So you think you know glassland…

Portland residents (and wannabe or ex-residents): Think you know all there is to know about Portland? PDX visitors: Wanna know more about the city? Been running around ferreting out weird tidbits about Portland. See how many you know…I’ll post the answers in a couple of days.

Portland is (mostly) neatly laid out on a four-quadrant grid system, i.e., Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, Southeast. If you were to perch smack-dab at the point where all four quadrants intersect, where would you be?
1) Portland City Hall’s main front fountain
2) Up near the bandstand in Ballroom A, Portland City Center Marriott
3) The mensroom at the Pioneer Square Nordstroms
4) The middle of the Burnside Bridge
5) HAH!!! It’s a trick question–thanks to political squabbling, there actually IS no point at which all four quadrants intersect.

Portland was named after:
1)  Portlanos, the ancient Roman senator and father of modern urban planning
2) The birthplace of one of the founders, Portland, Maine
3) It was the birthplace of Portland Cement
4) What it was, really. During the 19th century, it was one of the largest and most important shipping ports on the west coast, and also the farthest inland. “Port + Land = Portland”
5) Nobody really knows

Right around WWII, Portland participated enthusiastically in something called the Moses Plan. Was this:
1) A plan to dump landfill into the Willamette River, essentially splitting it in two as Moses split the Red Sea, enabling the city to offer free homebuilding land for returning soldiers.
2) A whistle-stop campaign to promote immigration into the city, where local Portland celebrities toured eastern cities, enthusiastically calling for city councils to “let your people go…to Portland”
3) A transportation plan designed to reduce Portland city auto traffic by restricting pedestrian, local and through traffic to their own, specific highways, parkways and walkways.
4) A massive, citywide religious revival that saw the creation of the Church of Portland and its apostles
5) There was no such thing as the Moses Plan. I just made that up.

Mill Ends Park in Portland is famous for what?
1) It is the smallest park in the world AND the only park with a swimming pool for butterflies
2) It includes the only native variety of coffee plant found in the continental US
3) It has more varieties of plant species than any other US park
4) It’s the home of the beautiful annual “Helios Awakening” ceremony. Every spring, amid throngs of dancers and musicians, the mayor of Portland calls on the gods of rain to make way for the sungod of summer.
5) You just made that up–there is no Mill Ends Park

Which of the following movies were filmed in Portland?
1) Twilight
2) The Exorcist
3) Coraline
4) Mr. Hollands Opus
5) Animal House

Share on Facebook

Related posts:

1. And that’s the way it is in glassland… Gotta love local news. Skimming the local TV/newspaper sites yesterday morning, I...
2. iPhone gets downright neighborly We've been so busy using smartphones to weave ourselves into the virtual...