CRYSTAL PEAK, MOUNTAIN SPA RESORT
@Flammer Studio, ETH Zurich, 2015
@Flammer Studio, ETH Zurich, 2015
Out of the city, into the world of your thoughts.
An idealistic mountain spa resort, consisting of a cylinder blasted into the mountain, topped with a glass cupola, a light- house in the sea of superficial society.
Every guest of this hotel has the possibility to make room for time to engage into him/herself and to with- draw from every day life.
disintegration: ARRIVAL, ROOM, ASCENSION, LEAP, LAND, reintegration.
An idealistic mountain spa resort, consisting of a cylinder blasted into the mountain, topped with a glass cupola, a light- house in the sea of superficial society.
Every guest of this hotel has the possibility to make room for time to engage into him/herself and to with- draw from every day life.
disintegration: ARRIVAL, ROOM, ASCENSION, LEAP, LAND, reintegration.
`But the best teacher is experience, not someones distorted point of view` Guest at the Crystal Peak, 2015
REPORT CRYSTAL PEAK
It would take me all night to tell you about the “crystal peak” how they call it, let’s just say for now- well, I was told about this place some time ago, but the best teacher is experience and not someone’s distorted point of view, so I decided to make a change, and le the city. I arrived on a tuesday I remember, just as the sun was setting. So there I was, standing at the bottom of high mountains, in a part of the country I’ve lived in all my life in a place I’d never been before. e glowing cupola sitting in the rugged, dark, steep cli s under the starry sky was the rst thing I saw of the hotel.
e huge, really high circular hall impressed me immediately. I couldn’t tell you the height even if I wanted to but it seemed boundless.
ere was a bright hazy, oating, liquid surface letting rays of light pass down. I couldn’t make out what it really was but I felt a force pulling me towards it, I wanted to understand- but I couldnt yet. I heard my own footsteps- this was a strange place.
ere were small copper numbers screwed to the dark wooden doors and as I reached my number, forty-ni- ne, a er like what seemed three rounds around the center, it was like I maze, I tell you, and that was the one distinct time in my life, the strangest moment of all, when I didn’t know where I was - I was far away from home, haunted and tired with travel. And maybe needed a decent dinner.
I had a small shock entering my room because I didnt realize it was my own re ection staring back at me from the huge mirror in the half circular room.
but then I smiled at myself, happy that I’d taken the step to try out something new.
but then I smiled at myself, happy that I’d taken the step to try out something new.
ey had a bizzare room service option, I could have a lot of di erent stu - e only thing was, I had to come up with it myself. ere was no menu, so I had to invent my own dish.
it was totally new for me to just be le in a room all by myself, with nothing to procrastinate about, no connection to the outer world. But we learn in time- I can hardly tell you anymore how long I really stayed and was confronted with my physical being all the time, like it was another.
it was totally new for me to just be le in a room all by myself, with nothing to procrastinate about, no connection to the outer world. But we learn in time- I can hardly tell you anymore how long I really stayed and was confronted with my physical being all the time, like it was another.
I started discovering new music out of the big record collection they o ered to use, I read about half a dictionary, some great poems, classics.. hm what else? Oh yes, I learned waltzing with myself like in the good ol’ days,
how to make smoothies,... A er what felt like maybe 5 hours, but actually I’d kept myself occopied for waaaay more, I felt ready again to be part of the world and share my knowledge, took the bathing suit out of the cupboard with me as the booklet told me to. I wasnt sure about the bathing suit, but it was part of the mysterious system, so I didnt question it, because I knew there must be a purpose. e slightly humid climate overcoming me in the cupola made me feel comfortable at once - I looked up and saw the cerulian blue sky shining above the dome, and I registered it was daytime- I looked upon the hotel guests, about 86 of them had arrived at the peak before
how to make smoothies,... A er what felt like maybe 5 hours, but actually I’d kept myself occopied for waaaay more, I felt ready again to be part of the world and share my knowledge, took the bathing suit out of the cupboard with me as the booklet told me to. I wasnt sure about the bathing suit, but it was part of the mysterious system, so I didnt question it, because I knew there must be a purpose. e slightly humid climate overcoming me in the cupola made me feel comfortable at once - I looked up and saw the cerulian blue sky shining above the dome, and I registered it was daytime- I looked upon the hotel guests, about 86 of them had arrived at the peak before
me and seemed like they were having a jolly good time. I couldn’t join them yet, I had to overcome the last hurdle - And then I saw it- the middle of everything: it was a shimmering turquoise pool. It seemed like it was oating in mid air as I couldnt see its bottom and now I understood: that was the mysterious swirling thing at the top of the lobby. it all fell into place.
About the diving board- I’d despised them all my life. I always felt totally overchallenged and exposed, thats why I was never in for it. but not this time. I felt anticipation rising in my chest and knew I would be able to jump. I wanted to. Standing at the edge looking down my toes, into the seemingly endless pool- I let myself fall. As I rose back to the surface, I felt toootally liberated. I’d made it! Yess!
So I put on one of the dressing gowns lying next to the pool, and started to look around. ere was no sta at all to be seen, and I went to the long bar-styled kitchen- I wanted to try out how to make that one smoothie with avocados and not long before I was asked about the recipe by another guest, who liked avocados as well.
it was this kind of absurd reality of just taking the people as they were, talking about the so called facts of life, not because we had to, but because we wanted to, letting them unwrap their secrets before me. I remebered other conversations, where people walked away from me because I wasn’t funny enough, or I got the feeling I didnt know enough, or because someone more interesting entered, and mostly I got so caught up in my head- . Anyway, here it was di erent. We talked about our pasts and our ideas, our dreams, danced, sung, taught each other stu we’d learnt, laughed about absurd, weird ideas- felt like little kids once again- and saw each one of us as part of the cupola community
- at the top of the world, each one occupied a little piece of volume, there was no hierarchy, a never esta- blished system of unprejudiced, naive equality. every one was hauntingly beautiful and I was sucking up their stories, every one of them was precious.
A er some time, I le the pool of concentrated, boiling, powerful awareness- I was lled up to the brim with a promising upbeat, warm con dence, from which I can tear until now, I’d met so many inspiring people, had such a great time under the lit glass dome.
A er some time, I le the pool of concentrated, boiling, powerful awareness- I was lled up to the brim with a promising upbeat, warm con dence, from which I can tear until now, I’d met so many inspiring people, had such a great time under the lit glass dome.
Breathing the chilly fragrant mountain air, I wanted to be outside, alone, let the wind brush around my body, the sound of the mountains, of the nature, the clouds, the cli s, the nightbirds, the radiant gleam of the darkness, deep as the ocean, high as the stars, feel the in nity on my skin, cradle my inspiration, I was the moon- I wanted to close my eyes and let the past hours melt on the tongue of my memory -
My physical body was travelling back to where it came from, but a mind that is stretched by new experi- ences can never go back to its old dimensions. I realized I cant create myself wholly within such a short timespan, but through my stay at the Crystal Peak, the ignition was turned and the re was lit- e world was suddenly rich with possibility- I had nowhere to go but everywhere.