My Valuable Portland Trip

Have you ever experienced that bitter feeling become part of good memories? I went on a trip to Portland. Portland was a large and unique city. It took four hours to go there by bus. The climate was different from Spokane very much, so it was warmer than Spokane and we had a lot of rain during this trip. I experienced a lot of valuable things every day. There are three things that I was impressed by this trip.

 First, I was amazed by the unique and old bookstore. We went to Powell’s city of books which is the largest independent new and used bookstore in the world. When I entered the store, I was surprised at the dizzying pace and large amount of books. The bookshelf was too high to take a book from it by myself. Even if I used the ladder, I couldn’t reach the highest books. Furthermore, it was as large as castle, so I got separated from my friends in the bookstore. When I opened the map, there were many sections which are red, blue, green, orange, pearl, purple, rose and gold. The rooms were linking crosswise and it took 20 minutes to find the book which I wanted to get. In addition, when I went to the art section, I was surprised that there were books from many countries. Some books were from Asia, Africa, and Europe. I found a photograph collection which is Japanese geisha. It made me tired to find books but I was so excited. This book store has been opened the store for 41 years. Oregon has a valuable store.

Second, we visited the Multnomah Falls which is well known as the second tallest year-round waterfall in the United States. I had been to see waterfalls in Japan, but it was beyond my imagination. The top of the waterfall was high and made aloud sound. Unfortunately it was a rainy day. I climbed a mountain while holding an umbrella. I was short of breath because of the road slope. I saw everyone’s face looked tired. We couldn’t go to our destination because the condition of the road was too bad to walk. I was disappointed about it. After that, my friends said to me “Bitter feeling is good memory.” I agreed with her. I enjoyed viewing the different trees and surface of the mountain from Spokane. The moss was growing on the tree and it was a mysterious atmosphere. I was moved deeply.

 Last, we visited Reed College and Columbia Basin College. I was surprised at difference and simmiler things between the U.S. and Japan. In Reed College, I could enter a room of dormitory. They shared one room with a man and woman. I thought it is very unusual system. I can’t imagine that I live with a man. In addition, we went to CBC and I could talk with some students. I was happy that they were interested in Japanese. I asked students “Why did you choose Japanese?” They said that it is for job hunting. If they have language skills, it is good for job hunting. I was surprised that it is the same as Japan. I noticed internationalization is advancing more and more in the world. In addition, we discussed our cultural topic. I told them about my subtopic which is History of Foreign Loan Words. It was difficult to explain easily. I thought I should change some special words into easy words. Of course I need more practice. It was a good opportunity to notice my weak points.

As you can see, I experienced valuable time in Portland. The largest used book store was amazing. I want to go there with my family again. The waterfall made me realize keenly how great nature is. It was little hard to climb the mountain but I had a good time. I could feel difference between Oregon and Spokane. In Reed College and Columbia Basin College, I could learn many things such as differences between universities. This experience will be unforgettable memory in my life.