CornerstoneSan Francisco - Hong Kong Scholarship Exchange Program 2012

Connie, Wong Po YiWeekly Report

To me, cross-cultural understanding is crucial to architects. While I always believed that spatial design influences the lives of every individual, groups of people and even the whole of society, I have been educated in my school that the regional design of architecture is a result of its cultural background. I hope I can gain experiences as well as inspirations during the month living and working with people in San Francisco. Equally important to me is my opportunity to share with Americans about the unique Hong Kong and Chinese culture that I have always been proud of. I believe the purpose of organizing cultural exchange programs over different cities is to benefit the participants with the mutual understanding of different cultures and to promote the self-reflection of themselves - in terms of their cultural background and identities.

WHY DID I JOIN THIS PROGRAM?

I hope to be inspired by visiting US companies from different industries. I am especially interested in learning more about the “green” building technologies in the United States. These would be highly beneficial to me as I am very concerned with the current environmental issues in Hong Kong In addition, I wanted to explore new business concepts. These inspirations will certainly be helpful to my work on the integration of innovative building technologies with an edging architectural design in the future. I also wish to expand my social network and learn from the experiences of successful individuals through the mentorship program.

WHAT DO I EXPECT FROM THE PROGRAM?

Week 1 (6/23 - 7/1)Week 2 (7/2 - 7/8)Week 3 (7/9 - 7/15)Week 4 (7/16 - 7/22)

CONTENTP. 4-13P.14-21P.22-29P.30-37

4

Week 12012/6/23 - 2012/7/1The First Week in San Francisco

Fisherman’s Wharf

5

Today was the first day that I traveled around San Francisco. I decided to go downtown. I took the BART to Powell Street station. BART is a really convenient public transport for people travelling between Daly City and San Francisco. After a 15-minute ride, I arrived at the most prosperous place in San Francisco, the downtown area. Union Square, located in the heart of the downtown area, is really a mecca for shoppers. There are lots of boutiques and department stores.I had lunch in a Mexican restaurant. One common feature that both Hong Kong and San Francisco shares is diversity. Different kinds of choices are available in various aspects. After lunch, I walked along Maiden Lane, which is a street with elegant buildings and decorations.

23 June 2012 (Saturday) | Day 1

Union Square

Mexican Food

Downtown of San Francisco

6

Today started with a piece of bad news. The mother of Mrs. Wong passed away in the morning.I was invited to go to the church that the Wong’s family attends, and I mourned. After worship, I went to the Golden Gate Park. The park is enormous. It boasts countless attractions, including the California Academy of Sciences, Japanese Tea Garden, Stow Lake and more. I love the park as I enjoy relaxing in a natural environment. After a walk in the Golden Gate Park, I took MUNI to the Golden Gate Bridge, which is a renowned attraction in San Francisco. Because there was no fog, this allows me to observe the magnificent Golden Gate Bridge and the entire skyline of San Francisco as well as the hilly San Francisco landscape.

24 June 2012 (Sunday) | Day 2

The Golden Gate Bridge

Skyline of San Francisco

Golden Gate Park// Golden Gate Bridge

7

This was the first time we stepped foot in the Cornerstone office on Montgomery Street, which is located in the financial district. Beth introduced the office facilities to us. After we settled down in the office, we started to plan our schedule for the coming month. At noon, we visited the house that we will live in for our remaining time in San Francisco. The apartment is near Fisherman’s Wharf. We packed our luggage and moved into the new house at night.

