Marijee

Marijee here to show you Blake’s Piano stop in Salem, Oregon.   

I live in Salem, Oregon and have for the last twenty plus years. It is the State Capitol of Oregon and has the majority of State Offices, Prisons and Mental Institutions. We are very diverse! LOL! 

The State Building is the third one built in Salem. On it’s dome rests The Pioneer or as most Oregonians call him: The Gold Man. It’s a bronze statue covered in gold leaf, and it definitely glows when the sun hit it. There are some wonderful murals inside the Capitol building and some detailed carvings in marble at the entrance. Oregon ends the trek west by Lewis and Clark and we have many tributes to their success in making it to the West Coast. 

Salem is located in the Willamette (Will-am-ette) Valley. I've included a photo of the Willamette Valley with Mount Hood in the distance. We are forty-five minutes to the Pacific Coast and about two hours to the Cascade Mountains. 

The current Amtrak Station is also the third train station built in Salem. The first two burnt down and this third one was built in 1918. It was restored in 2000 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010. 

Oregon gets lots of rain from November until late April. We don’t say our summers really start until July 4th. I think we have one of the best summers in the States. Our weather is usually dry (and not humid!) from July through the middle of October. 

I volunteer as a Master Gardener with the Oregon State Extension Service. We answer calls on local garden and pest issues and also have a demonstration garden called Marion Garden. We grow vegetables and herbs and donate them to our local Food Share to be distributed to needy families. It’s a very worthwhile endeavor. We get to play in the dirt and help our community! 

I've shared a picture of Marion Gardens looking from the herb garden to the raised veggie beds. See our greenhouse in the distance. 

Thanks so much for allowing me to participate in Blake’s Piano tour. 

I had so much fun revisiting some of the important pieces of Salem’s history.