the place Johnny and I both call home,

and one of my favorite cities in the world.

I'm so excited to show you it.

As I was planning this trip, I was like,

"What the?

We do the same thing in almost every city we go to."

It's like a formula or a recipe if you will.

I hope you will, cause we're just going to go with it.

And I just want to share that with you,

that formula for travel.

But first, we have to pack,

and then head to San Francisco for a little stop-over

to meet my new baby niece.

I can't even, I am so excited!

And then we're going to Portland for some family time,

some exploring, some food of course,

because duh, food.

And to tell you all about our formula for travel.

See you there.

(upbeat music)

- [Narrator] Careful!

I love you!

- [Child] I love you!

(mumbling)

- That's enough because I'm here too

and I need you to know that she won't let me hold you.

- Who's your favorite aunt?

- First and foremost, most importantly, we find,

what food does that city do best?

And then we go eat it.

Not just it, but we find the best place

that serves that specific food.

We've done this in many cities.

In Scotland, we did afternoon tea and English breakfast.

In Hong Kong, oddly enough we did french toast,

which is something that they do best,

and we experienced dim sum, which was a treat!

In Austin, we did tacos.

Like tacos, just all day.

And in New York City, we did pizza.

And obviously these places have so many things

that they also do amazingly,

but I don't usually don't try to find

my favorite food in a city.

I try to find exactly what it is that they do

that they're famous for,

and then I usually ask around to find out

where the best place is for that.

In Portland, this is a combination of things.

First and foremost, the food carts.

There's a myriad of experiences you can have

with food carts.

Some are themed, so there's Latino food carts and pods,

and some are just a random assortment of delicious food

like this one that we went to.

In one stop we were able to get tempura vegetables,

some tempura fusion version of jalapeno poppers,

quesadillas, rice and beans,

Teriyaki chicken,

and Thai tea with boba,

because my love for boba knows no end.

Isn't that the winner?

Salmon inside cream cheese, deep-fried.

There's such an experience to be had,

and if you're in Portland, you just have to do it.

The second thing that we do in every single city we visit

is go on a hike.

This last trip we went out to the gorge

and we went to Multnomah Falls,

which is somewhere we've been visiting since we got married,

and probably since we were kids.

And we went to a hike called-

what's it called?

- [Man] What?

- What's the hike called in Portland?

- [Man] Which one?

- The one in the gorge that we went to.

- [Man] Angel's Landing.

- That's not real.

That's one in Zion.

- [Man] Angel's Rest.

- Angel's Rest.

It was a gorgeous hike, and such a fun hike with the kids.

It was perfect to go with Oliver and Henry.

They're such troopers.

Honestly we got halfway and Henry asked to go hiking more

because he said he's the king of hiking.

So we honored that while Ollie and I, cause we're smart,

headed back down.

We've done this in most every city we've been to.

In Edinburgh, we went and hiked Arthur's Seat.

It was so freaking beautiful and such a different look

into the city and the culture there.

In Hong Kong, we did one called Red Burner's Incense?

Red Incense Burner Summit.

And I wasn't super happy about it-

What is the short cut?

But it ended up being really beautiful.

Portland has so many good hikes to offer.

There really is just no shortage

when it comes to options of different hikes to do.

The third thing that we do in every single city

is find the coziest coffee shop.

I love a good coffee shop.

I think that it's a really strong reflection

of a culture in a place.

And it doesn't have to be just coffee.

If the place that you're visiting does something else

especially well, some drink especially well,

it can be that.

So in Hong Kong, we did milk tea,

and oh my gosh I was drinking that stuff by the gallon

it was so phenomenal.

In New York City we found this coffee shop

called Irving Farm which we just fell in love with.

And in Japan, we found this place called Onibus,

which was heavenly.

In Portland there are endless options for coffee shops,

but a staple is Stumptown.

And it is so darling.

The one in Ace Hotel has the most adorable little lounge

where you can take a family photo in a photo booth,

and it was an experience.

- [Man] Look at all these people.

- Should we keep it closed or should we let dad in?

