Suzhou

Yesterday’s excursion to Suzhou was definitely a success. After getting up bright and early and having a quick breakfast of bao, Reina, Avik, and I made our way to the Shanghai Train Station for a half hour ride to garden city of Suzhou. We began the adventure, first visiting the Humble Administrator’s Garden (Zhuozheng Yuan). Our theory was that by visiting the main touristy garden first, we would beat the crowds. This was not exactly the case. It was easy to see that the 10-acre garden was beautiful, but the swarms of Chinese tourists and multiple tour guides with megaphones did somewhat kill the atmosphere. There were still some wonderful surprises and moments to be had, however. In a few sections of the garden, we found ourselves almost entirely alone and able to truly see the garden. There was also a section with cave-like walkways which were both exciting and a great escape from the heat.

Our next stop after the Humble Administrator’s Garden was the Suzhou Museum (Suzhou Bowuguan), which was designed by I.M. Pei in 2006. It was his final and favorite work, and in my opinion the museum did a fantastic job of reinterpreting the traditional architecture we saw within the city. The Suzhou Museum is “uniquely personal” for I.M. Pei. In 2002, when he was asked by the Suzhou government to build a large museum on hallowed ground adjoining a complex of 19th-century historical structures and two gardens listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites, he leapt at the opportunity. Although I.M. Pei was born south of Suzhou, in Guangzhou, and grew up mostly in Hong Kong and Shanghai, his ancestors lived in Suzhou for hundreds of years. He spent several memorable summers in the Suzhou gardens as a youth.

The Suzhou Museum project was, of course, very controversial, much like his glass pyramid was at the Louvre. It may just be the architect in me, but I think the project did a fantastic job of retaining its own identity and still respecting the World Heritage sites it lays between. As a museum, the interior spaces were filled with surprises, but still didn’t distract from the art held within. To be perfectly honest, the art was interesting, but Reina, Avik, and I were much more interested in the architecture! I’m sure most of the Chinese tourists thought we were a little nuts, trying to capture the perfect photos, not of the art, but of the interior spaces.

Leaving the Suzhou Museum was an unexpected experience. We left I.M. Pei’s work and found ourselves in a labyrinth of historical Chinese corridors and courtyards. It was beautiful and also difficult to navigate. We eventually made our way back out to the Suzhou streets and canals. We still had some time before lunch, so we decided to take a boat ride through the canals. It was a gorgeous and relaxing ride after the hours we had spent walking so far, and you could really start to see Suzhou outside the tourist’s perspective. Halfway through the ride, our “gondolier” started speaking to us in Mandarin. We had no idea what he was saying so we just smiled and nodded. The man burst out singing what must have been a traditional song. It was so unexpected, I couldn’t help but smile. I decided right there that the day was officially sealed as a great day. Our gondolier continued to serenade us throughout the boat ride, and Reina, Avik, and I clapped and cheered for him after each song. When we docked, we decided that it was time for lunch.

We found a small restaurant along one of the side streets and split some spicy tofu and pork, a vegetable that may or may not have been eggplant, and a skillet of beef and peppers. We took some time to relax, digest, and plan out our next sequence of destinations. We left the restaurant and started south for the Temple of Mystery (Xuanmiao Guan).

The Temple of Mystery is a two-tiered 3^rd century Taoist temple which was damaged during the Taiping Rebellion during the 19^th century. Many people were lighting candles inside and outside of the temple. The temple itself is surrounded by what was described as an ancient Suzhou style bazaar. The park in front of the temple was a wonderful public space and reminded me of some of the smaller parks I visited in Oaxaca. Reina, Avik, and I took some time to sit and watch a man who was singing in a gravelly voice similar to Tom Waits and dancing a pseudo-graceful ballet.

Next, we made our way east, in search of the Kunqu Opera Museum (Kunqu Bowuguan). Since we were taking the back alleys of Suzhou which were much more interesting than the main streets of the city, we ended up overshooting the Opera Museum and found ourselves facing a sign that seemed to claim the Couples’ Garden Retreat (Ou Yuan) was behind the whitewashed wall. There was a gate nearby and inside was an empty lot. I was wondering whether this was some sort of parody or artistic statement of a garden, when Avik pointed out the arrow at the bottom of the sign and the distance marker. The Couples’ Garden was a ways away and empty lot was just an empty lot. Oops!

