Enjoy live music, sand sculpture demos, award-winning wines and, of course, seafood. (It’s Dungeness Crab season, so expect a fair number of our pincer-clawed friends to be on display… on plates, of course!)

Cost – $12 Adults, $10 Seniors and kids, children under five get in free. $.50 of every ticket goes directly to the Oregon Chapter of the National MS Society. So you can do good by eating well this weekend.

The Guardian didn’t rank their top five locations with a number… but we here are pretty sure that the article leads off with little ol’ Portland for a reason. (We’re #1!! We’re #1!!)

The Guardian gave us props for having the most microbreweries of any other city, our great public transit and support of bike paths, and for our great food scene! Thanks for the mad props! And yes… it is the greatest!

Well… even if we don’t necessarily agree with the rankings (really?!? Salt Lake City at #1?!), it’s nice to get the mention. Especially considering that Portland did not even make the list in 2011.

DRAFT magazine named six of Portland’s beer bars in the US’ top 100 this week, including some of our downtown favorites we like to feature in our “Beervana Tour“.

See the link to the full story here:

http://draftmag.com/new/feature/americas-100-best-beer-bars-2012/

The Festival features over 100 brand-new works by local playwrights in dozens of venues and represents a great opportunity to get a sneak peak at work that may well grace local, regional, and even national stages in coming years. Names of playwrights, actors and venues range from the familiar to the hoping-to-break-through variety, giving Portlanders a chance to see the evolution of local talent in its earliest, often most experimental stages.

Productions range from one-offs to full runs, from fully staged to concert-style readings, from shorts and one-acts to full-length productions. See the full calendar of productions here.  And get a sneaky-sneaky early-early preview of top one-liners from the shows here.

Is it expensive? Come on, this is Portland. Many shows are $5-10 or pay-what-you-will, and you can buy a festival pass to see as many shows as you can fit in your schedule for a mere $50. That’s less than some plays cost per seat the rest of the year.

Oh, and if you see a few familiar faces on stage now and again, you’re not imagining things. Many of our fabulous Resident Experts dabble in the creative performing arts and will be participating in the festival.

And chances are good that if you do, you live in Portland.

According to Sustainable Oregon Business, Portland ranks #3 in the nation in its percentage of Super-Greenies – 11%, compared to a national average of 5%.

(The top two in the study were San Francisco at 17 percent and Seattle with 13 percent).

How about we make a city-wide New Year’s resolution to come in first next year?

Here’s a quick list of activities – for starters – that make one “green.” If you can do ten or more (and please, think of more!), you’re a “Super Greenie.”

• Commute by bus, rail, bike or foot.
• Combine trips to markets, movies, etc. when you do have to go by car.
• Carpool.
• Recycle.
• Eat local, fresh, and organic.
• Use recycled paper.
• Print on both sides – re-use your paper.
• Use low-wattage light bulbs.
• Install a programmable thermostat that reduces the heat while you’re not at home, and at night. (Cuddling and blankets work great!)
• Turn off the heat (close vents, etc) to unused rooms in the house.
• Use Energy-Star appliances.
• Add insulation to your home.
• Grow your own vegetables.
• Buy green products – those without chemicals, pesticides, and excess packaging.
• Volunteer to do local cleanup.
• Walk more.

• Walk a lot more, and not just to get somewhere, but to really see and enjoy the  beautiful city around us. And, oh yeah… for exercise.
• Forget eating in moderation… we’re going to indulge. But when we do, we’ree going to eat fresh  and local. The best, most delicious produce, meats and dairy are fresh, local, organic, seasonal and sustainable, and that’s what belongs on our plate.
• Drink in moderation… most of the time… but again, when we do, it will be local. The world’s finest beer, wine, and of course coffee are all produced right here in Portland. We want to support that.
• Explore the city. We’re going to learn something new about it, if not every day then at least on a regular basis. We’ll share what we learn here, so check back now and again… and who knows, maybe it’ll turn into something new and tour-worthy.
• Celebrate. Portland’s a great place to live, with fascinating, diverse opportunities to live fully every day. We’re going to give credit to our city and our local heroes who make it so.

We hope you’ll join us in these five resolutions. Imagine if everyone here did – what an amazing city we’d have.

Oh, yeah… we do.

There’s only one thing to do:  gift certificates.

Why not give the gift of the city? (AKA, a gift certificate from Portland Walking Tours.)

