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Watergraafsmeer Garden

7/23/2010

On a bike ride last weekend, I accidentally happened upon this elegant community garden in Watergraafsmeer (a section of Amsterdam). I could find no signs with information and no workers in this well-tended site which is dominated by mature perennials now fully in bloom. The choice and placing of the plants creates a delight for the eyes. Soft pastels punctuated by bright yellows and deep reds lures you further along 3 parallel paths. The whole garden is surrounded by a wall of Japanese yews.

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Amsterdam Biodiversity Walk

7/10/2010

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Visitor impressions of Amsterdam often betray the small radius of the typical tourist itinerary. The very tightly packed inner core of old Amsterdam, strung around a series of concentric half-circle canals, is one of the most charming city centers in the world. But the Amsterdam of the majority of its inhabitants - the neighborhoods where most people live - is markedly different, yet quintessentially Dutch. The structure of these neighborhoods makes it clear why Amsterdam ranks near the top in quality of life of major cities in the world.
Squeezing a high quality life out one of the most densely populated places on earth, however, requires resourcefulness. The Dutch make the most out of the space they have, and have somehow integrated a high level of greenery and biodiversity (and "coziness") into even the center of Amsterdam. Other densely populated cities don't usually measure up.
The following pictures take you on a walk through a small piece of Amsterdam, starting at my front door, through a bit of the park next door, and then on to a a close-by neighboorhood. Here's the tour map.

The picture above is taken at the front of my house on Vondelstraat, right next to Vondel Park. It's what I wake up to every morning as I get on my bicycle to go to the office - a ten-minute ride away. The picture doesn't show clearly some small details which are indicative of many larger-scale things in Amsterdam: the paving stones which make up the sidewalk; the carefully hand-laid brick street; the well-groomed trees; the lovingly maintained homes each with unique architectural detail; the underground and basically invisible neighborhood garbage dumpsters; and the ubiquitous bicycle racks. Excellent design built with quality materials, intended to last and often improve with age, all integrate beautifully into a carefully planned urban fabric that stretches out in all directions and gives one a feeling of calm and well-being.

A gate into Vondel Park, just across the street from me. The start of my biodiversity tour. Note the lack of asphalt on the path. It's simply compacted stone and sand. Water can percolate right down through it to the roots of trees and plants.

This is a view over one of the many naturally overgrown canals in the park, looking onto an area inaccessible to the public. The meadow is covered with tall plants bursting into yellow bloom. Keep in mind that this is really in the heart of Amsterdam.

When trees have to be cut down, they are left on the ground, creating habitats for wildlife - not to mention a nice place to sit and take a break.

And not all trees are cut down when dead. This tree has many holes in its trunk in which birds nest, including the quickly proliferating, non-native, screeching green parrots well known (and often maligned) in this park.

The brush and twigs from cleanup in the fall and spring are laid out in long ranks, like a fence. This not only eliminates waste but provides habitats for animals and insects.

Above you can see, in the middle right, some sort of waterfowl spreading its wings. It was making a lot of noise.

All along the periphery a thick band of mixed vegetation insulates the park from the surrounding houses. I saw a rabbit just near here.

Crossing the Overtoom, the major street behind my house, we enter a neighborhood in the Oud West section. The scale of this area is very human, with narrow walkways surrounded by lush greenery. I noticed a large number of swallows in the air above indicating a healthy population of airborne insects.

The greenery extends into the canals, linking this houseboat (there are thousands of them in Amsterdam) and its colorful garden to the trees and shrubbery on the bank.

Often, streets are blocked (with greenery) to keep cars out. It's easiest to get around Amsterdam by bicycle and you sense the tide has turned in this city on the encroachment of the automobile. Pedestrians and bicyclists have priority in many areas.

You won't see manicured lawns on a typical Amsterdam street. Rather freely growing flowers, bushes and trees - and the requisite bicycles - are the norm.

This is one in a series of biodiversity walking tours I take through cities around the world. My next major green tour will be through Tel Aviv in just a few weeks. For more information on my new organization, CitiNature, please click on the Home and About Us tabs at the top of this page.

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Lagos Biodiversity Short Take

1/4/2010

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Much of West Africa was historically lush, tropical forest. Population growth and poverty have come together to bring about a transformation. The place is largely deforested today and Nigeria, in my experience, exhibits environmental degradation at its worst. Lagos, the commercial capital of Nigeria, a rapidly growing megalopolis of 16 million with only sporadically functioning (or totally absent) electricity, water or sewage systems, condenses the worst of Africa (but some nice surprises, as well) into its slightly under 1000 sq. km.

Twilight on one of the main drags in Ikeja, a well-to-do section of Lagos.