We circled back to the Opera Museum, and found ourselves in a ghost town of a building. The three of us found ourselves completely alone in a beautiful Chinese courtyard with a steady breeze slowly filtering in. It was an almost spiritual experience, escaping the rampant tourism and chaos of the streets and being able to experience the untrammeled wonder of a traditional structure. We agreed that these are the moments that make the journey, the unexpected stops along the way. It was fun seeing the touristy sights, but the unanticipated moments are much more special. “Travelers don’t know where they’re going, tourists don’t know where they’ve been.” I consider myself a traveler.

After we finally left the museum, we made our way along the canal, past numerous boutiques and teahouses, stopping for fruit smoothies along the way. Or final destination before wandering back to the Suzhou train station was the North Temple Pagoda (Beisi Ta), a 250 ft (76 meter) tower. It was initially built in the 3^rd century, like the Temple of Mystery, and it was completely reconstructed in the 16^th century.

We were wiped out but satisfied at the end of our outing. After a half hour train ride back to Shanghai and a quick taxi ride back to the hotel, it was time to get some rest.

Week Number Two at Xian Dai

It’s been a busy week at work. Monday morning, after drinking my milk tea from the market downstairs and arriving at work, I had my first official review and project meeting. The head architect, our project head, and a few other fellow designers gathered around my desk and we went over the two design options I had been working on. Throughout the week, I developed several more iterations. Unknown to me, there had been a meeting between a few members of my department and some representatives from the Baotou government over the weekend. Several changes had to be made to the overall urban scheme, and we’ve all been working this week to make changes to the design. After my morning desk crit, the other members of my project team and I gathered around the city plan to discuss the meeting with the Baotou government. The meeting was held in Chinese to be more efficient with time, but Zeng explained some of the key points, especially the information that pertains to my portion of the project. All that the Baotou representatives said at the meeting was that “the geological museum is very important to them,” but they didn’t give any direction in terms of what they are looking for in a design other than that it needs to have a lot of green space around it. Between designing in Sketchup and AutoCAD, I’ve been trying to do my own research on Baotou and China as a whole.

For some reason, the topic of marriage always seems to be brought up by my younger coworkers. Actually this is probably because one of the designers in my department is going to be getting married in the middle of August. In China, they explained over lunch, a man must buy a house for a woman if he wants to marry her. Nowadays, however, a woman will still marry a man if she loves him, even if he doesn’t buy her a house. The parents wouldn’t approve, however. They asked me if I will need to buy a house when I get married. I explained that in America, it used to be the dream to buy a single family detached house and settle down, but now there are trends towards living in apartments or multifamily housing.

After work on Monday, Avik, Reina, and I returned to Yang’s Fry Dumpling on the way back to the hotel. That place is fantastic in every way! The waitress behind the counter is the sassiest woman I’ve ever seen! She apparently recognized us when we walked into the restaurant and just burst out laughing at us. I happily ordered the dumplings right away and picked out a table to sit down at. Avik was set on getting some soup, and took about 15 minutes trying to order the pork wonton soup, which the waitress finally declared they were out of. He then tried to explain to her that he would just take the soup that was above it on the menu and she couldn’t figure this out, so he finally gave up and ordered the dumplings like Reina and I. Fantastic dumplings, spectacular sassy atmosphere!

At 6:00PM on Tuesday, my department had a traditional Chinese social meal. I had to taste everything, of course! Some new, interesting items I tried were duck tongue, cow eyeball (still in the skull which was on a huge platter), the smallest egg I’ve ever seen, jellyfish, and much, much more. Everyone got really excited when I joined them in eating some “traditional Chinese food” that I cannot even describe. It consisted of some small white sphere things in a soup that had a lot of rice in it and everything tasted very sugary. At the end of the feast, we took a full department photo. During the meal, I learned that I’m actually the youngest person in my department.

Tomorrow, we’re headed to Suzhou, and Reina, Avik, and I had a bit of a misadventure Thursday morning trying to buy train tickets for the trip. Luckily, our “Chinese fairy godmother” was at the train ticket office and helped translate our order without even hesitating to help us.

