Gobble, Gobble, TURKEY!!!!

Turkey might be one of those places that no one expects to be enjoyable, I know I use to think it was almost third world, but if you go there you will be corrected because it is so lively and cultured and everyone is hospitable.  As far as the architecture, Istanbul would give the Cathedrals of Europe a “run for their money.”  You can’t fully appreciate the level of detail and meticulous craft of these places.  Going to Istanbul made me think more about Islamic architecture and to really look at it and decode the separation between the sacred and profane.  I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and can’t wait to get back there one day.  If you have a chance to go I would jump at the chance.  One of the best if not number one trip of my study abroad time! Below are some sketches and fun things we did during our time there.

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As a side note one of the things that I thinking of in relation to architectural theorists because you can't help but think about the structure and ask questions is that Ruskin was all about building that stayed true to there form without and ornamentation that didn't help the structure function.  While he might not agree with all the detailing, Mosques would fit in his description of "true to form" buildings.  I wonder what he would say?

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The Blue Mosque was my favorite Mosque in Istanbul.  The structure is huge and has this interaction with the Hagia Sophia which is across the garden.  The shell of the building is mesmerizing with all of its domes.  

The Yan Cami or "New Mosque" was right on the river and was the first mosque we entered while in Turkey.  It was friday and we got asked to leave for prayer.

The Hagia Sophia is one of the oldest churches in the world and is really decaying.  I can see why the dome has collapsed two time before.  The massive size is really apparent from the interior.  Still there is beautiful detain inside.

This is the Mosque by the Grand Bazzar and the last Mosque we entered before our departure.  The structure was simpler that the one we saw previously, but one of my favorites.  The detailing was ver intricate and the Mosque seemed to be more local than a tourist attraction.

Ahhhhh......The RUGS!!!!  You can't go to turkey with out going to look at the rugs.  And you can;t look at rugs and not want one.  That exactly what happened to me and I came home with a souvineer for life.  These were the two rugs that I was choosing between.  I ended up getting the green one on the bottom and I'm really happy.  

~ DISCLAIMER ~

WARNING: Turkish People are VERY GOOD Salesmen.  

(if you don't want to spend money, go somewhere else) 

It’s a few days before we go on our Easter Break and there’s a lot to  do for studio.  This weekend I didn’t do much other than work on documenting our new project site.  The site is the behind the most known market in Barcelona the Boqueria.  Its now a parking lot, but is being renewed. 

 

 

I go to Turkey in 3 days!!!!  I’m really excited to go.  The next week and a half is going to probably be the most intense traveling I’ve done to date.  Turkey for 5 days then I’m back in Barcelona for 2 days and then Morocco for 5 days!  It’s a lot, but worth it.  Speaking of Morocco, Cristi showed us where we were staying there today; there are really no words that describe how nice this place is.  It’s pretty much a palace, which is really called a Riad, and this place had only 12 rooms in the whole place and we are occupying 10 of them!  I’m in a deluxe room and its super nice.  Jacuzzi Tubs with rose petals and big beds!!!   We are living like royalty there.  One of the girl’s rooms is two stories.  We have an Arab bath in the hotel too!  Here is our hotel site.  If you go to the Suites link, I am staying in the Al Mohandes room!

Riad Fes - location riad fes: Votre riad de luxe alandalous à fes, riad fez, Maroc

 

Here are some sketches of my attempts at both water color and pen.

Water Colours!

We are starting water coloring in our Arch 517 sketching class and we had a tutorial yesterday on how to use the medium.  Here are my attempts at tonal values and an orange.  I liked working with the medium and hope to use it more often.  I bought a water color field box and also buying a water color sketch book.  I’m sure you’ll start seeing more of this!

Sketches from Spring Break in Greece!

This sketch is of the New Museum for the Acropolis.  This building is under construction in Athens, Greece next to the Acropolis.  The structure is built on top of ancient acropolis grounds and the interior of the building pays respect to that.  The floors are partially glass that illuminates the ruins under it.  The sketch studies that connection from the old to new and how the new construction respects the old.  

