The Urban Roamer

Daniel Burnham

September 19, 2014 by The Urban Roamer

The Urban Roamer has talked about places, events, and issues. Now, beginning with this entry, the Urban Roamer will be featuring from time to time the people who have helped shaped Metro Manila in this new feature called “Metropolis Builders.” We will be looking at the contributions of urban planners, architects, visual artists, and other visionaries who have helped enrich the metropolitan landscape. And it is apt that the first figure to be featured here is the one who was instrumental in shaping the Manila that we know today…

Born on September 4, 1846 in New York State, Daniel Burnham was as an American architect and urban planner who first came into prominence with his work at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the expedition of Christopher Columbus to what would eventually be known as the Americas in 1492. Those who attended the fair were in awe of Burnham’s neoclassical design of the expo grounds that is reminiscent of European cities. And it was not an arbitrary choice of design. The event was an avenue for Burnham to first convey his ideas for a model city, in his words a “city beautiful” which would put American cities at par with those in Europe in terms of layout, architecture, and other aspects.

Soon enough, civic organizations and local officials were approaching Burnham to help create for their own cities in accordance with the “City Beautiful” ideal. With such zeal for this ideal and his work ethic, Burnham was able to churn out different master plans for the cities of Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington D.C., Perhaps the most well-known contribution Burnham made in American city planning would be his work in Washington D.C., as he helped conceive what would become the National Mall, the wide open, green space between the Lincoln Memorial and the Capitol Building, with the Washington Monument and the reflective pool in between. (something to note later on in this entry)

an illustration of Burnham’s Chicago plan (courtesy of detnk.com)

It would not be long as well before the American government began to take notice of his work right at the same time that the United States was not only undergoing rapid industrialization but also taking those first steps to become a global power.

Manila’s Port Problems

September 18, 2014 by The Urban Roamer

The past few months have been quite a strenuous time for the Port of Manila. Partly, one major factor behind this was the truck ban implemented by the Manila City Government against trucks plying the streets of the city during key hours of the day. (the original hours of the truck ban was virtually whole day from 5 AM–9 PM, but was tweaked so there were window hours set in place for trucks to ply the city streets from 10 AM-3 PM) While the jury’s out whether the truck ban has alleviated traffic in the city, the idea itself gained traction as other cities in the metropolis implemented their own truck ban policies.

cargo trucks in queue at the Port of Manila (image courtesy of GMA News Online)

Nevertheless, the policies have aggravated the longstanding issue that is being raised about the situation in the Port of Manila: congestion. With trucks unable to ply at the hours they usually ply, the already congested port became more congested as cargoes have been stalled in the port, reaching the port’s capacity to “dangerous levels.” There were also fears that there would shortage of certain goods that would be brought about with this situation. One can imagine the sigh of relief when on September 13, after about 7 months of controversial implementation, the Manila City Government under Mayor and former President Joseph Estrada indefinitely lifted the truck ban policy so to address the issue of congestion in the port.

Cine Europa 17

September 16, 2014September 16, 2014 by The Urban Roamer

The Urban Roamer is not just about places or events. From time to time, it indulges in appreciating art in any form…in this case, the art of cinema. What better way to indulge in such aspects than to check out this annual event that celebrates European cinema: the Cine Europa.

Organized by the European Union in the Philippines, Cine Europa is an annual film festival which showcases films produced by some of the EU’s member countries (+ Norway and Switzerland, which are not EU members) for free, thus giving moviegoers an opportunity to be acquainted with the best in contemporary European cinema.

Sampaloc’s Twin Churches

September 15, 2014 by The Urban Roamer

The district of Sampaloc in the City of Manila has long been known not only as a bustling residential enclave but also an important educational center of the city and of the metropolis as a whole. But at the heart of this busy district is a spiritual core that is common among many communities in the country. What makes Sampaloc’s case a bit different though is that its spiritual core is served not only by one but two Catholic churches with an intertwined history that has shaped the suburb we know of today.