I met this morning with the head architect to go over my design before it was sent to be rendered. A guy from the rendering company came over, and I explained the model and design to him as well as I could and gave him some of my sketches to assist. In the afternoon, our project team gathered in one of the conference rooms to look over the compiled city design with all of the massing and buildings we have been working on. We discussed different options for some of the more lackluster portions of the city and I was able to learn a little more detail about the project and the city of Baotou as a whole. We had some ice cream halfway through the meeting, and I finally got to try the sweet pea Popsicle. It was actually very good! After the meeting, Zeng took me one block kitty-corner from the Xian Dai office to visit C & P Group, the small firm that builds models and generates renderings in 3ds Max for Xian Dai. Apparently, Norman Foster exports a lot of his renderings to this same firm, because they are much cheaper and quicker than British rendering companies. Speed was the name of the game in the small office. I’ve never seen someone operate 3ds Max as quickly as the workers there did! This week flew by, and we’re all excited to see Suzhou tomorrow!

Geological Museum and Civic Space for BaoTou

I feel that I should probably add an informational entry, just showing where my hotel is in relation to Xian Dai and the city as a whole.

The project that I’ve been working on this week is developing building massing and an urban landscaping option for a geological museum. Everyone on my project team is incredibly friendly and willing to answer any and all of my questions. I’ve received printouts and images of BaoTou and information about the city’s history and unique symbolism and culture. I still feel, however, that I am in no way gaining a firm grasp on the culture and values of the region. It’s somewhat disconcerting. I’ve barely begun to understand Shanghai itself! It’s very exciting, however, to be working on a project that has such cultural relevance, especially after my Sri Lanka studio this past term.

This is a rendering of an earlier design scheme for BaoTou. The massive civic mall area still figures into the urban plan, but it has been modified in the design that my project team and I are working on.

BaoTou is nicknamed the "deer city," after a type of deer species which is native to and symbolic of the region. There is even a monument to the deer in the city.

Life in China Continues at a Rapid Pace

The broadband internet connection in my room at the hotel is pretty jank, so it’s been tough to keep up with my blog. I keep getting kicked off of the internet after 15 seconds or so and cannot access the internet again after each attempt. Luckily, there is a small coffee shop a couple of blocks away with free wifi, so I can still access the internet for short intervals while I wait for the IT guy to figure out what the problem is with my hotel connection.

I’ve decided to forego writing daily blog entries, and instead, I’ll add some anecdotes whenever I have the chance. I am still keeping a daily log, typing just before I crash each night, but it’s mostly memory cues, scattered images and thoughts from each day. I’ll save some of the more compelling and coherent entries for this blog.

Chen Juan invited me to a lecture yesterday, by one of the University professors, about the adaptive reuse of buildings. The most interesting project he discussed was the Nanshi Power Plant, which was converted to an art gallery and museum. The project is somewhat close to the Expo site. Three different iterations of the design were discussed, including an early scheme where the chimney would be fitted with what appeared to be a spiraling escalator, meant to express how electricity was generated within the plant through the architecture. Many elements, such as a massive ramp and the generators were preserved to highlight the building’s past. Overall, the project was incredibly beautiful. The lecture was not in English, but thanks to Chen whispering answers to some of my questions (using the translator app on her iPhone to help find the correct terms) and the order of images presented by the professor, I could generally understand the project as a whole. Architecture is a universal language.

In other news, I have somewhat unofficially become the navigator of our group, the man with the map. Before I arrived, while looking through maps of the city, I was thinking that Shanghai would be incredibly difficult to navigate because it seemed to lack any coherent grid system or urban layout. It turns out that way finding isn’t actually too difficult. There is some type of logic hidden within the organized chaos of the Shanghai streets.

Thursday night was our first visit to the Bund, to view the Pudong skyline. It was also our first trip via the Shanghai subway system. At rush hour. It was unbelievable how many people were packed into one space! I finally began to comprehend the sheer scale of the city and its population. The contrast between the European colonial facades of the Bund and the futuristic towers of Pudong was beyond words. From the Huangpu River waterfront, we were able to watch 360 degrees of buildings slowly brighten as the sky slowly darkened. I now have around 50 photographs that cannot do justice to the experience.

