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NW Ciderfest (10-11 October 2015)

October 6, 2015 by Dave Knows Leave a Comment

NW CiderFest 2015

The 2015 NW Ciderfest takes place at Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square on Saturday and Sunday, October 10-11.

Food carts and live music make the fest fun for all age – and even well behaved dogs are welcome! Hard ciders from over 30 local and regional cideries will be on hand for (21 and over) sampling.

The hours of the festival are 11 AM to 8 PM on Saturday, 11 AM to 6 PM on Sunday. Tickets are available at the front gate or online. The fest is a benefit for the Oregon and SW Washington Chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Visit the NW Ciderfest website and Facebook page for more details.

Portland Weekend Amusements (2-4 October 2015)

October 1, 2015 by Dave Knows Leave a Comment

Holy crap there’s lots of stuff to do this weekend: H.P. Lovecraft and the Portland Queer film festivals, Greek Festival, BikePortland’s birthday bash, Fresh Hops, cheese, and more!

All Weekend

Portland Greek Festival

Greek Festival 2015After six decades, The Greek Festival has become one of the largest festivals of its kind, sharing our Greek Orthodox faith and rich culture with over 15,000 guests annually. The festival is an iconic event in the Portland Metropolitan area and has been designated as an Oregon Heritage Tradition by the Oregon Heritage Commission. Each year a portion of proceeds from the festival go toward worthy philanthropic endeavors in the greater Portland community.

H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival

"H. P. Lovecraft, June 1934" by Lucius B. TruesdellThe 20th annual H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival returns to Northeast Portland’s Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy) from Friday, October 2 through Sunday, October 4, 2015.

This festival of cosmic horror and unnameable fear features author readings, filmmaker discussions, a raffle, and of course lots of films – both shorts and features. The H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival is the only festival that understands. Don’t miss the Arkham Bazaar for Lovecraftian Novelties to Other Weird Oddities.

Friday

BikePortland’s 10th Birthday Party

Bike PortlandCan you believe we made it this far? We have so much to celebrate.

19,600 posts, 306,000 comments, countless controversies, triumphs and tragedies, exhilarating rides and boring meetings… what a ride it has been!

Join us for our big 10th birthday bash where we’ll look back at an amazing decade and look forward to an even more amazinger decade to come.

Friday-Saturday

Portland Fresh Hops Beer Fest

Hops!12th Annual PORTLAND FRESH HOPS FEST
10.02.15 – Friday – 5:30-9:00pm
10.03.15 – Saturday – Noon-8pm
Oaks Amusement Park
7805 SE Oaks Park Way-Map
Portland, OR
Free Admission – Must purchase a glass to sample beer. #freshhops
$15/glass + 5 drink tickets.
$20/glass + 10 drink tickets
$40/two glasses + 20 drink tickets
21+ to drink – 1 person per glass – Cash only – Minors permitted on Saturday only till 5pm – Dogs on leashes as long as they behave.

Saturday

An Archives Month Celebration

Oregon Archives Month Celebration 2015Portland may be a foodie town, but it isn’t always food that feeds our hunger. If your head is hungry for some knowledge, let us fill it with Portland history! Do you have a craving to know where you can find maps of the city from the 1890s? Are you hankering to learn about the history of Portland’s Japantown? Do you have an appetite for local oral histories? Or does a sampling of strange, old medical tools interest you?

We have that and more waiting for you as we kick off Oregon Archives Month with a smorgasbord of Portland-area archives. Join us on Saturday, October 3rd from 11 AM to 3 PM at the Portland Archives and Records Center. Take a behind the scenes tour of the City’s archives and see history up close and personal.

The Wedge: Portland Celebrates Cheese

The WedgeTaste and Buy Artisan and Farmstead Cheese Direct from the Cheesemaker

The Wedge is a Farmers Market-style event, featuring cheese and foods/beverages that go well with it. Sample and purchase local, artisan cheese, specialty foods, beer, wine, and cider, take a class, snap a pic with our mascot, and try your hand at cheese wheel bowling!

Ongoing

Portland Queer Film Festival

Portland Queer Film FestivalThe 2015 Portland Queer Film Festival runs from October 2 – 8 at Cinema 21 (616 NW 21st Ave). This annual festival showcases feature, documentary and short queer films from all over the world.

