{.kg-image} Last month I visited Portland, OR for [Chain React Conference](https://infinite.red/ChainReactConf) hosted by Infinite Red. Basically you go and learn great things about React Native. Now I had 3 goals attending: 1. Finally visit Portland and try donuts 2. Learn some React Native secrets to become a better dev 3. Meet other humans Non-Conference things {#nonconferencethings} --------------------- I really enjoyed my visit to Portland. I will first say it is worth trying all the donuts to make your own choice (Shipley's is really supreme). Past eating the city was very walkable, downtown was fairly small, and I saw people that looked like me (something I don't always get to see anymore).\ I think I liked the vibe of Portland a lot more than Seattle but to be honest both are fairly similar. The Conference {#theconference} -------------- Let me tell you how I found this conference first. I was talking/exploring hybrid frameworks a lot more especially after quitting my job. Somehow the conference ended up on my timeline. I figured this conference was perfect because it would have talks about the platform and I'd meet other devs. I think it is very valuable not only for me but for any native mobile dev to also know at least one hybrid platform really well. So fast forward to finally going to the conference and all and it was amazing. Speakers were talking about personal experience with the platform and breaking down the how and why. A few talks helped me fix my own app issues and even introduced me to other things like moving from Redux to MobX and using `react-native-paper` (material design ftw). I also got to meet some twitter people in real life and just have real and candid convos. Now let me not act like this was just perfect for me. I was so nervous with all the people. I kinda wish it was live streamed (maybe it was) and the venue felt too small. These cons are very minor as you can see. For someone who still hasn't made it to Google I/O or WWDC, I think Chain React was perfect. It is **THE** React Native conference and you could really tell. The coolest thing for me was hearing from native developers transitioning to React Native. I could relate to those a bit more. I don\'t want to be too biased with this list but let me drop some of my favs: - [RN and GraphQL](https://youtu.be/JHxqicqL0WE) - [Performance](https://youtu.be/nphKGWjhg2M) - [Accessibility](https://youtu.be/3LLQ5AshtNc) - [Case Study](https://youtu.be/8Vu6VlsNXMA) - [Dev Environment](https://youtu.be/oGwBv2GIZGE) - [MobX](https://youtu.be/jD6iCt-Qz5k) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In conclusion Portland is a place you want to visit (especially in summer) and Chain React Conf is an A1 conference to attend for react native devs on any level. Watch all the talks [here](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFHvL21g9bk2bTWTCP1BueiiIz8q258z9)