Portland Media Update: August 2006

Greetings from Portland, Oregon. Below is an update on the area’s newest travel-related developments. We hope you will find this information useful. If you prefer not to receive future media updates on Portland, please click here.

AUGUST TOPICS

Cultural Travel – Portland Art Museum Welcomes Treasures of Ancient Egypt

Culinary Travel – Come Taste Oregon’s Bounty

Cultural Travel – Historic Armory’s Transformation to Theater Nearly Complete

Portland Art Museum Welcomes Treasures of Ancient Egypt

Don’t miss the largest selection of antiquities ever loaned by the Egyptian government for exhibition in North America. Walk through a replica tomb and explore ancient Egyptian beliefs about the afterlife. The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt encompasses 107 magnificent artifacts, including many that have never before traveled beyond Egypt’s borders. Rich in artistic and historical importance, these objects are among the greatest treasures of The Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the Luxor Museum, and the sites of Tanis and Deir el-Bahari. The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt opens at the Portland Art Museum on Nov. 5, 2006, and runs through March 4, 2007. For more information on the exhibition, click here.

Media Contact: Beth Heinrich, Portland Art Museum, 503.276.4370, beth.heinrich@pam.org, www.portlandartmuseum.org

Come Taste Oregon’s Bounty

During October and November 2006, hotels and inns, chefs, winemakers and brewers, and the folks who grow, catch and produce what you love to enjoy are opening their doors, vineyards and fields. Special weekend travel packages can help you dive into this celebration of Oregon’s bounty. Portland’s Liquid Oregon package (Nov. 10-12 only) lets you lunch with a brew master and later learn how to blend spectacular cocktails under the tutelage of master mixologist Lucy Brennan of Mint/820 (transportation provided to all activities). Deny yourself nothing with the Guilty Pleasures package (Nov. 17-19 only). Those guilty pleasures include touring and sampling at Stumptown Coffee Roasters; indulging your inner artist as you become a chocolatier at Pix Patisserie; experiencing a Mediterranean meal with Lauro Kitchen chef David Machado; and blending your own wine at Urban Wineworks (transportation provided to all activities). In addition to these packages, wineries around the state – including many just a few miles from downtown Portland – will be featuring their latest vintages paired with samples of Oregon's bounty. For more information on Portland-area Bounty packages, click here. For statewide Oregon Bounty information, click here.

Portland Package Contact:

Deborah Wakefield, Portland Oregon Visitors Association, 503.275.9795, deborah@travelportland.com

Oregon Media Contacts:

Michelle Godfrey, Travel Oregon, 503.378.8861, michelle@traveloregon.com

Greg Robeson, Oregon Bounty, 503.452.8810, greg@robesoncommunications.com

Historic Armory’s Transformation to Theater Nearly Complete

The $36.1 million transformation of the Historic Portland Armory building – whose turrets and faux parapets evoke visions of magnificent European castles – is nearly complete. This fall, the newly christened Gerding Theater at the Armory will host the first performance given by Portland Center Stage (PCS) in its new home. Founded nearly 20 years ago, PCS has evolved to become a major player on Portland’s arts scene. The company’s dream of having its own performance space will be realized on Oct. 6 with the opening of West Side Story (Oct. 6-Nov. 5, 2006). In typical Portland fashion, the Armory’s renovation is being done as a pioneering “green” project. Portland Center Stage is striving to make the Gerding Theater the world’s first historic renovation to earn a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum rating. For more information on Portland Center Stage’s transformation of the Historic Portland Armory, click here. For performance schedules, click here.

Media Contact: Thom Trick, Portland Center Stage, 503.432.2950 (503.445.3765 after the company moves on Sept. 1), thomt@pcs.org, www.pcs.org