Posted in Portland
January 06, 2017
10 Surefire Ways To Always Spot A Tourist In Portland
Portland is becoming more and more tourist-filled as the years go by. It is pretty easy to spot them, but in case you need any help, here are 10 clues that someone is a tourist in Portland.
The line is infamous, but not on account of locals. Unless you are drunk or visiting our town, there is no reason to wait this long for a donut. If you really want a VooDoo, you would head to the eastside location, or you could just eat at one of the many other donut shops around town. Also, carrying a pink box is a dead giveaway.
While any child's soccer game across the city may contradict this one, umbrellas are largely for tourists. We just don't care, can't remember to carry one, or just put on our hoods when the rain comes.
Posing in front of landmarks, photographing things straight out of a Portlandia episode, and getting yet another picture of the bridges are all classic giveaways of a tourist in the midst.
We all know it is pronounced Cooch. If you are still laughing about this, you are not a Portlander.
Tourists like to shop, sure. But in Portland, they can take it to the next level, as our no sales tax is just the push they need to shop till they drop. Loaded up from a shopping trip: probably a tourist.
For the most part, drivers in Portland stop for pedestrians. If someone is super amazed and waves thankfully and repeatedly because you stopped for them to cross the street, they are probably not from here. Likewise, if a tourist is driving, chances are they will blow through the cross walk without giving it a second thought.
Natives know that you don't have to exit your car to get gas. Stay put and gas will come to you. If you even make a move for the pump, you will be swiftly stopped and recognized as a tourist.
Beards are a well-loved piece of the wardrobe in Portland, and not a lot of men leave the house without one. If you are clean-shaven, you are automatically suspected as a tourist.
Locals say OR-uh-gun. Tourists say Or-ee-GONE.
Ok, some Portlanders don't even have this down yet, but it has been five years since we started composting food waste in the city and many more years since we started recycling. If you throw food scraps in the landfill, cans in the garbage, or get really stuck at garbage cans like these pictured, chances are you are a tourist.