Friday Snow Day

Today's snow wasn't nearly as bad as earlier in the week, but we woke up again to white streets, covered trees, and big puffy flakes. The Oregon Historical Society was closed again for inclement weather and driving to Salem for research didn't seem like a very good idea. So, we both worked a little this morning, made a list of errands we needed to run, and headed downtown. We stopped by the library to drop off a few books and picked up another audiobook for our drive to Santa Cruz next week. George Pelecanos (writer of The Wire) has been a favorite so far, not only because he writes great stories, but also because they're mostly set in D.C. I also picked up a book on gift wrapping with fabric and can't wait to try out my skills with the Christmas presents we picked up yesterday.

After the library we both decided that we were starving. Luckily, we were right around the corner from Pioneer Square where there are at least a dozen food carts with just about any type of cuisine you could imagine. They have Vietnamese food, Russian, German, lots of Asian noodle places, taco/burrito carts, a Greek food place, etc. We have passed the carts several times since we moved here and they always smell really delicious. Apparently, there are food carts all over Portland with an even larger variety of food selection than what's found downtown. I'm pretty excited to sample them all!

Jesse initially thought he'd get a Vietnamese soup, but then saw the Euro Dish cart that is best described as Polish soul food. Today, I had my heart set on noodles and decided to try out Pad Thai from the cart next door. My Pad Thai was tasty, but not the best ever. However, I think I got about 4 pounds of food for $5 and it totally hit the noodles spot in my belly.

Jesse got the Kopytka plate, which is beef goulash with potato dumplings and two side salads. He also got a slice of Vienna-style chocolate cheese cake, which was fabulous. The goulash was incredibly tasty and it was one of those stick-to-your-ribs meals that are totally necessary on a cold, grey, snowy day. We're definitly going back to the food carts downtown, but next time we're going to order the Polish Plate with hunter's stew (Bigos), beef stuffed cabbage (Golabki), three pierogis, and a Kielbasa sausage. I also want to try the pork schnitzel sandwich and the Chicken Paprikash.

After lunch, we shopped around a bit for Christmas gifts and stopped home to kick up our feet. Now, with bellies full, we're off to purchase a set of tire chains (required when driving through most of Oregon during the winter), and a few groceries to get us through the weekend. I can hardly believe that December is almost over -- I think 2008 has been the quickest year ever.