Last night, after stopping by Yang’s Fry Dumplings after work (delicious, by the way, and sort of comparable to Voodoo Donuts in terms of touristy lines), Reina, Avik, and I took a quick break at the hotel to recuperate and plan our first Shanghai nightlife outing. We headed to the French Concession district, beginning the night at a swanky jazz club. From there, we wandered from building to building, checking out different venues along the way. Virtually all of the bars were ritzy with a capital “R”. We almost forgot that we were in Shanghai, because the whole area felt so European. The bars were mansion-like, set behind gates. It’s incredible how many faces there are to this city, and we’ve still barely scratched the surface.

The First Couple Days

July 9, 2012 – 11:30 PM

After a twelve hour, relatively peaceful flight, I arrived at PVG and soon met my fellow interns, Reina Satoh and Avik Banerji, both of whom will be transferring to the UO Portland architecture program this coming fall. We were able to have our first linguistically awkward encounter with the streets of Shanghai, as we searched for some bottled water. Luckily, we met with success. As I type this first entry, I am watching a Chinese news station that I can barely understand. From what I see, it looks like they are discussing fuel prices.

The initial impressions of Shanghai, driving from the airport to our hotel through a hazy night, were very surreal. A collage of dimly lit housing towers reminded me of a 70s or 80s future dystopian movie. I am not judging the state of construction in China, I am just trying to portray what I saw. It must have been the mist that made the journey so intriguing. There were some examples of four to five stories of housing over the store, but what really amazed me was the sheer number of residential high rises.

July 10, 2012 – 8:45 PM

Day one at Xian Dai was a whirlwind. After successfully navigating our way to bus 19, we arrived at the firm half an hour early, so we decided to stop by a local supermarket. I ended up getting orange juice and some dried plumbs with the pits still inside them. We then made our way into the wrong building (as it turns out, there are two Xian Dai offices just adjacent to each other). We quickly made our way to the 6^th floor of the correct building, with elevator doors slamming together, almost crushing us. We were met by Joy, who had driven us to our hotel from the airport, and filled out the necessary paperwork to begin our internship. We were introduced to our project teams and were taken to our respective floors. I am on floor 5, the architecture department. We then received a quick tour of the building. I met with Zeng Jun, who explained the first project to me. (I was also able to meet the other 5 members of our project team who formed quite a swarm of designers trying to explain the project in broken English. I loved it!).

For this first project, I will be designing a concept for a geological museum with a height limit of 24m. The building will be one of the main nodes in the redesign of the city, BaoTou, in the Nei Meng Gu province in northern China. The building will be located in the civic core, opposite the Government Center. Along a different axis, the museum will be the termination of a pedestrian market boulevard. I am surprised that I’ve been given such a design intensive project right from the start! After having lunch in the cafeteria with my coworkers, surprising them with my control of chopsticks, we took a half hour break. Essentially a siesta. Zeng was surprised that we don’t take naps after lunch in America, but decided that, “that’s right, in America, time is money.” Next came a manufacturer’s presentation by Nora, for rubberized flooring to be used in a number of hospitals, and a brief introduction to yet another project to start thinking about for a dance theater. All three of us, Reina, Avik, and I, were present to hear about this project. After a client meeting tomorrow, where the clients will choose between three alternative site plans, we will begin coming up with iterations for facades which will be cheaper to construct than previous proposals.

I finally gained access to the internet for the first time after the meeting, which was hooked up via LAN. I was also given a SketchUp model, AutoCAD drawing, a roll of trace, and pdf presentation of the BaoTou project by Zeng so that I could begin the design of the museum. The only advice I was given was that it should reference the culture and reflect the local vernacular architecture. This I am wary of, as I feel like I have no grasp on Chinese culture yet, especially that of a specific province. Tomorrow, I need to get to work by 8:15 for a site visit at the water town of Zhujiajiao with Li Wenting, a coworker who is in my office.

We also had our first experience tonight eating Chinese hot pot with Reina and Avik. It was the best broth I think I’ve ever had. Also got to try seahorse, some snakelike fish, and greens and mushrooms I’ve never tasted before. The most exciting part about the meal was that we had no idea how to go about ordering it or eating it, but our waiter and waitress were both eager to assist. There is something more real, more human about these encounters where we cannot understand the language of the people and where they cannot understand us. We both want to communicate and somehow manage to do so using the most fundamental methods of expression and gestures. You become more aware… of your surroundings, of reality, of life, and of your fellow human beings.

