One of Portland's crown jewels is its International Rose Test Gardens. Nestled in Washington Park on a hillside overlooking the city and (on a clear day) Mount Hood, the test gardens house 7000 rose plants of over 550 varieties.
Which tells you nothing about what it's like to visit the gardens on a sunny day in June. The fragrance of fresh roses assaults you even before you get out of the car. A hundred different scents hang, mingled in the air. You follow your nose down some steps and over a slight rise until your eyes are filled with a sea of yellows, pinks, reds, purples, greens.
The children rush from plant to plant and let their faces be engulfed by the face of an open rose, breathing in the flower's essence in a floral kiss. Adults move slower, reveling in the garden's charm, pausing to linger over delicate buds. Each shouts out opinions of which is best - tea roses, hybrids, long-stems, old fashioneds - there's a rose for everyone.
At last the beauty overwhelms and we turn our backs on the rows and rows of roses, knowing they will continue smiling for those who come after.
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