Blogging? In a Time Like This?

YUMMMM

So, blogging right now should not be a priority of mine buuuuuuuuuuuut i started a countdown and it must go on so..

NUMBER 10. - CONAD

This is by far the best chain of grocery stores in the city. The food is always fresh and the bread is always warm. They always have the things you are looking for and the people who work their are not rotten assholes like the people who work in META. Conad has all the essentials from spicy pepperoni to the always tasty swiss roll. It also has sweet deals on iced tea and a wide variety of apples. I just wish they didnt always ask for the smallest change possible. I will be spending my one and two cent euros at meta in the near future on a large purchase. Just to cause trouble.

Number 11

Piazza Della Republica

NUMBER 11. - PIAZZA DELLA REPUBLICA

This is my favorite Piazza. It wins by default however. The rest of the piazzas in this city are just plain miserable. This particular space is not terrible though and at times is even pleasing to be in. It is the heart of the pedestrian old city. This piazza was once a jewish meat market and then became a parking lot before being converted into a "place for the republic". It can be a very lively space depending upon the time of day. One will almost always encounter a number of different types of vendors selling legal and illegal goods. The carousel is a real treat for those who are into that kind of thing and there are a number of cafes to choose from all along the perimeter. The reason i chose this as my favorite is because it is very close to my apartment and i feel safe here at any time of day. For all of these reasons i have awarded this piazza the prestigious 11 spot on my 12 day countdown! WHOO!

Just an Idea..

I was thinking, and... it occurred to me that some day i might want to be able to remember the names of the places where i once spent the greatest time of my life. It then occurred to me that i have the perfect medium for recording my experiences as well as sharing them with others. So. I am officially starting a countdown.

My 12 Favorite Florentine Places

Why 12?.. because i have 13 days left here and 13 is not such a good number. So i have chosen 12 of my favorite places to share with those who might be studying here next semester or those who are merely interested in what this city has to offer.

NUMBER 12. - MESOPOTAMIA KEBAB

This establishment, if it ever washed up on the shores of America, would sweep across the nation like a wildfire. Their Kebab, in my opinion, is the best Kebab in all of Europe and the workers are extremely friendly. I have tested similar concoctions in several countries and none have compared to the quality of this particular sandwich. The combination of greens, spices, sauce, peppers, tomatoes, and shredded chicken available in Piazza Salvemini is so far unrivaled. It can however be a lot to handle which is why Mesopotamia Kebab comes in at number 12 on the list. 

Biker Gang

I don't know this man, hence his mean look.

Yesterday i joined my Architecture in Context class on a bike ride of roughly 25 miles through the suburbs of Florence. It was quite the trek. We spent a good amount of time riding along the Arno but the majority of the ride was on the right side of very busy roads. Occasionally we would come to rotaries which would automatically shut down for the train of 20 something bikers. Hills often slowed us down but most of us were up for the challenge. We even found a good example of modern architecture somewhere in the vicinity of Florence ( i dont really have the slightest idea where it was to be honest). After our resting period in the church, we got back on our bikes ( which quickly became a literal pain in the ass ) and rode like bats out of hell back into the city. This meant flying down busy streets and through jammed intersections, jumping from street to sidewalk, and in general just pedalling like a mad man. It all felt really good though. The amount of stress relieved and turkey burnt off was worth the ride. As Franco said, "you can't work all the time". I believe that he was right and that when i go to studio today, my work will happen much quicker. We will see. 

Breathe In, Breathe Out.

In the last twenty four hours i have realized one thing. If you can manage to conquer your fear, you just might find yourself in a situation more pleasing than you ever imagined. Whether it means delivering a very important presentation, conducting an interview in a foreign language, or resolving conflict, a leap of faith will often be rewarded.

For example, the most pleasant two hours of Villa and Garden was the class which we had all been dreading for weeks. We presented a number of different types of creative projects displaying our knowledge of the principles we have studied this semester. This meant we had complete control over the course of the lecture and the level of enjoyment. Luckily, my colleagues decided to incorporate a number of wisely chosen spots for humor which made it easy to remain attentive. So i guess more important than actually being done, is the fact that something which seemed to be so dreadful ended up being rather fun... whoa. it feels weird to say that i had fun in that class.

