All I really knew about Utrecht before my trainwreck spectacular was by going to the Utrecht Art Supplies store for various school projects and buying paint and other useful materials. At least, I convinced myself, it will probably be colorful and artsy maybe (?). This self consolation sort of worked because upon arriving in Utrecht I was actually a little excited to be there. And, let me just say this right now, going to Utrecht was a perfect idea, thanks fate. Utrecht comes at you out of nowhere. You think, "I am in Amsterdam, lol what is Utrecht?" But to me, the city really did well to impress me. For starters I got off the train and headed down to the street where there is SO much construction taking place. But none of the regular road construction, Utrecht is truly undergoing an architectural revolution, if I might put it that way. No one would've thought that Utrecht had so many cool, modern, and interest buildings, at least not me. It definitly has a LOT of beautiful old architecture as you will see later but I was impressed to see many contemporary projects. Here they are some:
It was a sunny morning. I woke after a fun night with my friend who met me for a day in Amsterdam and had a nice and big brunch. Eggs, bacon, the sunshine, friendship, a pretty city, you know, everything a guy could ask for. I thought, "today is going to be good day!" Soon after I gave farewell to my friend in Central Station I went to my platform, mindlessly went into the next train that promptly showed up, a girl complemented my overalls. I thought "man, I didn't have to wait for the train, I'm getting complements, the odds are in my favor." I sat there smiling. Soon I realized I was actually in a one-way train to Utrecht, The Netherlands. Oops, I had managed to hop into a regional train that was taking me no where near my hostel. And by no where near I mean a completely different city! Nothing I could do at that point but to sit there and enjoy the ride. What is Utrecht? is it a city? a town? where am I going? how long will it take? what is my life? ugh. I had all sorts of things going through my head. Soon I came to the conclusion that there was nothing I could do at that point but to sit there and enjoy the ride. An unplanned trip to Utrecht, here I go: All I really knew about Utrecht before my trainwreck spectacular was by going to the Utrecht Art Supplies store for various school projects and buying paint and other useful materials. At least, I convinced myself, it will probably be colorful and artsy maybe (?). This self consolation sort of worked because upon arriving in Utrecht I was actually a little excited to be there. And, let me just say this right now, going to Utrecht was a perfect idea, thanks fate. Utrecht comes at you out of nowhere. You think, "I am in Amsterdam, lol what is Utrecht?" But to me, the city really did well to impress me. For starters I got off the train and headed down to the street where there is SO much construction taking place. But none of the regular road construction, Utrecht is truly undergoing an architectural revolution, if I might put it that way. No one would've thought that Utrecht had so many cool, modern, and interest buildings, at least not me. It definitly has a LOT of beautiful old architecture as you will see later but I was impressed to see many contemporary projects. Here they are some: After that I headed right back to where I came from and crossed to the other side of the tracks. Utrecht is so so charming, I could've stayed forever. The old city is as charming as it ever gets. It is situated in the heart of Holland, so I found it pretty fitting that it stole my heart. Founded over 1200 years ago, Utrecht is one of the oldest cities in Holland, a fact which is clearly reflected in the city’s structure and architecture. Although Utrecht is the fourth biggest city in the Netherlands, it has managed to preserve its local character. The compact historical city centre with its many canals, characteristic waterside restaurants and numerous parks give Utrecht a village-like feel. I felt like I had entered right into the cutest small town in the world. I truly felt like a close community, something so endearing to me since most of the time I spend time on big cities that can sometimes get very busy. I walked around for a while, going over bridges, passing building after building and hearing the sounds of the streets. Something so striking about this city is its big tower. At one point I couldn't help myself but walking toward it unconsciously. It stands so high up into the sky over all the other lively buildings that it's almost hard to ignore. It's called the Dom Tower, the tallest church in The Netherlands. With lack of funding the church never got completed so it is now a complex of a separate big tower and a church. I almost like it so much better this way, in between them there is a plaza where public life can be experienced. You go under the tower through a large portal and into the church which is high and beautiful. The best part for me was wondering around it and finding its garden, a beautiful showcase of classical style gardening and Gothic architecture. It has a zen organic aesthetic, as if the focus is to relax you, calm