Reflection

Urban morpology has a great deal of different factors mix into its complexity. It is not only concerned with the form and structure of urban areas but the processes and the people that help shape the spaces as they are. Many of the blogs that were visited can infact be related to urban morphology. From http://urbanandculture.blogspot.com Sarsha Ramcharan talks about in one of her blogs the significance of historical landmarks that are evident in San Fernando which can be related to urban morphology as these landmarks are indeed valued by the people in an area and related to the way people value the space which help to preserve the structures found to resist the change in the morphology by the demolision and regeneration of old buildings . This can be furher linked to Neisha Smith's(http://urbansprawl1.blogspot.com/)blog as in one of her blogs she greatly describes the different ways people experience the city by the use of photos. This can be related to urban morphology as well as she describes the ways people organize themselves and their household affecting land use and how it affects the overall shape. Lastly Renuka Sookram(http://urbanculture14.blogspot.com/)looked at the rise of Vertical residential building in her first blog which can be related to one of my post on San Ferando's morphology from San Ferando's Hill. In this picture to the right hand corner large apartment buildings can be seen which illustrate the rising population demand and how such socio-economic factors affect the land use and in turn the urban morphology.

Urban Spaces of San Fernando

Taken in Harris Promenade, San Fernando, this picture displays the many buildings and spaced that imprint on the urban morphology of San Fernando. According to Hall and Barrett 2012 (30) the morphology of an area is the tangible outcome of a complex mix of socio-economic forcesa and ideas and intentions of people.  There are many services that this area provides to its citizens and what makes this area unique. On the far left hand corner of the picture San Fernando General Hospital can be seen peeking though which provides health services to many citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. In the middle of the picture the tall multiple storey high building is a newly established teaching hopsital that greatly enhanced the morphology of the area making the space more modern by the use of material such as glass and architecture. St. Paul's Anglican church is also located here and is evident in the picture by the brown rustling artifact that shows the entrance to the church. A green space can also be identified bringing more uniqueness and a place where citizen come to escape the busy nearby streets. The area also contains more historical and cultural artefacts that were not seen in the picture such as a statue, an old church built in the 1800's and an old train on display. These not only relates to the value that citizens place on these spaces but the identity that showcases the diversity of our people and the processes of change that has occurred. Buildings not just affect the morphology of an area an the way structures are organized but each bulding has a unique identity places upon them by peole who visit and what contributes the essence that such a place bring to people. Cities, big small all are unique and are the mirrored image of the country and the people within. Hall and Barrett 2012 (241) stated that landscapes offer a rich source of information abut culture and the society. All structures in an area helps to shape it and are important to the relationship that people have with such places. According to an online article by titled Architecture: Ciy Hall roof an unfortunate addition by Zahra Gordon explains the uniqueness that old building bring to an area as quoted by the architect and conservationist Geoffrey Maclien that the addition of the roof is unfortunate and is not in line with the current aesthic design with the building. He further explains that we have to repect building as they are designed as the addition is influenced by a modern movement in architecture.

-Hall Tim and H. Barret. 2012. Urban Geograph. 4th ed. London/New York. Routledge

- Gordon Zahra. Artitecture: City Hall roof an unfortunate addition. July 31st 2012. accessed 16th April 2013. Http://www.ttia-architecture.org.

