I promised more about Portland, and here it is. Portlanders are proud of their city's bridges, and with good reason. At least one of them, the Steel Bridge, is a genuine work of art.
Unfortunately it would take film rather than still photography to capture the way the perspective morphs as you approach this thing. Coming on to it, the whole structure seems to animate before your eyes. Architects take note: naked steel girders are aesthetically pleasing. Witness the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Portland is one of those cities that provokes artists to have utopian dreams. My own vision for the city is one of downtown Steampunk (above), combined with suburban Craftsman houses, Chinese gardens, hippie breweries, and high tech enclaves ...all mixed with that unique Northwest flavor that's the envy of everyone who's seen it. Rather than one style I picture the town as a marvelous platypus of all the town's historical influences.
Now, on another subject, I'll ask if anyone out there recognizes this building, above.
Right! It's the Timberline Ski Lodge on Mount Hood (above)! Exteriors of this resort were used in the film, "The Shining." I and my posse spent a few hours there.
After the movie came out the resort was inundated with guests who wanted to recreate scenes from the movie. According to the net, the hotel resisted at first then did a turnabout and got in on the act. Now you can even be married there "Shining Style" with the hotel's assistance.
Guests bring their own tricycles and evil twin costumes.
Holy Mackerel! Does the house provide the axe? If so,
that's service!
The hotel architecture is an attraction all by itself. Everywhere there's massive, thick timber. You feel like you've stumbled into Paul Bunyan's house.
The lobby ceiling is to die for. As time goes by I'm more and more convinced that ceilings are the most important factor in a room.
And the furniture...it's one of a kind. The hotel was built by skilled WPA workers during the Depression.
No building of this type would be complete without a portrait of the intrepid founder, and here it is. I wish I had a poster-size copy of this for my wall at home.
Of course the main attraction is Mount Hood, seen here from the vantage point of a comfortable sofa in front of a window. There's the ski lift on the left. If it's hard to see, click to enlarge.
