Monday, March 14, 2011 at 8:45PM
A few pictures from wandering around Portland lately:
First, proof that it does really rain a lot in Portland. This guy's yard is moss instead of grass.
Probably doesn't need to be mowed very often
Tuesday, March 1, 2011 at 11:21AM
Jennie G, of Not Just Kimchi, sent me another picture from Seoul, where the coffee culture is growing by leaps and bounds. I suppose you could say that coffee is making a big splash in the country, at least at this café.
A coffee-lover's dream
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 9:12PM
It's the first day of the month today, and you know what that means. . . . Tomorrow is the second.
Okay, that wasn't funny-I heard the groans. To make up for you having to put up with all of my bad jokes (and a few good ones), I want to try something. I'm going to give away a bag of coffee to the first person who can identify the café from the picture below. Call it the "It's the First of the Month and I Wanted to Post Something but I was Tired After Yesterday's Marathon Post so I Decided to Come up with Something to Keep You Interested Caffeinated PDX.com Coffee Giveaway Contest".
The coffee will be from a Portland-area roaster. It will probably be a 12oz bag, since most places seem to be reducing bag size rather their prices as the cost of green coffee shoots upward. I haven't picked the roaster or the coffee yet (sponsorship opportunity), but it will be a good one. I won't send you anything that is not fresh. However, if you live a long way from PDX, I can't guarantee that the coffee will be fresh by the time it gets to you. Then again, if you live a long way from PDX, you probably won't recognize the picture in the first place.
Each day, starting tomorrow and continuing until someone figures out the mystery, I will Tweet (I can't believe I just wrote that) a clue to help you. If you're not following me on Twitter, it might be a good time to start (obviously, I'm not above bribery). Click the button on the right sidebar to do that (it's the one with the blue bird). Good luck to all, and here goes nothing. . .
Recognize this?Oh yeah, one more thing. You should post your guesses in the comments section below. You get one guess per day. Please don't break that rule. If this goes over without too many problems, we may try something like it again next month.
Sunday, January 30, 2011 at 6:17PM
I spent most of the day on Friday at the Northwest Regional Barista Championship in Tacoma. Brandon Arends and I went up and worked as volunteers, and we had quite a trip. Portland was well-represented on the first day, with 10 of the 19 competitors coming from PDX. In between cleaning stations and busing tables, I managed to get a few action shots of Portland's finest. You will probably recognize some of them from some of your favorite cafés.
Unfortunately, I did not make it to Saturday's preliminaries or Sunday's finals, so I missed the five Portland baristas who competed on Saturday (including the eventual champion, Sam Purvis from Coava). I'll have more of a recap tomorrow.
Ashley Rauch, from Sterling Coffee Roasters, competing in her first Regional Barista Championship.
Kelly Kieft from Cellar Door Coffee Roasters
Kyle Salmi, Albina Press, waiting patiently for the judges
Marty Lopes, Barista. His boss, at far left, looks pretty nervous.
Ryan Wilbur of Stumpton put on quite a show. He ended up finishing second overall, by 0.5 points.
Ray Penrod of Public Domain was stylin'
Devin Chapman, Coava Coffee Roasters, explaining how the cherries and blood oranges blend well with his coffee. In addition to competing in the Barista Championship, Devin won the first-ever Regional Brewing Competition.
Jenny Dorsey, from Case Study Coffee, showed off her cider-making skills in addition to her barista skills.
Adam McGovern, from Sterling Coffee Roasters, holds court.
Thomas Surprenant, from Cellar Door, was the last competitor of day 1. His hops-infused espresso signature beverage was one highlight of the day.
Saturday, January 8, 2011 at 4:56PM
Sometimes, Portland just makes you chuckle.
Go Herbie go
Thursday, December 16, 2010 at 10:07AM
As someone who grew up in agriculture, I realize how little we know about some of the foods and drinks we consume. For me, it's always fun to find out where foods come from and how they are produced, so I thought I'd share with you some pictures that give you a better idea of how coffee travels from tree to cup.
Coffee trees growing in Panama. Photo by Gilian on Flickr.
The coffee tree produces a delicate white flower that has a jasmine or orange-like smell.
Coffee flowers in Indonesia. Photo by Deepak Bhatia on Flickr.
Sunday, October 3, 2010 at 9:09PM
Here are a few things I saw around town the last couple days.
The Hawthorne BridgeBetween the blue sky and the blue water, I couldn't resist taking a picture.
