Week of October 29, 2023 | View the Map
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Monday
We are now in Portland, Oregon. You are all probably wondering how/why we are in Portland, Oregon. Here is the shortened version of the story. We received a text saying:
Hey Guys! I am doing well in a city that Lewis and Clark visited towards the end of their journey. I just visited Mt. Hood. I am ENJOYING my break from DC. Please tell the government that I am fine; there is no need to worry. But I am not working on their project right now.
So, since I am pretty familiar with Lewis and Clark's famous expedition, I knew that we had to head to Portland since he mentioned Mt. Hood. Did you ever hear of Mt. Hood? It is actually a volcano (currently dormant, but it could become active again). I hope we get to visit! So that is how we ended up in this unique city, often called the "greenest" city in the US? What do you think it means if a city is "green?" I wonder if Phoenix is green. Do you think the city that you live in is green?
I have never been here before and am SO excited to explore! We have traveled ENTIRELY across the United States. Washington, DC, is on the East Coast (closer to the Atlantic Ocean), while Portland, Oregon, is on the West Coast (closer to the Pacific Ocean). We took an airplane from Washington-Dulles Airport. It was a straight flight, but a LONG flight. When you have a minute, take a look at the map of the United States. Can you figure out which cardinal direction we traveled from DC to Portland, Oregon? Can you figure out how many miles it is to travel from DC to Oregon? (Hint: use the map scale). We are now in another time zone: Pacific. The Pacific time zone is 3-hours behind DC. Right now, in Portland, it is 7 p.m., and in DC, it is 10 p.m. already. No wonder I am starting to get tired.
Hey Guys! I am doing well in a city that Lewis and Clark visited towards the end of their journey. I just visited Mt. Hood. I am ENJOYING my break from DC. Please tell the government that I am fine; there is no need to worry. But I am not working on their project right now.
So, since I am pretty familiar with Lewis and Clark's famous expedition, I knew that we had to head to Portland since he mentioned Mt. Hood. Did you ever hear of Mt. Hood? It is actually a volcano (currently dormant, but it could become active again). I hope we get to visit! So that is how we ended up in this unique city, often called the "greenest" city in the US? What do you think it means if a city is "green?" I wonder if Phoenix is green. Do you think the city that you live in is green?
I have never been here before and am SO excited to explore! We have traveled ENTIRELY across the United States. Washington, DC, is on the East Coast (closer to the Atlantic Ocean), while Portland, Oregon, is on the West Coast (closer to the Pacific Ocean). We took an airplane from Washington-Dulles Airport. It was a straight flight, but a LONG flight. When you have a minute, take a look at the map of the United States. Can you figure out which cardinal direction we traveled from DC to Portland, Oregon? Can you figure out how many miles it is to travel from DC to Oregon? (Hint: use the map scale). We are now in another time zone: Pacific. The Pacific time zone is 3-hours behind DC. Right now, in Portland, it is 7 p.m., and in DC, it is 10 p.m. already. No wonder I am starting to get tired.
- Geo
Here is the view of the city of Portland, as we landed.
Up in the clouds!
A beautiful waterfall we saw driving to our hotel.
Map of the United States
Which cardinal direction did we travel going from Washington, D.C. to Portland, Oregon? Can you figure out how many miles it is to travel from DC to Oregon (hint: use the map scale).
Monday Night
We got another text from Pandora:
Hey guys, guess who??? I can't believe you are on the West Coast. Seriously, why didn't I get invited? I AM 13 years old! I am not a child anymore. Oh well, whatever. I told mom and dad that I found your blog. I was given some "direct" instruction that if I left this house, I would be grounded until the New Year (which doesn't sound fun to me).
PS I have one question for Geo: How many time zones are there in the USA? Pandora
Little sisters!!! Anyway, Pandora, to answer your question: in the continental United States (not including Alaska and Hawaii), there are four time zones: Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific. If you include Alaska and Hawaii, there are additional time zones (called Alaskan Time Zone and Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone). I posted a link with a map of the time zones to help you visualize where one time zone ends and another begins.
Hey guys, guess who??? I can't believe you are on the West Coast. Seriously, why didn't I get invited? I AM 13 years old! I am not a child anymore. Oh well, whatever. I told mom and dad that I found your blog. I was given some "direct" instruction that if I left this house, I would be grounded until the New Year (which doesn't sound fun to me).
PS I have one question for Geo: How many time zones are there in the USA? Pandora
Little sisters!!! Anyway, Pandora, to answer your question: in the continental United States (not including Alaska and Hawaii), there are four time zones: Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific. If you include Alaska and Hawaii, there are additional time zones (called Alaskan Time Zone and Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone). I posted a link with a map of the time zones to help you visualize where one time zone ends and another begins.
