My Architecture Encounter- Open House London

I've always been into architecture since I was a young kid. I remember whenever I had the opportunity I would always draw the skyscrapers that make up the Perth skyline. Being in London, I always come across interesting buildings but most do not allow public entry. So when I read in the newspaper about Open House in London, I immediately got excited! Open House in London is basically when over 700 properties over the city is open for only 1 weekend and is free for public viewing. Looking at the website, I narrowed down to 30 properties I really wanted to see. Unfortunately, I was only able to fit in 10 properties over the 2 days. Below are the ones I managed to see (not in any particular order):

55 Baker Street
This building used to be a department store but has been transformed into an office building. It has three glass in-fills between the building voids and one of them creates the dramatic entry. A shame we weren't allowed to explore more of the building apart from the lobby.

Artchive- Phillip Hughes Studio

This is a private art studio which was extended at the back of the building with a sloping glass roof. The bathroom is actually in the lounge room made from concrete and ceramic tiles to create an enclosed "cave".

City Hall
This building is home to the Mayor of London and deserves to be called a landmark in itself. As you can see in the picture, one half of the building is made up of a spiralling staircase that allowed you to see views of River Thames. I was lucky enough to go to the viewing platform (at the top of the building) which is usually only open during private events, to get a glimpse of the London skyline!

Container City
This is situated in a hidden wharf at East India which contains London's only lighthouse. The building is constructed out of ship containers to create a centre for the arts. This building was one of my favourites as it was creative and original. The wharf also had an awesome American diner that sold cheap burgers and hot dogs which I will definitely revisit!

Ed's Shed/ Sunken House
This house literally looked like a wooden cube at street level. The building is clad in a cedar rain screen and contains a vertical single window at the front of the house to create a 'minimalistic' look. My favourite area of the house was at the basement level where two large windows frame the courtyard, looking out to a beautiful tree (not sure what variety the tree is).

Hidden House
This is literally what you call a 'dream' home. This house has been featured on Grand Designs and was only completed last year. The house is made up of four levels and has it's own night club dance floor on the bottom level. It also has a 'wellness' centre that consists of a sauna and spa complete with background relaxation music. This house was innovative and inspirational in terms of what can be achieved in such a tight space. The house can only be accessed through the wall at the end of a cul-de-sac as it was built on a former neighbour's backyard. Guess what? It can be building from only 850k (pounds)... Bargain!

One Bishops Square
This building was not what I expected it to be. On the outside it looked like a normal office building, but it was the inside that really stood out. The building is a creation of Foster and Partners (if you are into buildings then you will know how awesome their designs are!). The building contains two voids, each containing a distinctive art installation. The first installation is made up of vertical flowers that move through the use of magnets and will open up when it senses sunlight. The second installation is made up of vertical 'curtains' of LED light bulbs. The main highlight of this building was the rooftop garden which has extensive views of the city skyline surrounding Liverpool Street. I can see myself working in this building...

Ravensbourne
This unique building is an art and design university situated in Greenwich. It is a next door neighbour of the O2 Arena. On the outside, it is made up of circular windows of various sizes and clad with metal 'jigsaw' pieces that fit the building perfectly. Inside, it contains interlinked floors of open and closed learning spaces. This is definitely one of the coolest university buildings I have seen!

Roca London Gallery
Unfortunately I did not make it in time to view the internal of this showroom but the outside was created using curved pieces of concrete. The showroom displays bathroom products so I guess the outside of the building was inspired by the rippling effect of water?

Village Underground

This was the first place I visited on my two day tour of Open London. I remember walking down a normal side road and upon finding the address I had to enter the actual site by walking up a set of spiralling stairs in a small courtyard. The land is actually on top of an abandoned railway viaduct. It uses recycled tube carriages to create space for artist studios. On the top carriage, if you look outside the drivers area at the front, it shows views of the surrounding street so it feels like you are 'driving' above ground. This building shows a creative and sustainable use of space.

30 St Mary Axe 
I was very disappointed I could not go into the building as there was a 5 hour wait to enter. The queue was unbelievable! The building also known as 'The Gherkin',  is a 40 storey office building in London's financial district. The building is distinctive and has a glaze dome at the top which shows a 360 degree view across the city.

