[Lucy Wang]

Hi Anne-Laure,

San Francisco has some absolutely amazing urban projects. You should visit as many parklets as you can. Here is a Google map. Walter Hood’s Powell Street Promenade is pretty cool (super central, you won’t miss it), I love the TransAmerica Redwood Park, and Levi’s Plaza Park is one of my favorites. 

I actually did a trip a little while ago and documented the places I saw (I have the addresses for each park too). You can see them here: http://landscapevoice.com/tag/san-francisco/

Los Angeles also has some great gems. I didn’t get to visit as many places as I wanted to since it’s such a spread out city and I didn’t have access to a car. You can see some of my favorite urban projects from that city here: http://landscapevoice.com/tag/los-angeles/

Hope that helps!

Lucy

[Lucy Wang]

I personally like Botany Buddy–I think it can do the things that you’ve listed.

[Lucy Wang]

Legos are pretty awesome. I know the company is heavily skewed to making Lego Architecture and not landscape but they do produce trees and flora so I’d poke around a toy store to see what turns up.

[Lucy Wang]

At the risk of derailing this thread even further…

I believe there are scientists who do publish against “the massive consensus.” Some of these people may truly believe that climate change is an overblown topic and others may be funded through corporations/organizations who have a vested interest to cast doubt on the subject and do not want to curtail their productions or be penalized in the name of global warming.

That said, there’s a lot of money to be made or lost either way and it’s a very political issue. 

MIT Scientist Richard Lindzen is one such person who doesn’t seem to be funded by shadow organizations like I mentioned, but he is very skeptical and critical of global warming: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1CR0v7dwXU

[Lucy Wang]

I can’t say much about the LA intern life since I worked as an intern at NYCDOT, but remember to bundle up before you head up north! NYC can be oppressively cold in the wintertime. I also bought an older version of a NYC NFT guide which I remembered absolutely loving, but this was before I purchased a smartphone. I’d also recommend getting a Citibike pass when it starts to get warmer–it’s a lot more fun than the metro and will probably save you money!

[Lucy Wang]

You might take a look at the search archive here: http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=homeless

Since it’s just a search, you’ll probably have to weed through a few that just mention the word ‘homeless,’ but there are some really good projects in there.

[Lucy Wang]

Awesome, thanks all. I’ll definitely check out Expo Park!

@George McNair: Haha, no I’m not related to Tommy Wang, though if he is who I think you’re talking about, I’ve met him before as an intern.

[Lucy Wang]

Oooh one more thing I just spotted: http://mindyourgarden.tumblr.com/post/33300566720/lent-space-is-a-privately-owned-development-site

Lent Space is a privately-owned development site in Lower Manhattan (New York, USA) that is temporarily being made open to the public. The space serves as an exhibition space for large sculptures, an event space and public space as well as a tree nursery. When Lent Space closes, the trees grown on the site will migrate to the streets of the surrounding neighborhood, turning into street trees for the emerging Hudson Square BID.
A moveable sculptural fence can enclose or open the site to different degrees and also serve as a public amenity in the form of benches and wall panels for exhibitions.

by Interboro

[Lucy Wang]

The Cloisters at MoMA

The Irish Hunger Memorial (it’s really awesome, and oft-missed) link: http://www.nyc.com/arts__attractions/irish_hunger_memorial.1379/editorial_review.aspx

The abandoned smallpox hospital on Governor’s Island (take the tram over, technically you’re trespassing if you go into the hospital grounds but everyone does it anyway and there is a hole in the fence…it is pretty cool)

Not obscure, but definitely rent bikes and bike down the Hudson River Greenway, it’s like a bike highway in Manhattan

Brooklyn Bridge Park & Prospect Park (not really hidden, but I feel like they get passed over in favor of Manhattan parks…)

Go eat at one of the Momofuku restaurants. Go to Flushing for really good and cheap Chinese food (take the 7 line all the way east, it’s the last stop). My favorite restaurant is ‘A Taste of Shanghai’

You can PM me if you want more suggestions, these are just off the top of my head, have fun!

[Lucy Wang]

I went to San Diego when the ASLA conference was there last year, so it’s not in my plans again…but I will be passing through cities between (and including) Los Angeles and Vancouver!

[Lucy Wang]

I’m not really sure what you mean by “projects” and I don’t know where you are in the city but I can suggest some outdoor spaces near the inner harbor if that’s where you’re at. For one, I second visiting the outside space next to the aquarium. You should also check out:

-the space between the WTC building and the aquarium. It has an old, huge propeller, a big metal fixture and a neat planting design (esp from above)
-the planting area around the Baltimore Visitor’s Center. They have an interactive water feature close by to it.
-There’s a waterfall sculpture fountain at the Inner Harbor, corner of Light and Pratt.
– Harbor East. You can walk there from the Harbor, it’s so close. At the heart is this huge golden sculpture/fountain surrounded by cobblestone. If you keep walking past it towards the water there’s a nice waterfront area.
– Holocaust Memorial, pretty minimal, outdoor memorial
– Don’t know if you’re far from Mt Vernon but you can take the free Charm Circulator up to Mount Vernon too. Has a more European-flavor to it

[Lucy Wang]

You should check out http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/forum/22-life-work-and-stu… for info on working/living in China. They even have a Guangzhou/Shenzhen subsection. Really good resource.

I don’t know when/if you’re going to China, but if you stick around you should check up on this: http://www.inhabitat.com/2010/08/03/china-developing-traffic-stradd… (I’ve never been to China myself but am hoping to at the end of this year/next year)

[Lucy Wang]

http://www.studiomezz.com/10-inspirational-resources-for-print-digital-portfolios

^Link lists a few including issuu. I’ve read really good things about Lulu but I’m partial to issuu as well.

[Lucy Wang]

Here’s a case study of a plaza at 10th and Hoyt (also in Portland, OR):

http://www.artfulrainwaterdesign.net/files/uploads/98110th@Hoyt.pdf

[Lucy Wang]

Hey Josh!

I’m still looking, though admittedly not very hard. I looked at the VAIO EC, which looks like a really good laptop. The biggest thing stopping me from getting something like that is the weight….I wanted something with a dedicated graphics card that was also lightweight (< 5 pounds) but of course those get really expensive. I’ll probably have to compromise before the end of the summer though.

[Author]

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