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The point: The fourth canvas workshop began Sunday with a cross-country flight to Portland, Ore. While there were many familiar faces from previous canvas trips, it's also clear there are more new faces heading to Portland than previous trips to Nashville and Raleigh-Durham.

The goal of this year's journey is to focus on three issues: 1) building a knowledge-based economy; 2) regional transportation and infrastructure; and 3) smart growth in a river city. Little was done on any of these fronts on Sunday. This was a day reserved for travel and getting a feel for the city.

A majestic entrance: The sight of the top of Mount Hood poking through a thick, billowy bed of clouds as our charter plane made its final approach was an absolutely incredible and inspiring welcome to the Portland area.

Once on the ground, the first thing that hits you is the fantastic temperature (68 degrees) and the absolute lack of humidity. Contrary to popular belief, there are traffic slowdowns on the two interstates that service Portland, but thus far we've seen nothing like Baton Rouge. One becomes envious staring out the window of your slow-moving bus and seeing a fully occupied light rail train zipping past you on the tracks that parallel the highway.

More than books: Upon reaching the hotel, a small group of eight people, including developer Tommy Spinosa and library head Lydia Acosta, headed across town to check out a branch of the Multnomah County library system, a mixed-use structure built as a private-public project.

Though not particularly large (the library is 13,000 square feet), the $11.2 million project was built in the heart of an older residential neighborhood. The ground floor hosts the library and a privately owned coffee shop. Above the library are 47 apartment units, some rented at market rates, others subsidized. There's nothing particularly outstanding about the architecture, but the facility was teeming with activity, and June Mikkelsen, the library executive we spoke with, said the neighborhood library was until recently the busiest in the country.

As you might expect, there was quite a bit of controversy about building a four-story structure in the middle of a residential neighborhood, especially with the issue of parking. And parking is a problem, but it is minimized since so many people in the area seem to walk, skate or bike to the facility. Despite the early worries, the handful of residents I spoke with while strolling around the neighborhood all had positive feedback.

Expect to see a similar proposal when Spinosa announces plans for his TND project at the Ford property on Perkins Road.

Early pit stop: More than a few heads were scratched when it was announced our charter flight would be making a quick stop in Dallas to get more fuel. “What's up with that?” was a question uttered by at least a dozen of frustrated flyers. The answer? Baton Rouge Metro Airport does not have a runway long enough to handle a full plane with a full load of gasoline. If airport officials are looking for support in the quest to extend its runway, they need only ask any of the 130 or so folks on the plane to Portland.

Metro mania: Like Baton Rouge, the Portland area has a metropolitan form of government. The difference is Portland has a regional government that encompasses three counties and, according to one of my cab drivers, there's talk of adding a fourth country to the mix. In effect, this would be like having East Baton Rouge, Ascension, Livingston and West Baton Rouge parishes under one governmental body. Each county/parish also has a separate county council.

Bridging the gap: The Willamette River divides the metro Portland area, a city of 2.1 million people, but an incredible nine bridges (including five in the downtown area) connect the two banks. The last bridge was built in 1974. Both sides of the river are filled with residential and retail projects but what's striking is the well-landscaped and maintained walking and biking trails that border each side of the Willamette.

Incredible sight: Without question, the most talked about event of Day One was an early evening trip to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, located hard on the Willamette, to check out Gunter von Hagen's Body World 3 exhibition. Click here to see the exhibit. The anatomical exhibition of real human bodies wasn't a hit with everyone on the trip, but how many people can say they've seen every part—from organs, to bones, to blood vessels—of the human body. Using a process called plastination, von Hagen and his team of scientists use the bodies of humans who have donated their remains to show how the human body functions, effectively turning the deceased into an object of reverence, learning, enlightenment and appreciation.

I dare anyone who smokes to view this exhibit and not quit before leaving the building.

Less controversial was the OSMI facility, which includes a planetarium, an IMAX theater and a museum. There are exhibits and activities for people of all ages. It's a truly fantastic facility.

One can only wonder if the folks at the Audubon Institute, who are quietly working with the Baton Rouge Area Foundation on a project for our downtown area, can produce something as magnificent.

Fast facts: If you're a single male, this is the place for you—52% of the women between the ages of 30-35 have never been married. … While 58% of voters in the Baton Rouge area voted for President George Bush in the last election, just 27% of Portland voters pulled the Republican lever. … Eighty-five percent of Portland residents (compared to 64% in BR) are white, the median age here is 36.4 years (31.6 years in BR) and 85.8% of children attend public school (71.9% in the BR region), according to Baton Rouge Area Chamber provided stats.