For those people in Western Australia, Perth will have its first Open House event from the 1st to 3rd of November 2012. Unfortunately, I will be in Sydney during that time and I have heard the new Perth Arena will be open for public viewing!

I thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity to explore buildings I would never have the chance to. I believe the whole event allowed the public to appreciate architecture and their surroundings.

Homesick

This post is probably a less positive one as I've been sick for the past 4 days and have been told that I have a chest infection... Already had to cancel two days worth of work and will take tomorrow off too. Not a good thing when I'm trying to save enough money to last me through my six week mid year break in July...

I have nearly hit the 3 month mark for being in London and although things have been going smoothly, I was quite home sick last week and especially now when I'm sick. I have been on and off sick since arriving in London. When I think I have nearly recovered, I get sick again. This time round, I have been the sickest... I miss having dad cook me congee (rice porridge) and checking on me when I'm unwell + sis doing house chores  for me.

It is only when you are this far away you realise how much you have taken your friends and family for granted.  I miss being in that safety net where you got people around you to care for you when you are sick or down and  being able to have reliable friends you have known for years to hear you out. I remember experiencing this previously when I was working in Geraldton two years ago, where I was constantly missing those back home. The only difference was that I often drove (5 hrs driving) back home on the weekends to see them when I was in Geraldton, but here it will take me 17 hours by plane to go home.

To be fair, I've only been here for 3 months so I'm allowed to be homesick right?
On the plus side, I've made some awesome friends here, live in a house surrounding by friendly house mates and have met someone special who takes good care of me :) Not only that, I have decided to put stable yet stagnant life on hold to come all the way here to England to experience the sights and sounds that Europe has to  offer! What more can I ask for?

Anyway before I start rambling on, 2012 is still one of the best years in my life and I can't ask for more! So remember to be grateful for what you have and learn to appreciate everything you have around you (well that's what I'm trying to live by at the moment and I hope you are too...).

The Beginning of a New Chapter

My desire to travel to Europe started 5 years ago, when two of my best mates saved enough money to travel around Europe and asked me to come along. This was the time when both of them were already working and I was still doing my teaching degree, with a  miserable bank balance standing between me and a potentially awesome holiday...
I then remember them coming back from the six week trip and sharing their highlights and all the mischief they got up to. I really did regret giving up on a life time trip with them :(


Move forward to 2009.  By this time, I have already saved enough money to travel. But with different priorities in life, Europe was placed on hold. I gave myself the same excuses for 2010, but 2011 was finally a wake up call for me.


This year has been such a big learning curve for me in all aspects of my life. I thought that moving back to Perth after two long and hardworking years in the country was going to be a positive start for the year, but it wasn't. So much has happened this year both with work and personal things (Sometimes I regret coming back to Perth). Being overwhelmed was an understatement. Although there has been highlights this year, the negative aspects have caused me to overlook things that I should have appreciated. With all that has happened, I finally made a brave and selfish decision to take time off work so that I can travel to the other side of the globe for a year!


Going overseas for the year is not simply just for having fun and travelling anymore as I once dreamt of. It is more to do with leaving all my problems behind me and starting fresh. I guess it is an excuse for me to not face my problems temporarily and to chicken out from it. But I do know that I really do need to leave here for a while and to give me time to clear my head. I'm going to use this time to gain some life experiences and hopefully have a sense of direction in what I want to do for the rest of my life.


I remember there was a moment in time when I thought to myself that I would give up this trip to stay back for someone. That was a stupid thought and I'm glad I never did it for that person. As people say: when one door closes, another one opens for you. Going overseas is the door that God has opened for me and I hope he will continue opening up other doors for me along the way.


Here I am now with just three weeks left before I venture off to my first destination: Japan. After that, it will be to Malaysia for a wedding, before my final stop: London.  This will be the beginning of new  sights and experiences for me, and a chance for me to see all that Europe has to offer!
With airfares to all destinations booked, working visa sorted and only some minor things to organise, I can now count down to the big day when I'm ready for a really big and hopefully positive new chapter in my life!