Give your sweetie an even sweeter experience with a Chocolate Decadence tour. The culinary master in your life will love our Epicurean Excursion.

You know that person who always sees the best in everyone? Clearly they’d love the Best of Portland Walking Tour. Those that prefer hilarious stories of Portland’s seedier side might prefer an Underground Portland tour, or even a walk on the paranormal-side with a Beyond Bizarre tour.

Gift certificates are available for a specific tour – or, if you want to let your lucky recipient choose, for a dollar amount. Gift certificates come customized addressed to the recipient with the name of the gifter and greeting. Gift certificates are emailed to you as a pdf file for you to either print off, or sent as an email attachment.

Best of all, they’re fast! Our gift certificates are processed that same day and you’ll get them within 24 hours by email. Truly the gift of all gifts to the most enthusiastic Festival of the Last Minute-men (and women) among us!

Gift certificates can be ordered easy and fast from our website: http://www.portlandwalkingtours.com/gift_certificates/

Happy holidays & Happy New Year from everyone here at Portland Walking Tours!

Happy holidays & a Happy New Year from everyone here at Portland Walking Tours!

Peacock Lane is a festival of lights put on every December by residents of the strip formerly known as SE 40th Ave between SE Stark St. and SE Belmont St.

Neighbors on this street put on an amazing celebration of the season by decorating their houses and front yards with elaborate and varied displays of Christmas lights, each as unique as the residents of the homes themselves.

The best way to see the display is on foot. And for the first two evenings – December 15 and 16 – it’s the only way to see it, as cars are not allowed on Peacock Lane from 6-11 PM either night.

The second-best thing about this event is that it’s FREE.

The best… well, that you’ll have to see for yourself.

We think you ought to consider downtown, for five reasons:

1. Convenience

So many stores, so little time… but having all those stores close together SAVES you time – a must-have commodity if you hope to get your shopping done on time. Plus if you work downtown, you can get started right at 5:00 (or 4:45 if the boss sneaks out early too!).

2.  Variety

The variety of stores downtown is unmatched anywhere else. Whether you’re buying toys, books, music, clothes or novelties, the array of choices can’t be beat.

3. Parking

Yes, you’re reading that right. Parking is cheap and easy with vendors stamping your parking garage tickets in thanks for your purchase. Spread the love around to different stores and get your whole day paid for!

4. No sales tax!

(This one’s aimed at you folks from the proud city of America’s Vancouver and environs… ya know, over the river and through the woods and all that…)

5. Places to take a break

Even the hard core need to get off their feet every so often. Downtown offers a myriad of places to get a warm cup of coffee or drinking chocolate, a bite to eat, even a movie if you finish ahead of your shopping companions (and guys, we know who we mean).

Assuming you ARE watching our beloved U of O win the first-ever PAC-12 Conference championship somewhere other than in Autzen Stadium in Eugene, OR tonight, where will you be?

If you don’t know yet, here are some local watering holes that love them some Ducks:

• A&L Saloon, 5933 NE Glisan St. Lots of TV’s around the room, including some big ones, and great micros and pub grub.
• On Deck, 910 NW 14th, in the heart of the Pearl, is running happy hour until 5:00 PM. Get there early for good seats and great deals before kickoff.
• Claudia’s, 3006 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd, has a giant HDTV in front and lots of smaller sets around the bar, and billiards in the next room to keep you occupied at halftime.
• Skybox Pub & Grill, 7981 SE Milwaukie Ave, has over 20 TV’s and great happy hour specials. Perfect for those in the Sellwood end of things.
• Macadams Bar and Grill, 5833 SW Macadam Ave., has carried every Ducks and Beavers game all year. Loyal fans love this place.
• McCormick & Schmick’s Grill’s (17015 S.W. 72nd Ave., Tigard) 100-inch TV screen is worth a trip, even if they do support that blue-turf team all season long.
• Brickhouse Pizzeria, 6744 N.E. Sandy Blvd, goes one better with a 122-inch TV and great brick-oven pizza.

Kickoff’s at 5:00-ish. Look for us in the stands… we’ll be the ones wearing green and gold.

You can find out more about the featured brewers and other Holiday Ale Festival events at the official web site:  holidayale.com

We thought we’d itemize a few of our favorite things about this city. Really there are too many to mention them all, but here are the ones we think make Portland a truly remarkable place – a place where people want to come visit (or live) and, of course, take tours.