25 June 2012 (Monday) | Day 3

Historical Tram

Office

First Day of Work

8

The CFEA meeting is the highlight of the day. This was the first time that I met with my students .They were mostly 17 to 18-years old though some of them have kids already. I saw a glimpse of hope in some of their eyes after the session; the hope for a brighter future. I wish I can act as a stepping stone for them as they continue on their path to become successful individuals. Afterwards, we had a staff meeting at 3PM. Mr. Perry was not only concerned with business affairs, but he also cared about our everyday lives.In developing a close interaction and mutual support as the foundation of the meeting, this can substantially enhance our sense of belonging to the company. Thereafter, we had a meeting with Mr. Perry and we discussed about our expectations for the program. After a simple review of our planned schedule, we were given a new project to research on white paper, trademark, and copyright. Today was an enriching day that ended with a lesson from Mr. Perry. The skills that I learned today were: 1. We must ask the time that we should hand in our work whenever the boss has not informed us. 2. We should send a handwritten thank you letter within 3 days of meeting an important person because this is useful in building a social network for future connections.After working at the office for the whole day, I went to Santa Clara with Ming. There was a marching band competition. Although we only had little time listening to the band, it was still an unforgettable experience.

26 June 2012 (Tuesday) | Day 4Marching Band

CFEA meeting// Staff Meeting// Marching Band Competition

9

It was a busy day and I started working on the project that was previously assigned by Mr. Perry. We found the information about copyright and trademark and I learned a lot during the research. We finished the white papers at noon and had a short meeting with Mr. Perry in which he taught us our second lesson; whenever you don’t know what your boss is asking, simply respond “I don’t know, but I will find out more about it”. You can guess, but you should never pretend you know and talk about something that you are unsure of as this would be a waste of time for both parties. Then, we got a new assignment.Today was the first day of lessons in Camp Sweeney. Raj set the goal for the next two days. Our goal was to finish at least two elevations. I led the third group, which included Vincent, Tavon and Ricco. However, Raj said that Ricco has not worked for the past two weeks and it was very challenging for me to arouse his interest. Vincent and Tavon started to draw their first elevations but I realized their use of basic drafting tools, such as T-square and triangles, was still very weak. However, I believed their performance will improve after several reminders.

27 June 2012 (Wednesday) | Day 5

Site Model

Bay FairCFEA Lesson

Reseaches// CFEA lesson

10

In the morning, we worked on the assignments that Mr. Perry gave us yesterday. We found more useful information about trademark registration . I learned about the process of registering trademark and advices provided by the government. I would have never checked these out if I did not have to do this research. Undoubtedly, it was a good chance for me to learn more apart from architectural knowledge. It was the second day in Camp Sweeney. The most encouraging thing was that Ricco started to become more engaged in the project. That in turn has made me want to help him more. What the teenagers in Camp Sweeney need are simply guidance and affirmation from us, the instructors. Although these youngsters have made mistakes in the past, but it is still possible for them to grow healthily, with continual guidance and motivation from us. We had to be very patient in front of these teens as their attention-spans were very short, which made our job more challenging. Toward the end, there was a mini-sharing session by a stage designer. The sharing session was very impressive to both me and the teens because the speaker was very passionate about her job in designing stage sets. At night, we went to the California Academy of Sciences with Martin. It was a unique experience because the museum has multiple exhibitions with music playing and with cocktails offered as well.

28 June 2012 (Thursday) | Day 6

Vincent and Ricco

NightlifeSharing Session

Reseaches// CFEA lesson// Nightlife

11

After we finished designing the logo for the new education program, we visited the St. Mary’s Cathedral. The Cathedral has an innovative design at the time that it was built. It was quite different from the traditional gothic Cathedral. The building encompasses its use for both ancient faith and modern technology. The curvy external wall is remarkable. It wasn’t my favorite religious architectural example but it was worth the visit. At night, we went with Ming to the Lanza CD release concert. It was held in a church located on the Ocean Avenue. It was a unique experience because the attendees were all very diverse. They were all Christians with different ethnic background but all of them were very engaged in the sharing session.

