1/13-17. Annual company kickoff week is held in Portland this year. The decision was made without any regard to the weather in January.
First 3 nights at
Kimpton Riverplace on waterfront. Nice view, spacious room with seating area, large windows, comfy bed, daily happy hour at 5pm (the freshly baked chocolate cookie is excellent, plus a changing savory snack). For our event, we had catered lunch. Food is well prepared and presented.
Breakfast wasn't include in the stay, so had to order it in the restaurant. The food was good, but very slow. My first breakfast took over an hour, so I opted for more sleep to breakfast the next 2 mornings. Just grab an apple from the gym.
For dinner, we ate out. Too bad, I only took one photo. First night at
Deschutes Brewery. I had a crab roll and a Pilsner. Both are good, and over priced. 2nd dinner at
Nel Centro. We shared some appetizers. I had Osso Bucco for entree - their specialty. Food is good, again, overpriced. The rice accompanied Osso Bucco could use a bit less salt, otherwise, excellent. 3rd night, some of us went to
Pok Pok - my choice, since we went to Keith's bar in the neighborhood. A little disappointed. Yes, overpriced, understandable with the accolades. I was prepared to have limited choices (most Thai dishes are spicy). Vegetarian had only 3 choices that night. One coworker is happy with Brussels sprouts and papaya salad, but the other one is not (she tried these two, and the 3rd vegetarian dish from the adjacent table, then, ate pizza from somewhere else). I tried baked shrimp in vermicelli noodles and jackfruit salad. Both had pork. I liked the first (but $19 for 4 prawns). 2nd is too salty. I couldn't taste jackfruit at all. Another coworker ordered a catfish dish. None of us couldn't identify where the fish was. He really liked it though. Because these were all very spicy, I didn't try any. Overall, tasty dishes in heavy sauce.
1/16, Thursday, we got on a bus and were ferried to
Skamania Lodge. The driver took I-84, and put on chains just past Troutdale. Many semis on chains going less than 20 mph. The snow was slushy, probably didn't need chains. No snow in the city, but out here, it was a winter wonderland: very pretty. My California coworkers were clicking photos non-stop. We were 2 hours behind schedule. Lunch was late, and I was hungry (didn't eat breakfast - went to bed very late working on a project).
With a bus-load of people checking in, it took awhile. After dumping my suitcase in the room, way out on the side (small room, no view to speak of, very loud fan, comfy bed), I walked about, and found these cute tree houses with deck, each with a fire ring below.
The lodge's lofty lobby is beautiful: large windows overlooking Columbia River, fire place, rocking chairs. Definitely a place to hang out. Food here is decent but not as good as Kimpton. Biglow tea. Dining area is large (with big windows of the same good view), and breakfast is fast.
The team-building activity this year was changed twice, and still had to cancel. In the end, did what the lodge provided. I went to throw axes. It was held in a garage. I volunteered to try first. Did my 5 throws, then I took off. Walked to the riverfront for sunset. Took this photo at
Columbia Gorge Interpretive Center. Read my library book in the lobby until I realized that the noise in the bar (next door) had disappeared.
I was a bit late for dinner, missed some speeches. Sat at the table with a bunch of sales guys. Had a can of
Three Creeks' chocolate porter. Really liked it. Had another one. Miguel brought some 48% Mezcal and encouraged everyone to try. Not me. Well imbibed, a few took turns singing accompanied by music streaming from a cellphone to the microphone. Some are quite good, some are pretty lousy. One did a fabulous performance, with pretty bad singing. It was hilarious. I haven't heard any of the songs. We were very loud. I hope this conference area, in a side wing, is far away not to disturb anyone sleeping. Some of us went to the next room for Foosball, ping pong, and poker game. Some went back to the bar.
1/17 Friday. I went to check out Rock Creek Falls, which I just found on the map the previous afternoon. The upper falls is easy to get to, just behind the cemetery, with public access. The lower falls is a bit tricky. Only about 3 blocks east, but I probably trespassed.
Had to scramble down some short but steep hill, now slippery under snow. On the way up, saw easier path. Both are worth a visit if you are in the area. Total, took me about 1.5 hours. The light snow had stopped on my way back.
After checking out ~10:30, I went to the dining room for breakfast. The snow had started again in earnest. I had "Skamania Breakfast Grinder", and liked it. Got a ride back to town around noon, after a dropping off at the airport. No snow in Portland.
1/31, Friday. Went to listen to Colin O'Brady promoting his new book about his solo traverse of Antarctic unaided. He's mid-sized, unassuming, amicable, surprisingly normal and humble for what he has achieved in his young life (34). A good and entertaining speaker. He talked about a couple of incidents during the traverse, and what made him persevere. He attributes to "infinite love", and emphasized that everyone has an untapped energy within him/her. Set your "Everest" and you'll achieve it. During the Q&A, he talked about his recent project The Impossible Row (co-lead a 6 person team rowing across Drake Passage). Another thing he talked about is Vipassana meditation he started a few years ago (see his blog).
