[salish]

I'll be attending a week-long conference in Portland in February, and my hotel is about one block from Powells Bookstore. Guess where I'll be spending my time! I've been wanting to visit this bookstore for years. I really miss the old Shoreys bookstore, and I'm hoping I'll find nirvana at Powells. Does anyone know of any other neat places to hang out in that area? I'm talking within walking distance of Powells. Thanks, Cliff

[Stefan]

If this is in the industrial area (I saw a facility called Powells.com)....I was by there this past weekend. Went to a restaurant that was called Merriwether's. Nice place. Good food. If you have time, have your friends take you to the Willamette Stone. Found out about this past weekend. If you are into surveying this is historcal center for all surveys made in the past and currently done today in Washington and Oregon. It is a very small park up in the hills. Not a walk though.

[Allison]

The Pearl District is nice.

[Dogpatch]

[Stones]

I'll bet you're staying at the Mark Sphincter (I mean Mark Spencer) Hotel. Be sure and hit Jake's Famous Crawfish. Downtown Portland rules.

[Karen]

It's best to go to Powell's by yourself. I've made the mistake of going with friends who had to pry me out of there. I think they have some weird time warp inside that store because four hours zips by like about 10 minutes. There is or was a nifty flea market nearby. Can't remember exactly where it is located but it's huge and a fun place to visit. Karen PS I've stayed at the Mark Spencer too but was awakened in the middle of the night by some kind of fight down the hall. Despite that, it's not a bad place to stay.

[Allison]

[jenjen]

I can't help you with places to go near Powell's. I've always spent so much time in the bookstore that I ran out of time to do anything else. Make sure you take a van or pickup truck or something along those lines. You'll find all sorts of wonderful treasures at Powell's that need a good home.

[salish]

Wow, Powells has quite a fan base here. Yes, I am indeed staying at the Mark Spencer, but there's another one called the Mallory that someone said I should try. The Spencer just looks cool and it's old- time Portland. I plan to play hooky one day and just hang out at Powells all day long, and I'll be alone. I've got a feeling my wallet will be a little lighter on the return trip. Thanks for all the suggestions. Cliff

[Justan]

I went to school just up the road from Powell’s and cant tell you how many days I spent there but I got to know a lot of the staff by name. In that area you are a few blocks north of Alder street. On 10th and Alder is a 3 story building called the Galleria they used to have a Chinese restaurant called Chaings Yangtze (the same ownership of Changs Mongolian grill, BTW). It might still be there. It has or had some of the best food around and was rated a 5 star restaurant. Not very expensive. There is a nice bakery called Rose’s just a few blocks up hill from Powell's (nothing even close to it in Seattle), and what I think was the original Red Robin restaurant is also a few blocks away. If you wanted to head east down Burnside (the main street by Powell’s) about 20 blocks or so east of there you will come to the Hollywood district. There are a lot of funky stores there. It is kind of the equivalent of the Wallingford district. Portland is also blessed with some of the best pizza joints on the face of the planet, but not immediately around Powell's. The park blocks, which are almost due south of Powell's is worth the walk and conveniently the Portland Art Museum is next to one of the Park Blocks about 3 blocks away from PSU. If you like libraries and schools, then the main library at PSU is a must, as are visits to Reed and Lewis and Clark colleges. Lewis and Clark has two of the nicer art and legal libraries around. PS: Karen, I think you’re referring to the so-called Portland Saturday market. It is located on the west side of the Willamette river, and I don’t recall clearly but think it’s under the Burnside bridge. It is only set up for Saturday and Sunday. Here’s a link http://www.saturdaymarket.org/ This area is also a delight to explore! Edit: Saturday market isn't open until March. So you'll just have to get drunk and hang out under the bridge like the rest of the gang. But there are still a lot of cool stores around there.

[Stones]

[Lagerman]

Nothing like hanging out under the Burnside Bridge

[Riverside Laker]

We found Powells a little disappointing. It's huge but the gems have been picked clean by the large number of buyers. There are some other interesting book stores though. One interesting place on Hawthorne has old magazines -- of every variety. Pick one up from your birthday! Go to Papa Haydn for dessert. Mandatory. Bag a peak -- go up Mt Tabor and see the only volcano inside city limits. Stefan, is that one on your life list?

[Chief Paulina]

[Allison]

Cliff--I've stayed at both and prefer the Mark S. to the Mal.