cities; greener pastures; and life itself

Since I’ve already discussed a whole bunch of facts about the nice cities around us (which by the way is so far from being completed). I will now tackle further the exact opposite of it (as in yin and yang), which are the green pastures around us. But probably add more social implications.

Last month, our humble little republic was given a reason to be proud once more. Three of our country men reached the pinnacle of the highest mountain on earth…the stairway to heaven…the highest point on our planet. Call it whatever you want, but it is simply the ultimate green pasture for nature trippers.

But their success did n’t come without controversies. A lot of accusations and speculations were thrown against our three heroes. There’s even a late enrollee. The guy who wants to be added up to the list.

Now instead of living up to the unity that their journeys have been promoting, they ended up throwing harsh words against each other, which simply divides our nation’s opinions further. They are now labeled to be having the typical Filipino illness  known as "crab mentality."

My take on it is that whatever we do, we think, or we say, keep in mind that Leo Oracion got there first. No more arguments please…He may have crab mentality, or maybe he’s mentally retarded, whatever, he got there first. Period. Nothing can change it. Give them credit for getting to the summit first eventhough they arrived at Nepal two weeks later than Garduce. Whether they were tricky or not. Or wheteher they did the job underground, whatever. Maybe it helped that they were backed by someone so used in doing things underground, maybe not, hehe.

Finally, is there really a crab mentality?. I’m not sure of it. Let’s not forget that when the crabs are pulling each other down, it’s because they are not in their natural habitat. Maybe it makes them feel uncomfortable, and just want to leave the basket, so in the process, they pull each other down. Even we humans will pull each other if we are taken from our territory, and confined say, in a giant basket. especially if we smell Sprite, and ginger nearby and the stove is being heated.

Live and let live…

Live! Love! Rock!

Allow me to take a detour from my usual topics about our environment to discuss something spiritual.

Now that the "Da Vinci" fever has subsided a bit, I feel that I can freely talk about it without adding to its popularity. For sure it gave church leaders a fever in trying to discredit the fictional portions of the novel.

I could n’t blame church leaders though for being so defensive. I guess they are just being good sheperds to us all. Especially to those who got so fascinated and intrigued by the novel. Undeniably, the novel has so much impact that it got a lot of us into reading. Others would n’t bother to read it though, for they just might get disturbed by it. On my part, I always encouraged everyone to just relax, and enjoy the fiction like we did to Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, with all its wizardries and antagonists. I mean the gospel of judas just went through our doorsteps, and nothing has changed, right?

I’ve first heard of the Da Vinci Code via friendster. A lot of people then included it in their list of fave books. One of my friends even says that she’s a senechaux by occupation in her profile. The storyline that there are secrets hidden in the works of art of a mysterious, jack of all trades artists made the book so intriguingly popular. Using as a cover the equally mysterious and popular painting of Da Vinci which is the Mona Lisa (thanks to Scooby Doo and other horror-comedy flicks), even made the book more attractive. But does n’t sound original, does it? Secrets hidden with clues right before our eyes, hmmm. Sounds like "National Treasure", hehe.

Like a lot of us, after reading the 489 pages or so of the book, I got disappointed. I got so disappointed not because it discredits the Bible, or not because it directly attacks the Vatican (that’s how it differs form the Last Tempation of Christ), but simply because I thought that the story is half-cooked. I mean what happend to the cover girl Mona Lisa. There’s nothing to be decoded in that mysterious painting, except for the curator’s handwritting on it before he died. "So dark the con of man"? It was the curator’s intentions who’s so dark when he vandalized the classic art work. Much more, what happened to Da VInci? How come so little was told about him and his work. And we still know too little about this painter. Nothing much than being the leader of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. After reading the book, I felt like I bought one of those pirated DVD’s that has three titles in it’s cover, but when you play it, you’ll realized that there are only two. Of course, it would n’t appeal too much if Dan Brown used the title The Curator’s Code.

I’m not really an expert when it comes to painting. A trip to the Met(Metropolitan Museum) and MOMA(Museum of Modern Art), both in New York, and other galleries and museums did n’t turn me into one. I’m just counting on to the bits of knowledge that I’ve accumulated in my Humanities and Ars and Aesthetics Theory classes in U.P. whenever I want to appereciate a visual art work.

