2:00 AM, The beginning of the day for many. For the locals, starting the preparation for travelers to experience the beauties of their country. For travelers, the struggle to wake up on time for that bus to take you to your destination.
4:00 AM, Beginning of the trek up Mt. Batur for sunrise, pitch black with nothing but a flashlight and a local guide to help you through it.
6:30 AM Reached the peak and another hour until the sun rises. A group of friends who have known one another for a day watch shooting stars and share stories of their adventures. While they wait in the cold hours of the morning to see the the darkness slowly fade and stars disappear from their sights and the sun rising over the horizon. A dance in the sky of natural elements moving in perfect harmony, as we sit and watch.
The journey prompted contemplation about the role of boundaries – are they obstacles to conquer or natural elements that foster connections? Are they thresholds where one state transforms into another? Here, the boundary is where strangers evolve into friends and night transitions into morning.
I began to reflect on my career in architecture and the profound impact design has on our world. It's essential to perceive architecture not as a rigid division between indoor and outdoor but as an entity that harmoniously coexists within the natural environment. The built environment is in a constant state of flux, and as designers, we must grasp the compatibility and interconnectedness between structures and the natural boundaries they inhabit. It's the delicate balance between the man-made and the pre-existing natural world that architects must comprehend to shape the future of design.