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Portland Weekend Amusements (14-16 August 2015)

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An amazing Portland weekend is afoot: multiple beer fests (include one of my favorites)j, street fairs (including one of the biggest), and even a rare weekend History Pub for good measure.

All Weekend

North American Organic Brewers FestivalNorth American Organic Brewers Festival

One of my favorite Portland beer fests celebrates its 11th year with more than 60 organic beers, ciders – and even some meads and braggots – from 35 breweries. Live music, food and vendors; and activities for the kids make this festival one of the most family friendly beer fests of the summer.

Saturday

Seaport Celebration 2015Port of Portland Seaport Celebration

Come join the fun on the waterfront at THE family-friendly event of the summer! On Saturday, August 15, the Port of Portland’s Terminal 4 will open up to the public for a unique opportunity to go inside the fences of a working marine terminal that is normally closed to the public. Best of all, parking and admission are free!

Timbers ArmyTimbers Army Block Party

The 2nd annual Timbers Army Block Party takes place Saturday, 15 August 2015 in front of the Fanladen (1633 SW Alder) between 16th and 17th.

Of course there’s a big tent for shade – and a beer and cider garden (21 and over, $4 beers for 107ist members), in addition to food vendors, a bouncy castle for the kids, music, games, and more.

Multnomah Days

This year’s fair, which runs through the heart of Multnomah Village on Southwest Capitol Highway, will feature more than 100 vendors who are every bit as eclectic as the Village itself. Booths will be open from roughly 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

PDX Adult Soap Box Derby 2015

PDX Adult Soap Box Derby

Once a year a brave group of racers convene on the daunting slopes of Mt. Tabor to test their metal to their mettle. These pages are dedicated to all those who have spilled their blood, or even worse, spilled their BEER. We thank the community and our beloved volcano for allowing us to tickle her spine.

Sunday

History Pub: A History of the Bagdad Theater: Hawthorne’s ‘Oasis of Entertainment’

McMenamins Historian Tim Hills presents A History of the Bagdad Theater: Hawthorne’s Oasis of Entertainment on Sunday, 16 August 2015 at the Bagdad Theater (3702 SE Hawthorne) at 11 AM until noon.

Mighty Mites Session Beer FestHawthorne Street Fair, The Mighty Mites Session Fest

[V]endors will populate the street from 31st to 38th, there will be two beer gardens . . . , kids activities at 35th, music at the stage at 34th, and more. The Bazi Bierbrasserie (1522 SE 32nd Ave) beer garden is also the 4th Annual The Mighty Mites Session Fest, an all-ages friendly outdoor beer garden featuring a special cocktail, outdoor games, and food vendors.

India Fest 2015India Festival

Bring your friends and family and come to Pioneer Courthouse Square for a free taste of Indian Culture! Get ready to experience a day of back-to-back dances, musical performances, and food from Portland’s finest Indian restaurants.

Ongoing

Movies in the Park

Movies in Parks

Friday, August 14

Saturday, August 15

Sunday, August 16

Concerts in the Park

Concerts in the Park 2015

Friday, August 14

Sunday, August 16

Stumptown Stories Presents: Burnside Vice (11 August 2015)

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Stumptown Stories: Burnside Vide

Join Kick Ass Oregon History’s Resident Historian Doug Kenck-Crispin and JB Fisher, co-author of Portland on the Take as they present the next edition of Stumptown Stories Presents: Burnside Vice – 7 PM on Tuesday, August 11, 2015 at Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder).

JB Fisher will take you on a virtual walking tour of Burnside’s vice-ridden past in the 1940s and 50s. He’ll tell you about the card rooms and taverns, the whorehouses, the bad hotels, and he’ll throw in some juicy stories about the crooked dealings that went down in the district back in the day.

Doug Kenck-Crispin has been working on the public art project in the new Innovative Housing project at the old Erickson’s Saloon building. With the help of others, he has archived more photos (many from private collections) of this storied establishment than have been gathered in at least a generation. He’ll show them ALL to you – many never before publicly presented – as well as photos of the project, and a few “new” stories that he was able to drag up.

Stumptown Stories, batshit crazy stories from the murkiest, weirdest, and nuttiest corners of Portland history, takes place the second Tuesday of every month at Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder).

Admission is usually (including this month) free. Doors open at 7 PM, 21 an over only.

Portland Weekend Amusements (August 1-2, 2015)

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Saturday

Fremont Fest

Fremont Fest 2015

The day opens with the lively Kid’s Bike & Pet Parade at 10 am led by a Portland fire truck and a marching band; followed by vintage cars. Children should gather for the parade at the parking lot of Beaumont Middle School, NE 42nd & Fremont, starting at 9:30 am. The festival will be closed to vehicle traffic between NE 42nd and 49th stages for live music, food, street vendors and entertainment and attractions for children and adults.

