Mexico City study tour

VISUAL: Mexico City study tour. RMIT’s urban planning, international development and environment students imagine a sustainable future for the streets of Mexico City. RMIT University logo.

VISUAL: Video of crowds in front of the National Palace, Mexico City. The Mexican flag is flying in the centre of the Palace.

VISUAL: Video of a very colourfully dressed female Artist sitting on a chair on the footpath beside an easel with self-portrait. Seven male police officers are standing casually behind her, they are leaning against roller doors holding riot shields.

VISUAL: Adelle Main, Master of International, Urban and Environmental Management, RMIT University walking along footpath beside main road, holding a coffee cup and speaking to camera.

Adelle Main: So this is Mexico City and as you can see ...

VISUAL: Traffic and pedestrians at large intersection in city. Camera is positioned on corner of Juarez and Pasco De la Reforma, Centro, Mexico City. One of the male students is taking a photograph of a building in the distance.

Adelle Main: ... the traffic is crazy.

VISUAL: Video of busy main road of city (location unconfirmed), camera taken from high looking down.

Adelle Main: We have about six lanes.

VISUAL: Video clip from above of crowds walking down towards Mercado (Street). The Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral is on the left of screen and to the right and background is the National Palace.

Adelle Main: It's definitely not central Melbourne.

VISUAL: William Frederick-Reif, Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning, RMIT University walking along footpath beside busy road speaking to camera.

William Frederick-Reif: Mexico City has a population of 20 million and ...

VISUAL: Video of crowd walking along city footpath.

William Frederick-Reif: ... you can really see it ...

VISUAL: Two street performers dressed as science fiction characters eg from the movie, Predator.

William Frederick-Reif: ... there's a lot going on. There's a great street life ...

VISUAL: Video of food vendor serving up a dish.

William Frederick-Reif: ... and there's vendors ...

VISUAL: Students looking at a street vendor cooking pita breads on hot BBQ plate.

William Frederick-Reif: ... right up on to the pavement ...

VISUAL: Food vendor spreading guacamole on the pita bread.

William Frederick-Reif: ... it's absolutely fantastic.

VISUAL: Video close-up of a street vendor’s stall with colourful beads, weaved straw and colourful plates.

VISUAL: Mexican male playing a Harmonipan on the footpath, pedestrians and cars are passing him in the background.

VISUAL: Camera walking amongst crowd on the footpath.

VISUAL: Gillian Le, Master of Urban Planning and Environment speaking to camera.

Gillian Le: So the theme of our project here in Mexico City is to find common ground between the two cities of Melbourne ...

VISUAL: Students standing in laneway, a tour guide is pointing out landmarks to them.

Gillian Le: ... and Mexico City. We're currently on Madero ...

VISUAL: Student scrolling through two pages on tablet – map of Melbourne showing Swanston Street and photo of city (unknown).

Gillian Le: ... and it's likened to Swanston Street.

VISUAL: Video of pedestrians standing on street corner waiting to cross at lights. Cars and buses are passing on the road.

Gillian Le: What I think Mexico City's doing really well is that ...

VISUAL: Video of traffic lights and pedestrian traffic lights turning green to walk symbol.

Gillian Le: ... it's opening up its streets ...

VISUAL: Pedestrians walking across road on a Mexico City street.

Gillian Le: ... to pedestrian access, it's making it safer.

VISUAL: Two male cyclists and a car riding down laneway, pedestrians are in the background.

Gillian Le: So our project is to help ...

VISUAL: Group of students listening to tour guide.

Gillian Le: ... design and to pedestrianise another ...

VISUAL: Group of students walking across pedestrian crossing in busy street in Mexico City.

Gillian Le: ... street that's similar to Madero.

VISUAL: Tom Lolicato, Master of Urban Planning and Environment walking down Corredigora Street, taking a photo of something off-camera.

Tom Lolicato: So this is a street that we're doing our intervention project on.

VISUAL: Video of street sign on wall which reads in Spanish Corregidora Josefa Ortiz de Dominguez.

