Maps. Map-map-mappity-map.
What am I going to map when I have the chance?
I've often thought about doing a food map of Edmonton. Despite being limited by celiac disease, I'm still a foodie at heart. The map would have several categories of cuisine (Mexican, Bistro-style, Japanese, Italian, etc.) but also categories such as "Hidden Gems", "Places to Avoid" and "Where to find (blank)". I don't want to limit myself to just restaurants, because there are lots of great shops around the city that carry things you would never have imagined, like the Portuguese Bakery on 118 Ave with their egg-tarts, or The Happy Camel in the West End, which makes the best Baba Ghanouj ever.
I'd also love to do a Classic Hitotoki map of Edmonton. The new Hitotoki is too reminiscent of Twitter to hold my interest. I think Twitter is a great business and networking tool, but I really don't care about how awesome your Venti-No Foam-Extra Hot-3 Pump-Toffee Nut-White Mocha is. I really don't.
What I like about Classic Hitotoki is that it's like a gallery; carefully curated to ensure maximum viewer/reader enjoyment. The stories on the website are beautiful, and after reading a few, I wish I could have been there to witness those moments myself. The profiles of the authors that accompany the stories are also very interesting, because it's not only a view from the local inhabitants, but also a view from travelers, students abroad, business folk. It gave me a sense of the individual place in the collective space.
Looking at Hitotoki got me thinking about making what I would call a memory map. I'd find an area of the city that I am familiar with in some way and record memories from various locations. Eventually, I'd like to build the map so other people can add memories to the same locations, if they have memories of that specific area. As someone who loves music, I though it might also be interesting to attempt a music memory map. Spots on the map would be tagged with a particular memory, a song associated with that memory or with the place itself. What might be cool is to send someone on a walk of that map, with a playlist on their iPod and have them play certain songs in certain places.
This is what I've come up with so far. Thoughts?
I would totally make that food map with you! I'm not celiac, but thanks to other illnesses I'm sensitive to gluten, so I have to eat in essentially the same way. I end up making a lot of phone calls prior to going out to dinner and trying the patience of a lot of great waiters and waitresses ... it's surprising what you can find if you search, though. Did you know that Wild Earth cafe on 99th and Big City Cupcakes (I think that's what it's called?) both do gluten free baked goods?
ReplyDeleteWhat about a celiac's map of the city? I sure could have used one when my friend Mary visited in the fall. But I have to confess, I really love the idea of a music memory map. What would it mean to approach the city like a playlist?
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