October 2007 Blog Posts (7)

Cefalú's Landing

Finally at last on Wednesday October 17 after 14 days since we landed at Palermo’s Airport we unpacked and settled into our accommodations for the next month. A little but cozy apartment at Via Ortolano di Bardonaro, the most northern street between Corso Ruggero and Via Vittorio Emanuelle in the medieval town of Cefalú.

This small town of about 14,000 people and old houses clustered along the Tyrrhenian Sea coast has kept it urban and historical… Continue

Added by Rafael Marxuach on October 25, 2007 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Housing or neighborhood?

Can a housing unit be develop without neighborhood considerations? Can a neighborhood be develop without housing considerations? Can one be design without the other?

Added by Deborah M. Deck on October 24, 2007 at 10:13pm — No Comments

Frattoria Mosé, Agrigento-Sicily

On the vicinity of Agrigento we stayed at the Frattoria Mosé, a 200 years old organic farm that contrast with the architecture found in the surroundings.

Chiara with the help of her mom Helena run this charming Agriturismo accommodations situated in the middle of tasteless architecture built around the Valley of Temples, that contrast with the beauty of the traditional buildings and grounds of the farm.

The structures of the farm are… Continue

Added by Rafael Marxuach on October 19, 2007 at 3:30pm — 3 Comments

two cents

The solar decathlon was a blast. However, it was extremely crowded and taking pictures was a hassle. Trying to get right angles while 20 other people are taking a tour with you is a pain. I did get to speak with the Maryland and Lawrence Tech students intensively. They were quite excited and more than willing to share their building experiences. I was envious of their grueling but rewarding beast they just conquered. The other schools were overcrowded and were moving the masses like cattle… Continue

Added by mark_m on October 17, 2007 at 11:27pm — 2 Comments

IL Giardino della Kolymbetra-La Valle dei Templei

Hidden from the harsh sun casting shadows on the ancient temples is the Kolymbetra Garden. Enclosed by two sand stone-limestone cliffs on the west corner of the valley is the piece of land described by Abbot of Saint Nord, 1778 as: “a small valley whose remarkable fecundity makes it resemble the Garden of Eden or a corner of the promise land”…

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Added by Rafael Marxuach on October 14, 2007 at 4:00pm — 1 Comment

Hampton architecture

It’s been a hectic five weeks. Following our public transportation exercise we were to analyze three sites where we would be designing a bus stop. Our building site is in Norfolk, Virginia, one of the seven cities that make up Hampton Roads. It is the most “urban” out of the seven. They are starting construction to build a light rail to connect two of the major cities in the area, Virginia Beach and Norfolk. So our job was to analyze the site and state our findings. My group and I decided to do… Continue

Added by mark_m on October 3, 2007 at 11:00am — No Comments

New Google Presentation Application

Martha, Arkimisti, arChi, and Rafael joined us last Wednesday on "a weekly chat about architecture". Above is a snapshot of the conversation that took place where the subject Software as a Service was briefly touched. As a continuation of last week chat and as introduction discussion for OOI-Office Over the Internet group the presentation title… Continue

Added by Rafael Marxuach on October 2, 2007 at 9:00am — No Comments