2nd Day - Dateline: Oregon

Our second day in Oregon was another full day, thanks to our wonderful hosts. After visiting a Farmer's Market, full of organic fare and interesting sights, including a small group of very hippie-looking people, who danced and sang about the wonders of the Farmer's Market, we went to the Cascades Raptor Center, where one of our hosts works as a volunteer.

There we met Taka, above, a gorgeous Swainson's hawk, who was illegally shot and who, because of a damaged wing, can't live in the wild anymore. Taka, however, is comfortable enough among strangers that he participates in educational programs, and obligingly looked straight into my husband's camera for this great shot.

Curiously, Taka turned around so he could devour his meal (a euthanized mouse) with a little privacy. That's unlike Puck, below (in his cage, before he was brought out), an American Kestrel. Puck, who joined Taka for the educational program, had no qualms about showing us how a raptor eats its prey.

The place is a definite must-see for those of us who love raptors and the people who rescue them. Showing how the Power of One is alive and well, the center was created by one woman who has seen her dream become a major rescue operation in Oregon.

While our kind host would be able to tell which of the three Bald Eagles the center has in residence this would be, I'm not sure if it's the male or one of the two females. Still, regardless of gender (although how cool that in eagles the female is the bigger and badder one!), the eagle is a glorious sight (too bad it's the symbol of U.S. imperialism, of course).

After spending some quality time among the raptors, who are the absolute coolest of birds, we left so we could have lunch at a winery. But this time we went to a wine estate, aptly called King Estate, which looks like something out of a Tuscan landscape.


Not only is the place lovely, but the food was delicious and the wines were exquisite (this was one wine tasting I truly enjoyed because every wine was better than the first). My favorite is their perfect Pinot Gris, and our hosts generously gifted us with a divine Craftman Series Muscat Vine Glacé (a dessert wine) for toasting after my defense (not immediately after, of course, but later that evening).

After the winery, our hosts took us to the University of Oregon for a walk through the lovely campus, and then later that night they hosted a small get-together so we could meet some of their Oregon friends. A fun time was had by all, and I especially enjoyed it when the Latinas there started trading stories about our too-close encounters with bugs. I'm not alone, after all.