The Serpent

I haven't been blogging lately and it's this building's fault.



It is called the Corviale. It is also called many other things like the serpent, the starship, etc.



One kilometer long, it is an Italian experiment in public housing.



Any experiment is not foolproof against unexpected results. Since it is so large, it is kind of difficult to maintain, and people don't feel secure with its long hallways and large open spaces around it. It also feels quite isolated from the rest of Rome. The city seems to have given it a wide berth having grown right past its location in the periphery.



So how do you dock a starship into a city that doesn't have a proper port? In some ways that is my approach to this exercise, though things really aren't that simple.

MIDTERM!

Water Everywhere

My first blizzard: 26 inches of snow

Not bad for my first winter in NY.

Another Italian Classic

I am not refering to architecture, but to food. There is the New York cheese pizza, which I fell in love with when I first arrived, then there is the Italian pizza, which is even better!

Sadly, I wasn't able to take any photos of my meals, but this one from wikipedia is close enough! I guess the last thing you want to do when faced with food this good is to delay the inevitable by stepping back and taking photographs of that crispy thin crust, molten cheese, and fresh tomato sauce... I'm salivating just thinking about it.

I got to find real italian pizza in New York, I just got to...

Pronto!

My belated post. Well, you know what they say: When in Rome... And Romans... they sure take their time!


The Streets of Rome


Anticipation...


THE PANTHEON!


I can stay here all day.


The Oculus


Trevi Fountain


Spanish Steps


Tourists!

One More Time

Ever felt like repeating something?
Welcome to my "new" blog.

Imagine

Central Parks 2

The second installment:


Central Park Zoo


Central Park Rocks


Bethesda Fountain


The Great Lawn and beyond from the Belvedere Castle

Summer in NY

The summer term of the Architecture and Urban Design program is finally over and I feel terrific. Studio work was tough, and though there's still room for improvement, at the very least I have realized just how to make the most of studio the next time around, or so I would like to believe.

I think I did pretty well in the other courses, so I can't wait to pick my electives for the next term. Hmm, okay, maybe I can wait a bit more. Besides, it's summer in New York and I still have the rest of the city to explore before I become a slave to my course schedule once again.

Here are some pictures of the stuff I worked on:





Okay, I know it isn't much, I'm still perfecting the art of collage. If you haven't figured it out, it's about pollution mitigating urban design. Something that you would definitely need along EDSA, Aurora Boulevard, or any major urban thoroughfare if you don't want your kids to develop asthma and other respiratory diseases while growing up in the city.

If there is one thing I'm learning to do all over again is to be a hard-nosed idealist. And this is a good place to do it. So I'm glad.

Okay, that's enough for today. Time to go out and see the rest of the city... or maybe some sleep... Yeah, I've been missing that too. Well, there's enough time to do both! Until next time...

What's gone and what's still there

Last weekend, I visited the Seagram Building and the former World Trade Center Site. One location contains an existing skyscraper frequented only during the weekdays by office people along Park Avenue, while the other is essentially a void visited by people from all over almost every single day... a curious comparison.

Seagram Building


A couple at the Seagram Plaza


Seagram Plaza

The former World Trade Center Site


Visitors to the former World Trade Center

Barriers in Public Space


Plant boxes or additional security measures?

42nd Street

Take a walk through 42nd street...


The American Airlines Theatre



Bryant Park



New York Public Library


Chrysler Building



United Nations Headquarters

The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine

More pictures of the Upper West Side


The world's largest (unfinished) Gothic Cathedral


Even without the spires, it's huge.

I bought my first New York hotdog by the church steps for one dollar. It was fine, but hotdogs taste the same wherever you go.

Central Parks

Harlem Meer, the little "sea" in the park


A quaint little house by the lake


Spring in New York


Purple fluff


The city (and my laundry) beckons...

Central Park has a nice mix of trees and wide open spaces, but I think that the Tiergarten in Berlin is still a better park to enjoy getting lost in :)


Tiergarten in Berlin

Welcome to my neighborhood

The place to talk about nothing...

The People You Meet on the Plane

Flying alone halfway across the world does have its moments. For one, you get to meet interesting people. The person seated beside me for the 18 hour flight was a Nepalese Sherpa mountain guide. Check out his site by clicking on the title of this post. We talked about a lot of things to pass the time. We even touched on religion (he's buddhist) and local folklore (he told me about the Yeti and, for the lack of a better monster, I told him about the Manananggal). If I ever save up enough leisure time and money, not to mention balls, maybe I'll look him up in the Himalayas for a quick trek through the mountains (usually a month long) in the near future. The thought of going to the Himalayas never crossed my mind before I met this guy. Well, maybe I did imagine it when I read this Tintin comic.

I guess traveling does open your eyes to the possibilities, even if it is just eighteen hours on the plane.

Planes and Terminals

Traveling halfway across the world is quite an experience. It takes extremely long and requires a lot of walking. Despite the numerous benefits of modern air travel, travelers must still rely on their own two feet, especially when in transit, to get to where they are going. Having such a huge number of people flying all over the world requires massive airport terminals, and large airport terminals mean lots of walking from one gate to the next. Such is the case when I visited the Hong Kong International Airport. The terminal is beautiful to look at, no doubt, but hard on the heels. I walked for almost an hour, taking a few snapshots along the way of course, while standing on moving walks (never have I appreciated the technology of a moving walk as much as I did then). As for my thoughts on the terminal itself, I would say that airports should efficiently drive you to your destination without any hesitation. The more fleeting the experience, the better. It is only when relaxing at the gate lounge that you will have the time to contemplate the beauty of the details that a few minutes ago were just a blur in the periphery of your vision, preferably without noticing the wear in your shoes and the ache in your legs.

Sorry, I can't help it :)

Start spreading the news
I'm leaving today...

Blog Link 2: Staring at the Bright Blue Sky

A fellow blogger writes about love.
Read it by clicking on the title of this post.

Honrado Fernandez

A former dean of the University of the Philippines College of Architecture passed away Tuesday April 26, 2005 at the age of 55. His highly opinionated comments will be missed by a few. His quirky and self-deprecating humor will be missed by some. His incessant stories and lessons will be missed by many. His unwavering advocacy for Philippine architecture and art will be missed by all.

Despite being a man of many talents, I feel that Dean Fernandez was first and foremost an educator. He brainwashed entire batches of architecture students to keep the fires of indigenous art and architecture burning through his unique ability to inspire both guilt and pride in what would otherwise be taken for granted. Though many flames were inevitably doused, some embers still smolder in the hope of catching flame once more. I think I still keep a tiny ember of his making, fueled by rememberance and protected by sentiment.

May his memory live on.

Blank Screen

I can't seem to view my blog when I use Mozilla Firefox. I wonder what this means.