I’m so sorry for Da Vinci that thanks to Dan Brown, a lot of people are now hostile to his character. Dan Brown could have paid tribute to him in a much better way. A manner where in we can appreciate the beauty of his works and the significance of his inventions. The Vitruvian Man is the basis for man’s anthrophometrics. Brown used it as a punchline. Poor Da Vinci, I wonder how he feels right now if he’s watching all of these from the after life.

It’s not new that an artist immortalizes a fellow artist in his work. A classic example would be Don MacClean when he payed tribute to Vincent Van Goh. In MacClean’s romantic ballad Vincent, he describe Van Goh’s personality and his landmark painting Starry Stary Night, so we will understand Van Goh better. MacClean did n’t use Van Goh to catapult his song into popularity. I wish the same was true for Da Vinci and Dan Brown.

When there is yin, there is yang. When there is black, there is white. When there is smoking, there is non-smoking. When there is regular, there is diet. When there is darkness, there is of course light…And so on, and so forth. That is the wonder of contrasts. Each element is highlighting the undeniable beauty of the other.

These little contrasting things around us are actually microcosms of our environment. The Earth. Or the world in which we live in. As civilization started around five thousand years ago (as far as recorded history is concerned), man has been building his shelter. Erecting structures that placed his own authograph on the previously untouched landscapes created by the ultimate and greatest Architect, GOD.

Through the years, these simple structures for shelter grew up to become massive and complex megacities. Thanks of course to a lot of inventions, innovations, and human interactions. Speaking of inventions, one of my college professors taught me that the wheel is the most significant invention in the development of the early cities. I solidly agree with him. The wheel is so damn important. As I am writing this literature, my brother is having the tires of his car replaced. It caused him a lot, but the wheel is so damn important. I myself spent some fortune in replacing the wheels of my pick up about a month ago. Like it is matter of life and death. Like my whole ego and manhood depends on the size of the wheels of my pick up. So many years from now, when cellular phones and personal computers are obsolete gadgets, expect the wheel to still be around, and getting ready to outlive new inventions that scientists and engineers have not even given thought of to this date.

Anyway, as I previously discussed in the first entries in this blog, It is so amazing to see what our cities have turned into. It has come a long, long way since the time man has started to build. But no matter how grand our cities have become, it still can not cover every piece of real estate available in the phase of our planet. Thank God for that. In a broader scale, all these cities have become tons of concrete, steel, and other building materials that sprouted in the previously untouched landscapes of the Earth. And slowly but surely, the Earth is turning into a contrast of magnificent creations. The natural wonders of our planet, and the  equally overwhelming man-made structures comprising our cities.

Just like any contrasting elements, the cities and the unspoiled environs around it compliment each other. And us, the inhabitants should get the best of both worlds. If we ever get sick and tired of the hustles and bustles of urban life, let us not forget that there is always a new discovery waiting for us outside of the city.

The following entries will discuss some suggestions on where to go, to escape the hectic ambience of the city.

Since I started this blog with a tribute to an imposing landmark from a very famous city, I thought that I should also mention other cities. Since I can’t write all about it at the same time, I’ll start by classifying some of it. The entire page is actually dedicated to the cities alone, that’s why it’s entitled as such. In general, the blog is dedicated to other units of our community, until we are down to our basic unit, our home. it’s entitled True Heaven simply because, as an Architect, I believe that I play an important role in making TRUE HEAVEN a place on earth.

Here we go:

• Favourite City - Iloilo City - My birthplace. You can take the man out of the city, but you can never take the city out of a man.
• Biggest City In Terms of Population, Attractions, Infrastructures, Diversity - New York City - Never sleeps na nga e. Just an amazing city. The world’s capital. If I can make it here, I’ll make it anywhere.
• Cleanest City - Singapore of course. "wala ng kokontra at baka tuluyang bitayin si Aguilar"
• Rocking City - Cleveland, Ohio, not Seattle. It’s where Rock N’ Roll Hall fo Fame is.
• Over Populated City - All the cities in Metro Manila
• Smartest City - Boston - Simply because it’s where Harvard, MIT, and Cambridge are located
• Most Powerful City - Washington DC - the capital of the most powerful nation in the world. It’s federalist government buildings are also so intimidating.

