Beyond the Walls of Rome: North Trip: Part 2

Okay, here we go. North Trip: Part 2! The second half of the trip was quite interesting, taking us further and further north of Rome. There are still five towns/cities that I haven't told you about yet, so I will just get straight to it.

Sixth Stop: Sabbionneta

Oh my. What can I say about Sabbionneta. Several words and phrases come to mind to describe it: scary, abandoned, creepy, strange, and when are we leaving? Sabbionneta was a small fortified town designed on Roman principles. There was one main street, that draws you towards the main theatre in the town. The most interesting thing we found in this town was a randomly placed set of bumper cars. Of course, many of my classmates took advantage of this particular feature of the town.

Sabbionneta Urban Armature

The Local Theatre

Bumper Cars!!!

Seventh Stop: Mantova

Mantova was another strange stop on our way around the northern part of Italy. Mantova was a city of arches. Every walkway was covered and lined with arches and columns. It rained our first day there, but we rarely had to raise our umbrellas because of this urban condition. The walkways were all connected by a series of piazzas throughout the city highlighting different historical buildings. 

Mantova Urban Armature

Cathedrale in Mantova

The Palazzo

The Mantova Canal

Eighth Stop: Verona

In the tenth grade, we read Romeo and Juliet. After that, I always dreamed of someday going to Verona, and seeing the place that inspired Shakespeare to write such a beautiful story of young love. And for some reason, despite having this desire for many years, I never thought to plan a trip to go there during my term in Rome. And for an even stranger reason, when I saw Verona on the trip itinerary, I still did not put two and two together. It wasn't until I was sitting on the bus on the way there, and one of my classmates asked me what she should write in her letter to Juliet, did I realize exactly where we were headed. We were going to THAT Verona! I quickly researched Romeo and Juliet in Verona (and ignored the parts I read about it being a tourist trap, and the balcony being a fake addition to the house of the family that inspired Juliet's family in the story to boost tourism), and researched how to deliver my letter to Juliet. While in the Museum designed by Carlo Scarpa (an incredible piece of architecture) I thought about what to include. I finally decided to write about my current boyfriend Matt, and my hopes for us in the future, sealed the letter with a kiss and a rose, and put it in my pocket for later. My friends and I then explored the architecturally significant aspects of the town, and after lunch, we wandered down to Juliet's House. I found a spot among the locks to place my letter (I avoided the wall, because all of the used chewing gum stuck there freaked me out) and left it there. I can see why Shakespeare was inspired to write a story set in Verona, the place (outside of its touristy aspects) was quite a beautiful and inspiring city.

Verona Urban Armature

View from the Palazzo/Carlo Scarpa Museum

Juliet's (fake) Balcony

My Letter to Juliet

The Love Bench

The Verona Arena

Ninth Stop: Vicenza

Vicenza was a strange stop. Beautiful, but incredibly hard to find food. What kind of city has restaurants that are super difficult to find? I like food, and when I am hungry, I want it available. I don't like hunting for it! Anyways, I digress. This city had some very interesting aspects to it, but there was really only one standout building that captured my attention; The Basilica. In Italian cities, a basilica is not a church, but rather a public building. In Vicenza, this building was located in the centre of the city, surrounded by piazzas. The building is currently filled with stores, but has a captivating exhibition space on the third floor. This space was built by ship builders, and so when you look up at the ceiling, it feels as though you are looking at the bottom of a boat. Finally, the Basilica had a beautiful rooftop bar, with an incredibly long line, that looks out over the city at night.

Vicenza Urban Armature

Under The Basilica

The Basilica Ceiling

The Rooftop Bar

Tenth and Final Stop: Venice

Oh Venice. I love Venice! This is my second time here. Like Siena, I came to Venice with my family during the summer. It may be one of the most romantic places I have ever been. There's just something about the atmosphere there that feels like it was made for lovers. Because of this, I am going to bring my boyfriend back here at the end of my school term when he comes to visit and see if my philosophy about it being romantic is true. The city is also just an wonderful place to experience. The idea of being in a place with no cars is something I have only experienced once before, in Greenland. I love walking everywhere, although Venice poses a unique problem. Once you hit water, you can get stuck! There are not always paths for walking along water, so every once in a while, you will just hit a dead end. Also, the grand canal that runs through the city can only be crossed at 4 points, and does not have pedestrian walkways all the way along it. While in Venice, I spent a lot of time around the Rialto Bridge, because it is one of the simplest places to navigate. I also spent a bit of time in Piazza San Marco, feeding the famous pigeons (that you are not supposed to feed) and enjoying the view of some of the most expensive restaurants that I will never be able to afford to eat at. On this trip, I also had the pleasure of experiencing the Venice Biennale. Unfortunately, this year was the art exposition, not the architecture one. The exhibits were still interesting, but modern art has always perplexed me. I just don't quite get what people are usually trying to say, but I can appreciate beauty when I see it!