At PSUBattles with (foam-covered) medieval weaponry. A PSU physical education class, perhaps?
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 11:52PM
Some of you have asked me why people come to BLCU for a one-month (or longer) intensive Chinese language study. I’ve been meaning to write about the topic for a while—sorry for the delay. Here are some of my classmates’ stories (unfortunately, I didn’t have pictures of everyone).
The first student I want to introduce to you is Lee Dong-Deuk. Lee is a 53 year-old businessman from Seoul, South Korea. Twenty years ago, he started a business importing wall coverings into South Korea (the company’s website is here). Lee is taking a month off from the day to day operations of the company to come here and study. Lee has studied Chinese in Korea for the last two years with an online Chinese teacher. He is studying because he likes languages and also because he sees potential business opportunities in China. He knows that being able to speak Mandarin will help him build relationships and conduct negotiations with Chinese buyers and suppliers.
Lee
Friday, August 27, 2010 at 4:08PM
This post I dedicate to all my new friends, especially my Spanish friends—Silvia, Daniel, Luis, Susana and Konstantina (not quite Spanish, but close enough), os echo de menos.
One of the most difficult parts of coming to a place like BLCU for a month is that time goes by so quickly, and just when you are beginning to make good friends, you have to say farewell and go back to your own countries. At the end of each of the last several days, I have had to say goodbye to lots of new friends, wondering each time if it would be the last time I ever saw them. We always hope to meet again, but the truth is that you never know, so you wish each other the best in life, wherever it may take you.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010 at 12:59PM
A couple of Sundays ago, Antonella, Roberta and I visited the old summer palace. Many Americans (and others) come to Beijing and visit the new summer palace as part of the standard Beijing tour (as touristy as it is, the new summer palace is certainly something I recommend). Fewer go to visit the old one. If you come to Beijing and have time, the old summer palace is a nice place to visit. Just don’t do it on a Sunday afternoon.
Sunday, August 22, 2010 at 7:14AM
After raining all day yesterday, the sun came out in full force today. I was delighted to see that Beijing has a brilliant blue sky. I have never seen it like that here. It was amazing to see the transformation of the city. You could easily see for miles. When you live in Portland or Boston or Dayton, it’s hard to appreciate how well you can see. Imagine living in Portland and not being able to see anything east of the Willamette from Washington park. If Portland had Beijing-type air, some people might not even know that Mount Hood existed!
Given the fact that it was so beautiful outside, I had to take a walk. It would have been better for my test score tomorrow to stay in and study, but when the air is clear, don't waste it! Today’s wander was not that exciting, but it was good exercise. I headed east from the university along Qinghua East road for a few miles until I ran into the Olympic Park.
A spectacular day at Olympic Park
Saturday, August 21, 2010 at 6:06AM
On the second leg of our trip to Inner Mongolia, we went to Datong, in Shanxi province. Datong is a very important city in China because it is the center of a very large coal-producing region. The abundance of coal has allowed the city to prosper, and it was obvious while we were there that the small town of three million (small by China’s standards, at least) was changing fast. According to our guide, the Chinese government is worried that the coal in the region, which they have been mining for thousands of years (that’s what he said), is going to run out soon, so the city is trying to transition from a resource-based economy to a tourism-based economy. The city is razing huge swaths of the town in order to construct a massive stone wall that surrounds the city, in hopes that the spectacle will bring tourists in. We watched a set of excavators tearing apart a large, aging apartment complex and I expect that a set of new apartment buildings will replace it. All over the city, new high-rises were being built, and I could easily see why some economists are worried about a property bubble in China. Who is going to live in all of these massive, expensive new lodgings?
When we pulled up next to the hotel at Datong, I don’t know if I have ever seen a happier group of travelers. After sleeping poorly in a bunch of cold yurts, facing the stomach-wrenching odors of the filthy bathrooms, riding horses for two hours on the wind-blown prairie and spending four hours on a bus, seeing that we were going to stay at four-star hotel was the sweetest sight any of us could have asked for. All we wanted to do was grab a shower and take a rest before heading out for a group dinner of traditional hot pot. The shower was splendid and the bed was comfortable. Our bathroom even had a western toilet, still the only one I’ve seen since I arrived in China. It’s the small things in life that make it tolerable. . .
Happy travelers waiting for the bus in Datong
Friday, August 20, 2010 at 9:52AM
Today I want to take a short break from China to introduce you to the HFC—the Hutchens Family Circus. As some of you know I grew up on a farm near Dayton, in eastern Washington State. My father and my brother still farm there, and there are certainly times when I miss being there. Wheat harvest, happening right now, is one of those times.
