Some Things Worth Sharing...

I'm here today to talk about some things worth sharing with you guys.  First of all, is the adventure map, second, is a game called The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and last, is a congress bill called S.O.P.A. 

Our Adventure Map on Minecraft   

For the adventure map, we started on the third city and finished 5 good sized buildings.  We've been thinking hard about the map and the storyline, and after some pondering I realized this was a bigger commitment than we were expecting it to be.  When we first started this map, I didn't think it would take too long.  (maybe a couple of months at the most)  But sadly, I don't think that's the case.  For it to be fun and enjoyable, it almost needs to be a game within itself, long and expansive.

The pictures above were taken on the Adventure Map in the town of Sidka.

    All of us are feeling mixed emotions about it.  We feel like it's starting to become a commitment that we really don't feel like getting involved in.  I also do not feel like putting the time into it that it requires.  And besides, I think we all have a lot more fun taking our time and building things just for the sake of building, not so we can finish a deadline or an adventure map within a set time frame.  Now this doesn't mean the end of what we have started.  We will all be seriously thinking about whether we should or shouldn't continue the project.  I will also take into consideration that we don't have to set a deadline by any means, because if we wanted to, we could take our sweet time.  No one is really pressuring us to finish it any time soon.  (even within a couple months)  But unfortunately, there is also a big problem with the NPC plug-in that we run to have those non-player characters that you see in every fantasy game.  It tends to eat up the server's memory and lags it very bad.  So until the developer fixes the issues, we will NOT be able to continue making the map.  We will just have to see how it pans out for us. 

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

On the other hand, is a game made by Bethesda called Skyrim.  Bethesda is a video game company most famous for The Elder Scrolls Saga, a group of open-world fantasy games, and the Fallout Series.  Skyrim is the fifth game in the saga and is set on a province called Skyrim on the planet Nirn.  And of course, this game is also a free-roam fantasy/RPG game.  Some big things about this game are the architecture and the scenery. 

A look inside Skyrim's geography courtesy elderscrolls.wikia.com.

   

    Both are beautiful and the details in this game are amazing.  Intricate architecture, auroras, fish in the rivers, birds in the sky, and even collectible flowers of all kinds dot Bethesda's virtual landscape.  Skyrim is one of the most, if not the MOST beautiful game ever made.  Anyway, this game is beyond words, and I'll be showing some architecture from it soon on my blog.

SOPA

Lastly, I have some very concerning news.  A big, destructive bill has been tapping Congress on the shoulder, asking to be accepted as a law in the U.S. Constitution.  It's called the Stop Online Piracy Act or SOPA.  It was set to be voted on December 21, 2011, but gladly, the vote was postponed until late January in 2012.  Basically, what the bill says is that the government has the power to shut down any site that has any type of copyright infringement.  Doesn't sound that bad does it?  Well, it is very bad.  Let's say that there was some minor video on YouTube that included copyright infringement.  Not just the video would be blocked, but YouTube.com in its entirety.  The bill was started by companies that said that their revenue was "dramatically plummeting" because of online piracy.  This is not the case at all.  For instance, the Motion Picture Association, who by the way signed on to this bill, have had sales the past five years that have gone up 25 percent!  The bill gives the companies and the government way too much power for taking down entire websites.  And it shows how people are so greedy about money.  It pretty much would turn our free Internet into what places like China and North Korea have.  It is NOT to that extreme, but very similar.  It has the power to take down all the things we love about the Internet, like Blogger, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.  It also means that blogs like mine can be shut down.   Now, there are a lot of people that explain this bill way better than I do.  So I suggest you check out this video by TotalBiscuit below.  He is a UK law graduate, a video commentator, and YouTube let's player.

   If you want to stop this bill, you can contact your representative, or sign a quick petition against the bill.  Information about all of this can be found on the references below. 

References:

The following are all references from TotalBiscuit's video:

>> http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/ngd4r/i_work_in_news_this_is_how_...

