Dave Knows Portland

Free Admission at Lan Su Chinese Garden (January 2-9, 2011)

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Lan Su Chinese GardenPortland’s Lan Su Chinese Garden (NW 3rd and Everett) is offering free admission for eight days from Sunday, January 2 through Sunday, January 9, 2011.

The garden shop expands into a garden pavilion to offer a dazzling display of Chinese New Year items in preparation for the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit on February 3.

Regular adult admission is $8.50, so this is a great deal! Heather and I visited the garden in spring with our friend Kate a couple years ago. Visiting in winter should be an interesting experience. We may have to take advantage of the tea house this time!

The Garden is closed on Saturday, January 1st, but regular hours, from 10am until 5pm, begin again on Sunday, January 2nd.

Pittock Mansion Holiday Ticket Giveaway 2010

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Update: We have our winners! Michael D. Barton, Kitty, and Didi!

Pittock MansionVisit the Pittock Mansion this holiday season to share in A Northwest Christmas: The Natural Beauty and Bounty of Oregon. The mansion has been transformed into a holiday wonderland. Festive decorations, ribbon, garland, poinsettias, and more than 15 Christmas trees delight visitors until January 2nd, 2011.

Anyone can visit of course. Admission is free for members, $9 for adults, $8 for seniors (65+), $6 for youth (ages 6 – 18), and free for children ages 5 and younger. The mansion is open every day from November 22 until January 2nd 2011, except for Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Hours daily are 11am until 4pm.

But how would you like to visit one of Portland’s most elegant historic homes during the holiday season for free?

Win a pair of admission tickets to the Pittock Mansion – I have three pairs to give away!

On Friday, December 17 2010 at 6am three randomly chosen commenters will win a pair of tickets!

As always, it’s super easy to enter – just tell us what you like about old houses in the comments below!

(Please use a real email address so that I can contact you if you win – no one else will see your email address, and I will not use it for anything else besides this contest to contact you if you win!)

Update: We have our winners! Michael D. Barton, Kitty, and Didi!

Photo credit: Cacophony (retouched by Tiptoety). Image used under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license.

The Hawthorne Bridge Turns 100

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Hawthorne BridgePortland’s Hawthorne Bridge, the oldest working vertical lift bridge in the country, officially opened on December 19, 1910.

In anticipation of the 100th anniversary, the organizers of the PDX Bridge Festival have assembled an exhibit: The Bridges That Build Portland, that highlights the first ferries and bridges that connected east and west Portland.

The exhibit can be viewed at the AIA Portland Center for Architecture (403 NW 11th) from December 2 through 14 2010 (hours are 9pm-5pm Monday through Friday). A special opening reception, takes place from 5-7pm on Thursday, December 2.

Via the the Hard Drive blog at OregonLive.com

Free Admission at Architectural Heritage Center in December 2010

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AHC Annual Juried Art ExhibitThe Architectural Heritage Center (701 SE Grand) is offering free admission for the entire month of December, 2010.

The Architectural Heritage Center’s mission is to preserve the historic character and livability of our built environment, and to promote sustainability through the re-use of period homes and buildings.

Owned and operated by the non-profit Bosco-Milligan Foundation, we empower people in the Portland region to preserve both landmark buildings and the regular vintage homes and storefronts that collectively define our neighborhoods, culture, history, and quality of life.

On exhibit until December 31 is the annual juried art exhibit, the theme of which for 2010 is Fostering Harmony: The Symbiotic Relationship of Architecture and Nature.

The center is hosting an artist reception this first Friday, December 3rd, from 6pm to 8:30pm, and other community conversation later this month, which are also all free and open to the public.

Visit the Pittock Mansion during the Holidays (2010)

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2011 Pittock Mansion holiday plans here!

Pittock Mansion Ready for the HolidaysThe Pittock Mansion has been closed the last few days as volunteers, designers, and local charities prepare it for the holidays. On November 22nd the public is invited in again to share in A Northwest Christmas: The Natural Beauty and Bounty of Oregon. The mansion will have been transformed into a holiday wonderland. Festive decorations, ribbon, garland, poinsettias, and more than 15 Christmas trees will fill the historic house.

Admission is free for members, $9 for adults, $8 for seniors (65+), $6 for youth (ages 6 – 18), and free for children ages 5 and younger.

The holiday display stays up until January 2nd. The mansion is open every day from November 22 until January 2nd 2011, except for Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Hours daily are 11am until 4pm.

Lots of people are enthusiastic about the holidays, so the Mansion can get pretty crazy. To help alleviate the crowding the park offers a free shuttle from December 18 through January 2. Park your car by PSU (or take the train or bus downtown) and head over to PSU Parking Garage #3 (entrance on SW 12th or 13 just south of Market Street). The shuttle bus will pick passengers up every hour from 11am until 3pm, return shuttles departing the mansion hourly from 11:30am until 4:30pm (if it’s snowy or icy, call ahead to make verify shuttle services!).