There are so many places in the world with distinct architectural styles. When presented with a picture of a city, just by analyzing the structures that humans create upon the earth one can pin point the city's location and sometimes even the year in which certain structures were created.
I had a conversation with a friend this summer that probably would not be very popular with many of my friends and fellow travelers. It seems that in any new place a traveler may go he is compelled by some force or another to tour the architecture. In our cases those forces are almost never internal. An overly excited local resident, fellow travel companion or tour guide attempting to do her due diligence will impress upon us the importance of noticing this curve or that buttress as though it were the defining characteristic of any society worth noticing. Quite frankly ... I just don't find it that interesting. Yes, I do like seeing the shape of a city and noticing the nuances of style and I do find the structures we create to be both impressive and interesting. I do not find spending hours analyzing these structures and their timing to be as fantastic as it is often made out to be.
All that said, I have recently found an technique that caught my attention and I thought was worth sharing. Please be warned that this post risks becoming overly intellectual and perhaps a little confusing. Below is an example of the decorative work, but I assure you the picture does not fully express the revelation that I had:
Notice the trim around the door frame, and the crown moulding. While this may seem like ordinary house-finishing-touch type stuff, that is where the magic comes from. It was explained to me yesterday as "Poliplast". This roughly translates to: Styrofoam. That's right. The crown moulding here is Styrofoam. And not just here in my apartment ... but also decorating the government office windows and teller desks. In order to add to the magic, it isn't universal. While this stuff is carved and decorating in many locations all over Tajikistan, it is frequently interchanged with real wood. With every finished edge of man made structure, one never knows just what medium one will find.
Another fine example of the Styrofoam moulding in my apartment:
I hope you have enjoyed this discovery nearly as much as I have (although I highly doubt it). Please also know that I am giggling at the fact that you actually made it this far into this ridiculously silly post. Some people will read anything!
Love, love, love.
The Writer.
I had a conversation with a friend this summer that probably would not be very popular with many of my friends and fellow travelers. It seems that in any new place a traveler may go he is compelled by some force or another to tour the architecture. In our cases those forces are almost never internal. An overly excited local resident, fellow travel companion or tour guide attempting to do her due diligence will impress upon us the importance of noticing this curve or that buttress as though it were the defining characteristic of any society worth noticing. Quite frankly ... I just don't find it that interesting. Yes, I do like seeing the shape of a city and noticing the nuances of style and I do find the structures we create to be both impressive and interesting. I do not find spending hours analyzing these structures and their timing to be as fantastic as it is often made out to be.
All that said, I have recently found an technique that caught my attention and I thought was worth sharing. Please be warned that this post risks becoming overly intellectual and perhaps a little confusing. Below is an example of the decorative work, but I assure you the picture does not fully express the revelation that I had:
Notice the trim around the door frame, and the crown moulding. While this may seem like ordinary house-finishing-touch type stuff, that is where the magic comes from. It was explained to me yesterday as "Poliplast". This roughly translates to: Styrofoam. That's right. The crown moulding here is Styrofoam. And not just here in my apartment ... but also decorating the government office windows and teller desks. In order to add to the magic, it isn't universal. While this stuff is carved and decorating in many locations all over Tajikistan, it is frequently interchanged with real wood. With every finished edge of man made structure, one never knows just what medium one will find.
Another fine example of the Styrofoam moulding in my apartment:
I hope you have enjoyed this discovery nearly as much as I have (although I highly doubt it). Please also know that I am giggling at the fact that you actually made it this far into this ridiculously silly post. Some people will read anything!
Love, love, love.
The Writer.
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