>> http://tinyurl.com/techdirtsopa
>> http://reddit.com/r/sopa
>> http://www.americancensorship.org
>> http://tinyurl.com/universalcensors
>> http://tinyurl.com/writetocongress
>> http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet
>> http://t.co/vIhyPU9z
>> http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2011/12/sopa-vote-delayed/
>> https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/12/free-speechs-weak-links-under-internet

The following are references I used on this post:

>> Minecraft Far Lands or Bust #103 - SOPA In Your Eyes

>> Skyrim Wiki

>> Skyrim: Official Site

On a side reference:

>> I would like to thank Kurt J. Mac for raising more awareness about the SOPA bill, which he talked about on episode 103 of his walk-a-thon for Child's Play Charity called "Far Lands or Bust"  (I would suggest checking him out!)



Today's ArchiPic #82

Photos by Werner Huthmacher

    Today's ArchiPic is the Albrechtsburg castle in Meissen, Germany.  The castle is now a place where the residents can look back in time by seeing the art and history of the small, river town.  Richly decorated, aluminum, glass, and mirrors make this castle a very intricate place to be.  Much like a time warp, Albrechtsburg is 540 years old, and it has very old artifacts, possibly dating back to the 15th century. 


   
    It was restored way back in 1970 and was open to the public but was never turned into a museum.  That's why interior architects Carsten Gerhards and Andreas Glücker turned this place into an architectural time warp.  They completed it in May of this year, and the castle has a total of about 53,800 square feet of space.  It's a great example of how a castle can be turned into a museum while still incorporating that infamous European style of spatial structure, vaulting, windows, and staircases.

Read more at http://archrecord.construction.com/projects/recordinteriors/2011/Albrechtsburg-Meissen.asp

Inspiring the Making of Cement with Coral

    I'm doing something different I don't normally do.  Today, I'm going to be posting some videos, and the first one out of this (possible) future series is about Bio mimicry and how to use it to make cement the way coral does.  It's a growing problem every day for architectural engineers, trying to find a way to limit pollution can be tricky.  That's why Brent Constantz, a Bio mineralization scientist, is studying the way coral creates its structures out of carbon dioxide and using that information to create cement without releasing destructive carbon dioxide gases.

    Coral builds reefs with carbon dioxide and water, and Constantz has found a way to make cement out of the same thing.  His process is supposed to actually remove the carbon dioxide from the air.  It's absolutely genius.  The process goes like this, "Constantz's company Calera in Monterrey Bay, takes waste CO2 gas from a local power plant and dissolves it into seawater to form carbonate, which mixes with calcium in the seawater and creates a solid," said FastCompany.com.

References:
>> http://www.fastcompany.com/biomimicry/making-cement-the-way-coral-does-it-out-of-thin-air
>> http://www.archdaily.com/192263/learning-from-coral-to-make-cement/
>> Video from: http://www.youtube.com/user/FastCompany

Today's ArchiPic #81

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum courtesy Wikipedia.org

    Today's ArchiPic is the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum at 1071 Fifth Avenue in New York City.  My favorite architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, designed the museum, and he was inspired by the Japanese Thatcheria Mirabilis, commonly known as the Japanese "Wonder Shell."  A cone-shaped shell, it's considered to be the most exquisite in the world.  The museum went into an extensive renovation in 2005 to 2008, but is still one of the most well-known museums in America, especially in New York.  It is also one of Frank Lloyd Wright's most astonishing architectural creations in the 20th century.