Port Of Spain

These two photos displays the tall buildings that can be seen in the capital of Trinidad and Tobago, Port of Spain. The presence of such tall buildings does in fact influence the morphology of the city as its affect the form and structure a city takes. these buildings make up the city  and influences the other buildings that can be found within the area. The first picture gives a view from far how commuters coming into the city and residents of nearby see the tall buildings as they enter into the area. The second photo is a closer look on such buildings. The theory that these pictures can relate to is the Ullman and Harris multiple nuclei model. This model states that many nuclei develop in a country because of certain advantageous conditions for Port of Spain this condition may have been the presence of a port that was used historically to transport sugar to  countries under the time of slavery. This port may have created the development of settlements as a result and as time pass incouraged investors and the development of the overall area. The media found to support these picture is a song by Pitbull and Christina Aguilera, 'Feel this moment'. Quoting from the lyrics of one of Pitbull's line includes, "Reporting live from the tallest buildings in Tokyo". I personally thought this was quite a reflective line because it simply helps to showcase the status that tall buildings represent. How would 'Reporting live from the smallest building in Tokyo sound...' So I've made my point. The bigger the building, the higher the status and perceived wealth it carries.Therefore places that contain tall buildings also reflect the level of wealth and economic value pertained within. In Trinidad our buildings are not as tall as those in Tokyo but tall enough to be recognised by its citizen as urban and to differentiate the how wealthy an area is from one place to another. According to Kodmany and Ali 2013, cities are affected by geography, climate, economy and local culture that makes them unique.To further emphazise on the wealth that tall buildings signify, a six year Abigail Khan  (niece of my husband) was quite curious on what i was writing. I briefly eplained and then asked her what she thought was a city and if she believes it is different from where she lives (Couva). She confidently replies stating that a city has big buildings and where she lives doesnt have any. She went on further to explain that the twin towers in Port of Spain is a big building but the ones in America can touch the sky  So this goes to show the perception that tall building has on young people and therefore the overall image that such tall buildings can have on the morphology of an urban area. Below is a picture she drew of Port of Spain and what she thinks is a city.

Al -Kodmany Keir and Mir M Ali. 2013.The future of the city: Tall buildings and urban design. WIT Press.Great Britain

Urban Form of Chaguanas

Chaguanas is an urban area well known for its commercial and shopping services that it provides. it is located in central Trinidad (more on the western edge) between Port of Spain in the north and San Fernanao in the south. From the picture above you can clearly see the factors and processes that help to shape this area as urban. on the right hand corner of the photo one of the leading fast food multinational company can be identified, KFC. This building not only contributes to the morphology of the area but identifies the process of globalization that this country experiences.Globalization as a process transfers ideas, information, people and businesses from one country to the other. Though globalization many other fast food companies such as Mario's and Subway where able to estabish in Trinidad that adds to the greater variety of choices for consumers and shapes the morphology of the area by incorporating their foreign styles. According to Hall and Barrett 2012 TNC's have increased in their dispersal due to the availabilty of cheap labour, and innovations in communications and transport(85). The dispersal is greatly aided by the media as foreign advertisement noware more than ever aired on television, played on radio station and even posted on the billboards that generate the large local consumers. Such marketing and branding of the city is a process that can shape the urban development. (230) Still looking in the right of the photo behind KFC a tall 3 storey building can be seen it  is a local business called Unique. Looking at its architecture one can notice the reflective  modern day glass material that it displays, this was implemented as a way to remain competitive with the other foreign companies. The transport route that can also be seen do indeed affect the shape and organization of the building in their place which creates the spaces that customers come to chaguanas to enjoy as mobilty shapes the city. The theory that can help explain this picture is Chauney Harris and Edward Ullman multiple nuclei model. This model proposes that a country does not necessarily have to have one main city with all the services and function that the rest of the country have to migrate into in order to access such services. It states that within a country or state there are multiple smaller nuclei that develop that have certain advantageous conditions that allowed it to become a nuclei.

Hall T and H Barrett. 2012. Urban Geography. 4th ed. London/New York. Routledge

Glass Concrete or Wood

A

Taken in the capital city of Port of Spain located north of Trinidad. This building made of a modern reflective glass material plays an important role in the shaping of its city. Taking a walk around Port of Spain this type of building is quite common with the characteristics of heights taller than 2 storeys and the presence of glass material. Are these factors important in considering an area and/or building as urban?  Imagine placing a building such as the one in the picture above to the area in the picture seen below.....

