The 4 o'clock habit
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Guess who came back unscathed from the torturing heat of sauna-esque Manila...
I had a blast at the 33rd Annual United Architects of the Philippines Convention (Link warning: shield your eyes from the tacky twinkling headline) Everything was fabulous... well maybe except for the fact that we were treated like meat. Meat, in a sense that we were moved (No I Know What You Did Last Summer meat hooks involved) from one huge freezer to another transported using mobile refrigerators known as "air-conditioned vehicles". I am all for the movement against global warming but I don't think I could have survived 10 minutes in Manila without air conditioning... I have hyperactive sweat glands, we Baguio folk just ain't cut out for hot-humid lowland weather y'all.
I am not a spell-freak, heck I don't even proof read my blog entries. But upon registering, I couldn't help my inner editor from cringing when I saw the convention ID.
Did you notice the unfortunate typo? And it's in all IDs... tsk tsk.
Our three day weekend of debauchery was beyond my comprehension. I found an inner source of stamina I never knew I had. Just when I thought I couldn't possibly get dressed and go out anymore, a sponsored night out had me picking clothes from my trunk... I never refuse free booze... from friends and paint manufacturers alike.
Me, Dona and Tine in one of Malate's bars... Bars are Malate's mushrooms, they spring up everywhere regardless of the availability of sunlight or parking space. Smoking beside a gas dispenser was a first. I'd post more pics but they're pretty much predictable not to mention redundant. (Us eating a Cabalen's... Us eating at Rai Rai Ken... Us getting liquored up in Dencio's... Us getting plastered in Tropezz... Us getting smashed in a friend's condo... etc. etc... The dionysian life baby) We always found ourselves checking into our hotel rooms by 4 in the morning... like clockwork.
Our days, or what's left of them, were spent at World Trade Center attending (okay, sitting idly) seminars. Most of them appeared interesting on paper but between the inaudible sound system and the newspaper textured catered food, they didn't hold our interest very long. So the CONEX 2007 (Convention Exhibits) were a perfect diversion/ way to spend the remainder of the day. It is here we are introduced to new or improved construction materials and technology (and freebies to boot!) One particular exhibit that caused a stir was a stall that showed a 3d printer. I have seen the technology on TV but never in person... I was starstruck. Here's a "print-out" of a prototype rubber shoe sole.
It uses powdered plaster and a solvent of some sort to bind the powder. It costs helluvalot but I want one!
Our early evenings were spent at the Manila Hotel. I couldn't help but strut like Sydney Bristow on a black ops heist whenever I walked the hotel's plush carpets, especially after I go through the metal detector. Being in a lobby of people clad in suits and sayas has that effect on me.
The last night in the Manila Hotel was particularly memorable. First, we saw a handful of distinguished architects wearing superhero costumes (a contest) They went all out with unflattering white leotards and red spandex. There was a flash and a "mini-me" flash, a mutated wolverine that looked like Winnie the pooh, and several incarnations of Lastikman. Second, Boysen (a major sponsor) showed this TV ad for a new antibacterial paint they were marketing. It's an interesting product, but the ad was frickin hilarious! It was a beyond miserable adaption of House, MD. The main character is a pompous dufus named Dr. Home. That alone had me going stark laughing mad, add the ridiculous one-liners and the background music and I was sure I had lost my sanity.
Lastly came the raffle. I have the worst luck with these things as I've previously blogged about. The grand prize was some something inch LCD TV, which someone from another chapter got. The first set of prizes they handed out were file cabinets. YES, File Cabinets!!! We were laughing our asses off when we heard about the prize. The instant communal image in our heads were those huge clunky metal file cabinets we all grew to detest. That was the first raffle I've ever participated in where everyone, in our table at least, prayed not to win. A couple of my friends kept saying "Mananalo ka! Promise!!!" (You will win) I just crossed my fingers went to my happy place. The raffle drawer announced that third one to win the prize came from our chapter, we were pointing at each other like deranged witch hunters... dramatic pause waiting for a drum roll... and irony of ironies... my name resounded from the speakers. My instant thought was "Fuck!"... and my second thought became "Fuck it!". I am not one to bow down to the humiliating powers of a file cabinet. So I rose with as much grace as I could muster and walked gingerly toward the stage to claim my prize. It wasn't the clunky metal file cabinet we thought it would be... It's a whole lot smaller and is made of plastic. It has found a home in my room now... a tangible manifestation of my abhorrence for raffles.