29 June 2012 (Friday) | Day 7

Sanctuary, St. Mary’s Cathedral

Stained Glass Window, St. Mary’s Cathedral

Logo Design// St. Mary’s Cathedral

12

Today was the funeral of Mrs. Wong’s mother. In the evening, I was invited by Ming to attend the vision sharing organized by the Chinese Christian Herald Crusades. It was held in Crosspoint Church in Silicon Valley. The church building was transformed from a factory building. They had to fight for the permit to build a church for a long period.

30 June 2012 (Saturday) | Day 8

The Ceremony

Blackboard Wall in a Room, Crosspoint Church

Funeral// Vision Sharing

13

Today, I traveled around San Francisco as a tourist. I visited the Ghirardelli Square, which is near our house. Then I went to visit a gallery exhibiting the paintings of LeRoy Neiman.Afterwards, I went downtown and took the cable car. I loved taking the cable car as it is a historical form of transportation. The cars are beautiful. After taking the cable car, I visited Lombard Street. There are eight hairpin switchbacks. It is well known as “the crookedest street in the world.”The next attraction was Coit Tower, which provides an excellent view to the entire San Francisco skyline. However, today was so foggy that the view was not really good. Finally, I had a walk along the Embarcadero.Today was really an enjoyable day!

1 July 2012 (Sunday) | Day 9

Ghirardelli Square

Lombard Street

Sightseeing

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Week 22012/7/2 - 2012/7/8The Second Week in San Francisco

Cable Car

15

We finished our weekly report in the morning and prepared ourselves for the CFEA lesson in the afternoon. Today, a guest speaker, Robert, was invited to come and give a quick talk to the students. Robert was one of the students in the past CFEA program. He shared what he had done in these few years. What impressed me the most was how Robert believed that it would never be too late to strive for a better future. His words were very encouraging and I remembered him saying that even when you are 30, you can still start and strive for that success. IT WILL NEVER BE TOO LATE. This talk was applicable for every single student. The CFEA lesson ran smoothly today. Tavon and Ricco worked on the last two drafts of elevations while Vincent started to draw the final first floor plan. Our target for tomorrow is to finish all final floor plan drawings and draft elevations.We monitored the progress of the students carefully hoping that they can finish all the final drawings by the end of this week. If they can finish all the drawings by that deadline, they will have one and a half week to work on the final model. Raj said that they used to have three weeks for making the final model and that was still not enough according to Raj’s past experience. Therefore, they must finish all the drawings within this week. Otherwise, it is impossible for them to get all the presentation materials, including the panel, models and drawings, done well.

2 July 2012 (Monday) | Day 10Guest Speaker

Office// CFEA lesson

16

Today, we received a simple assignment from Ming. Although it was simple, I learned a lot from it. I learned about the critical path method, which is a common scheduling concept utilized in construction management. All activities required for the project have to be listed along with the duration of each activity and their dependencies. The critical path method determines critical activities and calculates the longest path of these activities to the completion of the project. I believed that if I work at any task wholeheartedly, it will be rewarding no matter how simple that particular task is. There are always new things that I can learn.Then, we continued to design the logo, which I found to be quite challenging because we have to convey a clear and meaningful message in a small graphic. I hoped the design could convey the mission, vision, and values of the company.Although we wanted to meet Mr. Perry in the morning to review the past one-week schedule, we hadto arrive at camp Sweeney earlier today in order to catch up with the schedule. Therefore, we will have to wait until Thursday to meet Mr. Perry.Toward the end of the day, I went shopping at an enormous supermarket, Walmart.

3 July 2012 (Tuesday) | Day 11Walmart

Office//CFEA lesson

17

Today was Independence Day in the US. We did not have to work at the office nor teach in Camp Sweeney. In the morning, we went to Union Square to check out how busy the district was on a public holiday. Our landlady, Wing, invited us to have a barbecue at noon. So we went back home at noon. I really enjoyed the great weather and the delicious food. We also sang and chatted with Wing’s friend. In the afternoon, Ming drove us to the Great Mall outlet. It was so huge that we spent almost 3 hours there. We had a buffet-style dinner and that was the first time I had buffet in San Francisco. It was delicious and before we went home, we even saw people playing fireworks in the open!

