Page 75 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Pacific Northwest
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5 Rose Quarter
1 Center Ct. Rose Quarter (red,
blue lines). See Entertainment in
Portland p81. ∑ rosequarter.com
Portland’s major venues for
sports, big-ticket entertainment
events, and conventions are
clustered in the Rose Quarter, a
commercial riverside area on the
east bank of the Willamette River.
Portlanders come in droves to
the otherwise quiet neighbor-
hood to attend Portland Trail Portland’s cityscape, the Eastbank Esplanade in the foreground
Blazer basketball games, Portland 6 Eastbank 7 Oregon Museum
Winterhawks ice hockey games,
and major pop and rock concerts Esplanade of Science and
by the likes of Paul McCartney Bounded by Willamette River Industry
and Bruce Springsteen at & I-5, Steel & Hawthorne Bridges. 1945 SE Water Ave. Tel (503) 797-4000.
the Moda Center. Designed Rose Quarter (red, blue lines). OMSI/SE Water Ave (orange line).
by the Kansas City firm of Ellerbe @ 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 14. v A Loop. @ 17. Open 9:30am–
Becket, the arena was completed 5:30pm Tue–Sun (mid-June–Sep:
in 1996. It features a unique This pedestrian and bicycle to 7pm). Closed major hols. &
“acoustical cloud” made up of path following the east bank 7 (partial). 8 of submarine. -
160 rotating acoustic panels of the Willamette River between = ∑ omsi.edu
which can be tailored to the the Hawthorne and Steel
needs of the specific event. Bridges was part of a massive Commonly referred to as OMSI,
The smaller, nearby Veterans riverfront redevelopment. While the Oregon Museum of Science
Memorial Coliseum (300 the esplanade’s unobstructed and Industry is one of the top
Winning Way) once hosted views of downtown Portland science museums in the US. The
these events. Its glass-fronted and the opportunity it multiple exhibition halls and
hall, designed by New York firm provides to enjoy the river are science labs of this world-class
Skidmore, Owens and Merrill compelling reasons to visit, the tourist attraction house hundreds
and completed in 1960, is now walkway is an attraction in its of interactive exhibits. Visitors
used for conventions and trade own right. A 1,200-ft (365-m) may enjoy hands-on experiences
shows. It also serves as the section floats on the water, and in subjects such as space
primary home for the Portland another cantilevered portion explo ration, computers, physics,
Winterhawks WHL team. is suspended above one of the chemistry, and mathematics. A
The Lloyd Center, just east of city’s original commercial piers. favorite is the earthquake simu-
the Rose Quarter, is recognized The esplanade provides lator, in which visitors are shaken
as the US’s first covered access to four of the city’s and rattled while learning about
shopping center. Although major downtown bridges, the tectonic plates that continue
such malls are now ubiquitous, linking the walkway to Governor to shift beneath Portland.
the Lloyd Center retains an old- Tom McCall Waterfront Park The Kendall Planetarium, a
fashioned charm, with more (see pp68–9) on the west bank state-of-the-art facility, places
than 200 shops and restaurants of the river. The most dramatic OMSI at the forefront of astro-
lining handsome, well-planted crossing is via the Steel Bridge nom ical education. For kids under
walkways that radiate from a Riverwalk, perched just 30 ft nine, the Science Playground is
skating rink. (9 m) above the water. a wonderland with interactive
zones. The Empirical Theater,
four stories tall, is the largest
screen in Portland and shows
various science-themed
documen taries and feature films.
Moored alongside the
museum is the USS Blueback,
first launched in 1959 and the
last diesel sub marine to be
used by the US Navy. Guided
tours provide a chance to
look at downtown through
a periscope and to experience
the claustrophobic conditions
An interactive exhibit at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in which 85 submariners lived.
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