Neighborhood: North Portland
Cost: Free
Website: Peninsula Park & Rose Garden
I am not a flower person. I don't have much appreciation for landscaping and I really can't stand gardening, much to the dismay of my green-thumbed mom. She has a plant passion that apparently skipped my genes, but that didn't stop her from trying to spark an interest by asking Little Stacy for "help" whenever springtime came around. I responded with severe disinterest, instead looking for worms and then finding any excuse to leave. That being said, when in Rome... look at flowers? Portland has a plethora of gardens and it took me two years of residence before making a concerted effort to hang out in one. My advice to people who don't fit in here: RUN. Run to the gardens! Bring a blanket, a book, and some brunch, and bask in the glory of colors and smells you're not normally surrounded with.
My favorite is Peninsula Park, a rose garden located on Albina and Ainsworth in North Portland. The main attraction for me is that it's huge, but not nearly as crowded as the International Rose Test Garden. Misanthropists can find a (relatively) secluded spot to enjoy the seriously intoxicating aromas free from babies and runaway baseballs.
The rose garden is set up in a sunken grid on the south side of the park, complete with grass walkways, adorable little shade trees, and a gazebo that's always occupied by practicing ballroom dancers. If you're actually into the flowers, there's also a massive chart at one of the garden entrances that explains exactly where each variety is planted. (Beyond the garden is a huge field with two baseball diamonds and a community center/pool. I generally don't venture to those areas, but people seem to like them.)
Portland became known as the "City of Roses" for two distinct reasons: First, twenty miles of streets were lined with roses for the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Celebration. Twelve years later, Jesse A. Currey got the city to house an official rose test garden, which spawned an influx of rose lovers and community flower groups. Peninsula Park is actually Portland's very first public rose garden, with the gazebo being used as a patriotic bandstand for World War I demonstrations in 1913 and the central fountain being in place for over 100 years.
This park is probably the most refreshing Portland space I can think to go to on a sunny day, whether it's with my best book friend or some real human beings and a picnic. Who knew a tomboy from Michigan would grow up to love the fairy tales of a flower garden so much?