• Portland’s history, in particular the story about how Portland was named. We never tire of telling that one – and people never tire of hearing it.
• The second largest hammered copper statue in the U.S. … our hidden beauty.
• Pioneer Courthouse Square
• Portland’s amazing collection of public art, free for viewing any time
• The variety of architecture – and all of the history it implies
• The sustainable practices lived daily by our residents and businesses. It keeps us green and clean… just the way we like it.
• Waterfront Park & the Vera Katz Esplanade
• A great transit system
• Washington Park, particularly the Rose Gardens, the Japanese Gardens, and the Oregon Zoo
• The legends of Underground Portland
• The 24-hour Church of Elvis
• Fresh, local, organic, sustainable, seasonal food
• Chocolate… mmm….

Read that again. That’s not just the Pacific Northwest, the US, or English-speaking western countries. The World.

Which means:  not only do we Portlanders read a lot, but we write a lot, too. And we’re supportive of our local writers.

We’re thankful to be part of a community that values literary arts and education, and is home to nationally-renowned institutions like Powell’s, the Willamette Writers Group (largest writers association in the Pacific Northwest), the Wordstock Festival of Books, JAW, and the Fertile Ground Festival of New Works.

Keep reading and writing, folks!

One of the reasons we live in a strong, free society is that many of our nation’s men and women have made incredible sacrifices to keep us safe from threats abroad. In particular, Oregon’s National Guard units have been among the most active in the nation in our current conflagrations in the Middle East. Even as the President issues orders to bring troops home from Iraq, that does not end the sacrifices they and their families make.

We make no comment on the politics of the situation. But to the men and women who have served, we say:  Thank you.

If you’re interested in doing more for our service men and women overseas, consider incorporating it into your holiday event plans. Call us to ask us about Operation Care Kit, offered by our affiliate Run Brain Run… and show your thanks in a very personal way.

Bankers Life & Casualty Company, which specializes in insurance for seniors, gathered a panel of experts on gerontology and senior issues to determine which U.S. cities offer the best quality of life for older adults.

Minneapolis tops the list for best cities for senior living, with Boston, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Denver rounding out the top five. Portland ranks at #8.

Here at Portland Walking Tours, we’re especially thankful for Portland’s wonderful chocolate scene, a hidden gem that we too often overlook. We have chocolatiers, confectioners, and even chocolate makers in our city now. We have artisans who turn chocolate into drinks, bars, truffles, baked goods, frozen delights, even decorations almost (almost!) too beautiful to eat.

We’re so thankful, in fact, that we want to do our part to make it more available to you. That’s why we’re running specials right now on our Chocolate Decadence Tour. It’s $10 off right now! We don’t know how long we can hold this special price, but we’ll do the best we can.

And… thank you.

If you want to experience local food and drink in a less crowded and more sedate setting then you might think about joining our Epicurean Excursion. Our tours are limited to just 16 people, so get your tickets early! And if you want to make a full day of it, our morning Epicurean tour starts at 10:00 a.m. and ends with plenty of time to make to Memorial Coliseum for the start of the festival.

If you don’t get your fill of ghosts and goblins on Halloween night… come join us for one of our Beyond Bizarre tours this week. We’ll be running special additional tours in November!

Eventseeker.com named Beyond Bizarre the #2 Ghost Tour of the Pacific and Southwest region, behind a bus tour in Las Vegas. Which, if you think about it, makes us the #1 <em>walking</em> ghost tour, right?

And, frugal Portlanders, get this:  Beyond Bizarre costs less than half of Tinseltown’s tour. What a bargain!

In case you haven’t tried this tour at Halloween time, there are still a few slots open for this weekend’s daily tours at the time of this writing. But even if you can’t make it before the johnny-come-lately ghosts and goblins (aka Bandwagon-riding spooks) retire for the season, don’t worry. We run Beyond Bizarre year-round on weekends. Cuz Portland’s that kind of wacky, spooky town – all the time, not just at the end of October.

Thanks to EventSeekr.com for the recognition… not that we do this just for the fame and glory and all… but it sure is sweet when it happens.

According to a survey compiled by OkCupid posted on Time’s Newsfeed, Portland, Oregon; tops the list of oversexed cities. Across the U.S., Portland has the most promiscuous residents beating out Seattle, Pittsburgh, and even Miami and San Francisco.

Hey what else can you say? Keep Portland Weird right.