you, and bring you into terms with the beauty of space. It made me feel like I was in a scene from Harry Potter about to enchant an Expecto Patronum shaped like a cute little fox or something. The next couple of hours was something else. I got out of the church and just listened. The clock in the tower sings every hour, this caught my attention. Soon I was hearing another song being played, distant and warm. It was a beautiful tune, something you listen to when you open a music box with a rotating ballerina in the middle. I decided to find out where the tune was coming from, so I followed my ears, something I had never done before. Usually I let my eyes do the wondering; this time I heard musical tones and let them pull me into them. I passed closed courtyards, wondering if it was maybe coming from a music school, colorful streets that perhaps had a street performing playing, and other details that fit the whole mood the music had me feeling! As I found out, Utrecht is home to the biggest best university in the Netherlands, with some facilities situated in the city centre. Many international congresses are organised here, as the university has a fully equipped auditorium and congress centre on site. And there are many special and inspiring locations for meeting up, such as the Media Plaza, the Jaarbeurs Congress Centre / Beatrix Theater, the Railway Museum which has its own congress centre, Paushuize, the Rietveld Schröder House and many other historic locations. In this sense, despite its obvious centuries of tradition, Utrecht is a young and dynamic city. Soon after a nice little walk, I found it! This is where the music was coming from: Now, I couldn't be happier that my Study Abroad Map includes:
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Funsterdam, coolsterdam, itsprettysterdam. I truly still don't get how Amsterdam managed to surprise me at being one of the prettiest places in Europe. From the canal after canal of picturesque street life, to the historical architectural elements lingering between cute and impressive, there is only one word that I can pinpoint to explain how Amsterdam is: seductive. Last week was my Independent Travel Break where I took the word 'independent' quite literally as the opportunity to grab my bags and head into a solo trip/odyssey through Northern Europe. I have never had the greatest time in my whole entire life. Traveling alone is so liberating and it allowed me to get face-to-face to just how cities can be charming, scary, disorienting, mundane, and even sensual all at the same time. Traveling alone had always been a huge interest of mine, I have never been afraid of plunging into the blue and taking spontaneous decisions. For me, traveling alone means wandering, discovering, and getting lost; thing I highly value both as a lifestyle mantra and an aesthetic appeal. It's quite literally ingrained in my personality. If you don't like to be lost then we would have a difficult friendship. Keep tuned for another post about how alone can be healing and how traveling on your own reaches into your soul fornall the right places. For what is worth, venturing to Amsterdam was definitely the right decision. From the 17th century buildings, the sleazy corners, and the modern architectural elements, Amsterdam truly did it and did it big time. For starters, my main goal while in Amsterdam was to brake the stereotype. When people come to Miami I usually dislike the fact they categorize it into the niche of "south beach, parties and EDM" without paying attention to the rich food, culture and other artistically composed elements that make Miami exciting. Same thing held true when people would talk to me about Amsterdam "sex, drugs, party" they said, making me both excited and reluctant about my trip. I came to find that Amsterdam is so so so much more than that. Here is a sense of the principles I told myself every day I woke up when I was in Amsterdam: 1. Peruse Getting lost was quite literally a recurring theme on the whole entirety of my trip. From missed flights, wrong train stations, and foreign languages, it seemed like getting lost was almost necessary for my trip to be my trip. Specially in Amsterdam please throw your map to the wind and loose yourself. Explore every lovely canal, observe the meticulously placed details, come into a plaza and turn the opposite direction, stop at the market, make the wrong turn, dare into small alleys. The first day I was there I got a free tourist map and made a general route. Five minutes into the city and I had no clue as to where I was and how I had managed to get into a street that curved from one canal into another. At that 5 minute mark I decided to rip my map and toss into the garbage (don't litter that's rude!). What came next was a whole entire day of enjoying every inch of the city. Just when you start thinking "aha, I got you Amsterdam, I figured what street I'm in!" you turn a corner followed by a curved alley and find yourself at a completely new part of the city. Usually I use architectural and topographical landmarks to orient myself when I am experiencing a city. The most obvious landmarks of Amsterdam, which are actually in the UNESCO World Heritage list, are the beautiful medieval