I’m a notorious over-packer.  Whenever I travel, I always return home with a section of my suitcase dedicated to clean/unworn clothing and shoes. I know this is terribly inefficient, especially since we pay for bags when flying, but I don’t travel that much and have yet to streamline this process.  Plus, I never know in what kind of fashion mood I might be so its important to have options.

Neither of my friends checked a bag for our weekend trip and got a big kick out of the giant, purple suitcase I had in tow.  Since at the last minute one member of our quartet was unable to come to Portland, my human-body-sized-luggage adopted her name.  After Christina got checked in at the airport, my living & breathing friends and I kicked off the trip with some pre-boarding refreshments.

Once we arrived in Portland and checked in to our hotel (and deposited Christina), the three of us spent the afternoon walking around the city and  window shopping.  One of my very savvy pals, PR, thought ahead to make dinner reservations for both nights of our stay.  We dined and made merry in style at Jamison http://jamisonpdx.com and since we were such an excellent and fun-loving trio, our waiter even treated us to a complimentary dessert.

I can only hope the marathon course is as accommodating.