Day 2-Portland, Oregon

City of Portland

We arrived in Portland and all came stumbling out of the vans, probably looking like zombies from some old school horror film. we met up and talked about what we were going to see while we were there. We were there for a bike tour to see the "green city". We saw many things from rain gardens and water barrels to bike lockers and extended curbs. The tour was nothing to glamorous, but it was amazing to stretch our cramped legs and go for a nice long bike ride. After the tour was over we took a small ride right outside the city to a hotel that we spent the night in. Later in the evening we had a choice to take a ride out to Eugene Oregon or stay at the hotel. I stayed and enjoyed an evening of dinning and swimming in the hotel pool, while the others got  to see a little more of Oregon.

Portland, Oregon rain garden. wild native flowers were used that could tolerate dramatic water level changes

Things to note:

• Enjoy the times you are not in the cars. Stretch your legs and get your blood flowing when you can.
• While some of the things that you will see is not all huge in your face technology and environmental issues there is something you can take away from everything you will see. Portland is a model city that shows that making small changes and stretching our comfort zones a little bit can help the environment and peoples health. It is more often times the small things that make a significant difference. 
• If there is a pool....no matter what....go for a swim, it hits the spot.