Venice Urban Armature

At the Venice Biennale

At the Venice Biennale

Dinner at Ponte Rialto

View from the Ponte Rialto at Night

Piazza San Marco at Night

The Bridge of Sighs

Ponte Rialto

Well, there you have it. Ten towns and cities in nine days. And when it was all done, it was back to Rome and back to work! We were headed full steam into November and our final projects.

Ciao for now!

Beyond the Walls of Rome: North Trip: Part 1

Over the course of our term in Rome, there are two major field trips that everyone looks forward to; the south trip for Rome and the Campagna and the north trip for Italian Urban History. Unlike the south field trip, where every day was fairly relaxing, with lectures during the day, and lounging on the beach in the afternoon and evening, the north trip was intense! The trip was full of switching cities and switching hotels, plus lots and lots of lectures. The lectures were all centered around the idea of the city as a theatre. A place for viewing, and a place to be viewed. During this trip, we also had to do a series of urban armature sketches, that showed the main armature or organizing principle of each city, from gate to gate.

First Stop: Pienza

Pienza was a small medieval town that was rebuilt and repopulated by one of the popes who was born there. The town is surrounded by nature on all sides, giving the people who live there these amazing views of the Tuscan countryside. In the centre of the town, there was a large piazza, with views opening on either side on the church towards the landscape. This square is also one of the brightest spaces in the city, drawing you from the one main road into the light that fills the space.

Urban Armature

The Outer Path of Pienza

The Back of The Piazza in Pienza

Against the Tuscan Landscape

Second Stop: Siena

Siena was the next beautiful town in the north that we visited. This was the second time I can here, having been once already with my family. (And yes, this is where the colour siena comes from, all the bricks in the city are that colour.) Siena was incredibly interesting because of the sqaure at the centre of the city. The square, called "Piazza del Campo" is a sloped piazza, sloping down toward the Palazzo (the cities former government building and current historical museum). This square has an history of horse racing, that continues to this day. Each year (possibly twice a year) each of the 17 districts of Siena choose a horse and rider to race one lap around the piazza. The winner gets bragging rights for a year until the next race is held. The Piazza has 11 entrances and exits that all point you in different directions out into the city. There is also an incredible church in the city called the Duomo, all clad in black and white marble stripes. It kind of looked like the Hamburgeler of churches, but I digress. Siena is a wonderful city that is definitely worth a visit (or two).

Siena Urban Armature

Siena from Above

The Duomo

The Palazzo

Third Stop: Gubbio

Gubbio was an odd third stop. After hours and hours spent on a bus because of torrential rain in Italy washing out part of the highway, we stopped in Gubbio for exactly 30 minutes just as the sun was about to set. Our prof lead the way as we rushed up a series of stairs to a hanging piazza, overlooking the landscape. The view was beautiful, the sky had cleared and the sunset was inspiring. I guess that's why Gubbio was worth a quick stop.

Gubbio Urban Armature

Sunset in Gubbio

Sunset in Gubbio

Fourth Stop: Urbino

Oh Urbino. What to say. Well, you couldn't go anywhere without going uphill. They somehow managed to build that town so that you are always walking uphill! I don't remember going downhill at any point. It was quite odd. The city is built on two peaks of a mini mountain with a main piazza in the valley (I guess I lied about going downhill, but the uphills took so much longer, and thus, get more emphasis).There is not a ton to say about Urbino. It seemed almost as though it was built as a Utopia. Nothing felt out of place there, and the city framed itself at every turn, creating these perfect viewing windows of different areas. No where did this better than the park at the top of one of the peaks. This park was the perfect place to sit and sketch, while appreciating the beauty of the townscape on the other peak. One other interesting thing about Urbino was our accommodation. We had our first ever University living experience! We stayed in dorms and ate cafeteria food. It was exactly as described. Small, cell-like, not exactly clean, and the food was pretty gross, but its cheapness made up for the taste.