 

 ^^Skylight in the center of the museum

    Solomon Guggenheim was a business man, art collector, and philanthropist.  Guggenheim asked Frank Lloyd Wright to create a museum for him, and Wright gladly accepted.  It took him over 15 years to design the museum.  Even after Solomon Guggenheim died, ten years later, the museum opened to the public on October 21, 1959.  This was also Wright's major last creation before he died on April 9, 1959.  Although Wright wasn't there to oversee the Guggenheim Museum, it was completed in the same design as his drawings and measurements that he worked on for over 15 years.  The building does face criticism though.  It has often been said that "it overshadows the artworks displayed within."  And it is also difficult to put paintings on the shallow niches that go around the spire.  Even with its criticism, the building is an amazing one no doubt, and it will stand for a long time with its graceful, cone-shape design.  On October 6, 2008, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum was a registered as a National Historic Landmark.

References:

>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon_R._Guggenheim_Museum 

>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Lloyd_Wright 

>> Thatcheria Mirabilis (Japanese Wonder Shell) 

Minecraft Update? No...

   Finally, we got something done.  The entire weekend, we worked on the third city and got a total of four small structures complete!  So...technically, I have nothing to show you.  But I do have a little something to talk about.  As you know, semester finals are coming up for us students, and I won't be able to play Minecraft until Christmas break.  But, I wanted to post a video from FyreUK.  I love their creations that they build on their server, and every time lapse they do I can't help but be amazed.  I saw this video a couple weeks ago, and I thought I should show it to you guys.  It's called the Great Nordic Hall, and using their advanced, mystical powers, they created a type of build that I have never seen before in Minecraft.

    The thing I really noticed about the Nordic Hall itself was that they built the frame first, which is an important part to understanding how to build architecture on this scale in Minecraft.  It also didn't really occur to me how massive the whole area was.  After watching it a few times, I saw that the amount of terrain editing used was tremendous.  The build, again, was absolutely stunning.  This is what I want our adventure map to feel like: big, bold, and bright.  (Something that will stun and amaze the people who play it)  So until next time, enjoy the ARCHITECTURE!  And don't forget the great FyreUK members and their channel.  (Link is below)

References:

>> http://www.youtube.com/user/FyreUK#p/u

>> Previous Minecraft Update Post

    

Today's ArchiPic #80

Ski Home in Aspen, Colorado, from architecturaldigest.com

    Today's ArchiPic is the more than beautiful Ski Home in the town of Aspen, Colorado.  Architects Alexandra and Michael Misczynski of Atelier AM were in charge of redesigning and renovating this twenty year old cabin for a Chicago family.  They're best known for their elegant interior designs and are well respected.  They would have to be to redesign a home like this.  Atelier AM has had a long list of clients, including Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, and the former CEO of Disney.  

    The original architect of the house was brought in to oversee the renovating and make sure that the home kept its cabin environment and feel.  “I like the look and feel of their work.  The style isn’t pretentious, yet it’s beautifully done. It has a very natural quality," said the Chicago family. 

Read more at www.architecturaldigest.com

Minecraft Update #2

    I wanted to give you guys an update on what has been going on...well not much.  We have finished the second city and are halfway done with the pathway that leads to the town of Sidka.  (the third city)  Some cities will have more to show than others, and I don't guarantee that each city will include something architecturally unique.  But most cities will have at least one thing worth showing on this blog, and I think it will turn out really well for the server. 

    Don't forget that the storyline/map will be expansive and very big.  Even if you play the map perfectly with no set-backs, it will probably take you at least 3 hours to complete.  (Hopefully!  That's the experience we are aiming for.)  Anyways, architecture is a big factor in making this map because while I like making World of Warcraft style adventure maps, I love creating and designing architecture.  And with the help of my friends, we will be able to speed this along quite nicely when we get out of school for Christmas break!  (Two weeks of awesomeness)  Yes, I will see you guys again very soon when we complete the town of Sidka!  Be looking forward to an update sometime during Christmas break.  (I'll try my best) 

Today's ArchiPic #79

Photos by John Edward Linden

    Today's ArchiPic is the beautiful Contemporary Art Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina.  Nicknamed CAM, the museum is a new favorite place for the fastest growing city in North Carolina and was designed by Brooks + Scarpa from Los Angeles.  A creative and intricate design makes CAM stand out from other Contemporary art museums in the country.  With a cost of about 3.4 million US dollars, the museum has over 22,300 square feet of space. 