- [Man] Did I hear something? (gasp)

Oh my goodness!

- There's also a staple

that we've been visiting for a long time called Townshends,

it has recently rebranded

which I'm not happy about in the least.

But, it serves kombucha,

which is like a Portland staple,

and it serves it on tap.

So, if you're looking to really experience

the Portland vibe, go get yourself a growler

or a cup of kombucha, slurp it down.

You'll love it!

Or you won't!

But I do.

That's all that matters, cause it was me there, not you.

The fourth thing that we do in every single city

is we find a view.

This is like essential.

Because you want to see the city itself.

You want to see all of the surroundings

and see the city kind of in a more like

(mumbles) perspective.

I don't know.

You just want to be able to see it,

and not be so up close in it.

Obviously, in New York City,

a really good option for this was going to either

the Brooklyn Bridge or the Rockefeller Center.

We love just getting a full view of the city

from both of these places.

In Hong Kong, we did the Victoria's Secret (laughs)

Victoria Peak.

- [Man] Yeah.

- Which you can take the tram up or hike

and the view is just stunning of the city.

It's so so so beautiful.

In Montreal, that was one of the most memorable views

that we've experienced up on Mount Royal.

It is just like so beautiful and cozy and freezing.

It's also freezing, but it's so beautiful.

We happen to be there in winter.

So if you're there in the summer,

it likely won't be freezing.

But, I can't get that cold out of my head.

One of my favorite views that we've ever seen was in Cuba.

We went to this like fort outside of the city.

The views were so beautiful.

And the kids could run around.

Getting a view is something that we love to do

not just to escape kind of the craziness of the city,

but also to really see it in all its glory.

So, get a view.

In Portland, we did this in kind of a new way.

From the waterfront of Portland,

we took the (mumbles)

OHSU Aerial Tram.

Did I get it?

- [Man] OSHU Aerial Tram.

- Look at this face.

Never messes up.

- [Man] Never messed up ever.

- Never says Victoria's Secret

when she means Victoria Peak (laughs)

It was such a fun family activity.

Kids under six were free, the boys loved it,

and it was such a stunning view.

Check it out.

A crazy big spaceship!

- It's a train!

It drives a little bit, and it flies!

- The final thing from our travel formula

that we do in every single city is we visit a bookstore.

Yes, even if we don't speak the language

of that specific place.

I think it's such a beautiful look into the values

and the vibe of the city that you're visiting

so we always try to find a local juicy bookstore.

The best bookstore in the world happens to be in Portland

and it is Powell's.

It is truly like

the Costco of books

except it has more soul because it's a local bookstore.

It's not like a massive chain

but like Costco gives you samples

and Powell's doesn't do that so.

Powell's is magical.

We go there every single time,

and we try to find a book for ourselves,

and for our kids, and it's just as dreamy as can be!

So, watch us do that!

What books do you want?

- The find a skeleton book.

- [Narrator] A what book?

- A skeleton book.

- [Narrator] A skeleton book?

- Yeah.

- [Narrator] Here it is.

Do you see the skeletons?

- [Child] Yeah.

- Obviously there are so many more things

that we do in each place,

and that's usually tailored to the specific place,

but I love the idea of having a formula

for each place that you visit.

And I always make sure that I do these top five things.

Always.

And, when I do that, even if it's just a weekend in a place,

I feel like I've gotten to see

a really well-rounded perspective of that place

which is the goal when you travel.

So, use this travel formula next time you go somewhere,

let me know what you think.

This trip to Portland was a visit back home

to see family for the holidays.

As I'm sure you know, this can be a crazy time of year,

and the travel makes it no less crazy.

Don't get me wrong, seeing family is more than worth it,

but it can be a little wild at times.

This video is sponsored by Away,

and it's no exaggeration when I say,

their bags made this trip so much more seamless.

Traveling for the winter can be especially daunting

because of all the coats and sweaters

and like million things that you have to pack.

You know I'm an advocate for light packing,

but for winter, that can be really really difficult.

So their carry-ons have this compression pad

that just allows you to just get it all in there.