Portland Rose Garden

Portland's Rose Festival is in full swing. It's a great time to visit the International Rose Test Garden located in Portland's Washington Park. See for yourself!

 

Hunting for mushrooms

It's morel season! At least it was two weeks ago when a friend of Rachel's came back with these:

We went out last weekend to the same area hoping to find more of the precious treasures. It was a bright sunny day with a rare view of Mt. Hood.

Wind surfers on the Columbia river with Mt. Hood in the background

 As we neared the target area near the base of Mt. Adams, we found plenty of flowers

Fairy slipper orchid

Huckleberry

Don't know the name of this one

 But we found no mushrooms. :-( 

We came home empty handed, but with lovely memories of a fine hike.

Rachel and Philippe with Mt. Adams in the background

My new habitat

I've left behind the sights, sounds and tastes of Paris in exchange for a much quieter existence in Portland, Oregon.   I am now spending my days reading, writing, and cycling in my new neighborhood near the Willamette River - enjoying the sights and sounds of nature.

Sellwood riverfront park

Springwater corridor bike trail - a 40 mile loop

Houseboats and sailboat on the Willamette River

Portland skyline seen from the Willamette

 

Heron in the Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge

I've also seen a family of bald eagles. Too bad the eagles are hard to photograph in flight.

Portland Japanese Garden

A perfect place to meditate on my decision to leave Paris and to return to the U.S.

Sunday bike ride

Cool temperatures and menacing clouds didn't prevent us from taking our Sunday afternoon bike ride along the Seine.

But several minutes later we had to take refuge under a bridge during a cloudburst. Brrrr!

Oysters

This rainy Saturday morning we went the rue de Lévis to pick up some oysters and to chat with Frédéric Dubourg, son of my dear friend Francis, owner of la Cabane à Huitres. Francis has been battling cancer for the last 18 months and has not been well enough to leave his home on the Arcachon basin near Bordeaux. Business at the Cabane has suffered in his absence, as Francis is the heart and soul of the tiny place.

However, the oysters are still delicious, and Francis' son Frédéric makes the trip from Arcachon to Paris each week to sell oysters in the rue de Lévis market on Saturdays and Sundays.

Most people buy the tasty mollusks to take home, but Frederic also has a faithful group of clients who come each Saturday at 1PM equipped with bottles of Muscadet to sit and chat while enjoying a plateau of the briny treasures accompanied by several glasses of wine.

I was lucky enough to visit the oyster beds where these are grown. You can read more about that adventure here.

Springtime in Paris

Winter in Paris passed without a single snowflake and now an early spring and unseasonably warm temperatures have Parisians out enjoying the sunshine.

Sorry to hear that my friends who live in Calgary are still buried in the snow.