   
    “The idea is that you have a building from a period that is heavy and permanent.  The [canopy] is light and floating, so there is tension between the two—one representing today and the other yesterday," said Scarpa.  CAM's angular features make it also stand out from the crowd of museums.  I think CAM has an amazing design, and it should be recognized for its uniqueness.  I have seen many Contemporary art museums, and this one is notably one of the best.

References:
>> Read the full post about CAM here.

Dazzling Designs | Waterfront Toronto

    Toronto, Canada, has been booming.  With newly constructed buildings and skyscrapers coming up every week, the city is experiencing, not just an economic boom, but a construction boom.  It's a rare sight to see in many North Amercian cities, where there isn't much construction, simply because of the world's economic crisis.  Toronto, with its current population of 2.5 million, has been gaining 80,000 to 100,000 people per year!  And it's real estate sector has been moving along quite nicely since the 1990s. 



    There is over 147 high-rise buildings being constructed right now in the city, and it's only getting bigger.  Suburbs also have been experiencing the boom, with towers popping up there, it's an interesting sight to see.  A larger project called the Waterfront Toronto Project, is currently being designed by Michael van Valkenburgh, Moshe Safdie, Pelli Clarke Pelli, and Saucier + Perrotte.  When the project is done, the architects plan that the waterfront will be able to have over 40,000 residents.  And don't forget that this group of people are going to make sure the Toronto Waterfront will make your draw drop.  (That's their job!) 



    Because of other cities having bad economic downfalls, residents of Toronto fear that the real estate bubble will go to far and bust.  There are also critics that don't like how fast the city is growing.   “We have a city that isn’t proactively planned, and hasn’t been for years now,” says Meg Graham.  He is the principal of the firm Superkül Architect and a professor at the University of Toronto’s architecture school.  But many people disagree.  The city is booming, and there are good plans in place to make sure this all goes well for Toronto's residents.  Downtown Toronto is also booming, and having more wealthy residents is helping it speed up.



    It's also hard to believe that about 50 percent of all the residents in Toronto, Canada, are foreign-born.  The city has very strong education systems and social services, so Toronto is unlikely to not be able to fund the waterfront project.  Siamak Hariri, a German born architect that studied at Yale said, “People have developed an appetite for apartment living. I think the city is anticipating a dramatic shift toward a more sophisticated, European environment.”



(Awesomeness to the Extreme!)

*All images and information are from archrecord.construction.com.
References:
>> http://archrecord.construction.com/news/2011/11/Toronto-on-the-Rise.asp
>> Slideshow here. (Also from archrecord.construction.com)

Today's ArchiPic #78

Central Lounge/Sushi Bar from archinect.com

    Today's ArchiPic is the Central Lounge and Sushi Bar in Astoria, New York.  It consists of a sushi bar/lounge area (obviously.)  Its main purpose was to incorporate the same experience you get from a luxury sushi bar while mixing it into a lounge area.  Two bars, rectangular and circular, are the rooms' centerpieces, while the lounge chairs are around them.  Expensive, LED lights provide a blue-ish glow around the two bars, creating a supper club feel.  The tops of the counters are made from slabs of back-lit onyx.  (It's a variety of chalcedony which is a crystalline form of silica.)

