David Blanton- In-Class; el Camino and Place

Every place has a unique spirit to that is shaped by its architecture. The closed in colleges of Oxford produce a feeling of serenity from the outside world that induces deep thought. The simpleness of a log cabin built near a stream encourage its inhabitants to live basically. No CEO would have important meetings in such a setting. However, in a setting like the Camino, architecture plays less of a role than does history. In many ways, the legacy of a place defines our interaction with it, sometimes more so than the architecture does. Although it appears to be a safe, open area I wouldn't play freeze tag in front of The Wailing Wall, because I know that that would be insensitive to Jewish people. Even on our own campus, the Great Lawn, though surrounded by stately buildings and with landscaping that makes it seem like an art piece more than a recreation center, is a space where frisbees are tossed and dogs play. This phenomena is precisely due to the fact that, though architecture informs our interaction with a place, the spirit and history of a place is also largely due to its legacy. El Camino is an excellent example of such a phenomena because, though it is sometimes just a dirt road through wheat fields, it is regarded as holy and important because of its long history as a trek for pilgrims. Though recently some treat the trail as a recreational activity, this is largely due to their either ignorance of, or lack of value for, the trail's religious legacy.