4 July 2012 (Wednesday) | Day 12

Great Mall Outlet

Firework

Union Square//Barbecue//Great Mall Outlet

18

We met Mr. Perry in the morning and we finally had time to review the logo design and confirm the coming schedule with him. It seems that our coming week will be very busy! Afterwards, we also talked to Raj about our planning. We will try our best to finish the model by Wednesday, and Thursday the latest. We all had our own commitment. We committed to finish our models on time; Mr. Perry committed to arrange more intern experiences for us; Raj committed to handle all logistic affairs for the graduation. I know that the graduation means a lot to the students. So we must prepare the projects well. I think we have to catch up as much as possible in terms of our schedule.

5 July 2012 (Thursday) | Day 13

Final Floor Plan

Meeting//CFEA Lesson

Bay Fair

19

We came back to Camp Sweeney at 10A.M. today. Eric, Raj, and I started to make the model base. Although we have made many models in school, such as concept models, site models, and final building models, this is still the first time that we made such a gigantic model. The most challenging part of the project was not the making of a huge model, rather it is finding a balance of time between finishing the model and teaching the students. Today, we went back home by cable car and enjoyed the beautiful night view of San Francisco along the way.

6 July 2012 (Friday) | Day 14Night Scene of San Francisco

Model

CFEA Lesson

20

We had Dol Ho in China Town for brunch with Eric’s friend, Claudia and Chris. I haven’t had Chinese food for a long time. Then we went to the City Night bookstore. It is a neat bookstore and I enjoyed reading and resting there. At the end, I bought a book as well!The highlight of today was watching the UFC event at Mr. Perry’s home. It was very exciting as this was the first time that I watched the UFC. I was very happy that Silva won the championship!We met many new friends. Some of them were learning martial arts while some were actually teaching martial arts. They all love it. Since we missed the last BART train heading back to San Francisco, we stayed at Mr. Perry’s home for the night.

7 July 2012 (Saturday) | Day 15

Dol Ho

UFC

UFC

21

After a good sleep, we had an American breakfast with Mr. Perry. As we were invited to go shopping and have dinner with Claudia and Chris, we could not stay at Half Moon Bay longer for sightseeing. I hope I can come back to this beautiful district to walk around someday.We met Claudia and Chris at 3P.M.. They drove us to the Vacaville premium outlet. Then we went to their house and had dinner together. Claudia is really good at cooking. She made pizza and macaroni and cheese for us. We were very full after the dinner. It was an awesome night with tasty food and great company!

8 July 2012 (Sunday) | Day 16

Scenery Outside Mr. Perry’s Home

Outlet

On BART

22

Week 32012/7/9 - 2012/7/15The Third Week in San Francisco

Fisherman’s Wharf

23

Today was very challenging because we had to change our teaching approach . I was switched to another group. The students from the original group felt a little bit discontent about it. I thought that I had to spend more time communicating with the students and Raj.Both groups are working on the partitions of the models. It took lots of time for the students to practice cutting. They had to be patient in order to cut the partition wall nicely. I was very proud of them when I saw the half-finished models.

9 July 2012 (Monday) | Day 17

Model

Model

CFEA Lesson

24

Mr. Perry came to Camp Sweeney today. We had a small meeting with Mr. Perry and Raj. It is very important to communicate with partners if we all want to get something done well. We had the same target and expectation after the meeting. After the CFEA lesson, we went to dinner with Lionel and Kevin. We met them at Mr. Perry’s home on Saturday. They took us to a Thai restaurant. The food there was delicious. We talked about travelling as well as the similarities and differences between Chinese and American culture. It is always a good experience to meet people of a similar age to exchange ideas and opinions. Then they took us to see the Golden Gate Bridge and the Palace of Fine Arts. I love the night view.

