Selgas Cano Architecture Office

Selgas Cano Architecture office in Madrid.

:: All images via Cyanatrendland

Scents and the City

:: Image via NYTimes

Another cool map of New York based on the different smells that can be experienced when walking through Manhattan. The interactive version is available here.

Butterfly Garden Singapore Airport

I hap a stop over at the Singapore airport this week, only a quick one mind you, but I was determined to make the most of my 30 minutes of relative freedom from my economy seat.

On the descent to the airport I was hoping to maybe get a glimpse of Gardens By the Bay from above, but being sat in the middle of the plane, I could not see much of what was going on outside. Once in the terminal, I was determined to somehow get a glimpse of the surroundings from the airport and thought that getting to a window on the 3^rd floor would be my best bet.

Once on the third floor I came across the Butterfly garden, which is a small exterior garden behind doors. Intrigued I walk in and was hit by incredible heat and moisture. Inside was a compact two-floor rainforest garden packed with butterflies.

The garden is fairly simple but is packed with features and surprises. It is centered around a waterfall and is incredibly colorful and full of flowers. Scattered throughout the garden are small platforms with cut pineapples which attract butterflies and allow a really good look at all the different species.

On the top floor there is also a section on carnivorous plants with some of biggest specimens I have ever seen. I can only assume that most of the species of plants and insects were native and I think it is a great feature to have in an airport.

I find it terribly frustrating to transit through an airport, especially in exotic locations and not be able to experience anything of the country. In so many cases it is impossible to get outdoors and I would certainly find that much more entertaining than duty free shopping. I had a second stop over in Dubai and it was close to 45 ⁰C outside. All I wanted to do was to get out somehow and experience what 45 ⁰C in the desert felt like.

I tried to take some photos of the garden for the blog, but it was so hot and damp that my camera steamed up immediately. By the time my camera cleared and I could take a few snaps, I had to sprint back down the terminal to make the flight, which isn’t a good idea after having spent numerous hours in a plane. It can be quite painful sprinting down a terminal with two cramped up calves.

The Shard

::Image via Inhabitat

The Shard is a new iconic building for London by Renzo Piano. It is due for completion in 2012 and will become the tallest building in western Europe and redefine London's skyline.

From Inhabitat: "The 72-storey building in the London Bridge Quarter will contain premium office space, a world-class hotel, luxury residences, a spa, restaurants & cafes, retail space and a 15-storey public viewing gallery. On the ground level, public piazza, restaurants and cafes will be open to the public with places to rest and changing art installations. Access to public transportation via bus line, train and underground will be directly on site. Previously at that location was the 1970’s Southwark Tower building on Bridge Street, which has already been demolished to begin construction on the new tower."

::Image via Inhabitat

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::Image via Gizmodo

From Gizmodo: "It takes forty-two Brompton folding bikes to fill a parking space."

Greenpoint Roof Top Farm in NYC

Related article in the New York Magazine on the transformation of a warehouse roof in Greenpoint, NYC that "is now covered with 200,000 pounds of soil, 1,000 earthworms and an abundance of vegetable, herbs, and flowers".

Urban Beekeeping in Paris

:: Image via City Farmer News

I have already shared my interest in bees here and discussed how important moving bees into the urban context could be. An article in the Times describes just how successful urban bee keeping is in Paris.

There are about 300 registered beehives in the city found on buildings such as the Opera Garnier or the Grand Palais and in gardens such as the Tuileries and the Jardins du Luxembourg.

It turns out that the bees are particularly well suited to the urban environment, the warmth of the city promotes earlier breeding and it is free from the pesticides and fertilizers that are killing their country counterparts.

With a large number and diversity of flowers to pollinate, the urban bees are producing record amounts of honey. Up to 100kg of honey per hive annually, compared with the 20-25kg from typical hives on the cereal-producing plains of Ile-de-France, the surrounding region.