The Slug Queens sum up the spirit of Eugene. Every year the

Oregon town hosts an alternative beauty pageant—coinciding with, but

independent of, the annual Eugene Celebration. The winners are

marked out by a combination of anarchic creation, wry humor and 【M1】________

passionate commitment to his environment: the same qualities that make 【M2】__________

this place so unique.

Two hours the south of Portland, Eugene isn’t as urbane as that 【M3】__________

famously trendy city. This is a town of parks, trees and waterways, a

hiking mecca that melds swift into the nearby mountains. It also feels 【M4】_________

slightly scruffy: a former hotbed of hippies and anarchists which radical 【M5】__________

edge lives on in its environmental agenda. The single most important

climate change case in the US law courts originates here, and the

University of Oregon attracts social activists from across the country.

A short walk from campus is a revitalizing downtown, with a 【M6】_________

2,500-seat performing arts venue—the Hult Center—a modern theatre

and three independent cinemas. “A few years ago, not many people

came and hung downtown,” says Gino Franco, production manager at 【M7】_________

the Oregon Contemporary Theatre, which expanded into its current

space in 2012. “Therefore thanks to the growing arts scene, and some 【M8】_________

new restaurants, it’s become a lot more friendly. “

A 10-minute walk away, in the gentrifying Whiteaker neighborhood—

referred to as the Whit—Eugene’s hippie culture can still be found, and

Oregon’s legalization of recreational drug use may help keep that spirit lively. 【M9】_________

There are still invisible social issues to be addressed, homelessness in 【M10】________.

particular. But Franco says: “There are a lot of great services here for

people who are going through life transitions, and I’m so glad I live in a

community that’s open to this and willing to embrace people who are

struggling.”

【M8】