Procrastination.

I have been avoiding doing actual work so here are some more photos that are distracting me, I thought I would share. 

Weekend

Hello!
So the weekend is coming to an end and I am in studio trying to get motivated to do some work.
Yesterday we went to the Turkish Market which happens every saturday, it was pretty cool. There were a lot of stands and some very odd things for sale. It was along the river so I spent a  little time photographing the swans haha im glad I did because i caught this pretty cool moment-

After the Market we went to do some more exploring and sight seeing along the route from Fridays tour. We stopped at the Famous Brandenburg gate, climbed to the top of the Berliner Dom (about 15 flights) we stopped for a moment in a Mercedes Benz showroom and saw a new concept along with one of the brands first models ever. We also saw the Hotel Adlon which is known for a little thing Michael Jackson did when he displayed his son over a balcony from his hotel room, I'm sure you have seen pictures.

This is the Berliner Dom and the picture below that of me is from the top of the dome!

And we ended our day of sight seeing at the Brandenburg Gate. This was once the gate that separated the Royal Palace and the Royal hunting grounds. Although Hitler hated this gate it some how survived the war and is now one of Berlin's most famous monuments.

Ok so enough procrastination. I should actually do a little work while I'm here. After all it is called "study abroad"

Ciao,

John

Another day in Berlin

Hello!
So today we had a 3 hour "foot" tour of old Berlin. We got an awesome history lesson...seriously.
We got to see things like the Holocaust Memorial, the Riechstag, the Berlin Dome and the Brandenburge Gate. We had to go through everything pretty quickly so I think we may spend our day tomorrow back in the same area but take our time to go into some museums and such. I will post with pictures and more detail when I make it back there. Very cold day today!
Ciao

Toldeo, Spain

So our last day in Spain was day of wandering around one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. We spent that day in Toldeo which is an old Spanish Village. THe scenery was something you see on TV. The sun was shining and we were walking around in t-shirts and sun glasses which we hadn't needed at all in Berlin. No one wanted to leave here. Check out these pictures below and they will sum up the day nicely im sure.

Here is what we saw as we turned the corner and first saw Toledo.

Me sitting on top of the Valley

Another picture of me on top of Toledo!

That sums up our Spanish trip! but don't worry Spain, we will be back in 10 days. Barcelona here I come!

Adios!

Madrid!

So I am back from my long weekend in Madrid and it was a great time to say the least. We had perfect weather and saw some amazing things!
Madrid was just such a great city, there was never a dull moment and there is no need for planning. All we had to do was walk out of the hotel doors and there were shops, places to eat, bars and clubs all right there. The first place that we studied was the airport we landed at in Madrid. The Barajas Airport "terminal 4" designed by Richard Rogers-see the picture below

Once we left the airport we went to our hotel which was right in the Madrid Puerta del Sol. This is the picture of the street the hotel was on. 

Among the building and sites we visited were the Royal Palace, Prado Museum, Caixa Forum designed by Herzog and de Meuron, Reina Sofia (where we saw Dali and Picaso originals) as well as many others. Below is the Royal Palace. 

Right across the street was club Joy where we went on the last night which did not compare at all to the club Kapital we "studied" on friday night. This place was absolutely insane, unlike any other club I have been to. So to sum it all up, Madrid was amazing I loved every second of it. Next stop is Toledo!

Adios!

First "studio day"

So although we have the day off today, I will be spending the majority in studio preparing for a casual presentation tomorrow. I did laundry last night...let just say i'm going to do that as little as possible. TINY washers and dryers that don't seem to do the job. The washers ate 2 of my tokens (only 3.50 euro each, no big deal)
Early start tomorrow, we have the first round of building presentations for our trip.
Excited for tomorrow after class where there will be only a night in between me and MADRID, SPAIN!
The director surprised us yesterday with a little gift, a coach bus to pick us up right outside the apartment and bring us to the airport. This was good news considering we already have to leave at 6am! We plan to return sunday night at 1130 pm so we will have a nice long stay in Spain this weekend!

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's day Steph. I miss you a ton!
Think, last year we spent this day with you recovering from getting your appendix out, this year we will have a skype date. Next year I think we deserve a good old fashion dinner!

Berlin Night Shot

Weekend 2

So this weekend brought another crazy-sleepless couple of days. Friday night we went to a club-3 floors and about 10 bars or something crazy. There were dancing bikini girls, people dressed as gorillas giving out "energy beer" and some sketchy mob boss looking characters that must own the place. They played  a lot of american music that we could actually understand, finally! We stayed here until about 630am so saturday was sort of wasted. We went to the same club again last night but called it a night early, 430am.

Its time to get back to reality-i'm currently in studio planning a full day of working and organization for the week ahead. Only 2 days of class this week, Tuesday off and then off to Madrid on Thursday! Lets hope the weather forecast is wrong and the rain stays away from Spain.

