Admin Building
Hanging Staircase
MYP Block
Hanging Staircase
MYP BlockGrandma and I have been surviving on our own for the past two days, since my family’s departure, trying to eat lots of the food she has bought. I have been sleeping better, but there is this dang dog that doesn’t stop barking. On Monday, I took several walks during the day and bought some more groceries. I also had an opportunity to do some research on travel plans which are fairly complete:
Aug 2 20:20 depart Bangalore on Rajdhani Express towards Delhi
Aug 3 Day on Train
Aug 4 00:53 arrive in Jhansi
1:12 depart Jhansi via Taj Express towards Delhi
4:14 arrive in Agra
Spend day visiting Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri, as well as Taj Mahal and stay for full moon viewing midnight
Aug 5 10:53 depart Agra via Utkal Express towards Delhi
2:10 arrive in Delhi
Visit Ravi Chowk, India Gate, and many of the museums nearby
Spend evening with Tinu and family
Aug 6 15:00 depart Delhi via 2057 train towards Chandigarh
19:15 arrive in Chandigarh
Aug 7 Visit Le Corb’s City and his government buildings
Aug 8 7:25 depart Chandigarh via 2058 for Delhi
20:50 depart Delhi via Rajdhani Express for Bangalore
Aug 9 Day on Train
Aug 10 6:35 Arrive in Bangalore
Somewhere in there I hope to also visit Bombay if possible.
Tuesday was a very exciting and productive day for me. I had established contact with an architect through a family friend not expecting much in response, but maybe a few simple answers and ideas of things to do during my stay in Bangalore. I arrived at his office early in the morning and had to wait around due to the busy nature of architecture offices. When he had time to talk, we began to discuss architecture and how it means different things depending on the context. We discussed the role it plays in different societies, especially in the U.S. vs India. The whole discussion was exciting to both of us or so I perceived, but time was crucial as he had other meetings. He suggested we continue our conversation latter on if I would not mind accompanying him to client meetings, which elated me. I was able to watch the principal of a 35 person architectural firm go about his daily tasks, which was pretty awesome. I saw him in a variety of client/sales meetings, and even on site visits. I spent the entire day following him and discussing how architecture and especially the planning of Bangalore in particular is changing and being perceived. The most impactful part of the day for me was when we were driving away from the heart of the city towards an IB school he was working on, passing these IT campuses (e.g., Wipro) and seeing how these campuses have brought development to these areas. These areas have only ugly high-rise apartment buildings and building supplies for the new campus buildings. All development takes place on either side of the road. Nothing penetrates deeper beyond that first layer of buildings, resulting in a longer and more congested road. The planning of the city is very poor. India is producing some phenomenal products that are some of the best in the world but the quality of service and infrastructure to support them is lacking.
Dinesh, the principal architect, took me to an IB School, like my high school, which his firm completed 5 years ago. The campus was amazing and beautifully planned and organized. The facilities were splendid and it was clear how much the institution valued education. I really appreciated seeing how another IB school is run and the resources available to them. The whole campus is also using renewable energy resources, which is an exciting development. I was led around by the chief energy resource engineer who explained much of the campus to me and welcomed me to tour some more buildings in the coming days! When leaving the campus I commended the IB School Director for his efforts and told him how gorgeous his campus was. I found it exciting to hear Dinesh, an established and well-recognized architect, say that he enjoys designing these institutions because while he can not control the environment around the school, he has the ability to influence and create the experiences for the students and faculty that use those facilities daily.
Afterwards he took me to a glass shop that employs glass in every way imaginable in construction. It was amazing to see the different techniques and applications used within the space. Afterwards we went back to the office and I continued on to the tailor’s for my fitting and bought kulfis, ice cream afterwards.
Aug 2 20:20 depart Bangalore on Rajdhani Express towards Delhi
Aug 3 Day on Train
Aug 4 00:53 arrive in Jhansi
1:12 depart Jhansi via Taj Express towards Delhi
4:14 arrive in Agra
Spend day visiting Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri, as well as Taj Mahal and stay for full moon viewing midnight
Aug 5 10:53 depart Agra via Utkal Express towards Delhi
2:10 arrive in Delhi
Visit Ravi Chowk, India Gate, and many of the museums nearby
Spend evening with Tinu and family
Aug 6 15:00 depart Delhi via 2057 train towards Chandigarh
19:15 arrive in Chandigarh
Aug 7 Visit Le Corb’s City and his government buildings
Aug 8 7:25 depart Chandigarh via 2058 for Delhi
20:50 depart Delhi via Rajdhani Express for Bangalore
Aug 9 Day on Train
Aug 10 6:35 Arrive in Bangalore
Somewhere in there I hope to also visit Bombay if possible.
Tuesday was a very exciting and productive day for me. I had established contact with an architect through a family friend not expecting much in response, but maybe a few simple answers and ideas of things to do during my stay in Bangalore. I arrived at his office early in the morning and had to wait around due to the busy nature of architecture offices. When he had time to talk, we began to discuss architecture and how it means different things depending on the context. We discussed the role it plays in different societies, especially in the U.S. vs India. The whole discussion was exciting to both of us or so I perceived, but time was crucial as he had other meetings. He suggested we continue our conversation latter on if I would not mind accompanying him to client meetings, which elated me. I was able to watch the principal of a 35 person architectural firm go about his daily tasks, which was pretty awesome. I saw him in a variety of client/sales meetings, and even on site visits. I spent the entire day following him and discussing how architecture and especially the planning of Bangalore in particular is changing and being perceived. The most impactful part of the day for me was when we were driving away from the heart of the city towards an IB school he was working on, passing these IT campuses (e.g., Wipro) and seeing how these campuses have brought development to these areas. These areas have only ugly high-rise apartment buildings and building supplies for the new campus buildings. All development takes place on either side of the road. Nothing penetrates deeper beyond that first layer of buildings, resulting in a longer and more congested road. The planning of the city is very poor. India is producing some phenomenal products that are some of the best in the world but the quality of service and infrastructure to support them is lacking.
Dinesh, the principal architect, took me to an IB School, like my high school, which his firm completed 5 years ago. The campus was amazing and beautifully planned and organized. The facilities were splendid and it was clear how much the institution valued education. I really appreciated seeing how another IB school is run and the resources available to them. The whole campus is also using renewable energy resources, which is an exciting development. I was led around by the chief energy resource engineer who explained much of the campus to me and welcomed me to tour some more buildings in the coming days! When leaving the campus I commended the IB School Director for his efforts and told him how gorgeous his campus was. I found it exciting to hear Dinesh, an established and well-recognized architect, say that he enjoys designing these institutions because while he can not control the environment around the school, he has the ability to influence and create the experiences for the students and faculty that use those facilities daily.
Afterwards he took me to a glass shop that employs glass in every way imaginable in construction. It was amazing to see the different techniques and applications used within the space. Afterwards we went back to the office and I continued on to the tailor’s for my fitting and bought kulfis, ice cream afterwards.
Today Grandma and I went shopping all around the complex and had a delicious lunch full of dosas, vadas, idlis, chapathis, and coffee.
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