“It seems like everyone is just lost in a dreamworld,” laments an outsider on the sketch comedy Portlandia. “For one thing, your airport is 20 minutes to and from. That’s not how cities are!”

The irony of the bit is that, indeed, Portland’s international airport is uncommonly easy to access, via car and public transit. The prime location is one of the reasons why those notably quirky Portlanders adore it. Outposts of local restaurants that serve food at the same price point as their downtown shopfronts (due to an anti-price-gouging policy) are another. Let’s not forget the famous carpet pattern, which has spurred apparel of all kinds. But in August, PDX opened a tree-filled main terminal, designed by local architecture firm ZGF, that sets a new, sky-high standard for air travel.