Just a few hours' drive north of the bustling city of Guangzhou, on the tranquil Nankun Mountain Reserve, is the first ecotourism destination in China. April, with its dreary showers, is probably not the ideal time of the year to visit the award-winning Crosswaters Ecolodge designed by an international team. Nonetheless, it is a beautiful upscale boutique resort that synthesizes sustainability, elegant design and modern conveniences.
The centerpiece of the resort is this commanding bamboo bridge that leads its visitors over the Gangken River to the lobby and main building of the ecolodge, hence the name Crosswaters:
Guangdong, 2010
Colombian bamboo architect Simon Velez was challenged to use the abundantly available native materials and to make the bridge strong enough to withstand the active forces of weather over time. This interior view of the bridge shows well its sturdy structure with the 12 cm diameter concrete-filled bamboo poles:
A view back towards the verdant bamboo forest:
And finally a view of the bridge from the main restaurant:
This blog about a magnificent bridge is posted for Louis la Vache's meme Sunday Bridges. Click on the link and enjoy more bridges.
Wow! I want to walk through that. It looks strong. Great idea.
ReplyDeleteThis is so beautiful. Amazing what can be done with bamboo!
ReplyDeleteExtraordinary! What a magnificent piece of architecture...
ReplyDeleteAn impressive and beautiful structure. A great spot too - looks so lush. I have never been to Guangzhou, maybe someday. I speak the language and that's where my great grandparents were from... so maybe someday.
ReplyDeleteVery nice! I´d love to know it.
ReplyDeleteBest regards
Elisa, Argentina
Awesome! I would to cross the bridge and take photos as much as I can! Have a great week ahead!
ReplyDeletewow, the design is beautiful! what graceful lines. thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fascinating structure!
ReplyDelete«Louis» thanks you for your contributions to the Sunday Bridges series.
Amazing photos of the bridge! The idea of using bamboos is wonderful :-)
ReplyDeleteRe your question about the white streaks of light in «Louis'» Weekend Reflections image: the shutter speed was slow enough that it captured the running lights on boats on the Bay. Three are three of them - on the two right most, you can see the red running light as well, indicating that we are seeing the port (as opposed to starboard, which would be a green light) side of the boat. «Louis» thinks the leftmost one (nearest the bridge) is probably the Larkspur Ferry which runs between San Francisco and Larkspur in Marin County.
ReplyDeleteThat is one of the most unique and interesting bridges that I've seen.
ReplyDeletebahh humbug
ReplyDeleteDefinitely upscale! Delightful place. I like bamboo and it does grow well here in Florida...but I was wondering how it would hold up a bridge -- until you said the poles were filled with concrete. It is very attractive!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I have ever seen anything quite like this.
ReplyDeleteImpressive structure. Especially in the use of both natural and manufactured materials.
ReplyDeleteThe second photo, looks like a spider.
ReplyDeleteJuuu, great, great, great.
ReplyDeleteThe bridge is gorgeous! And so is the rest of the resort.
ReplyDelete"sustainability, elegant design and modern conveniences" — I wish our resort owners and developers thought this way. :(
Absolutely fantastic bridge and awesome perspectives! Great work, both builders and you! :-)
ReplyDeleteVery interesting bridge!
ReplyDeleteI would just love to see this myself, but I 'm thrilled to have seen it through your lens!
ReplyDelete