Elemental Stroll

The Alster Lake, central Hamburg, has frozen (which hasn't occurred since 1997). Now the largest open space in the city, hundreds have begun to stroll along this surreal landscape.

Welcome to Sydney

So I finally made it to Sydney after a long 26 hours traveling. Sydney is a beautiful city, its summer here which is real similar to south Louisiana, hot and humid! With the type of plants here and the sounds of the birds give it and almost tropical feel! It was a crazy transition going from winter in Louisiana to the middle of the summer, but it was an easy switch from boots to sandals. I have been staying busy on the search for a place to stay, so I haven't seen a ton of the city yet, but I did have time to go down by the harbor yesterday to see the Sydney Opera House. Hopefully once I find a place to stay and I get settled in I'll take more pictures for all of you to see.
View of Sydney's harbor ...
A quite amazing feet of architecture ...

Elbe River Property

One of the projects that we have been working on at Breimann & Bruun is a private garden for a riverfront property on the Elbe river in Hamburg, Germany. The Elbe river was created by a glacier and at one point measured 2 km across, the back of this property is a part of this ancient riverbed and slopes drastically towards the current river. The site elevation changes a total of 25 meters from the house location to the end of the property. Along with two other interns, Marcel and Matthias, we constructed a 1:100 scale (1cm = 1m) model in order for the client to more fully understand the design intentions. B+B place a lot of value in high quality models when it comes to selling a design to a client.

After figuring the contours of the slope, the model was build up using styrofoam stilts and chipboard (two pieces were used for each piece to account for the vertical scale of the model).

B+B uses a vary defined palette of materials to create various different types of vegetation.

Just as the clients were showing up we were putting the finishing touches on our masterpiece an carrying it to the conference room, which is set daily with the finest coffee, tea, biscuits and goods that the port of Hamburg has to offer.

Burn Baby Burn (this is for John)

Today we began the prescribed burnings on site. They are a maintenance routine done about every other year to recreate a longleaf pine savannah fire that would occur naturally by lightening. I was supposed to be working on the pond... but I couldn't pass that up the opportuninty, so I found some time to help out with the fire!

Fourth Reich

Go forth and learn!

Native Land Design Company Retreat...

Yep, as the intern I attended the annual retreat and dinner. Here are a few pics from it.

Introducing myself.

The retreat was at Village Vistas on Lake Travis, which is right outside of Austin.

The outsider looking in...

I made some friends while I sat at the young table.

B+B

A few pictures from the office. Preparing the daily fruit delivery. Preparing models for residential clients.

[this is the teaser]

Downtown Beantown Construction

I came across this really interesting building that's going up along Boston's waterfront. They are basically building a skyscraper on top of some old red-brick warehouses.

It's amazing that the older buildings aren't crumbling underneath the new construction, but the new building is sort of sitting on stilts that run down between the older buildings.

I have a place to stay ... kinda

No, I still haven't left yet. I am currently packing, but I am easily distracted by anything and everything. While eating lunch today with my parents thays asked me "So Will when you get in to Sydney that morning, what are going to do and where are you going to go?" Hinting at I really should find a place to stay for when I get there, so I went to the housing web sites I have been religiously study and reviewing for weeks now and I literally settled on the first place I looked at, the good news is I found a place to stay when I get to Sydney ... but only for three night! lol But no worries my friends, there are several actual apartments I am going to look at once I arrive hoping to settle on one to retire at for at least a few months! Any ways thats all I really have to say as of now, enjoy a picture of my room while I am packing!

H-Town

Hey Kelly, where is that project your working on? It would be interesting to know where in the world more construction is going on in this city.

Anyone use Revit Architecture? I am learning on how to use it and was wondering if anyone knows some tips and tricks with it?

Pin Location Complete

I've completed finding the pins around the proposed gum pond (600' x 600' area). Next I will be working on a tree clearing plan trying to decide what factors on site might change the design of the trails and pond shape. Bob Brzuszek (MSU LA Professor) and a graduate student class are coming down to the arboretum next weekend to do some site analysis and inventory work as we will eventually be doing a design charette.

New Territory_ Houston

I do not have pictures of any neat Austin things that I have done since I have been here, but I thought I would share my 1st project.

I am working with Buddy Bishop the L.A. here at Native Land Design on a new proposal for New Territory, a massive HOA outside of Houston. NLD recently became the landscape management company for New Territory and the 1st project for the redesign of the community is the entrance to the club.

Monday Jan. 18 Buddy, Jason and I went to the site and did a site analysis, which included Jason and I rummaging through extremely overgrown junipers to get measurements.

Tuesday Jan. 19 I took the rough drawing and measurements and made a existing site plan in CAD. ( Will T.- I felt like cadgis all over again)

My CAD drawing of the site

Wed. Jan. 20 I am working on compiling a plant list for the site that we will put together to propose to the client.

I am not sure what tomorrow has in store for me, but I can honestly say that as realistic as this project is , it feels good to use skills I have learned from school to do projects in the real world.

exploring the Hafencity

Last Saturday I ventured out into the freezing winds along the Elbe River to the Hafencity, a massive construction site along Hamburg's shoreline. This area will increase the city of Hamburg's urban area by 40%. The city built a new and expensive (and controversial) new transit line for easy public access to what will soon be a center for activity in the city.

My first trip to this place was very cold, as the wind from the river was blowing right at me. But I managed to take a few pictures while I was out.

The first is looking down into the canals of the older part of the waterfront district. This is just one of many canals that is covered with ice right now. Hamburg actually has more canals and waterways than any European city (yes including Amsterdam and Venice, etc...), mostly because of it size.

This next picture is looking out into the Elbe river. On the left is the construction of a new PhilHarmonic Symphony Hall for the people and city of Hamburg which is rumored to be one of the best in the world called Elphilharmonie Hamburg by Hohler + Partner Arckitekten. The project will not only contain a symphony hall but also residences and other amenities.

The last is on the bridge between the old part of the district and the new.You can see on the left the red brick architecture that is the standard of the older area, while on the right is the new development which is drastically different.

1740 Miles Later...

So me and Jacie went for a little drive across this great nation of ours. 5 days, 4 nights, and over 1700 miles later, we reached Boston Mass. What we saw along the way:

Virginia countryside.

Ohh, that Maya Lin.

Washington Monument.

View from the top of the Washington Monument.

The Obama household, complete with Chinese protestors.

Bryant Park.

Times Square.

Boston skyline from Big Dig greenway.

Project at the GSD. You'd think they would know their ROYGBIV.

View from bridge over Charles River down the street from my house, just south of Harvard.

The home of the infamous egg-throwers after the party at the Reed-Hilderbrand office.

worth a few minutes of your time. i promise

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p13YWNJc34o&feature=fvw

ein cafe!

On a cold walk around the Alster (lake in the center of Hamburg) John and I ran into this little place, come to find Doc has been running a cafe on the side all along.....curious...

Garrett Newton

Hello comrades,
Hope everything is smooth sailing with you. As you may imagine things in Picayune, MS are just fine and dandy. The only reason we do not get along is because it is indeed a dry county! Today was my third day of work and things are moving along nicely. I am working with the master plan for Crosby arboretum done by Ed Blake and working on laying out a new gum pond exhibit on site. Right now my job is to locate pins on a 100' grid in order to be able to locate the pond correctly. As you see, I am working by myself in the serenity of nature finding ample time for self reflection. Sorry though, I'm still the same me thus far! Hope to hear from all of you.
Garrett Newton

p.s... I caught that 6 pounder on my first day I moved in!