And that was how I spent my weekend.
FYI, my camel made it back to Baguio safe and sound as well.
.
I had a blast at the 33rd Annual United Architects of the Philippines Convention (Link warning: shield your eyes from the tacky twinkling headline) Everything was fabulous... well maybe except for the fact that we were treated like meat. Meat, in a sense that we were moved (No I Know What You Did Last Summer meat hooks involved) from one huge freezer to another transported using mobile refrigerators known as "air-conditioned vehicles". I am all for the movement against global warming but I don't think I could have survived 10 minutes in Manila without air conditioning... I have hyperactive sweat glands, we Baguio folk just ain't cut out for hot-humid lowland weather y'all.
I am not a spell-freak, heck I don't even proof read my blog entries. But upon registering, I couldn't help my inner editor from cringing when I saw the convention ID.
Did you notice the unfortunate typo? And it's in all IDs... tsk tsk.
Our three day weekend of debauchery was beyond my comprehension. I found an inner source of stamina I never knew I had. Just when I thought I couldn't possibly get dressed and go out anymore, a sponsored night out had me picking clothes from my trunk... I never refuse free booze... from friends and paint manufacturers alike.
Me, Dona and Tine in one of Malate's bars... Bars are Malate's mushrooms, they spring up everywhere regardless of the availability of sunlight or parking space. Smoking beside a gas dispenser was a first. I'd post more pics but they're pretty much predictable not to mention redundant. (Us eating a Cabalen's... Us eating at Rai Rai Ken... Us getting liquored up in Dencio's... Us getting plastered in Tropezz... Us getting smashed in a friend's condo... etc. etc... The dionysian life baby) We always found ourselves checking into our hotel rooms by 4 in the morning... like clockwork.
Our days, or what's left of them, were spent at World Trade Center attending (okay, sitting idly) seminars. Most of them appeared interesting on paper but between the inaudible sound system and the newspaper textured catered food, they didn't hold our interest very long. So the CONEX 2007 (Convention Exhibits) were a perfect diversion/ way to spend the remainder of the day. It is here we are introduced to new or improved construction materials and technology (and freebies to boot!) One particular exhibit that caused a stir was a stall that showed a 3d printer. I have seen the technology on TV but never in person... I was starstruck. Here's a "print-out" of a prototype rubber shoe sole.
It uses powdered plaster and a solvent of some sort to bind the powder. It costs helluvalot but I want one!
Our early evenings were spent at the Manila Hotel. I couldn't help but strut like Sydney Bristow on a black ops heist whenever I walked the hotel's plush carpets, especially after I go through the metal detector. Being in a lobby of people clad in suits and sayas has that effect on me.
The last night in the Manila Hotel was particularly memorable. First, we saw a handful of distinguished architects wearing superhero costumes (a contest) They went all out with unflattering white leotards and red spandex. There was a flash and a "mini-me" flash, a mutated wolverine that looked like Winnie the pooh, and several incarnations of Lastikman. Second, Boysen (a major sponsor) showed this TV ad for a new antibacterial paint they were marketing. It's an interesting product, but the ad was frickin hilarious! It was a beyond miserable adaption of House, MD. The main character is a pompous dufus named Dr. Home. That alone had me going stark laughing mad, add the ridiculous one-liners and the background music and I was sure I had lost my sanity.
Lastly came the raffle. I have the worst luck with these things as I've previously blogged about. The grand prize was some something inch LCD TV, which someone from another chapter got. The first set of prizes they handed out were file cabinets. YES, File Cabinets!!! We were laughing our asses off when we heard about the prize. The instant communal image in our heads were those huge clunky metal file cabinets we all grew to detest. That was the first raffle I've ever participated in where everyone, in our table at least, prayed not to win. A couple of my friends kept saying "Mananalo ka! Promise!!!" (You will win) I just crossed my fingers went to my happy place. The raffle drawer announced that third one to win the prize came from our chapter, we were pointing at each other like deranged witch hunters... dramatic pause waiting for a drum roll... and irony of ironies... my name resounded from the speakers. My instant thought was "Fuck!"... and my second thought became "Fuck it!". I am not one to bow down to the humiliating powers of a file cabinet. So I rose with as much grace as I could muster and walked gingerly toward the stage to claim my prize. It wasn't the clunky metal file cabinet we thought it would be... It's a whole lot smaller and is made of plastic. It has found a home in my room now... a tangible manifestation of my abhorrence for raffles.
