December 21st, 2011
This Tuesday, a number of students also went to see the Zoolights! This is a fun and magical display of Christmas lights inside the Oregon Zoo. The Christmas lights are in the shape of animals from all over the world. Each year they get more and more lights, so be sure to be here in 2010! See the zoo transformed into a winter wonderland aglow with a million lights.
Sunday—Thursday hours: 5 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Friday and Saturday hours: 5 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
ZooLights package tickets, which include admission and a train ride, are $10.75.
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December 14th, 2011
Another great place to enjoy Christmas displays is Peacock Lane, in SE Portland.
Every house on this one city street is decorated with Christmas lights. You can drive your car down the street, or just walk along the sidewalk and enjoy the displays. Families serve hot cider and cocoa, and there is even a horse-drawn carriage!
Peacock Lane is between SE Stark St. and SE Belmont St. and one block east of SE 39th.
The best way to see the lights is on foot. Park somewhere in the neighborhood and enjoy a stroll down the Lane.
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December 7th, 2011
There are so many ways for you to enjoy the Christmas Season in Portland. Here are just two of them:
“Winter Wonderland”
The Portland International Raceway hosts “Winter Wonderland”, the largest Holiday Light Show West of the Mississippi River. You can enjoy this drive-through light show right from the comfort of your own car!
Sundays – Thursdays, 5 pm – 9 pm
Fridays & Saturdays, 5 pm – 11 pm
It costs $16 to drive your car through the light show, but it’s a great way to spend an evening with your friends, sipping hot chocolate and staying warm, but still enjoying the holiday spirit.
“Christmas Ship Parade”
Every December, the Willamette River lights up each week with Portland’s Christmas Ships! These 55 to 60 private boats are decorated with Christmas lights and decorations—they sail up and down the river, letting people along the waterfront enjoy their brightly lit displays. For many of the boat owners, this is a family Christmas tradition, offering the Portland area thrilling Christmas time river parades.
To enjoy these ship parades, you will want to go to the downtown Waterfront Park on these dates:
Thursday, Dec. 8th – 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 15th – 7:00-9:00 p.m.
On those nights, at 7:00 p.m, the Willamette Fleet assembles in front of Riverplace Marina, (1750 SW Harbor Way, Portland). The parade will begin across the river in front of OMSI and travel downriver to area of the Fremont Bridge The fleet will go under the bridge and then turns to return to Riverplace Marina. The fleet will be out for about two hours.
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November 30th, 2011
The cold winters of Portland requires big, bold ales designed to fend off the cold chill of a long winter’s night. Each year, the Holiday Ale Festival annually gathers up dozens of these winter warmers for a joyous five-day celebration. This beer festival has earned a reputation as the best winter beer tasting festival on the West Coast.
Held in the heart of downtown Portland at Pioneer Courthouse Square, more than 40+ breweries will be featured at the Holiday Ale Festival, all of which are created specifically to bring warmth and cheer to the holiday season. From Belgians and Barleywines to Porters and Stouts, these beers are rich, robust and full of complex flavors.
The $25 admission fee includes a souvenir mug and 10 beer tickets. If you pre-purchase tickets online, it only costs $20!
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November 23rd, 2011
This weekend, more than 140 wineries are open to the public during Thanksgiving Weekend in Wine Country, west of Portland. It takes about 45 minutes by car to get out into the countryside to where all the wineries are located.
Many of these wineries are not open at any other time during the year. Festivities include tasting of new releases and older vintages, barrel tastings (getting served wine directly from a barrel!), and specialty foods. Some wineries even have live music.
When you visit a winery in the U.S., they usually require a ‘tasting fee‘ between $5 – $20–for that fee, you get to taste around 5 or 6 wines. If $20 sounds expensive, that is because you usually get to keep the wine glass as a souvenir!
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November 16th, 2011
Next Wednesday, PELA hosts a Thanksgiving Lunch! Thanksgiving is one of the most popular American holidays which our students get to enjoy, where people eat and eat until they can’t eat anymore.
Teacher and staff helped prepare and serve traditional holiday food such as turkey & gravy, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. Many of our students tell us that their Thanksgiving at PELA is the first time they have ever had turkey or pumpkin pie.
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November 2nd, 2011
The Northwest Food and Wine Festival is a great place for wine and food enthusiasts to taste a variety fantastic offerings. Guests pick up a glass and prepare to sample, taste, smell over 600 wonderful wines and gourmet offerings!
Professional Sommeliers (people who sell wine) and chefs will be available to answer questions about wines. Industry booths of gourmet food, wine and kitchen products will introduce their brand or product to attendees.
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October 26th, 2011
This coming Monday, PELA will celebrate Halloween by throwing a Halloween Pizza Party! Student, teachers and staff come dressed in costumes to participate in a Costume Contest, with prizes awarded to the three best costumes. Students also take the Teacher Scream Quiz, where they have to listen to various screams and guess which teacher it is.
Throughout the day, brave students can also wander through PELA’s Haunted Hallway, filled with ghosts, ghouls, skeletons, bats and bones, as well as hidden candy!
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October 19th, 2011
The current exhibit at OMSI, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry just across the river from PELA, is Gunther von Hagens’ BODY WORLDS & The Brain.
This amazing exhibition includes more than 200 authentic human specimens and highlights neuroscience, brain development and performance. The exhibition invites study and reflection on the power, beauty, and fragility of the human body.
The BODY WORLDS exhibit aims to educate the public about the inner workings of the human body and show the effects of poor health, good health and lifestyle choices. They are also meant to create interest in and increase knowledge of anatomy and physiology among the public.
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October 12th, 2011
This Friday, PELA will take our students out to get lost in a Corn Maze! This is one of our students’ most favorite school trips, and is a popular American activity in the fall.
Every year on Sauvie Island (just north of Portland), a local farmer creates an artistic and intricate maze in one of his corn fields—this year it is the logo for the Portland Timbers, our local Major League Soccer team. Thousands of Portlanders come to enjoy an afternoon wandering the maze, as well as buying locally-grown fruit and vegetables at the farm’s market.
There is even a hay ride out to a pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkin!
To find out how to get there on your own, visit the Corn Maze Website!
Every October, you can also enjoy the Haunted Corn Maze–a corn maze filled with spooky and scary fun for all ages! You can experience the Haunted Corn Maze every Friday and Saturday till Halloween.
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