This is a page describing my condo in Portland, Maine, for no other reason than ‘why not’.
What I love about the condo.
Well, basically it’s my happy place. Sitting on the 6th floor with views of Fore River and Casco Bay. There is little better than sitting on the couch in the morning with an espresso watching the world go by on the water outside.
Yeah, that’s the view on a perfect moonlit night. The sunrise over Peaks Island can be quite spectacular too:
And of course there is the normal daytime scene. In summer it’s fascinating with all the sailboats, ferries, lobster boats, cargo ships etc. Quite a site. The color of the water changes so frequently from bright blue to dull grey.
The condo is on the top floor of a hotel in the Old Port in Portland, Maine. The top floor are residences with their own private elevator. The place has almost 1,200 sq ft of living space. It has 2 bedrooms and 2 full baths.
This use to be our second home but now is our primary abode and has everything needed to get through life. It has all the normal amenities such as heating, AC, internet, coffee machines, dishwasher, microwave, clothes washer and drier. The only thing it doesn’t have is a TV. I hate TVs! Actually it does have a TV hidden away but there is no cable access so it’s not much use. If you want to watch TV then bring a laptop and stream whatever you need.
The living room is a great place to hang out. It’s cozy in the winter with a gas fire. In summer it’s perfect with all the windows open and the breeze blowing in off the ocean. Luckily we are on the 6th floor and mosquitoes can’t fly that high!
The living room has a sleep sofa so at a push it’s possible to sleep six in the apartment. The two sleep sofas are high end models from Crate & Barrel and I’ve been reliably informed that they are pretty comfortable.
The kitchen is a kitchen, what more is there to say? This is our primary residence so it has all the amenities that you would expect to get through the day.
We don’t use the master bedroom as our primary bedroom. It is setup for use as a study and has a pull out couch when guests are staying over. It’s simple to convert into a guest bedroom when the need arises. This is it in it’s normal layout:
This is what it looks like with as a guest bedroom:
The room originally designated as the second bedroom has become the master bedroom in our layout. Nothing too interesting to report:
What else is there? I mustn’t forget the clothes washer/dryer in the utility closet.
A reserved car parking spot is also available in the hotel car park.
What I love about this neighborhood.
Portland is such a cool city. Over the past few years it’s become one of the foodiest place in the US. The restaurant scene is outstanding especially if you like seafood. The bar scene is also flourishing especially around the Old Port. Weekend nights can be quite wild on Wharf Street. There are many music venues plus multiple bars with with live music. Sometimes it’s hard just to keep up with what’s on.
Do you like breweries? If so, you’ll love Portland. There were over 20 breweries the last time I counted and they range from quite good to excellent. Luckily a lot of them are in walking distance of the Old Port.
Portland is a very walkable city. Most things are reachable by foot. It’s also a city that varies greatly as the seasons pass. Summer is full of energy with all the tourists and cruise ships. Very lively, quite crowded. Fall is probably the most popular time of year due to the foliage. Winter is the quiet time but I quite like the fact I can get into any of the good restaurants without a wait. Spring, we don’t have one.
If you really want my fawning description of Portland click the tab above “Portland”.