Allora, cuesta mattina io conducted un'intervista con due of mio classmates. Siamo stati molto afraid, ma quando noi approached cuesto uomo, lui e stato molto simpatico. Ha parlato molto veloce ma abbiamo capito enough. Si chiama Sergio e abita a Firenze. 

Anyways, this morning i conducted an interview with two of my classmates. We were very afraid, but when we approached this man, he was very nice. He talked very fast, but we understood enough. His name is Sergio and He lives in Florence. 

As far as conflict is concerned, i prefer to have no part in it. That doesnt mean that i can prevent myself from being part of it. In fact, i have proven myself to be quite skilled at inserting myself into situations that are more than potentially disastrous. I am not going to go into detail but it is amazing what can happen when you are lucky enough to be dealing with mature people. You might just find that in the end you had nothing to fear.

whew, what a relief....

That doesn't mean that studio isn't going to crush my soul into a zillion little pieces.. Just kidding, im getting published bitches!

what ees theese?

This is not from Florence. This is the home of an anonymous person in Amsterdam,
 of whom i am embarrassingly jealous.

This city is out of control. Everyone, including myself, has gone off the deep end. My classes are absurd. Italians are the most irritating group of people on the planet. And somehow in the midst of the chaos there is always something to look forward to.

For example, i was looking forward to being done with my studio project december 6th just around the time when my presentation would have to begin. Instead i get to look forward to finishing all my work in roughly a week less time. This is because our studio in Florence is not equipped with the proper technology to provide us with our presentation boards. Instead we have to prepare two finalized boards consisting of final drawings in a composed and professional manner to be submitted december 2nd to be printed at a local copying store. theese ees bullsheet.

Villa Medici was pretty impressive. Or the garden was atleast. we couldnt go inside. They should stop false advertising and rename the class "Gardens and the Villas you can't enter because we didnt make the proper arrangements ahead of time". Thats probably too long of a name.

Im pretty sure i have an Italian test tomorrow. If i could refrain from acing assignments id take time to worry about it.

ITALIANS! WHAT THE HELL?!?! I have a bone to pick. You hate americans. I get this much. We're arrogant. We make dumb noises and in general are just not impressive. This gives you no right to completely fail to acknowledge our presence on the streets and sidewalks. When i walk by i dont need you to smile and ask for my blessing as i am from the greatest country on earth. I would simply ask that if you cant make eye contact, i would atleast prefer for you to divert your path atleast .33 meters towards either side of the path. I have gone to great lengths to avoid head on collisions with your tribe and would really appreciate enough room to not take an elbow to the chest. This relentless game of chicken seems to be fueled by an overwhelming sense of disapproval of our existence in your society but to that point i would like to propose a counterpoint. If we are not here buying your food, visiting your sites, buying your tourist crap, and in general paying to stay alive, then who exactly do you believe will finance your pretty little museum city? Perhaps this is the root of the bitterness which has created the divide. Is the realization of your dependence on us "ugly americans" too much to bear? hahah i hope so because if all you can do about it is walk around town like a bunch of sourpuss guidos then i guess we really are superior. This is the best museum i ve ever been to!

Wow that feels good to get off my chest! ahhhhh deep breathe.. i saw THE DAVID today! The visit was an impromptu one but perhaps the perfect opportunity. The line in front of the academia was nonexistent and for the first time in my visit i was aware of the actual location of David. I guess what im saying is that until today i had no clue where this elusive character was and had no plan of attack for when or how i would actually see him. He was quite impressive though. A 500 year old piece of stone that had to be atleast 20 feet tall sculpted to such perfect proportions and detail. Giorgio Vasari (the first art historian) once said that seeing David meant that the viewer would no longer need to view any other works of sculpture since they would never compare to such a masterpiece. I couldnt agree more with any part of that statement.

