I am excited to show you some of the mini-travels and bike rides I’ve been doing during the pandemic but before I do I wanted to give you an even easier way to “travel” your neighborhood before it ends later this weekend. Since this year’s Portland Rose Fest can’t really happen you can stroll through various neighborhoods throughout town in an event they are calling “Parade in Place.”
What is that exactly? Well Rose Festival workers describe it like this:The Portland Rose Festival parades have entertained and inspired our community and visitors from around the world for more than 100 years. Each year the spectacular floats, award winning marching bands, talented equestrians, and colorful community groups perform for hundreds of thousands of parade goers on the streets of Portland. This spring, the Rose Festival is evolving these traditions to celebrate community spirit and resilience, and inspire hope.
Already in full swing, the porch parade goes through this coming Saturday May 30th when there will also be a special Rose Festival VIP Procession. It invites community members to decorate their porches, lawns, sidewalks, windows, or anything else visible from the street. They can be anything family-friendly, but the Rose Fest put forth some suggestions based on festival traditions too.
- #GrandFloralFun
- Showcase the best your yard has to offer, bring your plants out front for everyone to enjoy!
- #JuniorMakers
- Where kids rule the design. Get the whole family involved and put that youthful energy to work making your porch look AMAZING.
- #StarlightPorchBright
- Porches don’t just exist in the daytime, so illuminate the night with your community spirit. Put those holiday lights back up, dig out some glowsticks, and show your neighbors how you’ll light up their lives.
Here’s just a few snapshots I took on our tour from this past weekend:
I also noticed a lot of profiles of businesses such as a porch dedicated to Movie Madness or Powell’s Books. I’m not sure if they’re raising money or just awareness but they were cute examples of local biz flavor.
It’s spread throughout town so there’s likely at least a couple within walking distance of your own ‘hood, but there are also pockets with larger amounts of decorated porches if you really want to make an afternoon outing of it. We went to a couple areas near the Alameda ridge that featured several houses. So most of these pictures are probably taken around 54th and Stanton area. Below I’ve included the full map so you can decide on your own route. Feel free to send me pictures of places I haven’t gotten to. I’d love to see them and would be happy to post.
And if you’re not able to actually get out into the neighborhoods this week you can tune in to Facebook Live on June 6th at 2p for another COVID-19 alternative Rose Fest celebration, the Grand Petite Parade. Instead of the annual march through downtown streets, participants will construct mini “floats” out of shoeboxes featuring original designs, recreated (or improved) historical parade floats, or visions for future Rose Festival parades. I can’t wait to see what wacky and inspired things Portlanders come up with. Those who truly shine will win “Rosette Awards” which include 2020 Rose Vision lapel pins and a chance to attend a future Grand Floral Parade as guests of the Portland Rose Festival.
Here are some of the categories you can win in:
- Sweepstakes Rosette (Most outstanding float in the Parade)
- Queens Rosette (Most creative float in the Parade)
- President’s Rosette (Most effective overall floral presentation)
- Governor’s Rosette (Best depiction of life in Oregon)
- Royal Rosarian Rosette (Best craftsmanship and workmanship)
- Rose Society Rosette (Most effective use and display of roses)
- Rose Festival Court Rosette (Best example of enthusiasm and teamwork)
- Grand Marshal Rosette (Best depiction of whimsy)
- Theme Rosette (Best presentation of Rose Festival theme)
- Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Rosette (Best depiction of community spirit)
- Peg Roseboro Rosette (Most artistic design and presentation)
And of course, there are hashtags for all of this. So check out @pdxrosefestival, #paradinginplace, #RFporchparade, #GrandPetiteParade, and tag your own if you go out there this weekend.