The trip began on Thursday as we headed over to Paris
by train. We stopped to see an Art Fair at the Grand Palais, a magnificent
piece of turn of the century architecture. The Grand Palais was originally
constructed as an exhibition hall the Universal Exhibition of 1900. Its glass
roof and art nouveau iron structure were a marvel for its time. It was very
entertaining to view art in such a grand space. The art pieces on display were
presented by a number of prominent local artists. After spending a few hours
exploring the exhibit, we departed for the train station. Our next stop was
Bayeux.
In Bayeux we spent the night and woke Friday for a
tour of several D-Day sites. The tour started at Pointe du Hoc, where a group
of U.S. Army Rangers climbed a cliff to assault a Germany fortification at the
top. The fortification is one of the most well preserved in the region and many
of the bomb craters are still there. After that we went down to Omaha Beach
where 3000 some American Soldiers lost their lives. The beach had few
historical treasures left. Only a few remnants of German bunkers in the hill
side, but it was not hard to image what it would have been like to run across
that beach into the storm of chaos. After leaving the beach, we visited the
Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. Many my recognize it from the movie
Saving Private Ryan. Visiting the cemetery was an almost surreal experience. I
wish I gotten to spend more time in these places but our tour did not allow for
that. After the tour was over, we took a train to a town called Pontorson to
visit the Abbey at Mont Saint-Michel.
Mont Saint-Michel is a fortified monastery built on a
rocky tidal island. The island is surrounded by extraordinarily flat ground.
When the tide goes out, it goes out for miles. The monastery was a marvel of
human construction. The spire towers over the barren landscape. From inside the
top of the monastery, you get the impression that it was literally built among
the clouds. I found it hard to believe that humans were capable of building
something so fantastic. When the tide goes out it becomes possible to walk
around the outside of the fortification.
Walking among the barren sands gives an even greater contrast to the
towering structure. After spending an entire day exploring in awe, we had to
depart and head back to Lille.
The City of the Bicycle: Amsterdam
Michael Galloway
The automobile has
transformed the urban landscape of most European Cities. In many places it has choked out the
pedestrian and created a disconnect between the individual and the physical
city. The pedestrian has become
something of an afterthought while the car dictates the urban fabric of the
city.
Amsterdam is not such a
city. It has resisted the car and
given way to the bicycle which has consumed it almost entirely. There are more bicycles in Amsterdam
than residents and this is blatantly recognizable upon entry into the
city. Opposition to the car
coupled with the surrenderence of the city to the bicycle creates a distinctive
urban atmosphere unique to Amsterdam.
Much of the hardscape of
Amsterdam has been given to the bicycle.
Usually this is done by providing a separate road for the bicycle. In other places bike lanes are placed
within the automobile streets with clearly marked paths. Cyclists are also given their own
traffic signals separate from those of automobiles. The versatility of the
bicycle allows for a variety of paths to be utilized to meet the specific needs
of particular environments.
The exchange of an
automobile dictated city for a city liberated by the bicycle has created a much
more interactive city that is free from the limitations of concrete and traffic
signals. The city becomes much
more dynamic on two wheels. Unique
relationships to the urban environment become possible when the car is put on
the backburner and the bicycle takes control of the city.
The bicycle has created
a city that has more freedom over financial stratifications in that a much
larger portion of the population can afford bicycles as opposed to an
automobile. It is not seen as a
less attractive alternative to the automobile for those who don't have the
means to own a car. The bicycle
has become part of the culture of Amsterdam. The locals take pride in their freedom from the automobile
and all of the negative attributes they entail.
Amsterdam contains other
unique modes of transportation that allow for the minimization of the
automobile as a leading force in the shaping of a city. The extensive systems of canals enable
boat transportation as a means of travel.
Amsterdam has more length of canals than Venice. This large amount of waterways within
the city allows for effective boat transportation to almost all of the old
parts of Amsterdam. There is also
an efficient tram system that services much of the city. Busses are given their own lane on many
of the main streets, providing freedom from roads congested by cars. This weaving of different modes of
transportation creates a dynamic
urban landscape.
When in Amsterdam a
group of us students took a day and biked around the city. We immediately realized how quickly we
could eat up a map of the city. We
were able to seamlessly traverse urban plazas, business districts, and vast
parks with ease. We felt a much
greater connection to the city than we did when we took motorized means of
transportation. The bike allowed
for incredible freedom to go through a wide variety of environments that would
have been impossible to navigate by car.
We were able to go to a cafe without having to search around for a
parking spot as one would be required to do if in a
car. The excitement of riding a bike through
a city that was designed for two wheels was incredible.
As designers of urban
environments we need to be aware that "alternative" modes of
transportation have the ability to become the dominate form of transportation
that facilitate a more efficient city. A city designed for the bicycle has the
potential to move a much higher number of individuals much more quickly. An automobile based city moves a much
smaller population quickly while the rest are slowed by the constant traffic
common in most large urban environments.
Providing bicycle streets as opposed to simply inserting "bike
paths" into automobile streets greatly improves the effectiveness of
bicycle traffic. In the I plan on
incorporating the lesson I learned in Amsterdam to urban design plans.
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