places to wander around on foot in downtown Portland
 

???

portlands tiny, so everywhere.

Lower-East side, Upper-West side (there's a great coffee house on the corner by the station) and Chinatown (but don't get the hot dogs from Li's).

cool, anything more specific like names of some cool spots and maybe some street addresses? I will be up there in a few weeks and my sister works downtown so I was planning on riding with her in the morning and wandering around to get into some shit, similar to the way I have been backpacking on a pilgrimage across Los Angeles for the past month, winding up all over the place.

gleeson has a few bars, cafes etc.

From watching Anthony Bourdain, I'd go to Apizza Scholl's and get some of that awesome looking pizza they serve.

And I'd also go to Voodoo Doughnut and get a bacon maple bar

how did you know about my donut addiction? I haven't had a donut in weeks because of the Lenten Fast and it has crept into my dreams.. I had a wet dream the other day that I took a bite into a maple bar, but then became entirely conscious in the dream state, reminded myself it was Lent, and spit out the bite in repulsion before i could swallow it...

Only eight days man!

15, Orthodox Easter is the 18th :)

but I don't mind.. I do it out of joy, not obligation, and honestly, I miss it when its gone, so luckily we'll be back on track for the Apostles' Fast in June..

its strengthens the body and soul to practice abstinence and brings the self into self-realization

Stumptown is the best coffee place downtown, it's pretty close to Voodoo Donut which is certainly a landmark (I've never really liked donuts, so I'm not the one to say, but their schtick is certainly cool and they're 24 hours). Since I know you want to find Ethiopian food, get out of downtown to Queen of Sheba, they're the best (should be easy to look up). The Portland City Grill is a pretty yuppie place downtown, but worth hitting happy hour for the view (they're in the top floor of the tallest building). The Farmer's Market is fun for out of town people. The Montage is a really trippy restaraunt with great food and a bizarre upper meets lower class arty dichotomy. Kind of hard to find them at first, but they're under the Burnside Bridge.

thank you. any galleries or museums that are cheap and pedestrian accessible?

Lots of galleries of the "this is for sale but you poor people can look at it to" variety. The Portland Art Museum is downtown, but it's sadly not free (I think it's about $6). Probably worth it, but a bit steep to swallow.

I'd suggest getting a bus or max out of downtown and checking out the Hawthorne district. Oh and Powell's is sort of downtown and an amazing bookstore (biggest used one in the country or some such) with a cafe. Plus Jackpot records is right near it, and they're pretty decent for used and weird. Everyday Music is too and usually cheaper; great jazz/classical/eclectic sub-store at that one.