First Friday Art Walk

Friday night found us wandering around Portland for the First Friday Art Walk.  According to the website it is a “ free self-guided tour of local art galleries, art studios, museums, and alternative art venues on the First Friday of every month from 5-8 pm.  OUR MISSION is to open the doors of Portland's visual arts community by joining together and introducing a wider audience to the unique vitality of the artists and venues of Portland. Promoting interest with non-exclusivity and easy access, thereby strengthening the arts and community through diversity and celebration.”

I had resisted doing this in the past with Alec because I think art galleries and Alec mixed together could end up with me spending thousands of dollars on art that Alec has added his own personal touch to . Yikes.  The good news is that the walk was so much more than that. There were so many street vendors and small bands playing that make it so cool. Our family favorite was the African drums. Very cool. 

We took this opportunity to wander around town and check out the sites. Some big Library of Congress truck was in town. We checked that out too.  I am still not sure what the details are with this.

 

We had some dinner.

And did some shopping.

And chuckled at a sign….because, well, this is pretty funny.

While Erik walked in the restaurant to get a menu Alec stood outside and complained about the smell.  Guess Erik will be going to the Thirsty Pig sans the child and wife. Alec might not be a fan of the pig either…just like his momma.

It was getting late and a little chilly so we got Alec his first Starbucks hot chocolate.  Did you know you can order anything from them at ‘kids temperature’? Drinkable immediately. Very cool. (ha!)

And with that we left. Several hours in-town was enough culture to last us for a while. We wouldn’t want to get too cultured now would we?