FALL VACATION 2011 – Tuesday, 10/4/11 - Portland Day 6

Our day begins with Fred returning a pair of shoes he doesn’t like – too hot for his feet.

From there we head for brunch at Wong’s King for Dim Sum.  We are big Dim Sum freaks and don’t often get an opportunity to indulge our craving.  We have heard from a few people that this is THE Dim Sum place to go in Portland.

It’s a large restaurant with a huge open space dining room and petite ladies in purple uniforms pushing shiny Dim Sum carts.  We start out slowly with a steam basket of shrimp and pork dumplings.  Superb.  My only problem is getting a bite of it and holding it in my chopsticks.  I really just barely get by with chopsticks.  


Our next selection is a plate of sesame balls.  I love them.  Fred takes one taste and gives me the rest.  From there we go to cilantro and shrimp dumplings, beef short ribs in pepper sauce, BBQ pork pie,  and we top it all off with little dainty custard cups.  All of this is washed down with a pot of green tea.

All in all we enjoy it but the experience is not as satisfying as the Jade Garden in Seattle.  For one thing, our friends Jack and Sarah are always with us and so that makes it much more fun.  And the Jade Garden has a lot more character.  The steam trays are bamboo and not metal and the little carts flow in a constant stream by our table.   Plus it's noisy and chaotic and oozing with my notion of authenticity. Here they sit off to the side and wait. 

If you like Dim Sum, the food is good.  The shrimp and pork dumplings are some of the best we have ever eaten.  But if you are looking for a more interesting experience, go to the Jade Garden in Seattle.

After brunch we drive to Mount Tabor Park.  This is a patch of greenery in the city that was once an active volcano.  We take a stroll to the top, take a few pictures and head to our next sight on our list of things to see.

This is The Grotto.  It is a Christian shrine built by a man who prayed to the Virgin Mary for his ailing mother to return to health and his prayers were answered.  This is one big Thank You card to the Virgin Mother.  The shrine is perched on a huge escarpment and visitors are carried to the top in a 110 foot high elevator shaft.  It is a truly serene experience walking the manicured paths.

We are hoping to squeeze in one last food cart on our last night in Portland, but it is Tuesday and most carts are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.  We finally find La Jarochita open on Stark Street and order some food to take home.  I order one of their tasty banana leaf wrapped tamales and Fred orders a couple tacos.  We are happy campers when we arrive back at the RV and dig into our dinner.

We read a little and call it a day. 

Lights out around 9:30.