Shannon Bryan
Writing about Maine's entertaining goings on
Job Content Producer / MaineToday Media
Lives In South Portland
I discovered Portland in 2005. A travel guide suggested it. So I showed up. I played tourist and made friends and tried new things. I explored and kayaked and tried to ski and surf and climb up walls of ice. I rode a mattress down a mountain and jousted on a paddleboard. As luck would have it, I landed a job writing about those in-state adventures (particularly the weird stuff). I live here to live here - and I write to entice others to do the same.
Why did you choose Portland? A travel guide suggested it. Turned out to be a good suggestion.
What do you like to do with out-of-towners? Drench them in ocean water (often by way of paddleboard). And then we eat (lobster rolls may be cliche, but they're obligatory). I take them to pick fruit from bushes and trees and we drink beer on a wharf deck. We island hop and - if they're willing - sprint up a mud-covered mountain in matching costumes.
Where's your "happy place" on the peninsula? Summer evening on the Portland Lobster Co. deck with a pile of shrimp, a beer, and the waterfront for company.
What's the most surprising thing about this city? Things happen here - and the people making them happen are the same folks you'll regularly run into at an art show, at a local bar, in Monument Square buying an armload of turnips. The movers and shakers of this town are everywhere. They're collaborative. They're approachable. And they're young.
What's the most under-appreciated place or thing in town? The top level of the Casco Bay Lines parking garage.
