I explored Chinatown in New York City for the first time this past Friday and I loved it. Growing up around NYC Chinatown has always been a familiar name, yet I’d never actually been there. Although I’ve visited Chinatowns in other cities, such as D.C,… Read More »Chinatown Chronicles: A Day of Delight
Every year, my goal is to read 52 books. 52 books for 52 weeks of the year. Despite my persistent efforts, last year saw me falling short, and this year, I found myself 11 books shy, concluding with a tally of 41. Balancing my literary… Read More »Reading Resolutions: A Review of 2023 Reads
As I approach my last semester, it’s astonishing realize that I have only one semester remaining to complete my degree. The journey began in the Spring of 2020 when the idea of pursuing this path first crossed my mind. Looking back, four years will have… Read More »From Idea to Reality: A Four-Year Architectural Adventure
For my thesis, I engaged in four design competitions over a span of four weeks, effectively transforming each competition into a design charrette. A charrette, characterized by its brief and intense nature, serves as a focused period of design work, aiming to foster creativity, refine… Read More »From Devastation to Reflection: Architectural Responses to Tragedy
I haven’t visited Charlottesville since my eleventh-grade tour while exploring undergraduate colleges. That was fourteen years ago. Since attending Virginia Tech, conversations about Charlottesville and UVA have become a frequent staple in my life. There is an ongoing comparison between the two schools. They both… Read More »Footsteps and Facades: A Self-Guided Architectural Tour of Charlottesville
Ten years ago, I started this blog. It’s been a decade of blogging. I wrote my first blog post just before I left to get my TEFL (teach English as a foreign language) certificate in Costa Rica. To quote my past self, “I am not… Read More »A Decade of Blogging: Reflecting on the Journey
This exploration in rebuilding marked a departure from my research-oriented work. It started on September 18th and revolved around the concept of altering something that was destroyed. At the beginning of the semester, I focused on collaging destroyed buildings, classifying them into four categories: war-induced,… Read More »An Exploration in Rebuilding: The Destruction of 3 Cubes
Mastering the Tools of Architecture To succeed in architecture school and the profession, you have to not only learn how to make architecture, but also learn how to master the programs that aid in idea generation and project visualization. Luckily, there’s a multitude of platforms… Read More »My Software Learning Odyssey: Mastering the Tools of Architecture
I recently stumbled upon a thought-provoking blog post that resonated with my own reflections on the principles of Post-War Reconstruction and inspired me to write a similar piece. The blog was written by Lebbeus Woods and it is titled, “War and Architecture.” Who is Lebbeus… Read More »Architectural Insights: Exploring Lebbeus Woods’ Principles of Post-War Reconstruction
There is an indispensable connection between architecture, war and memory. Memory is defined as, “the ability to acquire, process, store and retain information.” It is indispensable for learning, adaptation and survival. It is also what ties us to our sense of place, our cultures and… Read More »Architecture, War and Memory: Exploring the Indispensable Connection