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The Willamette River runs by Downtown Portland

Portland. "The City of Roses", is the largest city in Oregon and the third largest city in the Pacific Northwest after Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia. It lies about 70 mi (124 km) from the Pacific Coast on the northern border of the state of Oregon. straddling the Willamette (pronounced will-AM-et) River 12 mi (19 km) south of its confluence with the Columbia River. Vancouver. Washington (not to be confused with Vancouver. Canada ) is a Portland suburb and lies immediately on the other side of the Columbia River. About 50 mi (80 km) to the east lies majestic Mount Hood. which forms the perfect backdrop for Portland's skyline. The city is noted for its scenic beauty, great outdoors environment, a large number of microbreweries, and its eco-friendly urban planning policies.

Portland is the largest city lying between San Francisco and Seattle and when compared to those cities, Portland's environment is not as fast-paced; instead it has a more laid-back, smaller town feel to it that has been created by planning policies. Portland, however, is still a city just shy of 610,000 people with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million, and as such has its fair share of cultural amenities, including an impressive music and arts scene and one of the largest collections of zine and independent publishers of any city in the nation. The food, beer, wine and spirits scene is the best on the West Coast and the city has gained a reputation as the Beer and Food Cart Capital of the World. There are now more than 70 breweries in the Portland area and over two hundred wineries within an hour drive. The city's development hasn't yet become overwhelming, in large part due to the progressive urban planning culture here. The city boasts the most extensive light-rail and streetcar system in the country. However, in recent years Portland's growth has started to catch up with daily living, such as having some of the worst traffic congestion in the West, a rising cost of living relative to wages, and a relatively high rate of underemployment for those under 40. It is, however, still the least expensive large city on the West Coast.

The city has a lovely blend of historic and modern architecture and many lush parks to poke your toes into; Forest Park and Washington Park in the hills west of Downtown offer a variety of plants, trails, and wildlife near the city. Vistas of Mt. Hood and the Willamette River, stately Douglas Fir trees, and roses and trees at every turn give the city stunning seasonal color. Environmentally friendly practices, such as recycling and an extensive (though not as well-serviced as it was in the recent past) public transportation system, are part of the culture here and fuel many progressive city planning practices, such as an urban growth boundary, which have made Portland a relatively compact city. Unlike most similar-sized metropolitan areas in the country, you can drive 15 mi (24 km) from downtown and be out in the countryside.

The first European contact in the area came from none other than Lewis and Clark, who sailed along the Columbia River just north of where Portland lies today in 1805; after a year of exploration they finally reached the Pacific Ocean just to the west. The reports from their expedition fueled interest in the area, and settlers came to stake their claim. Two of those settlers were William Overton and his friend Asa Lovejoy, a lawyer from Boston, who came across the spot where Portland now sits and jointly began to build a settlement. Later, Overton sold his share to F. W. Pettygrove, a man from Portland, Maine. As of this point, the area was being transformed from a small stopping point between Oregon City and Vancouver, WA to a formal settlement, and the owners now needed to give it a name. Both Lovejoy and Pettygrove wanted to name the new town after their respective hometowns; so in 1845 they decided to leave it up to a coin toss and Pettygrove won two times out of three.

In 1851, Portland was formally incorporated and was growing rapidly; its proximity to the rivers, which funneled a trade with San Francisco to the south, combined by the local fishing, lumber, and agriculture industries fueled Portland's early growth. The railroad arrived in the 1880s, and for a time Portland was the largest city on the west coast north of San Francisco; however the Klondike Gold Rush and the arrival of the railroad to Washington state meant Seattle quickly eclipsed Portland's growth.

Portland persisted as a booming railroad, lumber and steel town for several decades. During the 1970s, however, Portland began to gain a reputation for progressive urban planning practices, adopting policies such as an urban growth boundary and constructing new parks in a push to maintain the central neighborhoods as active places in light of suburban development. Through the 70s and into the 80s, Portland became a center for "counter-culture," growing into a hub for punk and indie rock music, zine publishing, and activist movements. The dot-com boom of the 90s brought an influx of modern tech companies along with the so-called "creative class", who remained even after the economic bubble burst. By this point, the city's progressive policies and politics had won the city a special status among urban designers, environmentalists, and political activists as a very forward-thinking city, which has only fueled further growth and development of the metropolitan area.