Gorgeous yet underrated- Portland, Maine
My heart particularly goes out to this beautiful American city of historic importance which has largely been ignored, Portland, Maine. This city was also my original inspiration for creating this publication.
Ironically a lot less popular than the city named after it, Portland Oregon, the city offers everything one expects on a vacation. Clean beautiful slate rock beaches with 7 towering lighthouses, biker friendly traffic, city walls covered with murals, yesteryear book stores/arcades, numerous microbreweries and food that never goes wrong. In fact Portland is rumored to have more restaurants per capita than San Francisco itself. What surprised me though was the fact that the home of the popular Allagash beer was actually the first state to impose Prohibition, as early as 1851.
One of the early settlements in this country, Portland was a part of Massachusetts until the Missouri Compromise established Maine as a free state in 1820 and designated Portland as the capital. What followed was the legendary migration of artists drawn by the Maine’s scenic beauty and the magical quality of its light. It inspired many artists of the Hudson River school of Art like Thomas Moran and Fredrick Edwin Church so much so that some of them made Portland their home.
While Winslow Holmer was recording the monumental forces of the coastal waves on his canvas, the Wendys were welding and Rubys were riveting the naval ships for the Great War in this manufacturing hub. Given its plentiful timber and a 3,500 mile coastline on the Atlantic, shipbuilding was natural. But even prior to that, Portland was the primary winter seaport for Canadian exports ever since the completion of the Grant Trunk Railway to Montreal in 1853. As more and more rail lines merged in, Portland itself became a rail-hub in the 20th century.
History aside, the trip brought quite a few novel experiences in my life. Foie Gras over apricot bread, lobster so fresh(sorry Boston, you aren’t good enough), Eritrean food(and hospitality), white whiskey(aged in stainless steel) and a Bach concert in the perfect acoustics of St Luke’s Cathedral.
The best part, however, was exploring the entire city on a bike. The coast of Maine has 65 lighthouses to ensure protection to ships against the rocky slate coast. 6 of these lighthouses are in Portland itself which can be covered via a 15 mile bike tour of varying gradient.
It was sad when I was later ridiculed for spending a weekend in Portland by some migrant New Yorkers who also felt a real traveler would visit Europe and not a forgotten coastal town of America. Their argument was that New York City already has everything America has to offer. It’s hard to explain them that New York is very unique and doesn’t represent rest of the country in any way. When I advocate a visit to Portland, I also advocate open-mindedness about such cities which have enough stories to share with you along with fresh air and farm-to-table food without a waitlist.