… to be continued

"…As my memory rests but never forgets what I lost. Wake me up when September ends" - GREEN DAY

I guess the "in" thing now a days is creating a blog. And since I don’t have one before, I felt like I’m lightyears behind civilization. So, I decided to get the monkey off my back and try to be "in". As to what I should write about, I’m a bit clueless. I’m neither a blogging guru like Abet nor a sentimental person like Kath. And I’m too old to try to be cute…So, I’ll just write from the heart. After all, this is a good chanel to spread one’s thoughts. What comes to my mind every September is the 9/11 tragedy, that’s why I’ll begin my writings with a commemoration of the tragedy.

"After four long years, I’ve finally found a way to express my appreciation over its once proud existence, and my sadness over its untimely destruction"

It is September once again. For a number of reasons, this month has always been very significant for me. First, it’s the beginning of the "ber" months, which means Christmas is just around the corner. So, it is during this month that we begin to hear Christmas songs over the radio. (I heard my first Christmas song this year though, not from the radio, but from the first scene of the movie "Addams Family"). Then, for my college buddies in U.P.- Deb, Glen, Ernest, Enrico, et al. (who also happen to be my usual drinking buddies), it’s 30 days before Octoberfest. The month of the year dedicated to drinking beer. To frequent flyers to the western world like Meg, its the start of the the most colorful season of all - fall (it even rhymes).

Sadly though, four years ago, tragedy gave September a bad name. Everyone was shocked when two passenger airplanes hit the The World Trade Center located in the heart of New York City’s financial district. Everyone saw it on TV. It instantly became the most documented tragedy in the 5,000 year history of human civilization. Then, as the cliche goes, the rest was history. U.S. President Geroge W. Bush went on TV declaring "we are being attacked by faceless cowards…blah, blah, blah, blah, blah…."

Like a lot of Filipinos, I felt badly when the terrorist attacks happened. I mean who was n’t touched by this engineering wonder in one way or another. Even for those who have n’t been to New York hold a place in their heart for this landmark. We’ve seen it on countless films and television series (example:  it’s where Macaulay Caulkin went for sight seeing in Home Alone 2 and the first line of defense when tidal wave hit the eastern seaboard of the U.S. in Deep Impact).

As an Architect, I was very amazed by the simplicity and elegance of the WTC. It looked frail but it stood so proud as a symbol of American economic might in the New York harbour, providing a dramatic back drop to the Statue of Liberty. Though not even the tallest building in the U.S., it stood out over the concrete jungle of NYC. Just anywhere you are, you can see it. From the liberty; while crossing G.W. bridge (over Hudson River, where Godzilla attacked) or Brooklyn Bridge (where Godzilla died); and right on top of the Empire State Building(I’ll pay tribute to this one later). But perhaps, the most astonishing view of it was from Exchange Place or Colgate in Jersey City, NJ.

I last saw the WTC on April of 2000. My mom and I were planning to go to the Holy Land and Rome then. Of course, it’s cool to be able to trace the roots of Catholicism and Christianity. Rome in itself has so many classical stories to tell in terms of Architecture (i’ll probably pay tribute to Rome also later on). We’ve both seen New York already, so we thought it’s better to go somwhere else. However, since my brother lives there, we both had a sudden change of heart and decided to go to New York instead. Anyway, New York is so big and we have n’t turned it inside out yet, in terms of strolling and sight seeing. Also, i felt that I need to see WTC one more time for a specific reason.

Earlier that year, in our design class, we were asked to design a high rise hotel to be located at Fort Bonifacio Global City. To minimize the complexity, we disregarded the soil conditions, etc. A guest Architect in the panel during our presentation, who then works for the Fort Bonifacio development questioned the layout of our subway station beneath the building. I forgot the Architect’s name but he’s also a U.P. alum. I argued that it is possible as it is a lot simpler compared to the highly complicated subway connections underneath the WTC complex. All NYC subway lines intersect at WTC station, not to mention the path train that crosses the Hudson all the way to Jersey. So, upon seeing WTC once again, i felt vindicated (though it would not affect my final grade in any way). I knew that my design was possible, at least as an idealized model.

Looking back, I was happy that I was still able to catch a glimpse of WTC just before it vanished from the face of our planet. It’s funny to think that the Pyramids of Giza and the Coliseum of Rome which were constructed thousands of years ago are still around, while the modern wonder just built no more than 3 decades ago is already gone.