canals; so it was only natural that I was completely seduced by them. Good for the city for being so pretty (applause) but not so good for me when I try to locate myself from a canal just as beautiful as the next... and the next.. and the one after that (snap). The effect is that while you feel strangely familiar and drawn into the city, you also feel extremely lost; and that to me is wonderful. To experience a city at the intersection of this is to understand just how you become a part of the experience itself. "Didn't I just pass this?" "is this a different canal or the same one?" "where does that street lead?" "oh it leads to another canal." That was literally my though-process as I navigated Amsterdam. Amsterdam kept me in check. When you stop fearing being lost and embracing wandering you find a true magic. Finding the hidden coffee shop becomes rewarding, walking into a wide city-square becomes like the way you might encounter an oasis in the dessert, pointing out a small detail in a window sill that others might have overlooked becomes purposeful. No laid out paths or predetermined tourist routes, I let my sense of wonder guide me through the whole entirety of the city. The first night that I got there I said to myself that I was going to make it worth it, so I headed out at around 10pm just after pretty much throwing my bags in my hostel bed and went to go to see the city, I was determined to not waste a single moment. A good thing about Amsterdam is that the city quite literally radiates out from its city center. You get off at the central station and are transported to a point that is relevant to the history, geography, and personality of the city. That is somewhat rare now a days, that a city's main station delivers you at the very heart of the city; it makes Amsterdam so functional and distinctive. You get out of the station and there is so much activity! All cities have a unique story to tell about their spatial history. So does Amsterdam. This watery cityscape offers an enticing mix of old and new. radially planned and almost deliberately designed for the walking and biking experience, spending a day in Amsterdam under the blue sky is the way to go. The medieval buildings in the center are never straight, in some parts they lean to the side, piled into each other and slanted into the street. In other parts, the narrow structures lean inward into the narrow street in front of them. You walk on the streets and feel part of the whole, everything is intimate. 2. Try it, don't expect it As soon as I landed in Amsterdam I was starving, so on my late night venture to the city I decided to look for a cheap snack to get me through the night and into my hostel's free breakfast. I spotted a French Fry stand selling fries in a cone with what seem a fistful of mayonnaise literally dumped on top like some sort of street style highschool cafeteria. It seemed so wrong, and so gross, and so right! Being in Amsterdam meant I was open to try new things: from the more orthodox going out to sleazy bars and talking to the Dutch, to the controversial Coffeshops, I was determined to make my stay in Amsterdam a memorable experience. One of the days I woke up real early (that right there is what I mean by trying too, because if you know me you know that I actually am a nocturnal creature and mornings were invented just to personally and eternally torture me). I headed to the city to walk around and hit off the main sightseeing attractions. Soon I figured out that I was in the middle of the Red Light district at 11 in the morning... While the Red Light District is actually lit red at night, in the day time it is quite literally just another neighborhood in the city. Known perhaps as the most controversial area in Europe, Amsterdam's Red Light District is truly interesting if not shocking. Women show their stuff on the window, just like if I had gone window shopping for new shoes. They are there, raw, winking at me, and throwing me besos. I only realized where I was strolling into it by looking up and locking stares with an 11 am prostitute. So only normally the woman on the window was not the late night, curvy with perfectly done hair. She knocked on the glass, pointed to inside and threw a wink for good measure. While you are welcome to go ahead and try that too, I kindly refused without helping but to look straight into her boobs and skimpy corset. Hi, I'm awkward. Sure, there are prostitutes, red lights, Coffeeshops, and big neon signs that say “Live Sex Show,” but there are also hotels, normal restaurants, and even houses where families live. It can be a surreal experience to walk through it, but it can also be disappointingly normal after your first visit. Part of this is that we, as Americans, associate prostitution with grimy street corners, meth-mouth, and unattractive women beckoning us to follow them with one hand and dragging on a cigarette with the other. Which is why it made the district so interesting and exciting to me at first. But, the Red Light District prostitutes don’t nearly live up to that standard. Each prostitute stands or sits behind her own clear glass door, wearing a bra and panties (some people assume they’re fully naked). They aren't hacking drug addicts (allegedly at least!). Also, the Red Light District only makes up a small section of the city, basically a couple blocks. In fact, if you keep walking down the street in one section of the district, in about 5 to 10 minutes you’ll end up at one of the University of Amsterdam complexes. So you could go out hoping to get high and ogle prostitutes and accidentally get an education. Boom. Amsterdam’s canals are beautiful, and the city has much more to offer than weed and prostitutes. Other less sexual things I tried were a picnic in the beautiful Vondelpark, ordering from the menu in Dutch, a nice visit to the coffeeshops (wink), lots of foam on my beer,joining a big and peaceful street protest/march, talking to strangers and buying something at the flee market. 