Architecture. Kyiv Crematorium. Київський крематорій.

Architectural discoveries, the more you read about people behind the human-made beauties, the more you want to go for some short-term expeditions, even in the cities, you think you know. Look, you have missed that one building or you have passed by it so many times, never stopping to admire its beauty.
Sunday idea was on, going to see the legendary building.

Built in 1975 and not properly taken care of, it looks for its age+. 

Architects: Avraam Miletskyi, Ada Rybachuk, Volodymyr Melnychenko.

Although seen as one of the iconic buildings of modernism, its wiki page is rather short. Mentioning a few controversies around the build and its life after the opening, it leaves more questions than answers. 

As buildings of that era are not yet appreciated by the vast majority, and as more iconic buildings disappear than appear these days, it's important to keep track of those still existing, finding time to visit or pause for a few minutes instead of just passing by. 

People you meet. David Vong

I often buy postcards from the artists of the art markets, as I do not even potentially see where would I put a painting if I would possess one someday. With all the everlasting wandering around, you have a chance to interact with/meet plenty of very talented people.
That was some grayish day in Paris, and I and a friend were joining some other friends for a brunch. The brunch has almost faded from my memory by now, but I do remember the walk after, as it was the first time I got to that mysterious 'second floor' view of Paris, crowded with plants, and that day - art. One of the artworks which draw my attention was a painting of a tree, a big green tree in the shape of a giant balloon. I was excited to ask about the work of the painter, and that's when I met David's brother. I got to know that David had a project to sketch one tree per day.


A year or so later, I have managed to meet David on one of the expos he was participating, unfortunately, the expo had only a couple of his paintings. I know there was an expo much later exposing all 365 trees, but I was not around Paris to check it out.

Some of those 365 sketches and other artwork of David Vong, you can find here:
https://www.instagram.com/vongdavid/
and here:
https://arbredujour.tumblr.com/

I was amazed by the variety of the forms David would come up with. Then one evening, I was walking by Jardin de Luxembourg, dark streets and the light would make trees appear differently from what I used to see,  and I thought, many of those however different they look still can be drawn from nature.  

APAC. Stories. Monkeys

How I got attacked by a monkey.

Though it causes a huge laugh when I talk about it these days, that story made me more careful with wild animals, at least for the moment being, at least with monkeys.



Mt. Batur, which is one of the "must-climb" volcano points for a sunrise watch is full of the biggest monkeys of Bali (so I was told). As a part of a group, I have received my breakfast from our guide, which was a banana sandwich, and a cooked egg supposably prepared on volcano steam. I ate the sandwich, and I have put a boiled egg in a jacket pocket, considering if a dog will be happy with such a treat and then decided to kinda deal with it later, 
As the sun rose you could see not only plenty of people around but also monkeys and dogs. So many creatures ready to finish your leftovers or appreciate an extra treat. As there were more humans around the volcano top, monkeys were pretty calm, counting that the food bites were coming from every corner.



As we were descending, after taking millions of pictures, getting a monkey to climb on my shoulders (unwillingly and of course with no picture there), I saw some monkeys staring at me weirdly. I walked by a big group, not paying much attention to that until the 'meeting' happened again.
Turned out, our guide and most of the group were still behind. The guide called me and another girl, as there was still something he wanted to show us. Intrigued by what we have missed upon, we walked back. A mama monkey with a baby holding on to her front ran rapidly towards me, in a few seconds she grabbed a bottom of my jacket and hang on it, pulling down with all her weight. I was standing shocked for a moment, kinda paralyzed, while what was going on did not make any sense to me. Until she started to scratch and bite my pocket, trying to rip it off, I got-ya, the egg, you want the egg! First thing on my mind, to try to help her get it out, but the best was to kinda stay away from the process and not to get my hands scratched. A few seconds later, she succeeded, my net-made-pocket was shredded. As the last pieces of egg were out, the mama-monkey returned to a safer distance.
The funny part, the 'getting rid' of the egg happened much earlier, than I expected, without my active participation, kinda reminding that sometimes you get what you wish for, much faster then you think and with very free execution details.
For humans, a boiled egg does not really smell before the shell is open, while for our bros and sisters it does, and from a much larger distance then you would expect. Some would say, this is so obvious, the first rule near monkeys - no food, and I did remember that and definitely did not try proove the saying wrong. Though I also heard that you should not look them in the eyes but I previously did, and most of my experiences were just confirming, that some tourists just 'ask for it' and elsewise those are very well-behaved animals.
Something to remember - wild nature stays wild, no matter how close humans get, and if you do not know the animal behavior, it is in your best interest to keep a safe distance.
As for me, I've learned my lesson, and Monkey Forest in Ubud was not on my list anymore and my interest towards our very very distant(as I have realized) relatives was on pause till the end of the trip, and I have kept my distance.