The picture is of me sitting in the famous Wassily chair designed at the Bauhaus.

Dessau, Germany: Bauhaus & Umweltbundesamt Environmental Agency

So today we went to Dessau, Germany. The group and I took a 2 hour train ride through scenic rural Germany to get there from Berlin. It was a rainy day so that put a slight damper on things but it turned out to be an awesome time. First we went to visit the Bauhaus which is the "birth place" of modernism designed by Walter Gropius. This was the home of a school, dorms, and workshop for design students before the war. The main idea behind this building was true functionality and nothing more, no gaudy decorations, nothing hidden. The beauty was meant to be seen in its simplicity and cleverness of the design. The site is now just for touring purposes, it was mostly destroyed during the war but has since been re built.
After leaving the Bauhaus we walked through an AMAZING building. We were all caught off guard when we entered. This is the office/ administrative building for the Umweltbundesamt Environmental Agency in Germany. The building is one of the most sustainable and environmentally conscious buildings. We toured a conference room, the library which was incredible, and the lecture hall. The layout of this building is almost like 2 separate building structures on either side of one another, yet the middle area is covered. It is fully protected from the elements, there are trees and other vegetation-in a way it was like a green house. There are bridges running above this middle space to connect the offices. It's hard to describe but hopefully the picture will help.  Until next time.
Ciao!

Olympia Stadion

So today we had German language class (I need to put some serious study time in..i stink in that class!!) and then we had the rest of the day off after noon. We decided to go see the Olympic Stadium which was very cool. Its just such a large scale space, especially when its empty that its pretty breath taking. So we spend a good amount of time there, taking pictures, walking around, just admiring the history.
For dinner we went back to Potsdamer Platz, which might be my favorite place in Berlin, for dinner. It was actually the kick off of the Berlin International Fim Festival so it was quite busy and they were streaming red carpet footage all over the place. We ate at an Australian Restaurant, some of my fellow diners had Croc and kangaroo! I was offered a bit and being the adventurous eater i am was very temped....but Kangaroo!? I passed.
We are going to Dessau Germany tomorrow to visit the Bauhaus. We have to get up very early, hitting the hay soon.
Tschus! (bye) - i know a little haha.

Kaiser Willhelm Church

Hello,
So we had our first week day off and we spent it at Kaiser Willhelm Church and surround area. We also went to KaDeWe which was a cool department store/ restaurant/ grocery store. We spent the majority of the night in studio. I enjoyed my first Turkish Doner! look it up its pretty cool and delicious. Pretty relaxing day. Heading to bed now, early class tomorrow with a day full of lectures, site visits, and studio work. Already looking forward to weekend number 2!
Tschus!

Potsdamer Platz

So we went to Potsdamers Platz today. Awesome place! the Sony Center is absolutely incredible. There are plenty of building to admire as well as shops and eateries. This is also the site of the where the Berlin wall used to run through the City. There is still a piece standing (im not sure if its original) but even throughout the streets and side walks the ground treatment is different displaying where the Wall used to run. Got a cool pic of me straddling over where the wall once divided east and west Berlin. Very cool day. Plan on going back to this area when the weather is not so misty. It looks like we should see the sun this week. tuesday off-another adventure to come. This means 3 day class week for me and Bauhaus trip on Friday with the group!

Tresor

So last night we went out to our first club. We left to go around midnight and we were still early birds. The place was absolutely insane unlike anything i've ever been to. It was a 3 story concrete looking warehouse, smoke, lights, paralyzingly loud music and base. We stayed until about 6am and at this point was still packed! Next time we will have to nap and go out even later, or bed early and go in the "morning" haha Im sure we will venture there again.

Itinerary Update!

Spain-Madrid, Toledo, Barcelona
Switzerland-Zurich, Chur, Vrin, Vals
Austria-Brehnz
Italy-Rome, Venice, Vincenza, Verona

Diggin' the itinerary!

4 Feb

Hallo All!

Today we did even more exploring, Berlin gets better and better! We went to the History of Berlin museum and did a little shopping in down town.  I had my first public beer today, it was a very odd feeling at first, but honestly never got as much as a glance from the Berliners. Have made some friends with some local business owners. The soup shop lady down the street loves us, they gave us free doughnuts today because we have been in there every day this week. She makes one soup per day and theyre always delicious. Looking for  good bar tonight with everyone, finally the weekend and i cant wait to do some more exploring.

Tschus!

So I have spent a full day in Berlin now and the experiences are getting better and better! Finally over the jet lag and culture shock. I had class today we met all of our professors and got our syllabus for the semester. I went on a little photo excursion but the weather is sort of gloomy so its not ideal for photos. My wentworth friends are good company and the wine is cheap, so tonight dinner was good. Short day of class tomorrow so the exploring will continue. I will keep everyone posted!