3. Check it out Being in Amsterdam meant that I was able to see many wonderful landmarks and places that I had always hoped to visit! Finding the "I Amsterdam" sign, the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh Museum and the other known contemporary buildings was very rewarding. I stretched them out too, since I stayed for about 4 days, as to fill each day with cool things to see. My favorite parts were:
With the Eye as a vivid and most recent example, it is very safe to say that contemporary and modern architecture is special in Amsterdam too. My absolute favorite was the library, which is masterfully orchestrated to be one of the best libraries I had ever been to! As the largest and coolest library in Europe, with seven floors, cafes, a restaurant, a museum, a gallery and countless wings, it would be silly if you go to Amsterdam and don't check it out. Other notable buildings were Nemo, the science center and the Olympic Stadium. 4. Have Fun
On Saturday night I had a really good high school friend meet up with me in Amsterdam. Needless to say is that we had a good time. At some point we were lost (surprise! see #1) but we ended up at a bar in the Red Light district ordering a very very very dark beer with so much foam that I couldn't help feeling like we were in the Holland. We met a weird (rather creepy at the end) guy called Adan from London, who after beer 3 or 4 I kept calling Alan because why complicate things. We chatted, made jokes, stared at the bartender. We walked around, stumbling into many streets and exploring the city. It was fun. But the fun wasn't just at night. In the day time I went to Vondelpark where I sat there people watching, the most fun and free activity there ever was. Another time I went to the flower market and got free flowers, I shared cigarette brakes with people from my hostel, I visited the playground, and the market. At the end I couldn't help for feeling so lucky to be where I was, because to travel is to live. 5. Be a tourist but also don't In my quest to getting to know the city was to try to not make it feel like a wacky tacky tourist. Getting rid of the map was the first step, buying a train pass was the second, the third was staying away from the crowded touristy street. The strategy payed off when in two separate locations a group of people stopped me to asked for directions. And ironically, I sent them off in the right direction. I met countless of Dutch who were actually a little frustrated with the tourists in the city. And to their defense, it was many of us who had come to visit. In every cafe and bar in the center there were tourists. The main pedestrian street was packed, the Anne Frank House and the Madame Tussaud's Museum had lines wrapping around the block, Asians held up their cameras by the hundreds, tourist feeding the pigeons in front of the Royal palace, a huge mass of humans tried to climb the I Amsterdam sign, and a lot of young crowds of guys flocked to the Red Light District. Instead I explored overlooked streets, I turned into quieter neighborhoods. I even stayed in a hostel in a hip, more residential and diverse part of the city. One secrete to meeting the Dutch, who are world renowned for being hot hot hot, is to go to the new library. There were so many hot students there (I guess book too idk) that it doesn't surprise me one bit that I spent about 3 hours wandering inside the library. One of the gems I found by turning into a diagonal side street was the district of Jordaan, this old development of houses next to the center that felt like walking into a village. The cafes near my hostel were less buzzing and more authentic to the Dutch experience. I found a cute white chapel by the harbor a little farther away and stumbled into a cool windmill by walking down the street to the train stop rather than for the closest one. It was great. In the end I even strolled late evening into a market where a nice woman spotted me admiring the flowers and gave me three of them for free. It was so precious. As we are all getting ready to leave Denmark on our individual study trips, Denmark has come out of the blue to say "look how pretty I am, why would you ever want to leave me you fool!?!" The weather has allowed it so that I can wear two layers and be absolutely fine. And then sometimes during the 3 hour span of the midday I can even take my jacket off, what what! This tropical soul of colorful short-sleeved shirts couldn't be happier.