We endearingly call ourselves the HFC because over the years we have been through many crazy undertakings and mishaps. Nothing illegal, mind you, but sometimes stuff happens. I have a long list of stories tucked away that will make a good book when I take the time to write them up. One of the latest HFC “performances” was so compelling that I had to write about it. It might be the best show that the HFC has ever put on. Unfortunately, I missed the whole thing. Maybe by writing up the story and sharing it with you, I can participate by extension.
Thursday, August 19, 2010 at 9:07AM
Someone asked me what my accommodations were like over here. They’re nothing extravagant. I live on the 14th (top) floor of Dormitory 1, where they put the scholarship students because they can charge more for the other, nicer dorms. For me, the location is great. I can sleep in until seven o’clock and still easily get to class on time.
My room is a double room, but I haven’t seen any clues that my roommate exists, other than the bicycle and clothes rack in the middle of the room. I did find a receipt dated July 19, one week before I arrived, so maybe he’s just traveling. Who knows? It’s good for me that he’s gone because I don’t sleep much here and would probably bother him when studying or writing at night. The room isn’t bad. The bed is a bit lumpy for my tastes, and the pillow more so. I have air conditioning for those days when it gets really hot outside, but most of the time I just leave the window open. The a/c dries out the air and gives me a cough.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at 4:52AM
Our trip to Inner Mongolia was an interesting adventure. I had thought we were going by train, but somehow I missed the memo that we were taking the bus instead. It was okay though. When you take the bus you still get to see the country (though you are much more susceptible to traffic jams).
We pulled out the south gate of the university on Friday at 12:50pm, only twenty minutes behind schedule—not bad for a group of about 45 people from all over the world. I sat in the middle seat of the back row so that I could take advantage of the leg room in the aisle (Travel tip: while this is a good strategy for short trips, on a long trip it is better to sit by the window. You have a better view for taking pictures, and it is easier to sleep).
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 7:17AM
There were a couple of interesting signs at the breakfast buffet the other day:
A better translation would probably be "crispy sausages". . . .
I couldn't figure out why they would translate the left one as "mushroom rape" until I got home and looked up the characters. The one on the left is referring to rapeseed, the brassica plant similar to collard greens. It was fried mushrooms and greens. I still haven't figured out the one on the right. . . .
Monday, August 16, 2010 at 9:40AM
I had planned to tell you today about our trip to Inner Mongolia, starting at the beginning of the trip. However, the trip home was so interesting that I wanted to tell it first.
On our trip up to Inner Mongolia, we had seen hundreds of trucks stopped on the freeway that leads to Beijing. Coming back to BLCU, our dear leader, hoping to avoid the traffic, instructed the driver to take a different route, one that cut through the mountains and would drop us right into Beijing. We would be able to avoid the traffic jam on the main road and save ourselves a couple hours road time. If only it were that simple.
Shortly after we left Datong, we pulled off at a small rest stop to use the bathroom. The guide told us it would be six hours before we stopped again, because along this back road there were not going any good places to stop (he was wrong, there were plenty of bushes along the road). This sounded a little ominous, but I didn’t worry too much about it. Driving tractor growing up had seasoned me for long periods of sitting. However, once we got back on the road, I quickly realized that we were in for a long day.
Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 6:32AM
LOMO LOVE
"Angeously waiting for a perfect arrive o..of you
Wonder L'm one of you when I first look in your eyes
Although beaury of love in my life with one lool come true
Said I ooh wuhwoo yes"
(Sorry about the focus on the picture)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at 6:13AM
When you go out wandering, sometimes you find hidden treasures, and sometimes you just get sore feet. Yesterday (Saturday), I got both.
My first adventure of the weekend was to walk from BLCU to Tiananmen Square. After checking Google maps to get a general idea of how to get there, I set out walking to see what I could find. One of my favorite ways to explore a city is on foot. When you forego the comfort of a taxi or even the subway, you get to see how people live, and you don’t just see the parts of the city that every other tourist sees. Of course, when you walk around in places that don’t get many tourists, you get lots of curious stares. Especially from small kids. In Beijing, some of the kids are not sure what to think when they see a tall, blondish foreigner strolling by. I think that while I was walking yesterday, I heard one shout “Look mom! A foreigner!” (Don’t quote me on that though, my Chinese isn’t that good yet. Just ask my listening comprehension teacher).