This is a sketch of the Church of the Holy Disciples located in the Ancient Greek Agora.  In this drawing I wanted to look at the special axis of the church.  Also,  I started to explore the         contracting and expansion in such a small space.  The three entrances to the main hall all have different special effects that I found interesting.

This sketch was done in Santorini, Greece studying one of the many churches on the island. The thing that is most striking and noticeable about the church is the classic double crossed barrel vault and that’s what the sketch is exploring in axon, plan, and section

Roma for the Weekend

Roma for the weekend was a lot of fun.  Our hostel was not so nice.  Let me paint you a visual picture, the outside temperature is about 30 degrees and the windows of our room were left open.  Our room had no heat and all three nights I slept in a t-shirt, long sleeve button-up, a jacket, socks, and jeans.  It was the worst sleeping experience of my life.  Other than that the sites were great and had fun with everyone.  Below are some sketches I did while I was there.  Chow!

Ode to Southern Spain

 Madrid was the first stop on our trip,

Who knew it would be already kicked.

The weather sucked,

Picasso was closed,

Brazilian food and vino made us doze.

 

That doze helped us prepare for our next place,

Cordoba was its name and we got there at a good pace.

That train ride flew,

Right through the south,

But all I could think about is food to put into my mouth.

We cabbed it to the hotel,

Right by the Mosque, it went well.

We stopped at this little place to eat,

Red ants joined are table and trust me that wasn’t a treat.

At lunch the guys were looking for delicious pitas,

But could only find the Cordoba Mesquita.

Even though the kebab wasn’t found,

The inside of the Mosque was surly profound.

Perspectives, Axons, and elevations were drawn,

But all anyone could think of was the bathing that would soon be going on.

Warm, then hot, and finally cold,

The baths were nice and felt like we struck gold.

 

After relaxing in such an awesome place,

We said farewell to Cordoba and headed onto the next leg of the race. 

CUA took Granada by storm,

In search of the Alhambra,

Our teachers summer home.

Sketching class was in a Café,

Every college student wanted to be us that Day.

Cervezas, a pencil, and some food,

That day of class put us in one great mood.

After, we decided that tea was a must,

So we sat down and drank on big ass cup.

Sunset over that Alhambra was the last class of the day,

We saw the sun go down until the very last ray.

Waking up we had another day of fun,

The tour of the Alhambra was how the day begun.

Flamenco that night was well lets say kind of crazy,

To tell you the truth it was a little bit hazy.

Apparently Lauren and I are not as good as we thought,

While dancing, she almost took my head off.

Long story short, I got a black eye,

But the trip had to go on without a cry.

 

Our final destination was a bus ride away,

The weather felt like a day in May.

Seville was picturesque and very quaint,

I’m sure at least one of us wanted to faint.

Faint at the site of Calatravas Bridge,

I was not all that excited it looked like a fridge.

All white and sterile, no real design,

We sat down to sketch, and all we wanted was some wine.

To cure that craving we all went out,

But split up into different routes.

We met up later and mingled with the crowd,

By the end of the night, some got a little loud.

After waking up the next morning,

We realized it was the last day of our trip.

We made the best of the day and cracked the whip.

Cracked the Whip to see everything Seville contains,

It was incredible and thank God it didn’t rain.

Rain like in Madrid where the weather sucked,

Instead we chilled that night on the rooftop.

 

Saying goodbye to Southern Spain was hard,

But lets be honest that’s because Barcelona is the star.

 

Yesterday we had Jury and we all needed to relax so a couple of us went out for drinks at a small restaurant and let me tell you the margaritas were just what the doctor ordered.  After chilling out, we all went for sushi!  A lot of us were craving it because personally I eat it at least two times a week at home.  We met up with more of us and we went to this classy sushi place and the food was unbelievable.  Edamame and two rolls of sushi later I was in heaven. (Can’t forget the cava either!)  After dinner we saw a gelato place and we couldn’t pass that up so we all indulged ourselves in that as well. Anyways it was a three-hour dinner and we spent a good chunk of change, but all well worth it.