Portland

Portland, Oregon is America's most self-consciously progressive, bicycle-obsessed and book-loving city — a Pacific Northwest city of 650,000 on the Willamette River that has been setting trends in food, craft beer, artisan coffee and sustainable urban living since the 1990s. It is the city that hipster culture most thoroughly inhabits, and it wears that identity with considerable charm and genuine conviction. Powell's City of Books, the largest independent bookshop in the world (occupying an entire city block, extending into an adjacent building), is the city's spiritual centre. The Portland Japanese Garden, perched on a hillside in Washington Park, is considered the most authentic Japanese garden outside Japan — a genuine meditative achievement. The Portland Art Museum, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and the Lan Su Chinese Garden are all excellent. The food cart scene — over 500 food carts operating in dedicated "pods" — is one of America's most diverse and excellent. The Alberta Arts District, Mississippi Avenue and the Pearl District are the most interesting neighbourhoods for independent culture. Voodoo Doughnut (bacon maple bar doughnuts) and Blue Star Donuts represent a collective obsession. The craft beer scene (over 80 breweries) is extraordinary. Day trips: the Columbia River Gorge and Multnomah Falls (30 minutes), Mount Hood (90 minutes, year-round skiing), the Oregon Coast (90 minutes) and the wine country of the Willamette Valley (45 minutes) are all excellent.