I arrived at Lagos' steamy international airport late at night and jostled with the mob at the luggage belt to extract my bags. I was covered in sweat and eager to get to my hotel and a cool shower, but the hotel pick-up I'd arranged in advance was not there. Thank goodness I had asked my friend Collins to come as a backup. In the unlit darkness in front of the airport we met and then rather frantically started negotiating a taxi ride, pushing around a luggage cart in a parking lot lit only by passing car headlights. In the madness, my green nose noticed something: it was moist tropical air with no smell of vegetation. The scents I detected were those of exhaust fumes and charcoal fires.

The next morning I had my first walk in Ikeja, the neighborhood of Lagos in which I based myself. Even in the morning, the sun was unremittingly strong and a person with a bit of common sense would have stayed indoors. But when in Rome... So I decided to do as the Nigerians do and just get out there and do it. It's not that they like the heat and sun, but they have no choice but to get out there and make a living. In all my travel experiences I have to say it's hard to recall a situation as uncomfortable. The almost completel lack of trees meant few reprieves from the blistering sun, which penetrated the asphalt and dirt and then radiated out to cause an intense heat island effect. Bushes and trees being absent, there was nothing in place to filter the dust and black exhaust billowing from the back of most cars and trucks. For a guy who tends to love every place he goes, Lagos was a forlorn exception. If first impressions were any indication, this would not be a particularly pleasant 3 weeks.

The expressway bridge connected mainland Lagos to Lagos Island. Mountains of colorful garbage fill the harbor below.

I was very lucky to have a number of friends in Lagos (and Nigeria, in general), who made my stay here a wonderful experience. It might be wise for me to make clear that this blog posting is meant to give my views of the natural environment of Lagos and is in no way a broad condemnation of this fascinating and vibrant city. But on the environmental front, Lagos is quite a spectacle. The harbor of the city was clearly at one time surrounded by vast wetlands, presumably filled with wildlife. The city has grown over much of the shoreline - including slums that extend out into the water on stilts - and immense shoals of garbage fill areas of the water front, as you see under the bridge in the picture above. But even amid the garbage, where there is water and a little space to grow, shoots of green emerge. You can see some of this at the back of the same picture.

My driver's neck in view, on the back of an 'okada' going to Victoria Island.

In the wealthiest parts of the city, such as Victoria Island, which I am approaching on the back of a 'okada' or motorcycle taxi above, there are some trees and greenery. The climate is really perfect for fostering lush vegetation but poor planning and competition for limited space has done away with most of it. There are signs of hope, however. Along the major highways, and in the areas between interchanges, makeshift huts have been cleared and grass and trees have been planted. The current state governor, Babatunde Fashola, is given much credit by Lagosians I met with making positive changes...including the revolutionary bus system that was introduced in the last couple of years. Most of Lagos' transport is in private hands, comprising a very comprehensive network of small buses (really vans) and motorcyles. But these forms of transport are often expensive, uncomfortable and dangerous. It cost considerably more to take the cheapest form of public transport from where I was staying to the "downtown" than it would to cover a similar distance in New York or Tokyo. People in Lagos spend a huge part of the incomes getting to and from work. But the new bus system, which has dedicated lanes along several main roads and highways, is fast, clean, safe and reasonably priced. It doesn't have enough routes yet to get everywhere in the city, but i found it to be a very comfortable way to get around. There are even special (more expensive) buses with air-conditioning.

An Indian bus (Ashok-Leyland) on the new bus service line in Lagos.

It's encouraging to see some things changing for the better in Lagos, and the long-suffering Nigerians somehow maintain their optimism. I can imagine a city with streets lined with beautiful trees, a canopy of green sheltering the pedestrians from the burning sun, and parks in the vacant land between urban settlements. This city of elegant and intelligent people deserves a lush, tropically green environment, like you might find in Honolulu or Singapore. Nature is resilient and I believe Lagos will get there in a decade or two.

Here I sit in my customary morning position at my hotel, having my oatmeal with powdered milk, and plantains. Although Lagos is in the humid tropics, fresh fruit is not readily found.

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Santa Cruz de Tenerife Biodiversity Short Take

5/6/2009

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With a spring-like climate year round, and a setting of rare natural beauty, Santa Cruz de Tenerife was a unexpectedly pleasant discovery for me. I came to visit my friend Hiromi Hayashi, a Japanese food journalist who I co-wrote a book with in 1991. She lives in Santa Cruz de Tenerife half the year - just off the pedestrian street you see above. In no way did I expect to find the lavish attention on greenery in city planning. Not only are most streets lined with trees, bushes and flowers, but even some buildings spill green off their sides, as you see below.

In the crowded center, with its narrow streets, a transformation has come about...there are trees, quality paving stones, planters everywhere, and benches for people to enjoy their beautiful city. My impression is that much of the beautification and greening has occurred in the last decade or so. This is Spain at its best.

A picture of Hiromi on the edge of a plaza near her home.

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Watergraafsmeer Garden

Amsterdam Biodiversity Walk

Lagos Biodiversity Short Take

Santa Cruz de Tenerife Biodiversity Short Take

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