It was a simple hand-written sign on a stand on the sidewalk that caught our attention. It read, “Hot tea and AC. Oh Yeah. Upstairs,” with an arrow pointing the way up through the doors of a townhouse. My wife and I were on the second day of our honeymoon and were just out and about in the city on a sunny, pleasant afternoon, wandering where we would along the streets, stopping to check out anything that looked interesting. We decided to pay heed to the sign and see what was inside.
At the top of the stairs we pushed through the door and found ourselves in a place called Tea Chai Te, a really neat little tea bar that offers over eighty varieties of tea from all over the world. On the wall before us was the tea menu and below that on a table was a wooden rack with alcoves containing small urns that were each filled with a different sample of tea and labeled with its name.
We spent a good amount of time at the rack, slowly going from urn to urn, smelling each sample and reading from a little booklet which divided the teas by type(Green, Black, Oolong, etc.) and gave very thorough descriptions of the countries of origin, the flavors and the properties of each variety. We made our selection, placed the order and found a place to sit and wait.
The interior of Tea Chai Te is set up in such a way as to promote relaxation and conversation with music from a diverse assortment of artists drifting down from speakers in the ceiling, posters and artwork hung here and there on the walls, chairs and couches arranged in a haphazard fashion and low tables strewn with various books and magazines.
We picked up our order and sat back down to chill out and enjoy the wonderful beverages and atmosphere. The place also sells tea-making accessories and after we finished our drinks we bought a small, ceramic teapot and an infuser that would fit inside it. We also purchased some gifts for family and friends back home.
Back outside we returned to our rental car to go in search of a Portland landmark, the famous Powell's City of Books. After wending our way through the streets and actually driving past the place a few times trying to find a way to turn and go back to it we finally swung back around to pull into the store's parking garage. Yes, Powell's City of Books has its own parking garage and the store itself spans an entire city block and occupies nearly all the real estate at all four corners.
We deposited our keys with the attendant and went inside to discover that the place was even larger inside than can be gleaned from a view from the street. Powell's boasts that it has any and every book one might be looking for. The store is supported by literally dozens of warehouses located all across Portland, some open to the public, some not. If it should come to pass that a particular item is not available in-house, then a call will placed to one of these warehouses and the sought item will be sent over.
We spent a long while among the shelves, going from floor to floor and back again until we ended in the in-store café, sipping more tea and perusing our finds; another pleasing and relaxing experience.
It was early evening when we decided to drive back over to the area where we'd come across Tea Chai Te. As before, we left the car and just strolled around. After a short while we heard music drifting over to us and followed the sound. It led us to a small park in the middle of a neighborhood where a band was performing retro rock, blues and funk.
The show had drawn quite a crowd and we decided to join them, sitting right down on the grass to listen. We never out the name of the band but they were very good. The sun was dipping below the horizon and we went in search of a place to have dinner.
Again, our wandering brought us to somewhere interesting, a Vietnamese restaurant called Pho Van in the downtown area. Though they were very busy we were able to get right in. The atmosphere and the food were both excellent. It was dark by the time we came out and headed back up toward the quiet neighborhood where we'd left the rental car.
This is just a random sampling of one day out of the week we spent in Portland. But every day there was the same, serendipitous. We'd both wanted to see the Pacific Northwest since we were in our teens and when we finally made it out there it was everything we'd hoped it would be and more.
