SHOPPING, DUCKS, FRIENDS

Saturday, June 2 – Today is Marsha's birthday. She began the day's celebration with a coffee from Starbucks. The older she gets, the easier it is to satisfy her….hehe.

We drove over to Eugene, OR, this morning for the famous Farmer's Market. Man-O-Man...this is the biggest farmer's market we've ever seen. Over 200 booths according to Eugene Farmer's Market literature.

The fresh fruits and vegetables looked amazing. Carrots, strawberries, lettuce, radishes, etc... Just about any vegetable or fruit you can imagine. They had goat milk cheese and other products, fresh eggs, meats, and of course, all types of organic grown items.

Then there were the fresh baked pastries....yummmmm! We just had to make a few purchases here.

Yes, that is Paul approaching one of his weaknesses…pastries.

This Market has a huge diverse food area. We have never been to a Farmer's Market where they offer Indian, American, Chinese, Twain, Afghani Cuisine, Mexican and many other foods. The smells were delightful.

Making wood-fire pizza.

There were all types of hand craft items with a significant edge toward alternative culture items like tie-died clothing, pipes, kaleidoscopes, leather goods, and numerous people selling jewelry of all types.

A Oregon Farmer's Market wouldn't be complete without the opportunity to purchase a duck hat.

There were several street entertainers for the crowd to enjoy, Occupy Eugene was there, and numerous people asking you to sign petitions covering all aspects of the political spectrum. And don't forget the panhandlers asking for money....at least they had signs and weren't bugging us by asking for money.

Latest rage in Eugene…coming soon to a town near you!

It was a great time and we made a few contributions to the Eugene economy before leaving. Our next stop was the University of Oregon, third-oldest public university in Oregon.

The Oregon Ducks are a local favorite to many Oregon fans. The exciting football team has sparked a national interest in the University of Oregon. The school is located in the heart of Eugene. It has a mixture of architectural themes. The student body is just wild about the school. It is growing dramatically with numerous construction projects evident throughout campus and enrollment growing each year.

Gerlinger is home to the Asian Studies Program, Alumni Lounge, an indoor gymnasium, pool, and the Department of Dance.
 

The John E. Jaqua Center for Student Athletes. It gives the student-athletes a place to gather as a community focused on study and learning.

Our visit wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Duck's softball field. The softball team was a final eight team in the tournament, but lost on Saturday.

The center of the student enthusiasm is the Oregon Duck's Football Stadium. It is located several miles off campus, and it is HUGE, and getting bigger, with construction gear all around the facility.

We then met fellow bloggers and Eugene residents, Donna and Russ Krecklow at Roaring Rapids Pizza. We follow each others' blog and frequently leave comments for each other. Meeting this couple was like meeting old friends.

Always smiling.

We shared stories on the rear deck of the restaurant, laughed, and enjoyed our pizza. Russ brought along a bag of tourist brochures for us to enjoy and take home with us. What a wonderful thought!

We ate outside with the sound of rapids coming from the Willamette River.

It was an enjoyable lunch with our “new” friends. Wish we could stay and spend some time with this fun couple. If we visit all the sights in the brochures Russ brought for us, we might be getting voting rights here in Eugene....ha ha! Thanks guys for a wonder visit to Eugene. You can get to know them through their blog, Travels with Therapy. They write with a wonderful sense of humor.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!