Welcome to my blog! I’m Keith and I’ve lived in Washington DC for 20 years. My dream has always been to live in New England and I’ve chosen Portland Maine as my destination. I’ve decided to start this blog to chronicle what I’ve learned and hopefully what I will learn on my journey to Portland. I’m hoping you’ll enjoy getting to know me and my blog. And as the blog goes on, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions. I’m sure I will have questions of my own and I look forward to your answers. Portland Maine is a beautiful city and we’ll learn about it together as I make plans to move to Portland.
I would love it if you check out my different posts on this blog. I have never had a blog before so I am learning. But I will guarantee you one thing, I will always make sure my posts are accurate and the information is up to date!
Portland Maine is a gold mine of Breweries and Distilleries. A fun way to spend the day in Portland is to contact The Maine Brew Bus, a Maine brewery bus tour company. Anyone interested in learning about the brewery history in Portland, can take advantage of their regularly scheduled tours. They also have private tours in Greater Portland and Southern Maine. The tours are conducted on bright green school buses and provide a behind the scenes look at Maine’s craft breweries, distilleries and wineries. They also offer Brew Walking Tours which is a great tour to do during this time of the pandemic.
The Maine Brew Bus is located at 79 Commercial St in Portland. Their phone number is 207-200-9111.
The Portland Observatory is located at 138 Congress Street in the Munjoy Hill area of Portland Maine. It was built in 1807 and is the only remaining historic maritime signal station in the United States. It was designated a historic landmark in 2006 and is open to the public as a museum.
Portland has a deep harbor that is surrounded by many islands. The ships entering the harbor were not visible from the wharfs, which created problems for merchants preparing for the arrival of their cargos. Captain Lemuel Moody organized the construction of the observatory which could be seen from the ocean and the wharfs.
Using both a telescope and signal flags, two way communication between ship and shore was made possible several hours before an incoming ship reached the docks. The observatory is 7 stories high. During the War of 1812, it was used as a watch tower.
Casco Bay in Portland is dotted with over 200 beautiful islands. Peaks Island and Long Island are the most populated. Each island has its own personality and history. The islands accessible year round are Cliff Island, Chebeaque Island, Long Island, Peaks Island, Little Diamond and Great Diamond Islands. Casco Bay Lines ferry is the most popular means of transportation to and from the islands.
World War II left a big footprint on the Casco Islands. In 1942, the United States installed military reservations on Cape Elizabeth, Peaks Island, Jewel Island, Long Island and Bailey Island, and the islands were a hotbed of military activity. There were 58 military structures on Peaks Island. In 1940, U-boats patrolled the Atlantic Ocean in deadly packs sinking 4,407 Allied ships. Casco Bay played a very important role in protecting the coast, providing ships, hunting submarines and mounting the invasion. At the end of the war, the abandoned bunkers were renovated for new uses or are now landmarks.
The Portland Museum of Art is located at 7 Congress Square in beautiful Portland Maine. Their collection of over 18,000 artworks, range from Andy Warhol and Winslow Homer to Louise Nevelson and Claude Monet.
Winslow Homer (1836-1910) is widely regarded as one of the greatest American artists of the 19th century. He has influential ties to Maine and the Portland Museum of Art. The museum operates the Winslow Homer Studio, a landmark building on the rocky coast of Maine where the artist lived from 1884 until his death.
The museum conducts tours at the Winslow Homer Studio. They offer Free School Tours and Group Tours for groups of 10 or more. You can also take a self guided tour on your mobile device with the PMA guide.
The PMA is free for members. If you are not a member, admission is $18.00 for adults and $15.00 for seniors and students. Everyone 21 and under is always free. There is the PMA cafe that offers coffee and other beverages and sandwiches on the premises.
The David E. Shaw and Family Sculpture Park is a free and open green space for anyone to wander through. It’s open for everyone for free during museum hours May thru December. The entrance is located on High St. in Portland.
