Day 20: Rain on our parade

Like the day before the sky was overcast when we woke up, which bode ill for the Rose Festival Parade that was scheduled for the afternoon. However, instead of raining immediately and clearing up like the previous day, it waited until we were out and about to being pouring rain. This made our first stop all the more necessary, since we were going to a Columbia store where I could get a jacket to see me through Portland's volatile weather. Sunshine lit our way out of the store, almost making it seem unneeded for me to wear the jacket I just got, but I knew better and kept it on. Sure enough, not long after we got back in the car the sun was obscured by ever darker clouds and the rain began again with renewed gusto.

Rather than get completely soaked, we walked our bikes into the city instead of riding them, and went to grab some lunch at one of the food trucks, a unique Portland installation. The food trucks line a few of the streets near the city center offering everything from gourmet soups to Korean burritos. We chose to visit Remy's Stewed Intentions whose owner we had met the other night on our walk through the city with Bob. Charlie, a small clown bust (the reason we stopped to say hello the previous night), greeted us as we ordered some delicious pork adoba from Remy.

Once we had eaten our fill, we headed back to the Chrome store where we browsed around and chatted up some of the employees before finally breaking down and getting bags for ourselves. The bag is remarkably well designed, and works perfectly for riding, which is what made it especially tempting for use on our trip. When we finally left the shop, Geries and I split up for a bit and I went exploring.

It had finally stopped raining, so I got on my bike and rode down to the river where several Navy ships were moored for the Rose Festival. I wasn't very sure of where I was going, but I soon crossed the Willamette River without meaning to. It was fun riding across one of the many bridges that Portland is known for. Since Portland is pretty much cut in half by the Willamette, there are many bridges that span it, all with their own unique style. I eventually found another bridge to make it back to my original side of the river, and got a great view of the ships on my way over. It was an impressive sight, seeing those incredible machines sitting docile on the river. As I passed the fenced perimeter, though, I saw that they were heavily guarded by stocky men in fatigues sporting large assault rifles and holding back a massive German shepherd.

Geries and I met back up at the square with the great amphitheater and went on to check out some more of Portland's little parks. We stopped at one with a giant chess set on the ground and watched some of the park-goers play a game before we finally packed up and headed back to the house for dinner.

We had an excellent dinner with Bob and Christy and spent a good while talking until it was time for us to leave to make it to our movies. Geries chose Men in Black III while I went to see Prometheus. In spit of Ridley Scott's claims to the contrary, Prometheus is absolutely a prequel to the Alien movies, or at least it is set in the same universe and takes place prior to Alien. I'm still not sure how I feel about the movie, but from a technical standpoint it was extremely well executed. The performances were great, the atmosphere was suitably desolate and foreboding, and the effects were spectacular, but I was still slightly confused by the end of it all. I think that I just need to see it again at some point. Overall it was an enjoyable experience, despite my slight misgivings. The movies took us late into the night, and when we were done we came home and immediately went to bed to prepare for a bike ride in the morning and heading to Seattle after.