Two weeks ago I revisited Amsterdam, and then got the train down to Zurich.

The Amsterdam leg was mainly so I could see areas I didn’t originally get to when I traveled with the Uni back in 2015. Chiefly among them were the NDSM-Wherf & Eastern Docklands, although I did pop down to see the new Amsterdam University campus near the botanic gardens, along with De Hallen and ARCAM (Amsterdam Architecture Museum). The first two days I was there were spent cycling around - worth it, mainly as I got to see a good chunk of Amsterdam outside the S100 inner ring road as well; although cycling in 25-33C temperatures was an experience I would prefer not repeat any time soon. I seem to have definitely developed an interest in former industrial urban centres that have been repurposed or left for natural reclamation - and I know that I am far from alone in this. That is what appealed to me at NDSM, along with Refshaleøen in Copenhagen.

One thing that struck me was the eclectic mix of architectural styles in some residential terrace developments; both near NDSM & Eastern Docklands. A juxtaposition to my own experience of rather monotonous styles in the UK (maybe I just haven’t been to the right areas in the UK - a possibility). The Eastern Docklands had rows of terraces split into distinctive units of approx. 4, with the style changing from one to the next; whereas along other rows, each unit was unique.

Another thing I was reminded of was how well I felt that the modern extensions to both the Rijksmuseum & Stedeljik attached themselves to the existing structure (in the slideshow above). More of Amsterdam can be found in the Amsterdam gallery page - along with some photos from the 2015 trip.

The journey to Zurich was trying - as I happened to be going via train on the day when the weather was at it’s hottest across Europe; and thus the (inter)national railway systems were under immense strain. I ended up getting to my lodgings about 1-1.5 hours later than planned, but fortunately ended up with a travel companion for about half the journey. Both of us were making the trip by train from Amsterdam to Zurich, and we both got caught at Mannheim when connections were thrown for a loop. Only thing that made such a long journey as that bearable to be honest, especially when a certain pillock (i.e. me) forgot to pick up sufficient water for the trip… thank goodness for Mannheim!

The Canton was truly beautiful - reminded me of equal parts Scotland (especially when the weather changed) and New Zealand; but to be fair, the economy reminded me more of Oslo or Copenhagen wrt. cost. That is a known quantity though - that the CHF is a very strong currency. Regardless, it was lovely to get to so many museums and galleries in those 3.5 days I was there - both traditional and modern/contemporary work. The gallery at Toni-Areal (one of Zurich University for the Arts/ZHdK main campuses) was especially interesting, as it showcased some pioneering materials and construction work done both at ZHdK & ETH Zurich. Two other key exhibitions I thoroughly enjoyed were a series of installations by Kirstine Roepstorff, at the Museum Haus Konstruktiv; along with an exhibition of Stephen Willats’ work incorporating semiotics, behaviour & learning, cybernetics, social projects (West London, Edinburgh, and more recent projects).

Visiting le Corbusier’s final house project was also interesting, especially when held in comparison to the tour of Villa Savoye back in my first year of undergrad. The differences in construction - steel frame vs concrete; ‘cubular’ vs ‘curvy’ …

Architecturally, whilst I do appreciate the local vernacular evolved over the centuries, what stood out to me was Toni-Areal, Technopark (one of ETH Zurich’s campuses), Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Kunsthaus Zurich and a series of contemporary private houses in one of the villages down the train line. Kunsthaus Zurich was amazing - precisely because its a combination of at least three (I think?) architectural styles, with a fourth (Chipperfield’s extension) under construction.

When the rain came at the weekend, truthfully, I felt it as a welcome relief. It also gave me an excuse to play around with the camera in some rather spectacular weather conditions; and I ended up getting most of my preferred photography from the trip done in about 30 minutes on Sunday morning as the rain hammered down. Sometimes, you just need a change in the weather!