By Brian Davidson

Our first visit to Seaside, Oregon, was my fault.

We were newlyweds. We were in Portland to attend a Chieftains concert and decided, somewhere along the way, that we wanted to take a romantic walk on the beach.

It was March. March and Oregon do not typically combine for romantic beach-walking weather. Such was the case at Seaside, where the rain fell in sheets and the few souls we saw walking as we drove into the city were walking fast, wrapped in slick raincoats. In my car, I had one flimsy $4 umbrella with a few broken ribs.

Nevertheless, we walked on the beach. Leaning into the wind, driving rain and sand into our faces, we walked. For maybe five minutes. Then, soaked, leaving the shattered remains of my umbrella somewhere in the maelstrom behind us, we got into the car and drove back to Portland.

Our second visit to Seaside, Oregon, was also my fault.

We were old hands at marriage by then. Three kids in tow, a minivan stuffed with luggage, sandals, beach toys and a leaking cooler. We had three flimsy $4 umbrellas – we’re from Idaho; when it rains less than 12 inches a year, you don’t invest in lots of rain gear – and a few coats, but we didn’t need them. It was June. And while June and Oregon don’t necessarily combine for fine beach-combing weather, it was temperate enough and still enough we could walk on the beach unhindered by wind-blown sand or damp beyond the ankles.

Our first delightful Seaside Surprise: Art Deco.

I'm not an architecture snob. Just about everything I know about the Art Deco style I learned by listening to Egon Spangler in “Ghostbusters.” But I Know enough to recognize that swoopy, sleek and streamlined architectural style when I see it. And Seaside has it.

The Seaside Funland Arcade, at the corner of Broadway and Columbia streets, is an Art Deco gem, featuring the elegant curves, pillars, stucco and chrome cladding you come to expect from Art Deco. Funland is stuffed with entertinament, from racks and racks of Skee-Ball alleys to vintage pinball machines, all in working order. Funland has been open since 1931, and the building's careful preservation shows a love for that long-lost era.

The building across the street is not to be outdone, either. Both stand out on the city's bustling Broadway, offering tantalizing peeks of things to do when it's too rainy to walk on the beach. Broadway is also home to a bumper car emporium.

Our second delightful Seaside Surprise: Clam Digging. I've written another story about that, which you can also read on the staff profile.

The third surprise: Lewis and Clark. As a kid from Idaho, obviously we learn a lot about Lewis and Clark, since they wandered through our state as well. But to see the two exploers immortalized in bronze on the Turnaround in Seaside was fun. I did expect, however, with them facing the beach, to see them wearing Bermuda shorts and a loud flowerdey shirt as well, toting picnic basket and sand pail and shovel, rather than rifle and walking stick. Oh well. My tastes in art aren't shared by everyone.

I have to confess one thing: While we toured the northwestern Oregon coast, we stayed in nearby Cannon Beach. It's a more expensive place to stay than Seaside, but given the lack of crowds and a quieter setting, I'd choose Cannon Beach as the base for exploration, but that's just me. Seaside has more of a nightlife than quiet Cannon Beach could offer. That town seems to fold up at 5 pm. Seaside is definitely livelier.