Portland Head Light

Posted on May 5, 2013 by Ali

When I moved to Portland after college, there were some lonely years. Most of my best friends were from away anyway, and we had met under the trees on the quad at Bates. They went back to NYC, California, Chicago, Michigan. While there were some moments that were challenging (I couldn’t quite bring myself to go out to the bars by myself to meet people, thus having nobody with whom I could go out to the bars to meet people…and on and on), I cherish those solitary, self-sufficient days. I learned how to amuse myself. To slow down, to make friends at work. To eat lunch downtown with a book and my iPod.

Sometimes, when I needed to clear my head, I would make the short drive over the bridge to Cape Elizabeth to sit on a ledge over the rocky coast. With Portland Headlight to my right, and the fort to my left, the craggy boulders beneath me with their simmering tidal pools opening up to the vast expanse of the Atlantic, I could think. Roll in, crash, spray, roll out.

Now that I have a network of friends in the city, and my thoughtful, caring boyfriend, I don’t make it out to the lighthouse as often. I don’t need to. When we want to sun and hear the waves, we go to the sandy beach behind my boyfriend’s parents’ house. Miek had never been to the lighthouse, so this Saturday we took a walk there with Melo. I remembered why I love it there so much. The clarity, salt air, rose-hip perfume swirling around those cliffs.

xo Al

Portland Has A Music Festival

Posted on August 7, 2012 by Ali

This past weekend, rows of porta-potties were set up, two stages erected on Portland’s East End, houses decorated and food trucks parked to welcome over 15,000 mustache-sporting festival-goers for Mumford and Sons’ Gentlemen of the Road stopover show.

My old Bates roomie and dear friend Emily took the train up from Boston to visit, and we grabbed a blanket, plenty of sunscreen and water and hit the hill.

The headliners put on a flawless show. The setting was beautiful, with a bobbing Atlantic as the backdrop, some anchored boats dancing in the ebb and flow of the water. As the sun set behind us, the sky turned pink.

This was all very lovely. However, my most-favorite moment of the day was HAIM’s set. Three LA sisters graced the stage, all middle-parted long hair and dangerously short cut-offs. Danielle’s stint with Julian Casablancas showed in her guitar solos. The bass player, pardon my language, kicked some serious ass. And all three closed their set with some primal drumming.

So good.

The fried dough wasn’t bad either.

Wednesday Date Night – Pai Men Miyake

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Ali

Every Wednesday night is date night. I like having something to look forward to as I trudge through Monday and Tuesday, and it allows Miek and me to connect mid-week over the many delicious culinary treats this city has to offer. It started out informally; we realized that for several weeks, we had been meeting for Wednesday dinners out at our favorite spots — slurping oysters loaded with horseradish and lemon, sitting elbow-to-elbow at our neighborhood spot called JPs for creative cocktails and specials, scarfing down po’ boys at Hot Suppa! or getting our fried pickles on a Silly’s. We realized we had a list of restaurants to work through, and have found that “Wednesday Date Night” is the way to do it.

Tonight we had ramen and appetizers at Pai Men Miyake, a noodle bar that specializes in fresh ramen and soba, sushi, yakitori, and sake cocktails. Miek started with their pork buns, which were steamed bun pillows filled with unctuous pork belly, pepper relish and spicy mayo. I had the pan-seared pork and cabbage dumplings. For the main event, I had the vegetable ramen; although it was a vegetarian dish, it was rich and “meaty” with a dark mushroom broth, cabbage, seaweed, tofu, spicy garlic paste and peppers. Miek had the miso ramen. We shared crispy fried Brussels sprouts kissed by fish and soy sauces – a textural delight of crispy caramelized bits and soft, salty centers. With sake cocktails in hand, we toasted to another Hump Day success and crossed another Portland restaurant off our list.