10 July 2012 (Tuesday) | Day 18The Palace of Fine Arts

CFEA Lesson// Thai Dinner

The Golden Gate Bridge

25

Today was still a model-making day. We started to make furniture and the exterior wall. We met April today. She studied architecture in Seattle. We talked lots about studying in architecture and university life.

11 July 2012 (Wednesday) | Day 19CFEA Lesson

Camp Sweeney

Model

26

We continued to make the external walls and started to make the roof today. Our group had some argument about the decorations on the external walls. Ricco wanted to use hand-drawing decorations while Vincent did not want it. So I set up a rule for them. If you ban someone’s idea, you have to give out one new idea. If you destroy something, you have to contribute something else. So, they have to work out their own ideas and they can vote for the final design.

12 July 2012 (Thursday) | Day 20

External Wall Design

Model

CFEA Lesson

27

Model was finished today!! All of them were very pound of it. I proved how hard they worked in the past month. I felt very happy too.We met Martin at night. He brought us to the Castro District. It is a small and beautiful neighborhood with many special and small shops. All the shops are very distinctive from the chains. I enjoy walking around this district. Then we had dinner at Sushi Time. The California Roll inspired the sushi chefs around the world in creating their non-traditional fusion cuisine. And I finally tried the California Roll in California!

13 July 2012 (Friday) | Day 21CFEA Lesson // Castro

Ricco and the Finished Model

The Finished Model

28

We went and played badminton with Kevin at noon. The badminton court is near Millbrae BART station. Without a doubt, most of the badminton players there are Asian. We also met Adrian and his brother. Both of them are American-born Chinese and are very good at badminton. After the exercise, we had dinner together. We all had a fun time. We talked about the culture in Hong Kong and in the US and taught them how to write Chinese words.

14 July 2012 (Saturday) | Day 22

Eric and Kevin

Many Badminton Court

Badminton//Millbrae

29

Tony drove us to the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge. We visited Tiburon and Sausalito. They are two very beautiful towns. I really want to live there after I retire so that I can stroll along the seaside everyday.Then Tony drove us to the hills with an overview of the whole Golden Gate Bridge. Unfortunately, it was too foggy so we couldn’t see the bridge clearly. Though we couldn’t get the perfect picture, it was still a pleasant memory.

15 July 2012 (Sunday) | Day 23

Tiburon

Tiburon//Sausalito

The Golden Gate Bridge in Fog

30

Week 42012/7/16 - 2012/7/22The Last Week in San Francisco

Nicasio Valley

31

We finally finished the presentation board today. I really appreciate how the students were so devoted even though I felt frustrated at times due to their childish behavior. I think they have grown a little bit after the experience in Camp Sweeney and the CFEA program. The experience in the program must be very important to their whole life.

16 July 2012 (Monday) | Day 24

Drawing

Drawing

CFEA Lesson

32

We went to the Warm Springs Extension project site next to Fremont BART station today. Jermaine guided us to visit the finished subway. We saw the comprehensive design and drawings for the tunnel, the water and fire proofing, fiber optic cable, air chamber for emergency, etc. Jermaine also introduced the MegaSeal to us. He said that it was the first time that MegaSeal was installed in the U.S.In the afternoon, we learned about some construction management software , like Oracle Project Management, Tilos, Acumen Fuse and Synchro. The software is used for scheduling purposes. The concept of scheduling in construction management is to estimate durations and resource requirements for each activity in the construction project. Nowadays, much scheduling software are available to enhance efficiency in creating the master schedule so the owner and engineers can quickly spot any critical delay to a project and take action appropriately. I believe the emphasis in construction management will become more popular in Hong Kong in the nearer future. I am convinced that the things I learned today will be useful in the future.