- Geo
Pandora (and other readers) - here is a photo of a mansion we saw today. We didn't get to go inside.
This picture shows the beautiful sunset we saw tonight!
Map of United States Time Zones
Check out this map of the United States time zones. Did you notice that part of Alaska (the Aleutian Islands) and Hawaii are in the SAME time zone?
Here is more information about time zones
Tuesday
Holy Idaho! Yesterday Geo and I went out to explore the city. During the day, we visited all of the local large hotels in Portland (not easy, considering how many hotels there are). We got through about fifteen total - NO LUCK. Once we got frustrated (and tired), we went back to our hotel room to investigate Portland and the case of the missing mapmaker by phone and laptop. We called a few hotels, but it was hard to give a description since Louie really just looks like your average guy (tall, with dark hair, dark eyes, and an average build). A few thought they might have seen someone with that description, but none of the hotels had people staying there (fitting our description) who didn't have a family with them. We were led to believe that Louie was alone, so we didn't investigate any of these leads.
Today, I found out the most fascinating fact about Portland. You might not realize this, but I have a thing for roses. I LOVE THEM! You see, Portland is located in the Marine west coast climate region. This region has warm and dry summers and rainy, temperate winters. Do you remember what temperate means? Spring is unpredictable: warm weather, thunderstorms, and rain. The average rainfall is 37.5 inches per year! Portland averages 155 days of rain each year. Holy Idaho! That is nearly half of the days! This climate is perfect for growing......ROSES. In fact, Portland has been called "The City of Roses" because of the many rose gardens. And yes, I did make Geo go visit the beautiful gardens; I think he secretly liked them almost as much as I did. Plus, it was fresh air and easy to socially distance ourselves from others. While we were out, we mainly traveled on either the MAX Light Rail or the ultra-cool Portland Aerial Tram. We posted links and pictures; check them out! Do you think these could have anything to do with Portland being called a "green" city?
Today, I found out the most fascinating fact about Portland. You might not realize this, but I have a thing for roses. I LOVE THEM! You see, Portland is located in the Marine west coast climate region. This region has warm and dry summers and rainy, temperate winters. Do you remember what temperate means? Spring is unpredictable: warm weather, thunderstorms, and rain. The average rainfall is 37.5 inches per year! Portland averages 155 days of rain each year. Holy Idaho! That is nearly half of the days! This climate is perfect for growing......ROSES. In fact, Portland has been called "The City of Roses" because of the many rose gardens. And yes, I did make Geo go visit the beautiful gardens; I think he secretly liked them almost as much as I did. Plus, it was fresh air and easy to socially distance ourselves from others. While we were out, we mainly traveled on either the MAX Light Rail or the ultra-cool Portland Aerial Tram. We posted links and pictures; check them out! Do you think these could have anything to do with Portland being called a "green" city?
- Meri
The entrance to the BEAUTIFUL rose garden. Holy Idaho!
Another beautiful rose garden.
Here is a photo of the city taken today. Do you see the tower in the background?
MAX (Metroplitan Area Express)
Learn more about the MAX in Portland.
YouTube Video of the Portland Aerial Tram
Take a virtual trip on the Portland Aerial Tram.
Wednesday
We have been searching and searching for Louie. Did you know that Portland has volcanoes? Holy Idaho! There is the Boring Lava Field (with Mount Tabor) and Mount Hood. I included some links about the Ring of Fire: over 400 volcanoes circling around the Pacific Ocean.
Although we had an amazing day, there was no sign of Louie. I wish his email would have been more specific.
Although we had an amazing day, there was no sign of Louie. I wish his email would have been more specific.
- Meri
The amazing mountains of Portland!
Check out this cliff and the waterfront - beautiful!
Here is a unique bridge that we saw today.
Map of the Ring of Fire
Check out this map to see all of the volcanoes in the Ring of Fire!
Thursday
Holy Idaho! Guess where we are going now? Here is a clue - it is a state in the USA, connected only to Canada, not to the mainland of the United States. Any ideas yet? If you guessed Alaska, you are truly geographical geniuses! We are heading to Alaska because Louie is scheduled to speak at a town meeting in Utqiagvik, Alaska. This city was named Barrow until 2016. How cool is that? I have never heard of Barrow or Utqiagvik, have you? Why do you think they changed their name? Why is this place so famous? We found an article about the name change and added it to our blog.
- Meri
A beautiful garden/park area that we visited today.
One final picture of Portland. We loved this city! Hope to make it back someday.
Houston Public Media
Read about the name change in Barrow, Alaska in 2016.
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