Oregon Scenes | 2019 Edition

April 05, 2025

Happy Hour and Dessert in Capitol Hill

Happy Hour Street Tacos with Carne Asada and a Miami Vice from Poquitos. Poquitos is located in Capitol Hill and they're serving up authentic Mexican cuisine and cocktails. Their happy hour deal is a good one- during Ocho hour, everything on the happy hour menu is just $8! I went with a Miami Vice, a classic Pina Colada with Strawberry. This blended cocktail was so fruity and delicious. To eat I had two Carne Asada Street Tacos and a Birria Poquitos Burrito. The Burrito was small and served with a side of Consommé sauce. Both food items were tasty and satisfying. My husband also had some Street Tacos and a Margarita from the happy hour menu. My sons had a Cheese Quesadilla and beans and rice. Everyone enjoyed their dinner. I first visited Poquitos in 2012, also for happy hour, and I remembered liking it then, too. It was time for a meal there again. For dessert, we walked about ten minutes west to Voodoo Doughnut . The Seattle location opened late last ye...

Northern Oregon continues to dazzle us every time we visit. This year's scenic highlight was spotting a gorgeous double rainbow from our hotel balcony. We didn't know it was a double rainbow until we ran downstairs to the beach. The wind on the Seaside beach was something else. There was blue sky and a rainbow to the right and dark grey to the left towards Tillamook Rock. The scene was unexpected and I was able to get quite a few memorable landscape shots.

Almost every time we visit Astoria, we climb the Astoria Column. Not only is it good exercise, but the views are always worth the climb. This year, it was super windy at the top so I had to be careful with my camera. The fall colors were starting to get vibrant and I was able to capture some nice photos of the area from above.

One afternoon, we drove to Portland. The day was rainy and it seemed to get dark quickly. However, we happened to park across the street from the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. Built in 1928, the theater is also called the Paramount Theater. The sign is famous around town, and I was finally able to get a photograph of it.

On our drive home to Seattle, the sky was grey and there was lowland fog. This just made those green Oregon trees pop even more. We pulled up to a convenience store about an hour south of Astoria, and I jumped out of the car to get a shot.

There's not many places as rustic and full of natural beauty like Oregon. I look forward to returning someday and capturing more of its beauty.