Reservations are not required and admission may be purchased onsite. The phone # is 207-775-6148 (option #2). The Portland Museum of Art is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Congress Square is currently under construction but the PMA is open. Congress Square and High, Free and Congress Streets are currently under a multi year redevelopment and construction project run by the City of Portland. The project is causing some disruptions to the traffic patterns but you will thoroughly enjoy your visit to the Portland Museum of Art! I guarantee you will want to return again after your first visit!
Fresh Approach is a locally owned neighborhood grocery store in the West End of Portland Maine. They sell meats, produce, groceries and baked goods. I fell in love with Fresh Approach instantly because it reminded me of the corner grocery stores we had when I was growing up in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. The atmosphere has a comfortable vibe and the employees are friendly and helpful.
The Meat Market
The core of the shop is its Meat Market. They make their own sausage, sell freshly ground chuck and wholesale their meats to many local restaurants in Portland. There is a Deli that offers made to order sandwiches and there are weekly specials on their meats, produce and cheeses. And, they offer prepared foods for your lunch or dinner that are simply delicious.
The produce is delivered everyday directly from the Boston Market and during the growing season they offer local produce which makes everything exceptionally fresh. And for your sweet tooth, they sell baked goods that taste homemade (I believe they are!)
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
In the morning you can get breakfast sandwiches with ham, bacon or sausage with egg and cheese and a cup of coffee. At lunch you can have burgers, hot sandwiches and cold sandwiches. For dinner, they offer prepared foods that are out of this world. Everything tastes homemade and fresh.
My Neighborhood Grocery Store Favorite Items
As I become more familiar with the store, my morning routine is strolling to Fresh Approach and picking up the morning paper ( New York Times, Boston Globe and Portland Press Herald) and a breakfast sandwich with coffee. My favorite items are:
Chicken Salad (the best chicken salad I have ever had!)
Breakfast Sandwiches (are scrumptious)
Egg Salad (is wonderful)
Spaghetti and Meatballs (prepared dinner tastes just like Mom used to make)
Meatloaf (prepared dinner that is the epitamy of comfort food)
Apple Pie (from the crust to the apples, homemade pie at its best)
Going to the store has become my first Portland tradition and I will be a customer for life. I recommend this neighborhood grocery store to everyone I meet! We all need to support local businesses like Fresh Approach because they are few and far between these days.
40 Pine Street (Corner of Pine and Brackett) Portland Maine
Rosemont Market and Bakery is a small neighborhood market with multiple locations in the Portland area. The location closest to me is in the West End at 40 Pine St. on the corner of Brackett and Pine Sts. Other locations are:
Munjoy Hill/East End in Portland
Brighton Ave. in Portland
Falmouth, Maine
Yarmouth, Maine
Cape Elizabeth, Maine
The West End market and bakery on Pine St. is in a wonderful location and is a local favorite spot for morning coffee/breakfast and lunch. Their bread is made by hand and is baked fresh everyday along with:
Bagels
Soft Pretzels
Sticky Buns
Croissants
Challah Bread
Different Types of Sourdough Banquettes
Pastries
Pies
Cookies
Cakes
Rosemont also sells wine and has a weekly food menu. All items on the weekly food menu are available after 2PM on the day listed. With prepared lunches, local fruits and vegetables, Rosemont Market and Bakery is a great place for fresh, local food!
There is something about New England that has always fascinated me. I am captivated by scenic small towns that have beautiful Main Streets with unique little shops and restaurants covered in fresh snow. Maybe I watch too many Hallmark movies but these towns seem so peaceful and are a respite from living in an urban metropolitan city for years. Nevertheless, I decided I would research New England and see what places caught my attention.
Maine , Rhode Island, Vermont or New Hampshire?
The areas I chose to look into were Providence RI, Burlington VT, Portsmouth NH and Portland Maine. I researched cost of living, weather, real estate prices, things to do, restaurants and neighborhoods in the four areas. After researching for a year, I decided on Portland Maine because it seemed like the perfect fit for me.