References:
>> http://archinect.com/firms/project/12452538/central-lounge/29870844
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onyx
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalcedony

Minecraft Update

    As you know, we have been spending as much time as we can on the adventure map.  So, I wanted to give guys a quick update.  We haven't made much more progress because we have just been busy with school and all.  Although we will be working on it alot Christmas break, I don't plan to have it done after our two weeks that we have off from school.  It might take another month or two, but in the end, it will be worth all this hard work.  And the end result of the entire map will be spectacular.  There won't be anything worth showing until we get something massive done on Christmas break.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Real architecture is coming tonight! (More specifically Today's ArchiPic #78)

Minecraft | Inspiration

    Architecture in Minecraft can truly be amazing.  Some of the structures I have seen from videos on YouTube are mind-blowing to say the least.  Looking for inspiration for the new adventure map, I found a fly through video of this guy's server.  He was been working on it for months now, and his world is based upon his book called Draegonborn.  Since it has a medieval setting, his world is very mystical.  It has a perfect RPG game feel.  His world is a perfect example of what our adventure map should feel like.  The video is an eight minute fly through from the city Nikifim to the tree city of Altmis.  Don't forget to checkout the YouTube channel of vssdgames.  He has three other videos of his world that you can see.  Also remember that he is not done yet and he will be making more video updates of his progress.

References:

>> vssdgames's channel

>> Previous Adventure Map Update

Today's ArchiPic #77

>> Denver Art Museum - 1971 Building


Denver Art Museum - Present day version from en.wikipedia.org

    Today's ArchiPic is the beautiful and magnificent Denver Art Museum in (You guessed it!) Denver, Colorado.  Located in Denver's Civic Center, the art museum is best known for its collection of American Indian art and a massive inventory collected from over 40 years of 68,000 pieces of art from all around the world.  Over the past forty years, the Denver Art Museum has gone through two major transformations.  The old building was built in 1971 and had a very different design and look.  (top of the post)  The new building has a much more modern look, and its design is very sharp.  (no pun intented)

HOUSES 101 | Stone Creek Camp

    Stone Creek Camp is a four-building compound in Bigfork, Montana.  It is a project led by Andersson Wise Architects.  Their clients Connie and Martin Stone, had a previous house designed for them in Tuscon, Arizona by the same company.  This time, Andersson Wise Architects are making a camp near Bigfork, Montana, at Flathead Lake called Stone Creek Camp.  The couple said that they wanted the group to create an environment for them where they felt "both protected and in nature" at the same time. 

 

   The camp/house makes a perfect place for a peaceful vacation and has a great view of the lake.  Its rooms all have a unique personality and feel, but they all have tight, cave-like spaces with good-size porches.  To get to the camp, you take a trail through the dense forest and arrive at the 1,900 square foot gatehouse.  After the gatehouse, comes a lodge, guesthouse, and the 3,200 square foot "master" house.  This is where Connie and Martin Stone spend most of their time, with there bathrooms, bedrooms, living room, and offices inside the back part of the house.  (which is closest to the lake) 



You can actually move the walls in between rooms, which provides a great experience with the outdoors being indoors.  The master house is designed so it blends in with the landscape, and it creates a good resting place where the clients can go without being disrupted by guests. 



    The living spaces seperate from the "master" house consist of black-stained cedar with pitched Corten steel roofs.  The architects are building walls from re-used douglas fir, larch, and grand fir trees in the upper side of the house.  And the walls are also waterproof!  The house has a "natural roughness" that matches the theme of the outdoors.  All the compounds were strategically placed to avoid the underground water streams' paths, which flow to Flathead Lake.  Connie Stone says, “If I could pick one word to describe the spaces, both inside and out, I’d call them ‘pure.’ Everything is resolved, everything is correct.”

References:
>> Information and Pictures from archrecord.construction.com
>> Previous HOUSES 101 Post

Today's ArchiPic #76

[All pictures' links were broken. I will make sure this never again happens in the future. Sorry for the inconvenience. This has been fixed for most recent posts. Older posts might still have this issue.]

Turtagro Hotel from openbuildings.com.

    Today's ArchiPic is the Turtagro Hotel in Sognefjellet, Norway.  After the original hotel burned down in 2001, Jarmund/Vigsnaes AS Architects MNAL designed the new hotel.  The owner wanted to keep the old hotel's atmosphere the same with its recognizable scale, spatial sequence, colors, and materials. 