As the weather gets nicer so do the Danes. They come out in hundreds into every and any public space they can find: drinking beer, having picnics, dangling their feet over the water, laying in the grass, mingling by the fountain in the plazas. or just sitting with their friends on a bridge. The sun is here and I like it! It is something so cultural that I can't help feel like I have finally arrived in Denmark. The reason people stay happy around here is because they truly treat public space and the leisurely realm like an absolute asset and commodity. You can just wait next to any office building or store to verify this. At the ring of 4 on the clock flocks of people put work behind and do not head home. Instead they head directly to meet their friends at the water front, or at the nearest public courtyard. Now that the weather is nice, the Danes are even wearing some color. some. Denmark steals my heart because I can get used to this real quick and real well. If you need me, you can find me outside from 3-5 pm, for now on. No regrets. No shame. No heart no more. These last couple of weeks have been giving me an inside look on the step-by-step process of how to get trashed. And to my surprise, it barely involves any alcohol! Seems like I've been doing it all wrong all this time. For my Waste Management Systems in Europe class we took a field trip to the incinerator! Yeah, to you that sounds like quite the worst way to spend a whole morning (newsflash: it smells). But to me, this topic is quite interesting. It's more than just going to go see the trash burn: it's about raising questions about what is trash? why and how it got here? how come this multi-million dollar process of handling and treatment gets away from the neglected actions of the consumer who discards an item and the producer who makes items meant to be waste? And why do government choose this method of management? When it comes to trash, we have nurtured a culture of ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ But, the problem with trash is very much visible and is very much affecting the lives of many people around the world. Coming from a developing country myself and reflecting on the Western lifestyle I now have come to enjoy, I can say that trash is much more than residue and left overs. It is a political, social, and even an economic entity. Many take for granted the fact that their garbage “magically” disappears... but the disappearance is only an act. Instead it is simply relocated to a landfill, a recycling center, an incinerator like the one in the pictures, perhaps, like it does in many parts of the world, makes its way down a storm drain and into a nearby ocean, or is dumped directly onto it. In the end, a city without a proper waste management strategy does not only suffer serious environmental hazards, but negatively impacts its social, cultural and political activity. Since I am interested in aspects of how sustainable development can be a viable strategy for community design and architecture, the question of waste management is a very relevant one for me. We visited the Amager Resource Center where most of the trash from the Copenhagen municipality gets sent to be burned for energy that produces district heating and electricity. It turns out that the Danes don't only like to light candles to improve the atmosphere, or fire up their sex lives with some unrestricted passion (I would know ;)), they also like to bring in the fire when it comes to trash. Denmark is a leader in incineration of waste. We got an inside look at the plant and a tour of their facilities. Sometimes it was like walking through the set of a scary movie, others its like stepping into a post-apocalyptic camp, other it was like perhaps settlements on space must look like, and yet others it was a fascinating look at home machinery moves and how garbage gets treated. You would never think that what ever you toss in the bin goes into well planned, big, and efficient treatment plants. Check out the shots I got and the ridiculous helmet I got them with: Of course, it is also important to be critical about environmental policy in the current context. The story of how Denmark has become on of the world's greenest countries is also sometimes misleading when it is actually one of the EU countries that generate more waste per capita and is world leader in incineration of household waste (burns about 80% of it as we learned). In some senses, to keep the incinerator running more waste is good, less waste is bad. That is quite a contradiction that I can't seem to wrap my head around. The story also comes in parallel with EU waste policy and the overall societal values of waste in our current system. The move toward waste-to-energy plants was kick-started in 1999, with a European Union directive requiring member states to greatly reduce the amount of garbage going to landfills. As the EU law dictates that as from 2020 all new buildings will need to be carbon neutral radically reducing the need for energy input, then how will Denmark cross the obstacle of becoming a carbon neutral country when 20% of heat production and 5% of electricity is generated from waste incineration, heat and power that could be replaced with a combination of geothermal, wind and biogas? That's a big questions to ponder.