Img. Looking at Mt.Agung

Design in details. Nantes. Architecture.

" Urban design is really the language of the city. When you walk down a street, everything you see has been designed. The width of the sidewalk, where trees are planted, the scale of the trees, how the street furniture interacts."
Amanda Burden (Director. NYC department of city planning) in Gary Hustwit's movie "Urbanized".

The more I learn about design, whether it is urban design or product design, I get more and more curious about the people behind the creations which surround us in our everyday life.
As I travel the world, I take photographs documenting streets, buildings, objects, things and views which inspire or impress me.
There are cities, which were thought of in a better way than others. In these cities, you feel like you could take a picture of whatever part of the street and still get a very balanced view/background. This is because buildings in the street didn't appear there randomly, they were designed to be in a certain way, in a certain place.
Unfortunately, for a lot of cities, that is not the case. Some cities are left to the whatever project decision the developer has, not having the proper regulations to influence the choice. Cities grow, the demand for affordable housing is rising as people move to the cities from rural areas. The cost-oriented thinking forces developers to cut the cost of the project to the minimum, and recreate ugly blocks over and over again, not bringing any beauty to the city, neither the visual satisfaction to the neighborhood inhabitants or people passing by.
But let's focus on the good examples. I will start taking more notes about the creations I like and get deeper in their history, researching their creators. It is not only about the angle and the light in the frame anymore, but it's also about knowing the details.

Let's get started.
France, Loire Atlantique, Nantes. Ile de Nantes.

Here, the 3 buildings with 2 on the foreground and one slightly behind. From left to right:

#UNIK - 2017
Architect: Sandra Planchez (SPLAAR)
http://splaar.com

More info (fr)


HABITER LES QUAIS II - 2010
Architect: Lionel Dunet
https://architecturedunetetassocies.com/

More info (fr)


25 DY Rive Gauche - 2007
Architects: Hervé Beaudouin and Benoit Engel
http://www.beaudouin-architecte.com

More info (fr)


All of the buildings are listed on the http://www.iledenantes.com

#UNIK
HABITER LES QUAIS II
25 DY Rive Gauche

Borders do not matter when you really need to get somewhere.

I have not been traveling much lately, but I am in the mood of recalling some old, now a bit funny story. If you knew me back in 2010, probably you are aware of that one.

Romanian adventure it was. 

Usually, I would write down some list and prepare everything that is needed for a trip on my own. But that was not the case. I was going with two Annas, one of which did this kind of trip multiple times. No need to worry, just rely on suggestions and follow. Well, all seemed quite easy, until, I actually didn't manage to catch up with the girls.
Train ticket was bought and things packed. I was running late, so decided to call a cab to make sure I will be on time. Which turned out to be a bad idea, as in a few kilometers away from the station we got stuck in an enormous traffic jam. My hopes were definitely over when moving 0km/hr the driver said: "and we are late". Hour or more after the train departed I finally got to the train station. Well, In the very last minute it is still better to take the metro in Kyiv as you never know.

I am at the train station, trying to return the ticket and get some reimbursement money. Well, to be honest, that is usually a bad idea, as time spent in the queue would be worth much more than a few hryvnias that you'll get afterward. 

There was a moment I started to consider skipping the trip, but 2 visas I had made and a ticket from the 1st destination to the second were rather motivating. As skipping the first destination was not even an option. 

Getting a new ticket. No trains to Chernivtsi, still hope to catch girls on the way, searching for anything that is still going more west was not turning very promising. Don't recall now all the thoughts I have got, but I ended up on the train to Ternopil. The train was arriving quiet early to the destination, so I thought, I will figure out the way how to get from there to Chernivtsi on the spot. A search of the bus station was not that hard after all, and it was not really far located either. The problem was, this was definitely not like in Kyiv, where you can get a minibus anywhere you want. It was only one bus per day, which was leaving soon but arriving at Chernivtsi in the afternoon. The trip was around 5 hours. 

My destination is still Cluj, I have no idea where it is, and how can I get there. Yeah, this time I didn't even look at the map to know which direction to move. 

Chernivtsi is a nice city, that was my first time there. Multiple calls to D., who was in Cluj before, to ask for suggestions on the route. Bus station, no busses till tomorrow, and I am already having second thoughts on this adventure, considering going back home, as sleeping at the station doesn't look like the option to me. Admitting to myself that I still want to go - I decided to ask around how to get to the border. 

Chernivtsi is a city that is rather close to the border. Bus station, grannies and drivers, someone should know how to get to the border. My destination is now Suceava, where I should take a train to Cluj. Asking some women, they point me to the bus, that is about to depart. The driver seems nice and agrees to drop me off on the road going to the border so I can continue my way, and as the bus turns vers the neighbor villages. 

