The popular Alberta Street Fair was canceled this year, but it’s been replaced with Summer of Alberta which includes two fun, ongoing attractions for families: #Albertasauruspdx and the Animal Art Tour. We headed over for some socially-distant urban exploration, and had a great time finding dinosaurs and animal art, and rewarding ourselves with scoops from Salt and Straw.
#Albertasauruspdx consists of 30 colorful, cartoon-like dinosaur wood cutouts from artist Mike Bennett displayed on Alberta. Some are in windows and others displayed in front of businesses. The kids had fun finding the ones tucked in storefronts and getting photos with the ones outside. You can also get up close to the outdoor cutouts to see how they are drawn and painted.
There’s more hunting involved in the Animal Art Tour (which covers much of the same area of Alberta.) We picked up our map in front of Green Bean Books (they are closed for browsing, but you can call and pick up books outside). Follow the map to find the art pieces, with help from clues and riddle-like descriptions. My nine-year-old really enjoyed reading the clues and finding the art, and it was also a nice intro to map reading. Many of the iconic Alberta murals are stops on the tour as well, and they are nice spots to admire or take a photo.
Stop to read the Black Heritage Markers, permanent public art that documents the Black community’s long and important history in the Alberta neighborhood.
Many stores and restaurants were open, but the sidewalks never felt crowded and most people were wearing masks. We wrapped up our visit with a stop at Salt & Straw. In the early afternoon, there was a short line that moved quickly, and we placed and picked up our order outside. We devoured our cones at the picnic tables in front of the American Legion across the street. It was a fun, socially-distant afternoon with friends, and it was great to be back on Alberta.
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