atmosphere. There are a communal table and other seating and a bar where folks can sip on a drink as they wait to be seated upstairs or enjoy light bites and libations from a special Green Room menu.

Once you’re seated in the Library, a bartender, who doubles as your server, will approach with a mobile cart to make your cocktails tableside. The staff member will also educate your group on the cocktail and the kind of whiskey used. 

It takes more than bartending experience to work at MWL. All the hosts and servers are extremely knowledgeable, and management carefully selects staff members with both the skills and the personality to provide an amazing experience to customers. Pair your personalized beverage with a menu of snacks, entrees, and after-dinner options.

From the staff’s tailored uniforms to the brass and wood decor, the venue gives off old-money, elite social club vibes. While MWL looks like a bar on the surface, its unique concept and popularity often lead to long wait times, and only members can make reservations. However, non-members can walk in. MWL memberships, which run for more than $650 a year, often sell out, and the membership waitlist can run up to more than 1,000 people.

If you just can't wait in line, the Hall Pass permits non-members to make a one-time reservation for MWL, perfect for the spirit enthusiast visiting from out of town or celebrating a special occasion. Hall Passes are $25 per person. Reservations are subject to availability.

Even if you're not a fan of fine whiskey, the MWL is worth it for the memorable evening and education it provides.

Nights at MWL can be crowded, but a Hall Pass saves your spot.

Post photo cover by Oleg Magni is made available on Pexels.

Multnomah Whiskey Library

An old WPA project offers stunning views on top of an extinct volcano.

In the 1930s, Joseph Wood Hill Park was created on the summit of Rocky Butte, an extinct cinder cone volcano, as part of a Works Progress Administration project. The Multnomah County Road Department designed the drive and park, dubbed the Rocky Butte Scenic Drive Historic District. The project supported 25,000 employees in Portland.

Visitors travel through a historic tunnel featuring the craftsmanship of a by-gone time and enjoy gorgeous views along the way. The lush greenery is partly due to the fact that Rocky Butte is part of Boring Lava Field, a group of volcanic vents and lava flows throughout Oregon and Washington State. The volanic soil holds minerals that encourages plants to flourish.

A baroque staircase leads to the Wood Hill Park entrance at the top of the butte which is surrounded by rock walls and old lampposts.

Folks come to Wood Hill Park to walk their dogs, enjoy a picnic, take a challenging bike ride, or work on their rock climbing skills. Since the top of the butte is flat, the park is ideal for tossing a frisbee or sitting down to take in the panoramas and the people. Most notably, the park offers 360-degrees of stunning views! Be sure to bring a camera.

To the west you’ll be able to see downtown Portland and additional glimpses of the West Hills and St. John’s Bridge.

If you’re an aviation fan, you can see planes coming in and out of Portland International Airport to the northwest.

For geology enthusiasts, you’ll see the Cascade Mountain Range to the east with Mt. Hood at the forefront. A little more to the north you’ll glimpse Mt. St. Helens. A stone on the ground also points toward notable mountain peaks and notes their elevation.

Cover image "Sunday at Rocky Butte" by A.Davey is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Rocky Butte

Portland's hidden tunnels are at the center of a long debate about its seedier past

The show “Portlandia” might have ingrained stereotypes of Portland’s quirky, hipster culture, but a century ago, the city had a different reputation. From the late 19th to early 20th Century, Portland was seen as a dangerous port city. It housed several saloons, brothels, gambling dens, and boardinghouses for sailors traveling from around the world. Its reputation as a hub for underground and organized crime continued into the 1940s and 1950s.

Throughout parts of its seedier past, it’s been said that criminals used a network of tunnels called the Portland Underground, or colloquially called the Shanghai Tunnels. These tunnels connected to the basements of hotels, bars, and other businesses.

While the tunnels have been used for legitimate practices, such as moving large amounts of shipping goods without disrupting normal traffic or getting goods caught in the rain, locals say that the tunnels were often used for “shanghaiing.” Also known as “crimping,” the act involves ship captains coercing or kidnapping people into being crew members. The tunnels were also said to have been used for sex and drug trafficking.

Today, visitors can visit some of these underground tunnels in Old Town/Chinatown through Portland Walking Tours.

While historians agree that criminal activity and shanghaiing was practiced in Portland, the extent of it remains uncertain. The modern stories of shanghaiing and the tunnels first came into popularity in the 1970s, fueled by the discovery of hidden tunnels and the sensationalism of 1930s yellow journalism, which romanticized shanghaiing and unseemly stories from the Portland waterfront.

While Old Town historians might doubt a link between Portland’s criminal past and a network of tunnels, exploring the Shanghai Tunnels is a great adventure for those who love to hear a good ghost story.

Cover image courtesy of ©Portland Walking Tours.

Shanghai Tunnel Tours

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Chicago History Museum

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Ferris Bueller's Day Off

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As part of the Beyond the Loop video series, The Second City and Goose Island Beer Company have teamed up with Choose Chicago to create the quintessential Old Town experience. Discover why this neighborhood has been home to immigrant families, gays, hippies and young professionals alike over the years.

Quintessential Old Town

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Hyde Park: Obama's Neighborhood

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Traveling the World Through Food | Chicago

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An architectural treasure in Chicago

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Start on Chicago's South Side and travel back in time as you explore visit the homes of some of the most influential LGBTQ+ people in the city's vibrant history. Make your way through Washington Park and Woodlawn moving north towards Rogers Park.

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Chicago is a city built of neighborhoods and cultures and Chinatown is the prime example. Just south of Chicago's Loop, Chinatown is bustling with people, traditional cuisine, and of course culture.

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Chicago's Chinatown

This adventure, based on the Chicago History Museum exhibition, "Remembering Dr. King: 1929–1968," invites you to explore some of the locations Dr. King frequented in Chicago.

A Baptist minister and champion of nonviolent activism, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential figures of the civil rights movement. He spent considerable time in Chicago protesting racial discrimination, particularly in housing and education.
This VAMONDE adventure is based on the Chicago History Museum exhibition, "Remembering Dr. King: 1929-1968," and invites you to explore in person some of the locations King frequented in the city and to consider how Dr. King’s work remains relevant today, 50 years after his assassination.

Martin Luther King Jr. in Chicago

Choose Chicago® is the official destination marketing organization for Chicago, Illinois. When you’re in Chicago, you’re home. With the countless experiences there are to have here, you're absolutely welcome to do any and all of them.

Hidden Gems In Portland

Forest Park

Forest Park

Rimksy-Korsakoffee House

Rimksy-Korsakoffee House

McMenamins Kennedy School

McMenamins Kennedy School

Bible Club PDX

Bible Club PDX

Skidmore Bluffs

Skidmore Bluffs

Multnomah Whiskey Library

Multnomah Whiskey Library

Rocky Butte

Rocky Butte

Shanghai Tunnel Tours

Shanghai Tunnel Tours

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