Minecraft | Server Update

Okay, some things have changed on the server from my last update and I want to tell you what the heck is going on. 

    Shortly after I posted the last update about the survival and creative worlds, my friends and I made a decision to make an adventure map and a survival world.  The adventure map is what we have been working on, and it has a storyline to it.  Some amazing pieces of architecture will be made in the map and it will look truly spectacular.  It is also supposed to have a World of Warcraft/Assassin's Creed sort of feel, and it will have a story that the player has to follow.  As you walk around and travel on an epic journey, you find dungeons, secrets, massive cities, and more! 

    Architecture WILL be a big factor in making this map.  I'll make sure that when we are creating anything architectural that it looks good and won't disappoint, especially when it comes to big cities.  There will be no Cali Project updates in awhile until we are done with the map, which might end up being a couple months.  (It all depends on how much time we spend every week and weekend working on it.)  But there will be updates on the map as soon as we start making some massive creations.  And don't forget that tonight, I will be posting the next Today's ArchiPic installment and tomorrow, I'll be posting even more architecture.   (Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!)

Today's ArchiPic #75

   
               Picture taken by Kikos Dad
    Today's ArchiPic is the Hundertwasser Building in Darmstadt, Germany.  I chose it today because it has the most unique paint design I have ever seen on a building.  It is also known as the "Forest Spiral" and was designed by a famous Austrian architect and painter that is well-known for his colorful painting designs.  The Hundertwasser is composed of 105 apartments that circle around a beautiful garden and fountain with a cocktail bar and restaurant.

An Update on Things to Come

    It's 1:00 p.m. here in Oklahoma as I'm writing this, and I thought that since I was so bored, I should post an update on my blog.  I didn't post Saturday and Sunday, not that I didn't have enough time, but because it is just hard to stay consistent on this blog, especially when I am on a week-long Thanksgiving break!  (I feel bad for the people that have to go to school today and tomorrow)  Anyways, the full release of Minecraft came out last Friday, (November 18) and I have been setting up the new server.

    The Cali Project was saved using worldedit, and I will eventually paste it back into the new world once we are done setting up everything else.  First of all, we have decided to have two worlds: one survival and one creative.  Tomorrow and maybe even today, we will get started on the survival world's spawn city, which will include at least a central trade center and railroad.  Once we finish that, I will post a tour of the spawn city on this blog and show you what we've done.  The idea behind the survival world is that it will feel like an mmo-rpg, (massively multiplayer online role playing game, I know it's a mouthful) while still incorporating breathtaking pieces of architecture.  After the spawn city, I will paste the Cali Project back into the creative world, and my friend and I will start working on it again.  That's it for Minecraft.  Let's move on to some real architecture!

    For architecture made in real life, I will be posting Today's ArchiPic right after this post.  And for later this week, I'll try to fit in some Dazzling Designs and/or HOUSES 101.  Again, sorry for being so lazy!  It's Thanksgiving break what do you expect? 

An Update on my Blog

    I didn't post any real architecture last night because I was just too busy with homework and studying for tests today.  I don't know if I will be able today either.  Anyway, I will try my best to get some real architecture posts like Today's ArchiPic, Dazzling Designs, and HOUSES 101 out later this week and weekend.  So until next time, enjoy the ARCHITECTURE!

Minecraft Creations | Cali Project Update #2

    Last weekend, my friend and I again worked on the Cali Project.  As you can probably see, we have made a lot of progress.  So far we have added, in the three days we worked on it, a new market, church, library, indoor pool, pub/bar, jail, garden/park, farm, and a farm house.  That's a bunch of stuff for two people in three days.  Trust me, we rarely played all day in those three days.  You won't believe that we have done this much, yet we still aren't even halfway done with the Cali Project!

    The picture above is the overall view of the town plaza and upper class areas.

    This is the other side of the city, and it will be the lower class side when you get passed the indoor, public pool, which is in the left/middle of the picture.