The opening night film is Peter Greenaway’s Eisenstein in Guanajuato …

Walktober

WalktoberWalktober 2015, the greatest walking holiday of the year takes place in Portland throughout October.

“Walk anywhere, everywhere, for any reason, or for no reason at all. This is Walktober: walking fun October 6th through Halloween (the greatest walking holiday of the year).”

Inspired by Pedalpalooza, three weeks of bikey fun in Portland held every June, the Oregon Walks conceived Walktober to promote walking as a fun, healthy, ubiquitous activity in the Portland metro region.

Portland Weekend Amusements (25-27 September 2015)

September 24, 2015 by Dave Knows Leave a Comment

Oktoberfest season continues! This weekend get your bier at Oaks Park, ride your bike at the last Sunday Parkways of the year, watch a film on the river, juggle to your heart’s content, and amazingly – a lot more!

Friday – Sunday

Oaks Park Oktoberfest

Oaks Park OktoberfestThe 2015 Oaks Park Oktoberfest takes place Friday through Sunday, September 25 through 27.

Bier!Bier! Main sponsor Paulaner will be offering a festival lineup of Oktoberfest, Hefeweizen, Paulaner Salvator, and their Pilsner. Wine and non-alcoholic beverages will be available too.

Portland Juggling Festival and Vaudeville Extravaganza

Portland Juggling FestivalThe 2015 Portland Juggling Festival takes place 25 September through 27 September at the Reed College (3203 SE Woodstock Blvd) gym. The Juggling and Vaudeville Extravaganza takes place Saturday, 26 September the Reed College Kaul Auditorium.

One of the largest regional juggling festivals in the country, the festival provides a venue for jugglers from around the world to come together to share knowledge and hone skills in workshops and juggling sessions.

Saturday

Museum Day Live

Museum Day LiveThe Museum Day Live! ticket provides free admission for two people.

In the spirit of the Smithsonian Museums, which offer free admission every day, Museum Day Live! is an annual event hosted by Smithsonian magazine in which participating museums across the country open their doors to anyone presenting a Museum Day Live! ticket… for free.

Upriver: Outdoor screening at Sellwood Riverfront Park

Portland Ecofilm FestivalThe Portland EcoFilm Festival is proud to partner with Portland Parks and Recreation for the Portland premiere of UPRIVER, screening outdoors in the beautiful Sellwood Riverfront Park!

Home to roughly two-thirds of all Oregonians, the Willamette River system has endured a history of human use and abuse similar to most large river systems. UPRIVER, a locally-produced feature-length documentary, explores the recent movement of Oregonians from all walks of life to improve the health of the river and the diverse life it supports and provides a new look at what this river is, where it comes from, and where it’s going.

Sunday

Tilikum Crossing / Sellwood Portland Sunday Parkways

Sunday ParkwaysEnd the Sunday Parkways season big by exploring the new Tilikum Crossing Bridge of the People and the Sellwood area. This new route will include the Tilikum Crossing and circle the Sellwood area introducing participants to the Westmoreland, Sellwood Parks plus Brooklyn School Park where music, food, and fun are waiting.

Harvest Festival

OMSI Harvest Fest 2015Enjoy the bounty of Oregon while indulging in snacks, sweets, beer and music from the Pacific Northwest region! Learn about Oregon specialty crops from local farms, CSA’s, cooking demonstrations and artisan vendors. There’s fun for the whole family, including kids activities and live entertainment. Come celebrate the harvest season at OMSI!

Ongoing

Chapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2015

Swirling SwiftsIn September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts coalesce into a giant undulating swirl in Northwest Portland near Chapman School after spending the day eating bug. Around sunset the swirl gets more compact, like a ground pepper tornado, and begins disappearing, measure by measure, down the school’s huge old chimney. On the lawn below hundreds of mesmerized and picnic-sated Portlanders stare into the sky from the comfort of lawn chairs and blankets while their oblivious children roll down the grassy hill screaming. Cheers erupt from the crowd when the slippery swifts dodge the opportunistic Peregrine falcons, boos when the predators get lucky.

