During June of 2010 we traveled to Portland, Oregon to attend the wedding of our granddaughter Madeline to Joe. Joe is in the military and after several overseas tours, is stationed in the Seattle area while Madeline works in a pharmacy.

Madeline and Joe were married at Ponzi Vineyard near Beaverton, Oregon. The ceremony was performed in the shade of a large tree seen on the right-hand side of the above image. Ponzi's grape vineyard can be seen in the distance. it is a lovely place for a wedding. And, of course, the wine was superb. Daughter Pam is a card-carrying member of the vineyard and had taken us to their Tasting Room on our previous visit to the area.

Fabric was draped from tree branches and swayed with the gentle breeze.

Following the ceremony, there was music for the bride and groom's first dance as man and wife.

Portland Oregon Dragon Boat Race

We were fortunate to be in Portland during the Portland Rose Festival. An annual event is the Portland Rose Festival Dragon Boat Race. The event is held on the Willamette River.

Four boats compete in each heat. Crews are made up of a collection of paddlers from all over the country--and beyond. Crews give themselves names and one of our favorites was "Knuckle Dragons." Some businesses sponsor teams.

Somewhat identical boats are provided for each of the crews to level the playing field. The race begins as can be seen in the banner for this page. The crews race for a flag and the first flag that is captured is declared the winner. In the image above, at the far right can be seen a person on the bow of his Dragon Boat reaching for his flag. Judges are in the power boat seen at the left above. The flags are planted again for the next heat.

Spectators Watching Dragon Boat Races

We watched the races from Waterfront Park. Parking is a challenge in the area so we parked our rental car in a parking garage across the street.