We had a great time in Portland! We packed a lot into one long weekend--too much to tell you about in one post, so I'll start with one of our favorite parts of the weekend, which happened to be the hotel itself, and later this week I'll post more from our trip. The McMenamins Kennedy School Hotel was one of our top favorite places we've ever stayed. We love places that feel homey, and we usually prefer B&B type lodgings over your typical hotel. The Kennedy School felt much more like a B&B than a hotel. Not only are the rooms large, cozy and comfortable, but they're unique in that each was once a classroom and even has the original blackboards. The hotel also has a courtyard heated pool surrounded by lush plants, a few pubs, a movie theater (which is in the old auditorium ), and a great restaurant with yummy casual food. Oh, yeah, and there's a brewery in the hotel as well. The McMenamins brothers are known for their craft brewed beer. They even have their own brand of coffee as well, which is really tasty. If you go to Portland, we'd highly recommend staying at the Kennedy School Hotel. I imagine their other hotels are just as great and worth checking out as well.
The grounds around the school were beautiful. Gardens surrounded the entire building.
I love the lighting in the restaurant. All kinds of pendant lamps hang from the ceiling in various styles and colors. This is one I especially liked.
There are no TVs in the rooms, which we thought was refreshing. It pretty much forces you to relax. They had a good selection of books in the bookcase. Andrew almost finished a whole book in the short time we actually spent in the room.
We loved the blackboard panels and the way they opened up to a long closet with kid height coat hooks in the closet.
Nice, soft bedside lighting.
I loved our headboard! It has all the colors I'm always drawn to--red, green, yellow and blue. I wanted to take it home with us.
The theater is amazing! It's really intimate and cozy with random miss-matched sofas for seating. They have a popcorn and drink stand where you can order beer and food as well. We saw a really good movie one night called In Bruges. 
The halls are lined with huge, beautiful old windows, and the walls are covered in artwork, most of which has something to do with the history of the school.
Some of the art.
More from our trip later this week!
4 comments:
Hey Leigh,
I just got back from Stockton and am catching up. It sounds like an amazing place to stay. Really respectful of the original environment and playful at the same time. Glad you had a great time. Off to do the ironing!
Lisa & Alfie
Hi, this place sounds wonderful !
I was in Portland ths time last year and its exactly the sort of place I'd loved to heve stayed in..:)
Oh, Portland. My home.
Did you go to the Honor Bar or Detention? I haven't been in ages, but if I remember correctly, they have bars for good kids and bad there. :)
Sounds like you had a good time.
We walked by both bars a few times but didn't go in for drinks. They were smoky and I get real prickly if I have to be around cigarette smoke. Plus I'm 6 months preggers, so we didn't bother hitting the bars, though I slurp down virgin drinks in restaurants with my husband while he drinks the real stuff. Still, both bars looked really great.
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