Author: Patricia Molina

¡Salud! Cheers to Chile!

Cheering at the vineyard in Maipo Valley

The Santiago trip is definitely the best Spring Break I’ve spent. Everyday was well spent and filled with many memories. This trip has exceeded my expectations. The city had great architectural sites surrounded by beautiful landscapes. Green spaces filled the city and the mountains in the view reminded me each day how I was in a whole new place. I will miss the Chilean food, how the people spent quality time outside their homes and off their phones, and the warm weather.

After landing home, I immediately felt the difference. The first meal I ate at home was campus burritos which just didn’t have the same appeal or freshness as that of Mestizo. Around campus, people had their phones out including those crossing the street. On Monday morning, I walked to work in 30 degree weather (that’s Fahrenheit) and in rain. Although I walked through the oval, the amount of green space just did not compare with Santiago’s tree filled street sides.

Sunset from Costanera tower

I will be missing Chile for quite awhile and will have to take some time to fully accept being back home. I have tried to wear some of my alpaca merchandise and lapis lazuli earrings to stay in denial of leaving Chile. This trip was absolutely an experience I’m glad I took. Although I’ve left Chile, I have been able to take back new memories, experiences, and friends. To that, I give a huge cheers to Chile.

innovation center

Innovation center perspective view from outside

The UC Innovation Center was my favorite building visited on the urban campus visits. Although I was initially more excited for Aravena’s Torres Siameses, I found that the Innovation Center was the more successful project in the end. While Aravena’s solutions to budget constraints for Torres Siameses were innovative, it also created maintenance problems for the building. The wearing wood exterior ground and the unwashed glass showed signs of problems reached in the post production of the project.

View of atrium from ground floor

Meanwhile, the Innovation Center’s more simple form created many features with just the element of shifted prisms and voids. Voids were important in this volumetric building in creating openings between the concrete for occupiable balconies that also let light in. A central void running through the central axis mundi of the building created an atrium that let light shine through all the floors of the building. Another void acted as the entryway into the project. From the exterior, the voids seem to be shifted along three rows of the facade with double height balcony spaces. This creates ambiguity between the indoor space that actually holds 11 floors.

Innovation center facade

The voids created transform from balconies to entry to atrium creating outdoor spaces and clerestory. Staying true to its name, this project takes innovative plays of breaking the box.

Costanera Tower

Top floor of Costenera

On Monday, the group visited La Costenera tower. It is the tallest building in South America and we were able to ride up to the top floor to get fantastic show views of the city and mountains surrounding it. Like the Andes, La Costenera is a signature of Santiago that can be viewed from various parts of the city. While Chicago has the WIllis Tower, Santiago has La Costenera.

 When heading towards the tower, it was clear which direction to head towards because it was so visible from far away. As we finally reached the tower and looked up at it, I realized just how tall it really was.

View of tower from ground

One detail I noticed about the tower and other buildings surrounding it was that the glass exterior had a purer blue tint to it compared to most American buildings. I wondered if it is an ode to the lapis lazuli stone of Chile. After walking past the lower levels of shopping centers, the group made its way to the top floor. I noticed the intricate beam structures holding the glass building together.

As I went to observe further, I noticed that there actually was no roof and was exposed to the sky instead. The top floors, glass enclosure and an open ceiling created ambiguity between being in an indoor or outdoor space. I felt that perhaps it was a way of further attempting to connect the outdoor site to the interior of this skyscraper. To end the day, I watched the sun set past the mountains which was concluded with a round of applause by the visitors.

Bicentenario de la Infancia

Occupiable “gate/border”play area

After landing in Santiago, we did not waste time exploring the city. One of the main features of the city was its cerros. I was excited knowing that Bicentenario de la Infancia was one of the first places the group would visit because 1) I wanted to see a project by Alejandro Aravena and 2) I wanted to see a role the cerros played in Santiago.

In this case, the hill was turned into a park. I really appreciated how extraordinary this park was in incorporating the hill as a public space for families. The border along the bottom of the hill acted as an occupiable play area framed by orange beams. The ground of the play area had various slopes creating slides and tunnel spaces while representing the sloping hills of the city.

Another key feature I tried at the park were the slides. I rode the funicular up with a group and started at the longest slide. I was a little hesitant after finally seeing how steep the slide really was. But after Bryant tested it out and survived, I rode the slide down. As brilliant as I thought the slide along the vertical slope of the hill was, I felt that it was not as comfortable to ride. Maybe Bryant and I just weren’t as young as we used to be, but we both agreed that the final part of the slide where it began to level off hurt our tailbone. We also had to catch ourselves as we excelled off the slide.

Overall, I thought the park had amazing features that allowed various experiences to occur. Whether it was the unique slides, border, and rock fountains,  or the more usual seesaw and swings; it was clear that this park was being enjoyed by the community.

Waiting to board

Hola! I am currently in the airport waiting for our first flight to Dallas. It has been a busy week with two reviews and an exam so the excitement for this trip did not settle in until I finished the history exam this morning. Now, I can not think of anything else other then finally landing in Santiago, Chile. I’m excited to visit San Cristobal and to experience the change in weather. I woke up to a harsh slap in the face of cold winds so the Chilean heat will be a warm welcome. I am also excited to get settled into our hotel and explore the area of Providencia.

This will be my first study abroad program and it’s been a long time since I have travelled international. So far, things are smooth sailing and the process was not bad. Hopefully the rest of the trip will run just as well. The wait for our flight hasn’t felt too bad since I have good company with me and an order of Auntie Anne’s original pretzel nuggets with light cream cheese. I am excited to get on the plane and check out the Dallas airport for awhile before our final flight to Chile. Safe travels to all!

Patricia’s Bio

coventryHi everyone, my name is Patricia Molina and I am currently in my second year of architecture. I was born in the Philippines before moving to California when I was 5 years old. A couple years after that I moved to Ohio where I have lived for the majority of my life. My parents raised me and my younger sister in a very Filipino household by cooking Filipino food, speaking Tagalog, and ordering TFC (The Filipino Channel—yes, it exists…available in DIRECTV) to stay connected to our roots. I went to high school in a small city in the Cleveland area called Richmond Heights so, I wanted to go to a bigger university like the Ohio State University for a new experience. I really like being a part of a huge campus while also having a smaller community in Knowlton where everyone shares an interest in architecture.

Other than revisiting the Philippines a couple of times after I left, I haven’t really been able to travel out of the country. This Santiago trip will be my first study abroad program though I plan to do more. I’m excited to experience the culture, try new food, and visit amazing sites that Santiago has to offer!