44 New Things #7 - Portland Art Museum

After a great time in the Chinese Garden, I walked to Powell's for some bookshopping (essential for any Powell's trip!) then walked to the Portland Art Museum. Even though I've been in Oregon for 8+ years, this was my first visit to this museum.

There were a lot fewer people at the museum than at the garden (probably due to the nice weather). My favorite exhibit was the Mysterious Spirits, Strange Beasts, Earthly Delights: Early Chinese Art from the Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Collection. Many interesting animals, spirits, guardians and other early Chinese figures.

Outside the museum, they have a Deborah Butterfield horse - one of my mom's favorite sculptors. This one is very nice.

44 New Things #6 - Portland Classical Chinese Garden

On Friday I was in Portland for a meeting, so I stayed overnight to enjoy some of Portland's sights.

First, I went to the Portland Classical Chinese Garden, while was built in 2000 but has a timeless feel.

What I particularly liked were the gateways between the gardens. I arrived just as a tour was beginning, and the guide explained the gateways were intended to work as picture frames of the gardens beyond:



(The last photo was hard to take as people kept walking into my "frame").

There were a number of beautiful flowering trees and shrubs and lots of water with a few small goldfish.

44 New Things #5 - A New Purse

My folks were visiting over the past week. We had a nice visit, even though it has been overcast and rainy throughout most of this visit. They left this morning to return home. While they were here, my Mom & I did some antique/craft show shopping. I loved this purse I saw at one of the craft shows - it's made of wood with leather handles & trim and patterned with a world map. I thought it looked fun.

They brought the newest member of the family with them. Jesse is a rough-coated Jack Russell Terrier (JRT) my folks acquired through a JRT rescue group. The dog is as cute as a button but would wear out the Energizer Bunny. He's only 18 months old, though, so he has time to mellow. While he was here, he went for many walks -- to one of the local dog parks, Riverfront Park, Bald Hill Park, plus walks around the neighborhood. Towards the end of the visit, it occurred to me that the walks seemed to top up his energy level, not tire him out. (The photo is of Jesse & me at Bald Hill).