In the end, this management of waste by burning is definitely more effective than landfilling which is generally as much as 25 times worse than incineration. Also, as we saw on the tour, the center has been working with research that includes better technologies for managing waste and the single-stream processes. What's more, they are even planning on building a whole new plant that promises to be an architectural jewel featuring a skiing slope, a man-made mountain and other sporty amenities. Check it here: Monday was the first day in many many days that I was finally able to wear a funky short sleeved shirt for a short time during the evening and not freeze to death. Copenhagen is starting to like me I think. All you really need to impress me is a little color and some sunshine. It's getting warmer, the days are getting clearer, and the love is growing stronger. The city is completely different with nice weather too. The Danes come out of their black closets and sit around to enjoy the sun and frolick in public spaces; it's so lovely and it's so contagious. People sun bathe and hang out in every space they can find: on stairs, on top and around benches, in the middle of the stone-slabbed plaza, hanging their feet in the harbor, in between streets alleys, above balconies and under bridges... So I did as Danes do and threw school to the wind. I headed outside and hung out under the beautiful blue sky. It is definitely easy to wake up on Sunday feeling like death came to pay you a visit from last-night's. But for me it is even easier to not say yes to a nice sunny and fresh day! I wasn't about to let it go to waste so I did what I always do: I grabbed my bicycle and rode it. Just me, my bicycle, a beautiful sunset, the undulating Danish hills and the dirt road. Instead of heading toward the city I decided to try the unfamiliar and head away from it. I found a side bicycle lane and followed it until it was nothing more than pebbles and sand on the ground. It was beautiful. It felt like I was chasing the sun, hiding itself in between small hills and reappearing again in the underside of trees. Soon I was so far off there was a creek and vast open spaces. Birds flew past me and the wind caressed me lightly. Suddenly getting out that Sunday was the best thing I did. Last week came and went, and so did I. I went to Sweden with my Sustainability in Europe program to learn all there is to know about just how Scandinavia has managed to be so green and so pretty. Besides being "The Capital of Scandinavia" and the 2010 European Green Capital of the World, Stockholm stepped up to the plate to being the capital of Charming-Me-Away. From the 6 hr train ride through the calming Swedish forests to the twisting corners of the Old City and the artistically designed metro, Stockholm really did it this time. It is a glacially cool and interesting city. It was rich in all senses: expensive alcohol, a fascinating history, a colorful skyline and many attractive people. And, for the sake of comparing it to Copenhagen, which is cozy and hip, Stockholm is cozy yet cosmopolitan. It looked as perfect as it has ever been since I read Stieg Larsson's Millennium crime trilogy. In the books, a sort of 'grimy' image is popularized as The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo intricately becomes the person we all want to be (the right to kick everyone's butt and serve a big hot plate of realness? yes please). I sat there some summers ago reading every single page of the book imagining Stockholm and the grungy spots that define the plot. I saw the book come to life as I experienced Stockholm's willfully alternative and eclectically picturesque city. What's more, Stockholm was not grimy at all. The city is painted in soft pastel oranges and pinks, making its warmth radiate through every single alley. No heavy stone work or elaborate marble facades, the cute arrangement of Stockholm's palette is pleasing to the eye and soul. It's crazy that my Study Abroad map now includes: Here is the recipe for how I went to Stockholm, Sweden and had a good academic and fun adventure. Ingredients: Directions: 1. Start by mixing a whole lot of Stockholm's Gamla Stan (Old City) into one big pot of wonderful architecture and charming sites. We arrived on Monday afternoon and got right to business and delved into the depths of Stockholm's Old City. It is located on an island right in the middle of it all. Pretty much, it is the heart of Stockholm. And very much so: the area almost palpitates with history; it's narrow and winding streets are