Portland Weekend Amusements (18-20 September 2015)

September 17, 2015 by Dave Knows Leave a Comment

Oktoberfest season – the best season of the year in my book – is in full swing. This weekend get your bier at Stammtisch and Kennedy School, and don’t miss the Polish Festival either!

Friday – Sunday

Stammtisch Oktoberfest

Stammtisch Oktoberfest 2015Portland German restaurant Stammtisch (401 NE 28th Ave) knows how to throw a party: A three day Oktoberfest block party (18 Friday through 20 Sunday 2015).

“Bust out your lederhosen and dirndls for what is always the best party of the year!”

Saturday-Sunday

Portland Polish Festival

Portland Polish FestivalThe 22nd annual Portland Polish Festival takes place Saturday and Sunday, 19-20 September 2015, between the Polish Hall (3832 N. Interstate Avenue) and the St. Stanislaus Church (3916 N. Interstate Avenue) on N. Interstate – right at the west end of the famous Failing Street pedestrian bridge.

My favorite Portland festival features non-stop music and dance performances, polka contests, and the can’t-miss Saturday night street dance featuring Chervona! Enjoy Polish food like pierogies, kielbasa, gołąbki (cabbage rolls), placki ziemniaczane (potato pancakes), and other delectable options – and of course delicious Polish beer! In the vendor village, check out the jewelry, clothing, Polish pottery, and sundries for sale.

Sunday

Kennedy School Oktoberfest

McMenaminsWhen you imagine Oktoberfest, what comes to mind? Beer, live music, more beer, bratwurst and hamburgers, and more—exactly how McMenamins pictures it.

One and all are welcome to participate! Begun as a wedding party for Germany’s Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese in 1810, today Oktoberfest is celebrated all over the world with music, singing, dancing, beer, food and revelry, so join in our fun. Get the cool event stamp for your Passport, too.

Ongoing

Chapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2015

Swirling SwiftsIn September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts coalesce into a giant undulating swirl in Northwest Portland near Chapman School after spending the day eating bug. Around sunset the swirl gets more compact, like a ground pepper tornado, and begins disappearing, measure by measure, down the school’s huge old chimney. On the lawn below hundreds of mesmerized and picnic-sated Portlanders stare into the sky from the comfort of lawn chairs and blankets while their oblivious children roll down the grassy hill screaming. Cheers erupt from the crowd when the slippery swifts dodge the opportunistic Peregrine falcons, boos when the predators get lucky.

Portland Polish Festival (19-20 September 2015)

September 15, 2015 by Dave Knows Leave a Comment

Portland Polish FestivalThe 22nd annual Portland Polish Festival takes place Saturday and Sunday, 19-20 September 2015, between the Polish Hall (3832 N. Interstate Avenue) and the St. Stanislaus Church (3916 N. Interstate Avenue) on N. Interstate – right at the west end of the famous Failing Street pedestrian bridge.

My favorite Portland festival features non-stop music and dance performances, polka contests, and the can’t-miss Saturday night street dance featuring Chervona! Enjoy Polish food like pierogies, kielbasa, gołąbki (cabbage rolls), placki ziemniaczane (potato pancakes), and other delectable options – and of course delicious Polish beer! In the vendor village, check out the jewelry, clothing, Polish pottery, and sundries for sale.

There’s hardly any parking and you’re going to get sloshed on that strong Polish beer, so transit it is: Take the 4 – Fessenden to Mississippi and Failing and then take the Failing Street Pedestrian Bridge across the freeway and you are there. Or take the Yellow Line MAX to the Overlook Stop – Failing street is two blocks north up Interstate. Check out the festival website for all the details.

Heather and I blogged the festival a few years back:

Mile73.com

  • Pierogi ruskie, Gołąbki, and My Favorite: Placki Ziemniaczane (2008)
  • A Night At The Polish Fest (2009)

Dave Knows

  • Polish Festival: No longer the best kept secret in Portland, Oregon (2008)
  • Polish Festival 2009
  • Portland Polish Festival 2010

Protip: arrive Saturday evening after sunset to avoid the bulk of the crowd, and the ridiculously long lines. (Read more tips here!)

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