Lan Su Chinese Garden
Portland
Copyright: Jon Bilous/Shutterstock.comLan Su Chinese Garden
The single-block Chinese Garden was constructed as a gift to Portland from its Chinese sister city, Suzhou, complete with decorative rocks brought from home by the Chinese workers. It's a pleasant green oasis in downtown Portland, with public guided tours (included in the admission price), rare plants native to China, a traditional tea house, and a rotating array of cultural happenings.
Do & See
Portland is green, fun, and, at times, weird: the city's collection of museums contains not only the esteemed Portland Art Museum but also quirkier exhibits, such as The Freakybuttrue Peculiarium, with its "alien autopsy table", or the Movie Madness museum with the shower scene set-up from "Psycho". While this two and more help "Keep Portland Weird" — as the city's unofficial motto goes — a thriving food, coffee, and bar scene make for a seemingly endless exploration of world cuisines, craft brews, and coffee roasters.