like arteries through the city; there is life everywhere you turn in unseen chambers and in hidden courtyards; the medieval streets lead to peaceful plazas and spaces, yet remain energized with cafes and shops. The buildings here almost fold onto each other. As you walk down the appealing cobblestone streets with an array of houses that zigzag in-and-out/up-and-down the block you feel drawn in and welcomed. Everything is personal and up close, it is intimate and picturesque. In some parts you almost feel trapped but it is that feeling of wonder that makes you wanna walk more and more. The town dates back to the 13th century and in it you encounter stories of Viking stone slabs, tyrant rulers, market squares, bloodbaths and the commemorated past of merchants and the nobility. In terms of architectural and historic preservation, the site does well to not only keep history alive, but create an environment that nourishes identity and style. This is relevant to all cities today. As modernist principles in urban planning and architecture have come to wide criticism, there has been a movement for cities to turn to a lot more of what Gamla Stan is now: the concept of the walking city and the idea of preservation as a driver for an authentic urban experience. These are densified areas that promote human interaction, social capital, and multi-purpose living. In contrast with the demolish-and-build principles of the 60s that can be seen on some of Stockholm's financial centers, the Old City stands as a case study of how organic and flexible planning that accounts human needs can bring a positive experience of the city. 2. Score a small cross on the base of your schedule and itinerary, then put them into a heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water over them and do not remove. Make yourself explore the city. Of course, go to the royal palace and the national church. Make a stop to the beautiful gardens of mansions and cross into the main shopping area through parliament. But most importantly, make sure you experience the city by just wandering. This Long Study Tour had a lot of time where me and my friends were left in our lonesome selves to take in the city. And it was very rewarding. By the end of the trip we had the know-how on navigating the city and exploring Stockholm's hip neighborhoods. On Wednesday we had managed to go up the big hill after going to the Photography Museum. On our way we found great vinyl stores playing funky beats, a couple of quirky thrift and vintage stores, impressive churches, and a decent Tiki-themed bar. These small treasures made my experience of the city so much greater. You stumble upon public parks, school courtyards, silent passageways and even grimy alley ways. You get a lot out of seeing Swedes in their natural habitat. Trust me. It was fitting for us to walk around the city too, since Stockholm has long had the reputation of being one of the cleanest and coolest capitals in the world. We had a lecture at the Stockholm Municipality about their goals relating to carbon emissions and environmental policy, which highlighted Stockholm's aggressive target to become fossil-fuel free by 2050. That is quite a goal. The city's Environment Program contains six key priorities that include environmentally efficient transport, goods and buildings free of dangerous substances, sustainable energy use, sustainable use of land and water, waste treatment with minimal environmental impact and a healthy indoor environment. There is definitely a lot to say about every one of those areas and what Stockholm is doing to make life a little greener. But just what is behind this apparent success story? Part of the answer is a long history of political initiatives, stretching back to the welfare policies of the mid-1900s, which were implemented to improve wellbeing and health, but also contributed to urban settlement and resource use patterns that we generally consider “sustainable.” Buses run on biogas, there are very stringent controls of city road traffic and carbon emissions, nature reserves, and a great transportation system. Stockholm is leading the way on sustainable development, including projects like Hammerby and the Royal Seaport Innovation. And despite all this fuzz about smart growth, Stockholm's urban planning motto of "building the city inwards" talks about not only these great environmental focuses, but to the rich and beautiful history and architecture to highlight livability in the city. What I am trying to say is that Stockholm is a city you definitely want to explore.