17 July 2012 (Tuesday) | Day 25Jermaine and Us

BART Site Visit// CFEA Lesson

33

Today we visited the SFMTA. The main focal point of this project was how the employees at the SFMTA were able to maximize efficiency despite their limited resources. Their budget is so limited that they cannot hire professional design firms. So, they built an in house design team in the company. It reduced lots of the cost for making the advertising material. The photographer and models were all their employees. I think it was a smart idea to reduce the cost for advertisement.Today was also the judging day for the CFEA program. The students had to present their work. I felt so touched that they did know what they had done. They knew the program of the building well and they were willing to listen to the comments from the judges.

18 July 2012 (Wednesday) | Day 26

Graphic Department of SFMTA

SFMTA Visit//Judge Day

Presentation

34

In the morning, we had a briefing session about the Highland Hospital in Oakland from James. This project was divided into 3 phases. The second phase is undergoing now, which is the construction of a nine-story care tower, which include intensive care, labor and delivery, and other support functions. James also introduced the BIM model to us. Building information modeling (BIM) is a process involving the generation and management of digital representations of physical and functional characteristics of a facility. This was new to me. The BIM model displays architectural models but it also shows the structure, mechanical systems pumping systems, and etc. in the simulation as well. The program can generate models with different level of details depending on the objective that the model needs to achieve. Clash could be detected by the BIM model. It is very useful for actual construction. I think I have to look into it more after returning to Hong Kong.Then, we visited the Cathedral of Christ the Light. It is a beautiful cathedral and the most impressive modern cathedral for me. After that, we went to the Highland Hospital Site. I learned about the different types of water proofing and insulation there. Then we visited UC Berkeley with Jenkin. It is a peaceful place to study.

19 July 2012 (Thursday) | Day 27Cathedral of Christ the light

Highland Hospital// Cathedral of Christ the light// UC Berkeley

35

We visited Laguna Honda Hospital today. It is undergoing a remodeling project. The hospital has to be renovated. It is not an easy project. For example, they had to scan the steel bar in the old concrete wall before they cut the old concrete; they also had to find the deteriorating concrete and replace it with new reinforced concrete. These processes took time and technique.Then we visited the Chinese hospital. Stephy gave us a tour around the two existing hospital buildings. I really hope that the old hospital building can be reserved, as it is a beautiful piece of architecture.We visited the HMC + Beverly Prior Architects firm at 1pm. It was unfortunate that Beverly is not here so that we don’t have detailed knowledge of their project.The graduation for the CFEA program was held at Haywood. The students all dressed up. They finally graduated from the program. I hope this experience can change their whole life. It is not easy for them to get rid of the peers that they used to hang out with.

20 July 2012 (Friday) | Day 28

Laguna Honda Hospital

Laguna Honda Hospital//Chinese Hospital//HMC + Beverly Prior Architects// Graduation

Graduation

36

We joined the Jelly Belly factory tour with Claudia’s friend, Dana and Jeff. Dana was an exchange student in Hong Kong. She knew a little bit Cantonese. Jeff is her brother. I felt very surprised that he had been an English teacher in Korea. It made me feel that there are always possibilities in life. We do not have to follow the traditional and safest path. We should always break out of our comfort zone.After having dinner at Claudia’s home, we took the ferry back to San Francisco. We enjoyed the view during the journey.

21 July 2012 (Saturday) | Day 29

Jelly Belly Factory

View on the Ferry

Jelly Belly Factory// Ferry

37

Our last weekend in California was spent on the natural scenery. We went to the Point Reyes National Seashore with Martin. I really enjoyed escaping from the civilization. Point Reyes is a nice place to escape as it is not far away from San Francisco and luckily we had pleasant weather.Then we went to the Marin Civic Centre, which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The main Civic Center building has been nominated for the UNESCO World Heritage List. Though the color used is no longer attractive, I think it was very innovative during the time it built.The wonderful weekend ended by having a dinner in Noe Valley district. Today was really relaxing.

22 July 2012 (Sunday) | Day 30

Point Reyes National Seashore

Point Reyes National Seashore// Marin Civic Center

Marin Civic Center