Room Without a View, or Ghost

Room Without a View, or Ghosts

The bar with rooms above

An urban adventure is what we were seeking to escape, even if for the night. If I had the cash, and didn’t need to work, I can picture myself living town Portland in the Pearl District among the who-you-should know people. However since my budget is more of a Coors light instead Sparkling white wine (commonly known as Champagne) so I booked us a room above a bar on the wrong side of the river of downtown Portland.


Rooms are available above the White Eagle Care Rock ‘n’ Roll hotel in which people like ZZ top played. The hotel opened its door in 1905 and said to be haunted and once connected to the Shanghai tunnels.

The Spirit detector

And keeping with the Spirit of this hotel (meant to be taken literally) I also booked us a haunted tour entitled “Beyond Bizarre Ghost Tour.” The Internet information promises to scare us with tale of the undead and the chance to see orbs.


Both were a bust. Can’t say Epic Fail since I was spending the weekend with my husband and daughter; however if I was with people I didn’t care about it would've been a Epic Success and I maybe not of ever seen those people again. The skinny just in case you don't desire to read on: No we didn’t see any undead, not scared by any tales, didn’t see any orbs and didn’t get any sleep in a room in which a bed barely fit and the public bathroom doors didn’t lock, and walls paper thin.




The hallway is about as wide as a room.

Our tour guide

The positives, the room was cheap, as in cash. The beer at McMenamins is always good and the outdoor patio area is one of my favorites even tho it lacks any sort of view. The positive with the Bizarre Ghost tour is we had a Voodoo Donut break and we didn’t have to stand in the hour long wait line. And the tour guide was friendly enough.....but....that’s about it. I think she seriously believes in the undead walking among us and she even talked to them at the end of tour in a unlit basement below a pizza parlor. She called the ghost by name. The tour started at 10 pm in downtown Portland. The tour participants was my family and a couple from the Seattle area. That's it. We walked a couple miles around building and she pointed out where "bad" once happened and how haunted the streets of Portland still are. Yes, that I believe however those who are haunting the street today are alive and well and making money.

Something I believe in...Voodoo Donuts

In short order, I did not become a believer. I already believe in Voodoo Donuts and deliciousness. A maple bar with bacon on top would turn you into a believer as well. Oh wait I have already blog about that.

After the tour, we caught the last Max to the other side of the river at 1 am to attempt sleep above the bar. Impossible. The band was still playing and our tiny room directly above. In stead of sleep, we shared a plate of tator tots and drank a beer at the table closest to the door and furthest way from the band as possible. We wondered up to our room near 2 am. Sleep did not find me. I heard the people in the room next to us snore. I heard the people in the room across the hall from us. (And that's all I'll say about that.)  Once dawn cracked, my husband and poured ourselves out the room and walked to a bakery worth the 1/2 mile walk called Grand Central. There we had coffee and a smiot similar to what we ate in Turkey.


When you look for your urban adventure and if you plan on getting to bed before 2 am and sleeping past 7 am, I recommend you look elsewhere than the White Eagle. I can only recommend sleeping about the bar if your favorite local band is playing that night. And you are a heavy sleeper. And you have ear plugs.

The real urban adventure..the max ride.

http://www.mcmenamins.com/469-white-eagle-saloon-home




http://www.portlandwalkingtours.com/tours/beyond_bizarre.php