How to Travel Like a Local
By Hollyanna McCollom
Traveling to a new place can be unnerving, but Portlanders are usually quite welcoming of visitors to our fair state. However, if you want to blend in with the locals, there are a few things you can do to fit in.
The quickest way to mark yourself as a tourist is to pop open an umbrella when it rains. For native Portlanders, a hooded jacket is all you need to ride out the inconsistent weather. Given that the average rainfall in a year is about 36 inches, it may seem like madness not to rely on an umbrella, but there’s method in it. For one thing, the rain is often accompanied by a good deal of wind, and an umbrella doesn’t fare well in such circumstances. Also, the weather changes so often that you may only need protection from the rain for a few moments before a sun break passes through. Finally, when you have a cell phone in one hand, a latte in the other, and laptop bag on your shoulder, an umbrella just becomes cumbersome.
Portlanders love to bike and walk, which may come as a surprise considering the fickle weather in the Pacific Northwest. Even in the winter, cycling remains one of the top methods for locals to commute from place to place. For that reason, the streets (and drivers) tend to be respectful of cyclists and pedestrians. Downtown, the blocks are approximately half the size of a normal city block, with public art, fountains, and parks scattered throughout the urban areas. In the Pearl District and Northwest, the streets are numbered in one direction (ascending order from the waterfront) and run alphabetically in the other direction using the names of famous Portland historical figures, like Couch, Davis, Everett, Flanders, and so on. Burnside Avenue divides Portland by the north and south, the Willamette River divides the city by the east and west.
Furthermore, Portland has arguably the nation’s most progressive support system for bike transportation, thanks to the wide, clearly marked bike lanes on most major commuter routes, municipal bike racks, and access to most bridges. TriMet has created space for bikes to be taken on the MAX trains, and buses are equipped with bike racks on the front, which makes traveling long distances on a bike that much more feasible.
If you do plan on driving around, keep in mind that you will not be allowed to pump your own gas, even if you have been doing it your whole life and you are in a hurry. If you try to do so, you could get smacked with a pretty hefty fine. The Oregon law has been amended to allow motorcyclists to pump their own gas, but an attendant must still be there to remove the nozzle and replace it when the fueling is finished.
Studies show that Portland’s walkability has also contributed significantly to the food cart culture in the city. Scattered throughout Portland, you will find countless pods (or groups) of food carts, many of which enjoy near-celebrity status in the city. These are not the sketchy side-of-the-road trucks that you may be familiar with. The food cart scene in Portland has grown and thrived thanks to urban planning and thanks to an influx of chefs who prefer the nomadic and adaptable setup to a brick-and-mortar store.
Finally, there is one thing that will mark you as a tourist (a term sometimes even applied to people who have lived in Portland for years), it’s the mispronunciation of several keywords and phrases. A Portlander may not correct you if you get their personal name wrong, but call the state “Oree-Gone” and you are likely to get an earful. Here are a few phrases and tips on how to speak like a native.
Clackamas: This is the name of a Native American tribe that once inhabited this area, and is now one of the major Oregon counties. It is pronounced CLACK-uh-mas.
Couch Street: We’re not talking about furniture. This street is named after John H. Couch, one of the city founders. It is pronounced Cooch, which rhymes with pooch.
Glisan Street: This street in Northwest and Northeast Portland was named for Dr. Rodney Glisan, a doctor for the U.S. Army in the 19th century. The good doctor’s name was pronounced Gliss-an, but for reasons unbeknownst, the street name is pronounced Glee-san.
Marquam: It’s a double-decker bridge in Portland named after Philip Marquam, a state legislator and Multnomah County judge. It’s pronounced MARK-um.
Multnomah: It’s a county, a waterfall, and a Native American tribe, and it’s pronounced Mult-NO-mah.
OMSI: The acronym for Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is treated like a word, AHM-zee, and almost never pronounced in full.
Oregon: There are only two acceptable pronunciations: OR-uh-gun or OR-ee-gun -- and the last one is pushing it.
Willamette: This word comes up a lot. Whether you are referring to the river that divides the city, the alternative weekly newspaper, or a number of other things, it is pronounced Wil-LAM-met. It should never rhyme with confetti.