Urbino Urban Armature

Urbino First Peak Piazza

View from the Park on the Second Peak

Urbino Through Framed Views

Urbino from the Park at Night

Fifth Stop: Parma

Parma was a city of frames. Frames of history, and literal frames made by the arches present in every single building. Parma, unfortunately, was one of the cities approved to be bombed by the allies in World War II. Luckily, much of the history of the city survived, including the Farnese Theatre. This was the first ever theatre to use a Proscenium. Part of the Palazzo that hosts this theatre was destroyed, but the area left open by it has become a beautiful park, through which people bike and walk to cross the city. The Duomo also survived the war, along with its piazza, forming a historical frame within the city.

Parma Urban Armature

Parma Palazzo

Farnese Theatre

Crossing the River in Parma

A Church in Parma

Wow, this post has gotten long! I will do the other half of the trip in another post sometime soon.

Ciao for now!

September in Rome

Today is November 8. I have been in Italy for 80 days. Today is my father's birthday. I have a scholarship application to complete for my Master's. My current studio project needs a lot of work. And I have decided now is an excellent time to write a long overdue post about September in Rome. 

September is a wonderful season in Italy. It has all the best aspects of Canadian summer, with none of the humidity! From my many walks around the city in the early parts of the term, I ended up with a really nice farmer's tan on my arms and glasses tan on my face! 

Throughout the month of September we had a very interesting project to complete for studio. The class was tasked with designing a thematic pavilion within the area of the Colosseum and Roman forum. I choose to design a "White Box", which meant I was designing a room meant for exhibiting objects. I chose to locate the pavilion right next to one of the entrances to the forum, using the forum itself as the object I was displaying.

I designed an interior pathway, with a series of walls, framing and explaining specific views of the Forum, isolating individual objects so as to give people an understanding of them on their own, before entering the forum and understanding them as a collective.

These are the completed panels for the project:

The experience of creating this project was great, because I got to spend several days exploring the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Capitoline Hill, and Palatine Hill areas of Rome. I gained some amazing insights into the use of historical spaces as tourist destinations, and was given some inspiration for the next project on recreating the strategic plan for the whole area surrounding the Colosseum.

Ciao for now!

Rome Away from Home

The time has come. Our whole education in architecture at Waterloo has lead to this. 

Rome. 

The Rome Term at Waterloo Architecture (where I am a student, in case you were unaware) is a tradition dating back 34 years. Every year, the fourth year class travels across the great wide ocean for 4 months to study in the Eternal City. And in the grand tradition of architecture, this first post is GROSSLY overdue. I promised everyone back home (Coworkers, family, friends, and eager Grandparents) that I would start a blog when I got here. Well, I got here on August 20th, 2013, and today, it is October 7th. And today, also in the grand tradition of architecture, I am avoiding other work, by writing it now. (Maybe studio will start later tonight :P) I have spent the last month doing a lot, including travelling with my family, a group case study project, my first studio project, travelling to the south of Italy (More on all of these later), and just generally getting settled. 

My apartment is wonderful. It has three bedrooms (which means no sharing!) and is a beautiful half an hour walk along the Tiber River from my school, in the heart of Trastevere. The only disappointment with the apartment is the view... We traveled thousands of kilometers, to one of the most incredible cities in the world, where you could have a million things to look at from your apartment; inspiring, incredible, breath taking things. And our view, is a McDonalds. Yup, big golden arches and everything. Now don't get me wrong, it is a very nice McDonalds, they don't make them like this back home. But it is still a McDonalds. Not terribly inspiring, but what can you do. 

Despite the view, the location is still great. Every Sunday, this giant flee market comes out of nowhere right outside our front door and just goes on and on with hundreds of stalls. I haven't bought anything yet, but I walk though it every week, looking for something really special. 

We also have an assignment while we are in Rome to fill a page in our sketchbooks everyday, so lookout for some sketches in the future!

  

I will write a few more posts this week to catch you all up on everything that has happened up until this point. But for now, I should really get to work! 

Ciao for now!