I can honestly say that the city of Valparaiso is the the most beautiful and unique city I have visited. Not just because of the vibrant colors on all of the buildings, it’s the unique organization and topography that help to make the city so memorable. Being built on the side of a mountain, makes the view of the city and the navigation through the city very different from the flat Ohio fields where I grew up. Everywhere you go there are either stairs or inclines, hardly a flat place in sight. The constant changes in elevation and everything being packed so close together make it hard to see very far in most directions. This aspect allows for many hidden doorways, alleys, and drop offs everywhere you turn. Just walking through the streets of this city is an adventure. The surprises at every turn give the city a very playful and fun atmosphere.
The compactness of the city also exaggerates its eclectic nature. Everything, old and new, the wealthy and shanties are often butted right up next to one another. This allows for even more stark visual contrast. No matter where you look, you don’t know what you’re gonna get.
I think most people can agree that Valparaiso’s culture and uniqueness make it a fascinating and endearing city. The city’s culture of creativity is something that none of us have really seen before. I thought that it was interesting when you compared the city to the landscape of Ohio because it made me think of how Columbus and Valparaiso are almost polar opposites. One way they can be compared is by the separation of classes and wealth. In Columbus, you can see a difference in wealth from neighborhood to neighborhood, whereas in Valparaiso, like you mentioned, wealthy houses can be found right next to lesser, impoverished houses. It’s also worthwhile to compare the layouts of the two cities, Columbus is clearly based around a basic gridded layout where there is no distinct organization to Valparaiso as it seems like houses and structures were just randomly placed on the hills. The reason why Valparaiso is intriguing to some of us may be because it is so much different than what we’re used to.
I completely agree with you that Valparaíso is one of the most beautiful places I have visited. Building a city on a hill side must have been a nightmare but the outcome of it is breathtaking. I went walked through parts of Valparaíso with Edith and there were so many hidden views that allowed us to experience the city on a different perspective. Besides the topography-of the city, the color adds so much vibrant to the elevation of the building around the area. The run down, ruined like buildings around the area also tells us the history and give the area a unique, but diverse presence as well. This made me thought of my experience in Brighton a year ago when I traveled to London with Aimee, Christine and Troy. Both cities are located on the west coast of a country and are very colorful. However, Valparaíso has an advantage over Brighton because it’s location is on top of a hill, whereas Brighton is very flat. Valparaíso has an opportunity for a higher real estate pricing in the future when the financial condition of the city improves.