B

What would such drastic change do to the perception of the area and the overall morphology. Picture B represents a planned housing development area which main function being residential so establishing a building as seen in picture A in such an area would definately change the entire area as investor's confidence will be boosted and others would want a piece of the development pie. therefore a building, how it was built, what it was built with and the purpose of it does in fact affect the morpology of an area and areas that are considered as urban. The theory that can be related to picture A is the central place theory. Walter Christaller a german geographer recognised that  there is an economic relationship between cities and their surrounding region. (American Planning Association 2006). This theory can be related to the two photos as the economic level an area experiences will be reflected in the buildings. In picture A,taken in Port of Spain the building shows the high level of wealth this area has in terms of the services while picture B does not demonstrate as much wealth because of the low level of sevices and opportunites that such an area may offer as seen due to the low quality residential house.

               American Planning Association.2006. John Wiley. USA

Hall T and H Barrett. 2012. Urban Geography. 4th ed. London/New York. Routledge

The Essence of difference

The Courtyard Marriot Hotel of Port of Spain. This hotel located in the capital greatly enhances the diversity of the buildings found in the capital due its architectural uniqueness.This four storey structure is not the same as the other buildings found in this area as it is made of wood and has a type of pre-modern look to it. the design of the building is quite interesting as the peaked roofs and the design of the windows are very informative of the past influence Trinidad endured. According to Gravette 2000 the Caribbean is a melting pot of architectural styles as  it is the meeting of cultures, beliefs, languages, habits and social structure of the the Caribbean people themselves. The hotel above may be a representation of the french style as Gravette explained one of the french houses, louis X111. Such houses had restrained exterior windows and included details like dormer windows and verandahs to contribute to the shade and ventilation needed in the Caribbean climate. This hotels website (http://www.marriot.com)  further explains that the structure contains 116 rooms and has four floors. On the webpage the hotel is explained as an urban oasis. It is in close proximity to many recreational activities such as shopping centers, a cinema and a national stadium. This hotel greatly adds to the urban morphology of the area as it incorporates the diversity which is a major characteristic of the Caribbean and Trinidad. Due to the establishment of such hotels foreigns can be able to experience the our own way of urban which incourages more investors and development and even leading to post-modernism. Dear and Flusty 1998 stated that post modernism townscapes are detailed,handcrafted has variety , stylishness and polyculturalism. Ted Relph (1987) also descibed post modern urbanism as a self conscious selective revival of  elements of the older styles. Port of Spain does have some of these characterists such as variety and some aspets of polyculturalsim along with the old styles but not at a level that would categorize Port of Spain as postmodern just yet.

Gravette Andrew.2000.Architectural Heritage of the Caribbean: An A-Z of historic buildings. UK

Http://www.marriot.com

Urban Compaction

This picture displays a number of buildings that occupies the left side of the major highway in Trinidad. From the picture it can be deduced that the settlement has many land use and function as it is mostly residental as seen on the right side of the photo and on the upper left a commercial land use can be seen. The morphology that this picture shows is influenced by many factors such as the land use and function, the proximity to a city or capital and most importantly the mobility and transport routes. The buildings seem to be densely packed along the road which affects the organization and structure of the entire area.  According to Hall and Barrett (2012) mobility shapes the city and that there is a relationship between transport and the organization of the metropolis.   Therefore this helps to support that roads in an area are not just for accessibility but for the organization of the areas. When using Google Maps and you look over an area doesnt it look fake? It almost looks as it was planned and developed as such,even though some development are planned the picture above doesnt represent a planned area but one that is organised by the transportation roads. Having these roads help morphology as it guides the establishments of buildings because being able to reside next to a road is not only profitable for businesses as it provides easy accessfor potential customers but is beneficial for residents as well. According to Rodrique, Comtois and Slack 2006 transport is an important element in rural and urban spatial organization under the spatial and accessibilty model. An urban region is seen as a place where there is a hierarchy with services and function and where a corridor acts as a structure organizer interacting within the hierarchy. They also go further to explain that the urban transport system have a spatial imprint which shapes the urban form. Since each city has different socio-economic and geographical differences the spatial imprint of transporation will varies accordingly.

Rodrique P Jean, Claude Comtos and Irian Slack.2006. The Geography of transport systems. Taylor and Francis. New York

Hall T and H Barrett. 2012. Urban Geography. 4th ed. London/New York. Routledge.