Pic of the Day, 21 May, 2008

GRID, originally uploaded by o d b.

Pic of the Day: 20 May 2008

To Infinity, and Beyond., originally uploaded by o d b.

East 3rd Ring Road: Beijing's Path to Prosperity

Pic of the Day 16 May 2008

earthquake epicenter aerial, originally uploaded by o d b.

This is a satellite view of the destruction from Monday's earthquake in the Sichuan Province of China found here.

Visit the website for an interactive satellite view of the epicenter of the quake.

Pic of the Day, 14 May 2008

Jianwah SOHO, rainy wednesday, originally uploaded by o d b.

Part of our freaky weather week here in Beijing--this was another rainy afternoon that could have been caused by rockets. hmmm...conspiracy theories anyone?

Pic of the Day, 13 May 2008

via NYT Slideshow

Image of the aftermath from the big earthquake in the Sichuan province in China yesterday--7.9 magnitude at the epicenter. There are 10,000 reported dead at this point with that number surely to rise in the coming days. Please keep Sichuan and China in your thoughts and prayers in the coming days.

links:
New York Times Article
NYT Slideshow

Pic o' the Day 11 May 2008

1. cctv, beijing in sandstorm, originally uploaded by o d b.

I originally thought that this was a sandstorm but it turns out it could be artificially created rain from rockets.

Pic o' the Day, 10 May 2008

veggicade, originally uploaded by o d b.

As a follow up to the agroURBanism post I'd like to add that gardens need not only inhabit the horizontal surfaces of our cities anymore! I found this little building at TU Delft last summer--I assume it is some kind of research project in green facades--I'd like to go back and see how much of it has grown in sometime because I can imagine it would be really beautiful.

pic o' the day, 09 May 2008

Morning Commute, originally uploaded by o d b.

I'm riding in the back of one of the things in the foreground. It's the fastest way to get to work!

pic o' the day, 08 May 2008

sunset view from my apartment, originally uploaded by o d b.

pic o' the day, 07 May 2008

waiting for the dentist, 5am in Beijing, originally uploaded by o d b.

Going to the doctor is not easy feat in China. I felt like a true urban warrior this morning helping my girlfriend go to the dentist this morning. Because public hospitals and dental clinics do not allow reservations or appointments we woke up at 3:30 am to take a taxi halfway across Beijing (from CBD to Peking University), arriving at 5am in order to wait in a queue until 7am when they start giving out numbered tickets to the doctor of your choice. The constituency of the wait room is a strange brew--ticket scalpers, gofers, normal dental patients, and those whose dental hygiene has gotten so out of control as to pose a serious health risk--all a result of the unique political, economic, and social pressures confronting contemporary China. The men shown in the picture are most probably professional reservationists--individuals whose life work is to go from hospital to hospital early enough to grab the prime tickets to later sell to the higher bidder at the end of the line. A number one spot in line can turn a 7 RMB ticket into a 200 RMB cash cow for the right scalper.