Really Random Tuesday: Portland Pics

As I mentioned in my Mailbox Monday post yesterday, I visited Portland over Easter (for the first time) with my sister. One of my first stops was Powell’s Books (or, more specifically, Powell’s City of Books, which is their largest store: an entire city block of books!). I must admit I found Powell’s a bit overwhelming: it’s a bit like visiting a dozen bookstores at once! I didn’t take nearly enough pictures, but here’s one of me looking very pleased to be so close to book mecca (click on photos to enlarge):

Me in front of Powell’s City of Books

One of the people we stayed with in Portland works in the library system and she told me about Title Wave, which was right around the corner from her house. I thought the building was lovely (and I was happy to find quite a few graphic novels for $1 or $2 each!).

The Title Wave Used Bookstore

I’m definitely planning to visit Portland again! Have any of you been there? Are there any other used bookstores I should be adding to my list of places to visit?

Really Random Tuesday is hosted by Suko at Suko’s Notebook. Feel free to join in, copy the button and link back to Suko’s blog.

Book piles with cat

Since I’m on vacation and not blogging very frequently, I thought I’d share with you a few pics from a series I recently took of my cat Cairo on my desk surrounded by piles of books... (Click on the photos to enlarge them.)

Peeking from behind a pile...


This one has become my new user pic.

Extreme cuteness!

Notice how that pile is hanging precariously over the edge of my desk? You can guess what happened next!

I’m back (with photos)!

I’m back from my 10-day whirlwind vacation in British Columbia! The main purpose of the visit was to go to a wedding in Vancouver, which was held at the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Chinese Garden. (If you’re ever in Vancouver, this garden is definitely worth a visit.) Despite the 100% chance of thunderstorms predicted for that day, the sky was blue, the sun was shining and the bride looked stunning in her purple dress. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera... Luckily there were three professional or semi-professional photographers in attendance, although I haven’t seen any pictures yet!

Next, my partner, Mr. B, and I headed to Squamish with some friends, and from there spent a day at the Skookumchuck Hot Springs (also known as St. Agnes Well Hot Springs). Well, to be more precise, we spent half the day getting there and back (driving along a crazy twisty logging road) and only a couple of hours soaking in the hot pools! (Click on the photos to enlarge them.)

Me in front of the Shannon Falls on the way to Squamish

Lillooet Lake on the way back from the hot springs

Then on Monday, Mr. B headed home (he had to go back to school on Tuesday) and I hooked up with my sister and her son. We spent the rest of the week in Whistler, where she was attending a conference. The highlight of that portion of my trip was definitely the hike to the ancient cedar grove on Cougar Mountain, although we couldn’t complete the loop trail because of all the snow!

Ancient cedar grove on Cougar Mountain

I’m feeling a bit shy about sharing photos of my trip (and a photo of me!), since I’ve mostly kept my blog strictly about books, so I hope you enjoy them! Thank you to everyone who stopped by during my absence to wish me a good trip!