The Oregonian

By Terry Richard

A cure for the common cold awaits 2 1/2 hours north of Portland, where a 2,000-degree blast furnace is sure to warm a winter day.

A seat by the oven comes with admission to the Museum of Glass in Tacoma.

OK, so a day in Tacoma is not going to be any less rainy or chilly than one in Portland, at this time of year or any other.

But the City of Destiny, as it's sometimes known, does offer a handy change of scene as the closest urban getaway from Portland. Eugene may beg to differ, but nothing in the Willamette Valley, Portland included, quite resembles Tacoma's oh-so-convenient Museum District.

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