Hood River Valley (Easter Edition)

An overcast week of rain finally gave way to the next phase of spring blossoms: tulips. My neighborhood is becoming more colorful by the day!

 
 
 
 
 

Portland's Pizza Week provided an ideal opportunity to sample $2 vegan slices at Sizzle Pie and Straight From New York Pizza. Another recent find close to home featured tasty South American empanadas by Epif.

 

My birthday weekend coincided with Easter Sunday (and Earth Day!), which made for a busy but fun couple of days. Friday night celebrations included German beers at Zoiglhaus Brewing Company (#15) and Kyle's homemade chocolate cake, while Saturday featured vegan truffles and game night with Tom and his friends. As you might have guessed, Tom is the new man in my life. Cheers to 27!

 

Aunt Judy and I spent Sunday in Hood River. The Mt. Hood Scenic Byway skirts Oregon's tallest peak though enchanting fruit valleys and thick fir forest. At 11,245', the mesmerizing snow-covered, glacier-caked summit of Mt. Hood is the fourth highest peak in the Cascade Mountain Range. The dormant stratovolcano last erupted in the 1780s. The challenging climb is officially on my bucket list!



 

Blessed with beautiful weather, Aunt Judy and I climbed aboard the Mount Hood Railroad. For over 30 years, the Fruit Blossom Special has showcased the Hood River Valley's blossom season.

  

The 4.5-hour train ride travels through acres of apples, pears, peaches and cherries produced in the Gorge region.



The narrated tour includes a one-hour layover in Parkdale with a stop at one of the fruit orchards.

 

I give credit to Aunt Judy for finding this lovely activity, as well as for several photos in this post!



 

 

The charming town of Hood River is located at the panoramic crossroads of the Columbia River Gorge and the Cascade Range. I intend to return this summer to take on kite surfing!

Finally, congratulations are in order to my sister, Rita, and her fiancee, Patrick, for their recent engagement!

 

Spring Tulips

My flight from Sydney departed at 10am on a Sunday and landed in LA at 8am that same day (after a 14-hour flight). Needless to say, it was a long day but a beautiful one--spring had arrived in Portland! I had left town on a frosty morning at the end of February and returned on a 60-degree sunny afternoon in late March, enhanced by the sound of chirping birds and the smell of freshly-mowed grass; easily one of my favorite times of year. I was pleased that the first wave of budding flowers had already surfaced: daffodils, hyacinths, and cherry blossoms.

 



  

I was anxious to return to normalcy after a month of traveling, but I tried to remain patient in getting caught up with life, work, climbing, etc. Before I could get back into a routine, however, my sister Rita and her friend Michelle flew in for a visit. They rented a car and with it, the freedom to travel leisurely through Oregon. The highlight of their Portland stop was the annual Wooden Shoe Tulip Fest in Woodburn (about an hour south in the Willamette Valley). Apparently the tulips had bloomed to only 15% of their capacity that weekend (better to go mid-late April), but we were still in awe of the colorful fields. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Rita, who shares my love of the PNW.



  






 



 



  



  

The following weekend, it was back to the airport with sights set on Pittsburgh! A family weekend was in order to visit my dear German grandmother, and to celebrate several occasions: the marriage of my cousin Maria to her husband Fran, three April birthdays, and Easter. It was a fun trip home, spent mostly eating and talking over each other. I am already looking forward to the next reunion! Family.