I have a list in my head of places I want to go. I also have a list in my head of lesser-known places that I’ve been, and I want to go back to:
Cesky Krumlov [Czech Republic]
[Ireland]
Macon [Georgia]
[Syria]
… and let’s go ahead and add Astoria, Oregon to that list. yes, yes, those that have gone usually go to pay homage to The Goonies, which should be something everyone does. and, it has to be said, it’s every bit as magic as you think it will be. the house is easy to find, the owner is a sweetheart [a Goonie, herself] and should you be lucky enough to pass anyone else walking down the long driveway when you’re walking up, you’ll exchange a smile reserved for those geeky enough to be there.
but, Goonies aside, the town itself is one of the most fascinating and haunted places I’ve ever been. even just coming within one block of the old Astor hotel [above] you can tell this. the Liberty Theater. any of the given streets. perhaps it was because I walked around on a day where it was dark and drizzly, but the streets reminded me of something out of Detroit – even though I’ve never been.
the architecture was a despondent hybrid of Colonial-meets-coastal. the people hard from the weather, the fishing. two funeral homes sit across caddy-corner from each other, either in competition, or location preference.
it’s a place hard to write, and only those who have been could compare notes. but I could have stayed for days, taking the same photos over-and-over. heading out to Cannon Beach. sit in the same hotel room. drinking in less-than-desirable spots.
and I need to go back.
Tim and Robin would fall ill to something we had eaten the night before [me, fine - a Teflon-coated stomach thanks to years in Asia] and so we’d head back early, timing our drive perfectly for the white-knuckle trip back, up and around Mt. Hood, in a blizzard.
we’d save the rest of the tour for another day, another time.
but trust that this town, and this area of the world, needs to, and will be, seen again.
[more photos here. apologies for the spots. it was raining. a lot.]