I have less than four weeks left here and among many other reasons to go home i am specifically looking forward to one, and a strange one at that. Imagine that one day your entire wardrobe fit you differently. Imagine this difference meant that 80% of your pants would fall off your body. Imagine that the remaining 20% would only stay up with a belt that was running out of tighter notches. Not too mention your shirts are now far too long and your athletic shorts are beginning to give way. This is the result of developing and maintaining the ability to run long distances. I feel and look worlds better and i can run further than i would have ever imagined. but once i am done running i have to change into the clothes of a man who once sported love handles and a beer belly. It is an interesting dilemma but one i am glad to deal with for now.

This might be my longest entry yet so lets keep the ball rolling. Have you ever noticed that the second you try to think of something to say you automatically draw a blank. Its like when someone asks you if something is wrong. Nothing was wrong until you asked if something was wrong and you had plenty to say before you tried to think of something to say. Or that makes no sense. Im done.

How quickly we forget..

Barcelona at Sundown

Its funny to think about the amount of things you forget immediately after they happen. Sometimes life has you moving so quickly from one event to the next that sites as beautiful as the one above seem lost forever (or until you stumble over them in your computers recycle bin). But seriously, i have collected thousands of photos which i probably will not look at again any time soon. This is sad because each picture was taken for a specific reason and has volumes to say about where i've been and what i found. Not too mention the fact that they are simply beautiful. 

Since it just popped into my head im going to make a Florence bucket list.

1. Climb the duomo

2. See the David

3. Visit the Uffizi

4. See a Fiorentina match

5. See Michelangelo's Steps in San Lorenzo

6. Do other typical tourist things that i'm forgetting about.

Buon Lavoro!

Amsterdam Bibliotheek and Conservatorium

It's getting to be about that time once again. Due dates are nearing and it all seems to be happening much too quickly. Something about this feels surprisingly comforting. Perhaps being trained to churn out work at an unreal rate has its benefits. I will say that i ve found a good amount of satisfaction in sitting down and just making things happen. I ve spent the last couple months doing all of the admiring and none of the designing. It's a funny feeling when you start designing again for the first time in a while. In the middle of a pen stroke or cad command you will realize that you really do know what youre doing and didnt forget everything you once knew.

The picture above was taken without a second thought about who had designed the buildings in it. Turns out the building on the right was designed by a man who i met earlier this week at a guest lecture for the Architecture program. FRITS VAN DONGEN spoke for roughly an hour and a half ( longer than my typical attention span ) about his utter domination of the field of architecture. He described the concepts behind his competition winning projects in Korea, Canada, and Amsterdam. He is behind the construction of three seperate islands and the houses situated above which have recently been built in Amsterdam. I have never met a man with this kind of resume in my entire life and was quite nervous to speak with him afterwards. I eventually composed myself enough to extract some life advice from a man who seems to have things well figured out. The message he relayed was a familiar one ( although his story was not ). "YOU HAVE TO LOVE IT." plain and simple.

The End is Near.

Fact: I have less than five weeks left in Italy.

This fact brings about a number of emotions. These emotions include sadness, happiness, fright, anxiety, rejoice, and pride.

Sadness can be easily explained by the fact that until this semester i had never left the United States and i have one month left to explore as much of Europe as possible.

Happiness comes flooding in when i think about what is waiting for me when i come home (i.e. family, friends, and various other comforts which i had previously taken for granted).

Fright is an immediate reaction to this fact because of it puts a quick measure on how much time i have to complete all of the schoolwork which never seems to be a priority ( even blogging comes first).

Anxiety is what happens when you combine the aforementioned feelings. Im beginning to think anxiety is only a feeling that lets you know you re alive.

Rejoice... is that an emotion.. do i mean joy? Perhaps i'm thinking about the ability to rejoice i will have when i see my family in the airport in December.

Pride is a result of handling these emotions for the past two and a half months. I feel proud to have been part of something i believe many of us will never forget.

When in Rome..

Look Familiar?