5. Towards the end of the time, cook the public transportation in gently boiling well-salted water until nearly al dente You'd be a fool if you come to Stockholm without a subway pass. You would be missing some of the most beautiful stations in the world. That's right, Stockholm's train station are world-renowned for being what some call the "largest art gallery in the world." This gigantic art gallery spans for about 90 stations of unique public art featuring more than 150 artists in permanent and on-going exhibits! It is so magical to get off one stop and take in the impressive red stone and then get off onto another stop to astonishingly look up at the painted patterns in the caves. In other parts there are art installations, paintings and even sculptures just chilling there as every one makes their commute. It sorta makes public transportation an asset and an experience. No wonder the Swedes have one of the highest public transportation satisfaction rate in the world, even though most of the times the metro was crowded! The city has invested on the public and the public has responded. What better way to promote healthy cities than with art. A multidisciplinary and creative look into sustainability? yes please, supersized and with a side of fries! 6. Serve hot with a sprinkle of spontaneity and fun One day after a lecture on the Carbon Disclosure Project in Stockholm University, a group of us decided to spend our brake not walking around the campus but heading straight into the forest, of course! Although a short little visit to nature, we had a fun time in the forest, frolicking about and making it all fit in. Sometimes, the best way to enjoy the city is to do things spontaneously and embrace everything that can come out of that!
Meal is done! enjoy it with a side of potatoes and put some brown sauce on top and you are good to go for a sweet taste of Sweden. Sometimes I sit here to write things thinking that there is no one out there actually reading. Just me, my lame thoughts and ponderings, and my bad grammar. Other times it is the opposite. I received the first question the other day (which you can totally do if you have a question/comment about anything too). I like questions. Here is the response I wrote back:
I'm wondering if you had any tips/ advice about what programs seem the most compelling and interesting to you-- for example, I'm interested in the program that you're in, but I'm also interested in a bajillion other things that are listed on the DIS site, as they all seem pretty interesting. It's awesome that you are thinking about coming to DIS, or just to study abroad overall! As you can see from my blog where I mostly take pictures of buildings and nature, I came here from a background in Architecture and Environmental Policy. Which is the double major I have at my home university. One of the main reasons that I liked the program is because I am able to both be part of a program and also have a schedule that is so so flexible across the curriculum. So right now even though I am in the Sustainability in Europe program I am also taking a fair share of classes from the Architecture and Design program. This is something that most people do here. People from the Medical Practice program are able to take classes in psychology or people in the Positive Psych program can take a class in the sex trade. I guess what I am trying to say is that it doesn't matter what program you choose because you can still customize your schedule in a way that you can take all classes that you want across all programs. For the Sustainability in Europe program I am only required to take the core course European Sustainable Development. Each program has a core course that goes with it. But the other classes can be anything you want. I see now that it isn't much helpful to you. Some people come here wanting to study something completely different in their core course, but can still stay in a path by taking the classes from their major. Other people come here to strengthen their studies from the U.S but find it meaningful to take electives in many other areas that are offered. The programs that I find most compelling here are: 1. The one I'm in duh! It focuses on sustainability and how sustainable communities and policies can be viable for many social, economic and environmental solutions and strategies. 3. The architecture and/or design programs here are very good. It comes from a Nordic perspective so you can learn a lot about design and architecture, light, space, and functionality, most of which centers around sustainability and community-enhancing principles. 4. There is people in education that come here for Child Development and Diversity. They do a good job with practicum courses and Denmark is a good case study for that. Same thing goes for the Medical Policy in Practice. 5. I have a friend in the European Humanities one and he likes it a lot. I'm still not sure what the main focus is since humanities comprises right about everything and anything all at once, but they have good discussion-based thinking. Sorry it's a long answer, my tip would be to sit down and wonder to yourself what really intrigues you and what you would really love to know more about. For me the idea of Copenhagen as a 'green' haven was always recurring in my architecture and sustainability work. I wondered "how do they do it?!?" so that's why I picked my program. |