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The Canal House

The Leaf

A Friendly Seagull

London Architecture Jazz

The Markets Of Bombay

The Canal House
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Grachtenpand is a traditional dutch house, often seen along Amsterdam's numerous canals. The architecture style of these buildings was shaped during 17th century, when the city was experiencing economic boom. Many entrepreneurial merchants invested their newly acquired wealth into shophouses that served both as offices as well as residences.
The elaborate and, at the same time, strict design suited the new elite, that wanted to demonstrate their creativity as well as business conservatism.
Today, Grachtenpand remain the symbol of Amsterdam's unique urban style as well as its economic power. Most of the classic houses in the city downtown still belong to elite families and wealthy corporations. Most importantly however, they belong to Amsterdam's rich scenery that residents admire even after many years living in the city.
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#amsterdam #holland #grachtenpand #architecture #building #city #urban #canals #merchants #streetview #vr #prisma #vsco #2footsteps #discover

The Leaf
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An oval window, shaped like a tree leaf, is overlooking Passeig De Gracia from Casa Batlló, a graceful building designed by Antonio Gaudi.

Gaudi was one of the humblest and, at the same time, most ambitious architects who ever lived. He viewed nature as the perfect creator and aspired to bring shapes and patterns he saw in biology, to his designs.
Casa Batlló is one of Gaudi's most iconic works. The building is shaped as a constant curve, supported by vertebral base and walls - a pattern common in natural biology.
Originally, the house was a private residence of the Batlló family, who made a fortune during the industrial revolution. One can only imagine living in one of the rooms, spending days looking at the streets of Barcelona through its leaf-shaped windows. It is likely though that their house inspired its owners to spend a lot of time in nature and admire the creative force that moved the genius architect.
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#gaudi #pedrera #lapedrera #barcelona #bcn #architecture #nature #biology #city #cities #urban #design #2footsteps #discovery #vsco

A Friendly Seagull
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Its fascinating to observe how in large cities birds become so used to large crowds that, instead of flying away at the first sight of strangers, as the wild flocks do, they actually come to mingle with people.
In fact, this friendly seagull seemed to enjoy the attention and approached tourists to ask for food. He also quite obviously liked posing for photos and waited patiently as people aimed to take a good shot.
The birds make the Southwark shore near the London Bridge especially picturesque. Medieval buildings under the futuristic Shard, mixed with markets, museums and restaurants of all kinds, make the area irresistible to the hip crowds on a sunny day. No wonder that our seagull also wanted to forget about flying for a bit and just relax together with everyone else.
#bird #birds #seagull #nature #people #crowd #fly #flying #london #england #britain #shard #bridge #southwark #shore #vsco #photography #2footsteps #discovery

London Architecture Jazz
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Architecture has always thrived on the opposites. The tension between history and modernity, technology and art, discipline and improvisation created some of the most beautiful cities in the world. Like any craft, architecture is constantly evolving and changing. As years go by, styles layer over each other and imprint a unique look, feel and spirit on every place.

London has lived through many epochs and changes, and has embraced and absorbed them all. The city effortlessly mixes medieval cathedrals with glass'n'steel skyscrapers, and is a living and breathing museum of architecture. Walking through its streets feels like having a tour through the ages, learning how builders have refined their techniques over years, discovered new materials and learned to defy gravity with ever bolder designs. It is worth revisiting London every now and then and be surprised with how effortlessly it weaves in new building into its already harlequin cityscape.
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#architecture #building #art #craft #city #cities #places #design #cathedral #skyscraper #history #modernity #old #new #london #england #britain #cityscape #urban #2footsteps #discovery #vsco #pixelmator

The Markets Of Bombay
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Bombay attacks newcomers with a mix of colours, smells, sounds and perpetual movement. Throughout its history it has been a city of opportunity and hustle. People come here to become a Bollywood star, work their way up to fabulous wealth or just have fun and enjoy the atmosphere.
Naturally, shopping is a popular pass time among the city dwellers. The Colaba markets draw the crowds with an eclectic offering of quite literally anything in the world: fashion, furniture, books, jewellery and even car parts are available right here next to each other.

After shopping to their heart's content, people head to the ocean's shore to sip a glass of Sula wine and watch the boats enter and leave the port of this ever great merchant outpost.
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#mumbai #bombay #india #colaba #markets #traders #merchants #opportunity #business #2footsteps #discovery

Urban Stream
Running right through the downtown of Seoul is an 11km stream, one of the longest in the world. Just a few stairsteps down from the Cheonggyecheon street magically teleport walkers from the hustle and bustle of the hi-tech metropolis to a serene recreation area. People come here to unwind after a day of hard work, focus before an important meeting or just sit and chat near the water.
The stream has been part of Seoul since its early history and dates as far as 12th century, however during the economic boom it got covered with a concrete pavement.
Recently however the highway was removed to restore the stream and build a public area around it. Since then, it has been one of the brightest examples of sustainable urban design, demonstrating how modern mega-cities can mix sleek infrastructure with lush greenery and water reserves.
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#seoul #korea #southkorea #myeongdong #cheonggyecheon #city #cities #urbanplanning #urban #design #metropolis #megapolis #insfrastructure #nature #stream #history #greenery #water #recreation #recovery #vsco #discovery #2footsteps

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