bridges

I love bridges. these structures which allows people to cross an obstacles can be build in so

many ways and styles and differ in their spans. they are beautiful in the nature.

some are stone some are wooden some simple and

some complicated but serving the same purpose

connecting places and allow people to cross over.

some times it
looks amusing

when it crosses

over a dried

river but it is

there and should be used.

in bhutan you cross them

and feel swaying .

in japan it becomes an elegant structure almost a building. in vietnam I saw the simplest ones build just the need no more or no less.

bridges give me a feeling of longing may be it is because it connects places which are somehow

separated . if you one day decide to walk over one , stay in the middle of it and look around feel the power of a river passing under you or experience the emptiness under you, here you are in no mans land up in the air .

I love bridges

faces

the surface of the front of the head from top of the forehead

to the base of the chin and from ear to ear, this is the definition of the face. but I think there is more to it . every culture has a face

combined with their life style , customs and traditions and that I

find beautiful. the colors and effects painted or added to it generates energy .

one of the rewards of traveling is to experience these

different and interesting faces and meet the people behind it

and share ideas . not all of them one can share a language with but there are other ways of communicating . trust me, somehow there is always some one approaches you to help and the situation gets even more interesting and you find yourself sipping tea or drinking whatever and learn a lot of

things you never thought of. this I think is the richness and beauty of traveling . here are some people and their faces I met in my travels.

the urban room

what I like with the southern countries like italy or spain

is the way they live in the urban room.

urban room is a melting pot where people meet.

here " things " can happen, you can

involve in it or just watch .


here in

the egyptian bazaar in istanbul people use this urban room as a passage if no desire of shopping they pass through or use the urban room as an appetizer before shopping.

some months back a new shopping mall with an old concept opened in aalborg where I live. the same old concept , a two floor heigh atrium with escalators , shops in lower level shops in upper level and you circle around and find a shop . and of course there is always a food court as a special area. somehow it is always separated .

I dream of another concept for a shopping mall. an urban room, a place where people feel

" a place to be in " a place where things happen like a center of activities. there must be place for a sudden fashion show a spontaneous music concert. here people should casually pass by or sit and get a cup of coffee or something and awaken their appetite to shop . I have a concept

" waiting for a client ! "

the urban room in this concept is the bazaar , it has an un-symmetrical size and form. here can things happen under a system of sky lights which both give day light to the urban room and at the same time cast light out in the evening to show that things are happening under these sky lights to attract you in.

the shops or centres are placed along it with their own size and heights, they can be in two floors or a single floor.

the important thing is that they all use the urban room as an appetizer before shopping .

just a thought , may be someday some one knocks on my door so that I can explain more.....

talk to you all soon again.

shopping with all senses open

shopping in eastern countries is a big experience,

where you stroll around with all your senses open , the colors your eyes capture the appetizing smell you nose capture all together with a lot of people you mingle even without really shopping you feel happy. the usual mall in western expectation where you enter to a very large space in two or three floors heigh with escalators moving up and down. upper levels and

lower levels full with shops are gone, here is

everything arranged naturally and shops cafes restaurants are all together it is like a gothic architecture your eyes never get a rest. a lot of things on display and therefor you love it sometimes without really knowing why. a little more east in japan the same principles are displayed with color and texture carefully chosen .. . this is an urban room.

next time I will talk about " urban room "

and its importance in a shopping concept, however never applied in any western shopping centres which I always wonder.....!

talk to you soon again.

an entrance must have character

an entrance door must "send an invitation ! " and a positive energy it is the most important part of a building , be it a house or what ever it is where you enter and be a part of the activity the building is offering .

last week end I was in ærøskøbing , a tiny town on a tiny island called ærø south of a larger island funen in denmark. this tiny town has these beautiful doors .

the street texture , color and the ornaments of these doors live in such a harmony and awaken nostalgia that you feel you are a part of a fairy tale . these doors are from year 1700 and a little later, it makes you think , how come we, more wealthier than the people at the time of the occupants of this town now produce the dull and uninviting doors in uninviting towns without a soul ....? because of discount architecture and also probably because towns at that time were build for people to live in them but now towns are places where people profit. think about it ..

talk to you all soon.

travelling is learning

recently I was in kyoto, my favorite city in japan where old / tradition and modern is combined and exists side by side elegantly. I enjoyed seeing bamboo for everyday things,tools and art, enjoyed watching people enjoying performing their duties . I learned that we " drink " tea while japanese " taste " it and learned that my stockings were wrong and was recommended stockings looking like a "glove " where each toe is separated so that they have free movement ! very logical. I enjoyed zen gardens and almost meditated watching the stone arrangements . I learned that every stone has its own character and must be respected when placing and deciding their orientations . I enjoyed harmony of colors in gardens and harmony of building materials in old city gion . all in all I came home filled with very positive energy .

talk to you all soon again.