Senado Square Finds Its Siblings in Guangzhou
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The interesting similarities of architecture style in Senado Square and the selected buildings in Guangzhou reveal the close cultural ties within Pan-Canton Area ( Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau). The Qilou structure also demonstrates the interaction between East and West,most vibrantly in modern era through the impact of western colonization in the east. However, as I call Senado Square and Guangzhou Qilou siblings, there is still difference between the two designs. We might get confused if looking at only one building from each, but we can easily distinguish them if seeing the whole picture. Every "foreign" culture has to go through localiztion in order to flourish in the new land. In the process, due to the different local cultures of Guangzhou and Macau, Qilou building in each place develops its own characteristics and gradually diverges. Therefore they are not twins but siblings, having homogeneous origin, but inherits and develops differently.Also, both Guangzhou and Macau governments spend lots of time, money and energy to preserve, renovate and revive the old buildings. Qilou in the old Guangzhou streets and Generalissimo Mansion are considered important historical and cultural relics that gradually gain more attention and protection. Senado Square is part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Macau. Through the buildings, local people and tourists learn about the past, and the city constructs its own identity.The encounter of East and West, is definitely an inevitable stage of the identity construction, especially so in today's globalization.
This is only a brief comparative and may very well be over-generalized essay on the architecture of two nearby cities. There is always more to explore, more to think about, and more to discover in Macau and other parts of the world.
Let the journey begin, maybe, with finding siblings for the buildings and tracing each's story.
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