And that was how I spent my weekend.
FYI, my camel made it back to Baguio safe and sound as well.
.
Labels: architecture, blah (3x), i-rate, nyt-out, travels
The View from the Other Side
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
When I was studying, we were taught that a house built on a mountainside is ideal. Such houses had unobstructed views. It has a healthy amount of exposure to sunlight, efficient air circulation and the drainage of storm water was pretty much inherent. Of course there are downsides... erosion, additional structural requirements, vehicle accessibility, etc.
This is the view from our office balcony.
Thanks to the slight fog, the utter ugliness of the sight isn't as evident. The houses on both sides of the strip of wooded area make it seem like the trees are slowly being eaten away. Baguio wasn't designed to accomodate this many people. Daniel Burnham's original design for our city was for a population of 20,000. Now, the population is more than 10 times that.
Hence, the need to build on our wooded mountains. I guess it was in a way inevitable. I'm not against real estate and construction, I do it for a living. But at the risk of sounding preachy, I wish we built based on quality, not quantity.
What I'd give...
Building on mountains is an international phenomena perfected in Europe. Take the villages in Santorini, Greece.
... or the village of Positano (Italy) along the Amalfi Coast...
... or the villages in Heidelberg, Germany.
The houses blend with the landscape or at least blend with each other. There is a coherence and unity in their design or at least with the color of the walls or the material they use for roofing. What I'm trying to say is that if we are gonna build on our mountains, We must build them beautiful! (Beautiful enough to be worthwhile replacements of the magnificent trees that once occupied that mountainside)
Enough of this unpainted sheet metal business. Or this "my wall color is more stunning" than yours mentality. Unity is especially required from the households with houses on mountainsides... If for anything else, because we can see you.
At night
The blanket of darkness at night makes these house clad mountains beautiful. No matter how many times I see it when I come back here from a trip to the lowlands. The "stars on the mountains" never ceases to take my breath away.
And then the light comes... and the view is ruined.
Photo Credits:
Santorini Village
Positano Village
This is the view from our office balcony.
Thanks to the slight fog, the utter ugliness of the sight isn't as evident. The houses on both sides of the strip of wooded area make it seem like the trees are slowly being eaten away. Baguio wasn't designed to accomodate this many people. Daniel Burnham's original design for our city was for a population of 20,000. Now, the population is more than 10 times that.
Hence, the need to build on our wooded mountains. I guess it was in a way inevitable. I'm not against real estate and construction, I do it for a living. But at the risk of sounding preachy, I wish we built based on quality, not quantity.
What I'd give...
Building on mountains is an international phenomena perfected in Europe. Take the villages in Santorini, Greece.
... or the village of Positano (Italy) along the Amalfi Coast...
... or the villages in Heidelberg, Germany.
The houses blend with the landscape or at least blend with each other. There is a coherence and unity in their design or at least with the color of the walls or the material they use for roofing. What I'm trying to say is that if we are gonna build on our mountains, We must build them beautiful! (Beautiful enough to be worthwhile replacements of the magnificent trees that once occupied that mountainside)
Enough of this unpainted sheet metal business. Or this "my wall color is more stunning" than yours mentality. Unity is especially required from the households with houses on mountainsides... If for anything else, because we can see you.
At night
The blanket of darkness at night makes these house clad mountains beautiful. No matter how many times I see it when I come back here from a trip to the lowlands. The "stars on the mountains" never ceases to take my breath away.
And then the light comes... and the view is ruined.
Photo Credits:
Santorini Village
Positano Village
Labels: architecture, baguio, pseudo-serious
44.1 feet Taller
Monday, September 11, 2006
Last September 7, the designs for three more of the 5 towers of the World Trade Center complex were unveiled. The following renderings were taken from www.wtc.com
A new New York skyline
View from the Hudson River
The predominant structure of the WTC site is the Freedom Tower with a height of 1776 feet (with the antenna). The original twin towers were 1731.9 feet (with the antenna). Why all the fuss about adding "with the antenna"? There have been many conflicts with regard the inclusion of the antenna in the measurement of the height of the building when in contention for "Tallest Building in the World".
