Maybe I feel this way because I am putting of my long run in the polder for a few days, my calves felt a little tight, and since my goal is to keep running and not run myself into the ground, I thought it be wiser to stick to regular daily doses. This morning however everything was running smoothly, taking some soggy pasture paths for variation.

Stop every now and then to take your share of wild vegetables. I am also feasting on the sage in the garden. Great for making tea in support of the respiratory system!

To learn about mills in the Netherlands:

http://www.molendatabase.nl/nederland/

To read some heritage recipes from even before the time of the windmills visit:

http://landentuinbouw.spinazieacademie.nl/

Leaving Venice today. The visit was short and… well, nice, since cities are not my ‘natural habitat’. Venice of course is an incredible city, founded in the 5^th century it became one of the greatest capitals of the medieval world, now enlisted on the UNESCO world heritage list of sites and monuments. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/394. It is under threat, as it is well-known that Venice is sinking, the anthropogenic causes (ground water pumping) have been addressed but natural causes are still at play ,http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/130926/srep02710/full/srep02710.html.

Then there is something else. My host lives and works in the center, near Rialto bridge and has a long family history in the city, but these days he feels he is living in a Disney world, in a city frozen in time. Even the Biennale events to him feel more like amusement spectacles than serious art fairs they intended to be…

Today I have time for a moderate run (2hrs), and explore the labyrinth that is Venice, configured by the flow of its water. As usual, I don’t take any orienteering devices, but a paper map. Venice is nice city to get lost, eventually you will get to the edge, and while ‘running wild’, it is easy to see lesser-known parts of Venice. Running around, I’m contributing to the flow.

and the well-known, but different time..

The rest of the day, I get into the spirit of place (also literally: Genius Loci (Spirit of Place) exhibition at Palazzo Franchetti.)

Before I came to Venice I thought about Modernity and about the new museum I visited in Como recently dedicated to the works of Sant’Elia, who was the star architect of the Futurist Movement. I always loved his drawings, yet glad that the Futurists’ plans for new cities were not realized. I was therefore surprised that in Como there is an impressive – lakseside– war monument designed by Sant’Elia. He died in La Grande Guerra, as the first world war is referred to, especially in Northern Italy, and many war ruins near Trento remind of the fierce battles that took place over the Austrian- Italian border. http://antoniosantelia.org/

Yesterday, I visited the Arsenale, one of two main venues of the Biennale, which this year is dominated by monditalia, a scan. Taking Italy as a ‘fundamental’ country this exhibition shows 41 architectural case studies of young architects and researchers, spread over the Italian continent, organized geographically from south to north. The Alps are last. The study investigated the mapping of the border across the Alps, and especially its difficulties. These days satellite technologies make mapping easier, however, new challenges arise. The melting of the glaciers make that the surface of the earth across the Alps is changing at rapid rates. Borders have to be newly negotiated.

Today I travel to Venice, not to farm, but to visit the Architecture Biennale. My interest in architecture is easily explained, as it is the means by which humans organize and mediate space, influencing and/or determining ecological, socio-economic relationships, but I also ENJOY the creative tangible expression of spatial ideas.

More to come…

http://www.labiennale.org/it/architettura/

Innovation in building material and design practice has transformed architecture. One of my favorites are the liminal spaces designed and initiated by Philip Beesley (http://www.philipbeesleyarchitect.com/) in which the human presence performs a participatory role in creating the space, building with a new kind of material and method. Farm houses on the other hand remain very traditional, but much of the old building material is very strong and can be recycled/re-used, which is in fact very NOW

The roof is replaced, and now I organize and order all the -centuries’ old- terra cotta roof tiles. They are beautiful, but will not be replaced on the roof, probably be sold. Then there is all the salvaged wood. An ancient building material that can be used in many different ways: light and heavy, traditional and avant-garde. I love the tree and the wood.

For some inspiration on the use of wood in architecture:

https://www.japlusu.com/news/remarkable-japanese-timber-structures