Shakey Graves Concert & Trip to the City

Sammy and I just got home from a weekend getaway to Portland, OR. We had tickets to see Shakey Graves at the Roseland Theater for Saturday night, but decided to make a whole weekend of it and head to Portland Friday afternoon so we could have some time to hang out and check out some shops and such. We stayed in the most amazing hotel; The Royal Sonesta. The décor of the hotel was so awesome! The rooms were huge, clean, homey, and I loved how it was decorated. Definitely hands down my  favorite hotel stay thus far. 

After checking in Friday late afternoon, it was time to relax! We decided on watching Final Destination I & II while pigging out on lots of snacky food, lol. 

Saturday morning we were able to order breakfast from a nearby restaurant and have it delivered right to our room. I got a spinach and feta omelet and it was delicious! After breakfast and getting ready, we explored the décor of the great room before heading out for the day. 

First up for our Saturday was the Portland's Farmers Market! It was HUGE and spectacular. And a bit crazy. Lots of people, lots of dogs, lots of noise. We spent over an hour wandering the booths and checking out all the cool stuff. Tie-dye shirts and fanny packs found their way into our possession, hahaha. Before leaving we took a break to people-watch while snacking on a maple bacon elephant ear and lemonade. The voice of a lady screaming about I don't know what over and over again was like music to my ears while we enjoyed our moment of Portland bliss. HAHA

It was recommended to us by the front desk gal at the hotel that visiting the Japanese Garden was a must do. I am so glad we went! The Japanese Garden is literally a hidden oasis in the middle of an otherwise homeless camp filled and chaotic city. Not saying I didn't enjoy walking around the Portland streets seeing all the sites of the city, but the homeless issue had me on edge, and I'm just not a fan of cities in general. So being able to escape that by visiting the Japanese Garden was really nice. 

It was so beautiful inside! The buildings and stone work were amazing. The koi fish were my favorite. The liked to hang out underneath the bridge. 

There was also a tea house we enjoyed some time sitting in while drinking some tea and enjoying the views of the gardens.  

After visiting the Gardens, we headed to a location that was offering rapid test Covid testing. In order to enter the venue for the concert, you either have to be vaccinated or provide proof of a negative Covid test done within 24 hours of the concert. It might have taken forever to walk to the testing location, but just seconds to get the test done and then only 15 minutes to get the results. I was glad to be able to get that taken care of earlier in the day so I didn't have to do it in front of a crowd with a test kit at the venue itself. 

Concert time! The doors to the venue opened at 7pm, so we left a little after 6pm to give us time to walk to the Roseland Theater and get in line without being dead last, lol. I'm glad we left when we did! I wanted to be sure we had a chance to get a seat up in the balcony instead of having to stand on the bottom level where I wouldn't be able to see anything over the wave of taller people. We managed to snag some pretty decent balcony seats that I was pleased with. 

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The concert was, of course, amazing! Shakey Graves always puts on a spectacular show. He played a lot of favorites he always does at his concerts, as well as a few he doesn't normally perform, and a song I hadn't heard before as well! I wish I had brought my actual camera to have gotten some nice, up close photos, but sometimes it's not so fun to lug it around. So I had to make do with using my phone, which allowed me to get some videos, but didn't allow me to get those up close photos I had wanted. Oh well! I didn't take very many anyway. Sometimes, it is also more fun to not worry about photos at all and to just enjoy the moment! Being that it was our third Shakey concert anyway, it was more important to me to sit back, relax, and enjoy the music....as opposed to worrying about getting tons of photos and videos. I definitely enjoyed being in the moment! 

The concert ended shortly after 11pm. It was a bit cold and sprinkly out. The walk didn't take too long, but we were more than ready to crash in bed by the time we got back! Our normal bedtime is 8pm, after all, haha! Thanks for a fun evening, Shakey! 

Sunday morning we enjoyed sleeping in! We ordered breakfast in again and took our time getting ready for the day. We checked out at noon time and spent some time in Whole Foods finding snacks and treats I can eat to bring home, as well as Powell's Book Store perusing books for the kiddos. After a bit of shopping, we were ready to get home to the kids and our pups! lol

We definitely enjoyed our fun weekend filled with equal parts relaxing and adventure. I'm always thankful when we can take the time to spend a few days away from the kiddos, animals, and responsibility of home. 

With love,

Mama Hauck