1776, the year of the Declaration of Independence of America.
WTC Site by Day
WTC Site Development Plan
01 - Freedom Tower - David Childs (SOM)
02 - 200 Greenwich (Tower 2) - Norman Foster
03 - 175 Greenwich (Tower 3) - Richard Rogers
04 - 150 Greenwich (Tower 4) - Fumihiko Maki
05 - Unnamed (Tower 5) - Architect not yet announced
06 - 7 WTC - David Childs (SOM)
07 - WTC Memorial
WTC Site by Night
This rendering of the complex at night makes the buildings seem like chess pieces guarding the periphery of the memorial. The chess pieces clad in light with regal headdresses.
The designers and developers went above and beyond the requirements of the NYC building codes. They paid extra attention to the structural stability of each building considering both natural (like wind) and manmade factors. They've also put extra attention to building ingress and egress, accessibility, evacuation measures, etc etc. As an added ecological bonus, all the buildings are classified as "green", meaning they provide a healthier environment for its users, conserve energy and water and reduce solid waste.
Designing Around
As if architects, engineers and related professions didn't have enough to think about when they design buildings, in comes the very volatile and unpredictable factor of terrorism. High-rise structures all around the world have taken measures for possible attacks. Skyscrapers are being redesigned. Building and structural codes are being emended. There is a very blurry line between safety and paranoia. Should the walls of buildings now be in-laid with lead to ward off nuclear radiation? Should all buildings regardless of location be capable of withstanding tsunamis? Should every building have underground bomb shelters in case of meteor showers? I know... too much movies, but not too far from the truth.
There is only so much we can control.
I think it would be cheaper if we all just spread love and world peace like fairies and leprichauns. But cheaper isn't always better (or practical) so we settle for the pragmatic. Designing around terrorism like it were a fault line or a spot on the site with weak foundation.
The World Trade Center Complex will be finished in 2012.
A new New York skyline
View from the Hudson RiverThe predominant structure of the WTC site is the Freedom Tower with a height of 1776 feet (with the antenna). The original twin towers were 1731.9 feet (with the antenna). Why all the fuss about adding "with the antenna"? There have been many conflicts with regard the inclusion of the antenna in the measurement of the height of the building when in contention for "Tallest Building in the World".
1776, the year of the Declaration of Independence of America.
WTC Site by DayWTC Site Development Plan
01 - Freedom Tower - David Childs (SOM)
02 - 200 Greenwich (Tower 2) - Norman Foster
03 - 175 Greenwich (Tower 3) - Richard Rogers
04 - 150 Greenwich (Tower 4) - Fumihiko Maki
05 - Unnamed (Tower 5) - Architect not yet announced
06 - 7 WTC - David Childs (SOM)
07 - WTC Memorial
WTC Site by NightThis rendering of the complex at night makes the buildings seem like chess pieces guarding the periphery of the memorial. The chess pieces clad in light with regal headdresses.
The designers and developers went above and beyond the requirements of the NYC building codes. They paid extra attention to the structural stability of each building considering both natural (like wind) and manmade factors. They've also put extra attention to building ingress and egress, accessibility, evacuation measures, etc etc. As an added ecological bonus, all the buildings are classified as "green", meaning they provide a healthier environment for its users, conserve energy and water and reduce solid waste.
Designing Around
As if architects, engineers and related professions didn't have enough to think about when they design buildings, in comes the very volatile and unpredictable factor of terrorism. High-rise structures all around the world have taken measures for possible attacks. Skyscrapers are being redesigned. Building and structural codes are being emended. There is a very blurry line between safety and paranoia. Should the walls of buildings now be in-laid with lead to ward off nuclear radiation? Should all buildings regardless of location be capable of withstanding tsunamis? Should every building have underground bomb shelters in case of meteor showers? I know... too much movies, but not too far from the truth.
There is only so much we can control.
I think it would be cheaper if we all just spread love and world peace like fairies and leprichauns. But cheaper isn't always better (or practical) so we settle for the pragmatic. Designing around terrorism like it were a fault line or a spot on the site with weak foundation.
The World Trade Center Complex will be finished in 2012.
Labels: architecture, blah (3x), pseudo-serious
Moving Day