2015 Iranian Festival

2015 Iranian Festival

  • Live music
  • Food, Dessert and Beverages
  • Activities for Children and Adults
  • Live Dance Performances
  • Traditional Arts and Crafts
  • Showcasing of Traditional Outfits
  • Iran-related Book Fair
  • Vendor and Business Booths

11:00 AM – 4:00 PM
South Park Blocks by Portland State University
Between College Street and PSU Library next to Farmers’ market

Portland Opera’s 50th Anniversary Street Fair Celebration

Portland Opera

Portland Opera’s 50th anniversary season concludes with a community-wide celebration featuring a Street Fair and free simulcast on August 1, 2015.

To coincide with its last performance of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love taking place in the Newmark Theatre, Portland Opera is hosting a day-long Street Fair on SW Main Street between the Antoinette Hatfield Hall and the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. Festivities will include family-friendly activities, Portland Opera To Go performances, a live band, and a free simulcast. The Elixir of Love will be sung in Italian with supertitles projected in English.

Obon Festival 2015

Obon Festival 2015

This year’s Obon will be on Saturday, August 1st from 3 PM to 9 PM. The festival is held to honor family and friends who have passed away, remembering the many contributions they made to help make our life what it is today.

There will be entertainment by the Portland Taiko among others, a variety of tasty foods such as yakisoba and takitori, omiyage (gift) sales, Temple talks and booths run by community groups and outside vendors.

Sunday

Mahrajan – Oregon Arab Festival 2015

Arab Festival 2015

Ahlan wa sahlan to the 2015 Mahrajan! We are so excited for new location for the Arab Festival! This year, the festival will be held on August 2nd, from 11am to 7pm, at Alpenrose Dairy. This is a wonderful venue and the location allows us to have a bigger event and parking is plentiful.

Join the Oregon Arab American community for a day of fun at Alpenrose Dairy on August 2nd. Everyone is welcome at this summer festival! The Mahrajan is a fun, family-friendly day filled with games, dancing, music, and food and crafts from around the Arab world. Come enjoy delicious food, live music, fashion, poetry, and games for all ages! Learn how to Dabke! Get a Henna Tattoo!

Montavilla Street Fair

Montavilla Street Fair 2015

Montavillains: Spread the word and mark your calendars for the Montavilla Summer Street Fair!
When: Sunday, August 2nd, 11am-6pm
Where: Downtown Montavilla, between 76th and 82nd on Stark St.

For the first time, the City has granted us permission to CLOSE STARK!

Live music
Street performers
Kids activities
Farmer’s Market
100+ vendors
Dunk booth

Saturday-Sunday

Movies in the Park

Movies in Parks

Saturday, August 1

Sunday, August 2

Concerts in the Park

Concerts in the Park 2015

Saturday, August 1

Sunday, August 2

Know Your City – New Projects in 2016

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Updated: They did it!

Know Your CityKnow Your City does great things – they lead fascinating walking tours, create thought-provoking and informative publications, and organize creative placemaking projects. All of their programs are built around scholarship and art, and emphasize social justice.

And they have three days left on their kickstarter campaign, Know Your City: Sustain our new projects into 2016! Give them a few dollars (check out the most extensive selection of kickstarter donor rewards I have ever seen!), and consider a membership too!

History Pub: Stories from our Native Ancestors (27 July 2015)

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Stories from Our Native Ancestors: Killing Bigfoot, The Giant Beaver, The Coast Range Goblin and How Clam Got His EyesStories from Our Native Ancestors: Killing Bigfoot, The Giant Beaver, The Coast Range Goblin and How Clam Got His Eyes is the latest History Pub, on Monday, 27 July 2015 at the Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd).

Presenters Dr. Jason T. Younker, Associate Professor of Anthropology and assistant vice president and advisor to the president on sovereignty and government-to-government relations at the University of Oregon, is a member of the Coquille Indian Tribe. Dr. David G. Lewis, an educator, author, and anthropologist, is a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon.

For most western Oregon tribes, their generation is the last to have lived part o their life as a terminated Indian. Despite great cultural loss, many things endured. Stories about their existence and landscape are but a few. In the presentation, they will share stories about the creatures of western Oregon that have lived on land and in culture for generations stretching far back into the past.

History Pub is free, and open to all ages. Doors open at 6 PM, and the talk begins at 7 PM.