Further Fun on Friday

By the time we got down off the mountain and back into the city, our tummies were grumbling.  I still had a little bit of time before that meeting started, so we stopped of in the city center and perused the streets for something tasty.  We ended up walking around in the heart of the commercial district where row upon row of shops sells everything from doorknobs to bustiers, but apparently very little food.  By the time we had found somewhere to eat and were plowing through a massive pantacon, it had gotten too late to make it to my meeting on time.  However, by that point, I was thoroughly enjoying being out on the town during a weekday, and figured I might do better actually seeing the city than just listening to people talk about it.  So, we set out through the light drizzle that had commenced and were greeted with exciting architecture and wonderful examples of well designed public space.

A four story mall we stumbled into with a huge central atrium and funky angles.

Park of Lights_randomly scattered spires evoke the feeling of a forest and light up in a magical display at night

Government square, "Monument to the Race"

As we walked through the towering government buildings, there were people everywhere and works of art scattered across the square.

And to one side was a conspicuous little house that looked strikingly out of place in the middle of such grand structures.  However, the strangely familiar design soon struck a cord and I realized I was staring at a prototype of the the government houses I'd been instructed to use for the urban planning project I'd been working on in Bolombolo!  Sometimes this city really does feel like a small town. =)

From there, we wound through a series of plazas and walking streets admiring the myriad of public art, public spaces and public buildings that comprise this area of town.

Plaza Mayor

Barefoot Park

Bamboo grove at Barefoot Park

I really can't think of a single city in the US that has anywhere near the percentage of public space that I've found here in Medellin.  Not only are there small parks dotted through the city, but there are huge plazas, and walking streets, and gardens, and playgrounds, and so much more.  It's true that there are some neighborhoods where this is most definitely not the case, but the government understands the importance of providing not only housing and workplaces, but places of connection and recreation and relaxing and partying and play.  They've already proven the power of transformation that can come from carefully integrated, well designed, and well supported public projects, but they're still intent on spreading that power to as many areas of the city as humanly possible. 

Incredibly inspiring.