(Another view of the entire town plaza.  Town hall in the middle, church on the left of it, library on the right, and on the far right with black and white overhangs is the pub.)

    We decided to add another market that is inside the town plaza.  If this city was populated, it would be a market that could be used by both upper and lower class people.  Each side has four colors: sky blue, lime green, sherbet orange, and crimson red. 

   The church's design was actually based on the church at Pine Village that we made.  (If you want to see that church please visit the link at the bottom of the post.)  The church at the Cali Project is very similar but a lot smaller than the one at Pine Village.  Although we didn't have enough room in our plot, we made the best of what we had.  So, we created an elegant church that looks small on the outside, but opens up on the inside.

   I just had to note the brick on this texture pack.  (picture above)  The detail looks amazing.

    A great and little add-on to the town plaza was the Elliott Pub.  It looks simplistic on the inside and has a very interesting bar/coffee shop feel.

    Again, the material used in most of the city's residential and commercial districts stay consistent with stone, sandstone, and wood as the main building material. I will also note that brick is a great choice for flooring, and we will be using it in most commercial buildings in the town plaza and upper class areas. (Lower class areas will most likely have different materials used in buildings and homes. The materials will stay consistent with stone and wood, but instead of sandstone, we will most likely use gravel and/or cobblestone.)

    The town library is a very cool place to visit.  It took only about 10 minutes to make and consists of a checkout counter, lounge area (where you can read), and 4 rows of books.

    The glowstone on this texture pack is blue, making it have a blue-ish glow to it.  (especially when you use stone for the ceiling like we did in the library.)  It is unique because at night, the library glows blue on the inside.  Glowstone can be seen in the picture above as a bright, blue/purple light in the ceiling.

   No city can be complete without their own county jail!  This took around 30 minutes to make and was very fun. 

    The cell walls are mossy cobblestone, creating a very old and dirty feeling.  Making the inside glow, are the glowstone lamps in the ceiling.  They, again, create a very blue-ish, purple glow.

    Each cell is 4x4 blocks, has a marble toilet, and one bed. (If you counted the walls, the cells would be 5x5 blocks.)

    Walking past the jail, brings you into a beautiful park called Country Gardens.  It is circular in shape and is symmetrical in its design. 

    A 6x6 block fountain shines in the center, while the shrubbery and flower boxes go around it. There is also seating on the inside of the shrubbery on all four sides.

   It is a very relaxing park that is a great place on breezy, cool nights. 

    Moving on, is Ravencraft and Sons' Pool Club.  It is an indoor pool that includes a refreshment bar, lounge chairs, and a giant pool that has underwater lighting designs courtesy of the glowstone lights.  But this pool club is members only, and to get in you have to put two diamonds in the chest at the front and write your full name on the bulletin board.

   Lastly is the farmhouse and farm on the outskirts of town.  I got to give credit to my friend for making an awesome little cottage in the picture above.  The wheat farm took us awhile to make.  It was a pain because we had to plant each individual seed then use bone meal to make them grow instantly.  (remember each seed is a block)  Thankfully, I had my trusty WorldEdit tool and just stacked one row and copied it for the rest of the field.

  The outcome was pretty cool.  (Especially at night!)

   The next update, again, will most likely be next week on Tuesday.  Yay!  I just remembered we have a week off for Thanksgiving next week.  That means more time to work on the Cali Project and more updates in one week!  And for those of you that are not a fan of all this video game architecture.  There is more real architecture coming tomorrow!  (one more thing!)  The Cali Project is projected to be done around the end of the month but no promises about that.  I think it will be the most amazing city creation yet.  I thank my friend for coming up with the idea of the Cali Estate and for helping me design and expand the Cali Project.  It would be a lot different if he wasn't there.  So until next time, enjoy the ARCHITECTURE!

References:
>> Minecraft Creations Pine Village Church Post
>> Previous Cali Project Update