Real Estate and the Vibe of Portland
The first thing that surprised me was that real estate in Portland was almost comparable to Washington DC where I currently live. If you look outside of Portland, the prices do begin to decrease but I wanted to live in Portland. Suburbs are like suburbs everywhere and I wanted to experience the uniqueness of the city. Portland seems to me to be a smaller version of a big metropolitan city without the constant hustle and bustle. It has just enough of a city feel while still having small town characteristics. Because it is on the coast, it doesn’t receive as much snow as you would imagine.
Food and Beauty
The restaurant scene is phenomenal and Bon Appetit magazine named Portland the 2018 Restaurant City Of The Year! There are many different neighborhoods each with their own attributes. In Portland, you either live On Peninsula or Off Peninsula and I wanted to live on the peninsula. In making my decision, what attracted me to Portland was the metropolitan feel even though it is a small city, the fact that it does snow alot but not as much as you think it does, the restaurant scene (going out to dinner is one of my favorite things to do), and the stunningly beautiful scenery.
Weather and Health
The most import reason for choosing Portland was its weather. I suffer from extremely debilitating migraines and the weather is a big trigger for them. Hot humid weather causes my headaches to be incapacitating and the humidity in Washington DC during the summer is legendary. Cold weather is much better for my disabling migraines. Portland might have two days of humid weather in a year and the temperature rarely goes into the eighties during the summer making it perfect for me.
The Next Phase…
Continuing my research, I contacted real estate agents and began receiving condo listings. I spent a year working with real estate agents to find the right place to live. My next post will continue my journey…
In preparation for living in Portland Maine, I worked with three real estate agents. All three sent me the MLS listings of condos for sale in Portland. As time went on, I decided on one agent to help me find a place to live and her name was Grace. She was a godsend to me and guided me through the entire process. If I was interested in a condo, she would go to the property and provide a walking tour via Skype. At one point, I flew to Portland and Grace met me at the Jetport and drove me around to see some properties plus gave me a driving tour of the city. It was a cold but sunny day in January and I was very excited.
You Tube and Deja Vu
Over the months, I was going onto You Tube watching all of the videos I could. The ones I enjoyed the most were with people driving through the streets of Portland in their cars giving tours. The videos made me feel like I was really there and gave me a real feel for the city. When Grace was driving me around, I had feelings of deja Vu. I was recognizing streets and landmarks as if I was there before, all due to watching the You Tube videos!
Buy and Sell
The entire time flying back to Washington DC, I was thinking about everything that needed to be done to make this move happen. I had to coordinate selling my condo in Washington DC and also buy a place in Portland at the same time. My DC condo sold in ONE DAY and I decided on a condo in Portland. Mid January to Mid February was a whirlwind and before I knew it, Sophie and I were driving on I95 North toward our new home. Filled with mixed emotions, I felt happy, nervous and sad. After living in DC for 23 years, it was going to be quite a change. We arrived in Portland on a cold winter night and snow was coming. That night, we stayed in a hotel called The Inn at St. John and the moving van came in the morning.
Rosemont, Bonobos and Fresh Approach
I didn’t know anyone in Portland but I knew I would make friends. An introvert by nature, I enjoy being alone so not knowing anyone didn’t seem like a problem. The condo I bought was brand new. It was off of Brackett Street in the West End and the neighborhood seemed very nice and comfortable. Rosemont Market and Bakery was on the corner and Bonobo Wood Fire Pizza was across the street from Rosemont. A neighborhood grocery store in the middle of the block called Fresh Approach became my favorite store. And a few blocks away was the Maine Medical Center.
Getting Situated
I met my neighbors below me, a very nice older couple who had just moved from New Hampshire to Portland just a few weeks prior to my arrival. They had a dog which made me happy that Sophie would have a new friend right in our building. Starting back to work in a week, I needed to unpack and become comfortable in my new surroundings and my new city. I was living in Portland Maine!
Franklin Simmons began the design and the construction of the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Memorial in 1885, three years after the poets death. The pedestal was designed by Francis H. Fassette. The bronze statue depicts Longfellow seated in a chair with a stack of books under it. Longfellow is wearing an overcoat, and a cape is draped over his lap and one shoulder. One hand holds a manuscript while the poet gazes at the passersby. The statue is located on the corner of State and Congress in the West End neighborhood of Portland.