July 11, 2012 – 7:20 PM

Today was the visit to Zhujiajiao. First thing, however, I decided to walk to work via a route along Suzhou Creek that Zeng had recommended yesterday. The walk only took 35 minutes, but it provided yet another new take on Shanghai. It seemed like there was a pattern of alleys breaking through the streetwall, alternating between resort-like housing complexes and slum-like alleys. Along the way, I stopped by a small store and grabbed a sweet rice tea. I think that’s what it was anyways. Regardless, it was pretty tasty. I made it to Xian Dai a bit early, so I unrolled my trace and started sketching ideas for the geological museum, waiting for the van to arrive.

Soon, Li Wenting fetched me and we got on board the van for a harrowing hour long ride to Zhujiajiao. I think Shanghai has topped Mexico City in terms of having the craziest drivers I’ve seen. Somehow, we managed to avoid every near collision. During the ride, I met Shon Ja We, who is a landscape intern at Xian Dai.

Most of the day was spent exploring the water town. There is far too much to describe, so I’ll narrow this down to quick images of the highlights with a few anecdotes.

Li and Shon used their “Chinglish” (their term, not mine) to explain many of the symbols used throughout the town and throughout China. For example, red is the national color and symbolizes happiness, and keeping a large bowl with fish in it in your home or market stall is a way of bringing in good fortune and wealth. I was able to see a traditional “marriage carriage” where the bride would sit and four people would carry her. If the bride was bigger, as Li and Shon explained, there are also carriages that would be carried by eight people.

Beyond a boat ride through the canals, getting caught in a downpour, and visiting a number of galleries and museums, I think my favorite place was the Temple. Photos were not allowed, but the interior was beautiful and filled with symbolism. There were a number of trees covered in red ribbons called wishing trees. People can write characters about what they are wishing for and praying for on a ribbon and tie it to one of the trees. The innermost space was incredibly dark, and lit with red candles. There was a haze of incense.

Lunch was a new experience entirely. I have done the whole Chinese “communal eating” meal with the large Lazy Susan in the center, but this time it was intense. This is possibly because I was the only foreigner at the table and everybody was eager that I taste everything. The developer of the project we were there to see bought dinner for everyone and the meal seemed to be endless. (The project itself is a subdivision development and so far it is just the foundations that have been constructed.) A few of us, myself included, poured some beer as the trays of food began to arrive, and the developer stood up to give everyone a toast. There were about five times throughout the course of the hour long meal that I thought, “There is no possible way they can be bringing any more dishes of food.” I was wrong every time. Most of what I ate was unidentifiable to me, but when everyone realized that I was ready to try any type of food they could bring, I kept getting offered food long after I was full. I know for certain that I ate snail, 3 different types of fish, shrimp, pig's feet (which are what Zhujiajiao is known for and they were amazing!), a huge variety of vegetables, and tofu with fish heads. I was literally told, “This vegetable is strange,” and was offered a bowl of bean-like vegetables that were both furry and dripping slime. They weren’t actually that bad! One tray, brought out near the middle of the meal, looked like purple slugs, but turned out to be sticky rolls made from rice. Throughout the meal, people would hold up their glass to someone, or multiple people, and everybody would make their toast and drink. The head MEP guy kept holding up his glass to me and offered to fill up everyone’s glass throughout the course of the meal.

Everyone but the van driver napped during the hour long ride back to work.

We got back to Xian Dai with two hours left for work, and after I got one hour into my project, one of my coworkers came over to my cubicle and let me know that they brought some food in for everyone. Feeling obliged, I walked over to the table and shared dumplings and a rice broth with everyone, chatting about the U.S., and China, and other such things. After today’s sheer amount of food, I may not need to eat for another week!

After work, I got to see Reina and Avik for the first time today, and we took the bus back to our hotel and talked about our days. It’s difficult to believe that I’m only two and a half days in! I’ve barely scratched the surface. Right now, I’m both exhausted and ready for more.

Greetings everyone,

I leave for Shanghai this coming Sunday morning, July 8th. Almost everything is packed and ready. This first post is mainly a test to make sure that the blog is up and running. Hopefully, the VPN I downloaded will allow me to access and update this blog. If Meagan Dickemann's advice holds true from last summer, when she was on this same internship, I will probably be updating this blog sporadically. My work schedule at Xian Dai Architectural Design will be very unpredictable, with deadlines and lulls popping up unexpectedly.