This weekend i made a second trip to Rome with my studio group. This time around i saw the sites that have attracted people from around the world for hundreds of years. Friday however was spent investigating a number of more modern works by big names such as Richard Meier, Zaha Hadid, PierLuigi Nervi, and Renzo Piano. The Richard Meier building housed a structure built in the time we consider B.C. The MAXXI ( Modern Art of the 21st century) museum by Zaha Hadid was probably the coolest contemporary building i have ever seen and displayed some very clever artwork. The work by Nervi and Piano was primarily a structural exhibition as Nervi designed a Geodesic dome and Piano had rethought the traditional amphitheater. Later in the night i went seperate ways from the school group with a couple friends to continue exploring the city. We returned to the Spanish steps as the sun went down which provided a particularly pleasant view of the city. After the steps we meandered to the Trevi Fountain which was mobbed with people but was quite the site being illuminated in the early nightime. Having not realized we could bus across town for free, we then made our way to our hostel to set up camp. A short while later we ventured back across town, this time by bus, to Piazza Navona and Campo di Fiori for dinner and drinks.

The Colosseum

Saturday morning at 6:30 i officially began my tourist career in Rome. After breakfast, i made my way over to Piazza San Pietro and the Vatican City. The Piazza was massive and empty with the exception of my friends and myself. The Vatican was proposterous ( i'm getting of tired of saying ridiculous, amazing, and insane even though they re perfectly applicable as well). The luxurious adornments within the endless halls of the Vatican seemed irrelevant in comparison to the works to which they led. The School of Athens, Laocoon, and an unfinished painting by Leonardo Da Vinci were some of the highlights but were dwarfed by the main attraction. The Sistine Chapel was breath taking. To be in the same room as the most famous work of art in the history of mankind... was pretty special. They discourage taking pictures.. well actually they swarm you with security guards and most likely confiscate your camera. It's always nice to have a challenge however and its even nicer when you can sneak a money shot image like the one at the top of this post. From here on i was pretty set with picture taking as i had nothing greater left to achieve. My adventure continued across town in the Roman Colosseum and the Forum. These two sites displayed a preserved version of the greatest ancient civilization ever to grace this planet. The Colosseum has served as a precedent in the design of public gathering spaces since its inception. The Forum has also been a model for democracies and the formation of their own societies. At the end of the day, i was not only physically exhuasted but mentally drained as well. This worked out well allowing me to sleep the entire two and a half hour train ride back to Florence.. which had i not awoken for, would have taken me to Munich for the morning. But i woke up just fine and can now proudly look back upon my time spent in the greatest city in the world.

Muchas Gracias Espana!

Barcelona Waterfront

Spain might be the most impressive country i have visited thus far. Barcelona ( outside of its pickpocketing issues ) has everything you could ever ask for. You have a beautiful coast with a very accessible waterfront and rolling hills covered in buildings of all colors with countless vantage points. You have buildings designed by world renowned architects such as Jean Nouvel, Santiago Calatrava, Mies Van Der Rohe, and of course Gaudi's Sagrada Famiglia. Dishes such as paellas and tapas will please just about any appetite. At night, one can find a comfortable seat on the piers or enjoy the pleasant sounds of musicians with the city far below.

Torre De Calatrava

Our second day in Barcelona, Alice, Matt, Tom and i walked across the entire city twice. Our first stop was Gaudi's Sagrada Famiglia which has been a work in progress since 1892 and continues to be built using the same techniques as were used in the beginning of the construction. It is one of the most unique constructions i have ever seen in that it resembles a sandcastle in form and a skyscraper in scale. Other work from Gaudi can be seen throughout the city and in Parc Guell which sits in the beginning of the hills. Above is the Torre De Calatrava, which is visible throughout the entire city and was a signal of good things to come as our journey continued to Calatrava's hometown, Valencia.

?

I can't begin to explain this image. The city of Valencia is tremendously lucky. In 1960, Turia Park was created by diverting the Turia River from its original course through the center of Valencia. This park is now home to several different playgrounds as well as 6 or so seperate Calatrava masterpieces. This includes museums, bridges, collonades, and other structures which are both literally and figuratively way over my head. These buildings and bridges are so foreign to my understanding yet so enthralling that i can hardly contain myself.. as a result i spent several hours lost in this insane architectural playground. I cant say enough good things about Valencia. I will however say that i almost got to spend an extra day there as we almost missed the trains and planes that would have taken us home. We did however make home safe and sound and are all the better for having spent every last minute soaking up the Spanish sun.