Middle of nowhere, it's rather cold and rainy. It was around March. Me, walking on the road, trying to catch a car. A man stops, and before agreeing to drive me to the border - asks if I've got any cigarettes on me, as if I do, he won't take me with him, as he doesn't want any trouble. Well, I don't. We are driving. It all smells like gasoline and oil. He's making money by selling it abroad. We talk about life. The border is approaching. <...>

Time and technology

What if I would tell you, you can predict the future? Calculate exactly how many years/days/hours you've got on Earth. Well those things ain't something new. In fact, you definitely can. You can take statistic, choose its maximum and treat it as if that was the average time left.
Imagine that you have tried everything by now. Lets assume, that no new interests will pop up in your life. What is that you want to do next? How much time do you need to manage everything you want for the moment? Now lets get realistic - add some sleep, add some meals, and maybe friends/family time. What is the number? What would you do next minute? And what if you still need to explore?
Languages you want to learn, books you want to read, movies to watch, kilometers to pass, destinations and people to see. Sometimes that feels already a lot, you should probably keep following your plan, don't look back, don't look around, don't get new ideas until you've checked all wishes. Last point we count as possible, if we take the world as a constant and your mind as one other too.
What if you do calculate, and everything you want by now doesn't even fit in the lifetime statistics, how would you choose what's more important? With all those opportunities you've got. Would you speak just one language? Would you consider staying in the same city?
Nevertheless, isn't it scary to calculate it all? In reality our constants are not constant at all. What if trips to outer space become possible soon, which things from your "list" would you give up for that?  

NANTES. day 1.

What is so special about this city?
Now when I think about all these months, starting from a blank page and ending up with memories everywhere.
2 years ago, I was sitting there in the airport, stepping not the 1st time on the plane, but the 1st one to a new way of life - living abroad. Being a geek in my memories, I was expecting things to be a reminder of previous experiences like it was always - that corner reminds me this city, this street - that one. But, it didn't happened. Something very different was waiting for me. New story which I was suppose to create on my own, all from the start, all with new things.
Later on, some days will become a routine, and will blur in memory, but the 1st one I won't forget and will celebrate each month of my stay.
Before the arrival itself was obviously a flight. For the n-th time promissing myself not to get tricked for buying an early flight, I was doing that again, exhausted after few hours of sleep. Flight through Paris. Passengers of our flight got stuck while changing the flight. Charles de Gaule, other flight's passengers, all stuffed with banana-full-boxes where totally unhappy to have an extra check screaming around would after all let us pass meanwhile.

Nantes airport and taking luggage was one of the most funny part. Well the story seem funny today, but in a very moment I would consider it as rather dump and tirefull. I've packed my luggage in plastic and could not rip it off in order to be able to wear my backpack. I helped myself with a key, but it didn't help much, too tight, too much layers. Most of the people got their luggages fast, other started to stare at my adventure. An older couple was laughing at me, and decided to help: 

- T'es tout seul? - they've asked, and the man tried to help me with my routinish plastic-rip-off. 

- Bonne courage. - Merci. 

I've got a knife(that sounds a bit weird, and I will have a weird story with that knife 2 years later, but at the moment it was ok, I had my minimal stuff for the future kitchen), and could remove finally that d*mn plastic from my bags, freedom! yeah! freedom for bags? haha

So after a shuttle bus, no specific memories of that moment... I got to commerce.

Traveler with a huge backpack, small backpack and a suitcase - there I was. Place du commerce descending the shuttle bus with no clew where to go next ( as a person who agreed to meet me was lost somewhere else ). Calling anyone/everyone. Ok, need to get a line 2, tram line 2. Speaking English to strangers, those that clean the bus stop (the one that will be destroyed later in 2014, cos of anti-Airport demonstration), doesn't help, no information, still with some lame 2 words in French, I get there realizing that just using English won't help to find my way in the city. 

Tram. I guess I didn't get to the non-steps doors, need to carry up the bag. Et voila... "Ecole Centrale - terminus de ce tram". Yeah, cool, some people explained me, that I need to get off the tram and wait for another one. Totally frustrated. It's getting late, and I'm lost. Here arrives J. with some people, on bikes, after all, we get in the tram, and from Recteur Schmidt (was it?) or from the Centrale - we save money on busticket and just walk to the destination.

Getting to the residence. La Sensive, I wish it would look the same as on the picture, I mean the room, as we got it later, never does, at least for the residences. More far than it seemed on the google map walking to school. Room was dirty, dusty and sort of dark. You are super tired, but can't sleep in that, J. borrows me some cleaning stuff. Evening was way long, before I got to bad, with some sort of confidence that this place is now more livable. 

First nights will be horrifying, was the door won't stop to make noise so as it would be kicked by someone. "Super Cyril" will fix this problem easily, but I will ask her only in some weeks. 

This magic person can fix everything, and one of the most helping in the beginning. 

Sleep.