Visit to Portland and the Lan Su Chinese Garden

Last month I had a "working" trip to Portland. I purposely chose to work this trip in order to visit my friend, Steph who recently moved there. I arrived in Portland in the early afternoon and took the MAX downtown to meet Stephanie at Pioneer Square. We had decided to meet at the Sqaure and then take the train from there to the Lan Su Chinese Garden.

The Lan Su is a beautiful and quaint setting to relax and catch up with a friend. It's one of  Steph's favorite places in Portland so I knew we'd be visiting while I was there.

In 1988, Portland and Suzhou, China, became sister cities and the dream building a Suzhou-style garden became a reality in 1999 when the garden was built. Most of the materials in the garden were brought in from China, as well as most of the plants in the Garden are indigenous to China but were grown in the US.

While at the Garden, Steph and I enjoyed a gongfu tea ceremony at the Teahouse. Steph chose a Wuyi oolong tea which tasted nutty and smooth.

We also ate some special snacks, Horsebeans (roasted fava beans) and Coconut Tarts.

After our leisurely afternoon tea, we finished walking around the garden, taking in the beauty of it all. It was such a lovely place to spend with a good friend. I felt like I was on vacation even though I was actually working. I'm looking forward to the next visit, and hopefully Esme will be able to join us.