Tom Lolicato: The name is Corregidora.

VISUAL: Video of street corner on Corregidora. A vendor is setting up clothes that he is selling on the edge of the footpath. There are a lot of pedestrians walking past.

Tom Lolicato: It's much more chaotic, a lot less ordered.

VISUAL: Tom Lolicato walking down street speaking to camera.

Tom Lolicato: We could probably compare this to, maybe, Preston or something like that in Melbourne, there's a lot more life on this street.

VISUAL: Video of vendors on footpath, some people are looking at their products for sale.

Steven Petsinis: As you can see with Madero ...

VISUAL: Steven Petsinis Master of Property walking down street and speaking to camera.

Steven Petsinis: ... it has the opportunity to be a lot more richer and increase the amount of people coming through.

VISUAL: Video of camera walking down road looking at street vendor’s selling items on a tarpaulin spread out on the footpath.

Tom Lolicato: From first impressions one of the obvious things to do here ...

VISUAL: Tom Lolicato walking down street and speaking to camera.

Tom Lolicato: ... is just cater for the pedestrian more, so widen the footpaths.

VISUAL: Two female students (Rebecca Sinclair and Adelle Main) standing on footpath looking at surrounding streetscape and speaking to each other. One is pointing, they have notepads and pens.

Steven Petsinis: What we need is to maybe just put ...

VISUAL: One male student and one female student walking together along footpath and looking at surrounding streetscape, speaking and pointing at something off-camera.

Steven Petsinis: ... a few little different mechanisms in ...

VISUAL: Video clip of streetscape – road with cars and pedestrians on footpaths.

Steven Petsinis: ... that can improve the street and make it also a bit more sustainable.

VISUAL: Video of pedestrian section of Corregidora Street surrounded by buildings. There are a lot of people standing and walking around the square. A three-wheeled passenger bicycle with an awning is in the background, as well as lots of vendors’ stalls on the footpaths.

Steven Petsinis: They can build on this, have a few more nice restaurants here.

VISUAL: Steven Petsinis standing looking in square, turning and speaking to camera.

Steven Petsinis: No, I think there's a lot of potential.

VISUAL: A group of students walking in a corridor possibly at the Universidad La Salle (ie the University in Mexico City this tour was connected with).

VISUAL: A group of students sitting in a classroom looking at an overhead screen. The chairs are in a circular shape.

VISUAL: Close-up of Steven Petsinis seated and speaking to the class group, William Frederick-Reif is sitting beside him, listening.

VISUAL: Students sitting in a lecture theatre listening to a female lecturer who is speaking.

VISUAL: Close up of a row of the students listening in the lecture theatre.

VISUAL: Close up of a student writing in her note book.

VISUAL: Rebecca Sinclair, Master of International, Urban and Environmental Management speaking to camera. She is sitting at an outside table with a cup of coffee. In the background a fellow female student is working at a table inside the house.

Rebecca Sinclair: So the other day we went back to the street and we conducted a ...

VISUAL: Rebecca Sinclair standing on a street corner and writing in her notebook, side-on to camera.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... site analysis.

VISUAL: Steven Petsinis speaking with an elderly Mexican male on the street corner, there are shops, cars and pedestrians in the background.

Rebecca Sinclair: So really just speaking with locals ...

VISUAL: Adelle Main leaning her note book on a building’s external wall and drawing more on to the plan drawn on the page.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... looking at buildings ...

VISUAL: Same female student leaning on a light pole on a footpath, looking around and taking notes.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... searching for demographics. And the hope is that with that research ...

VISUAL: Tom Lolicato and unidentified male looking at and discussing street plan.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... we'll be able to apply that information ...

VISUAL: Close up of street plan being held by Tom Lolicato.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... and really do the best sort of regeneration plan possible.

VISUAL: Close?up of someone writing the words Calle Corregdora onto a glass window.

VISUAL: Camera pans back to show female student drawing more below Calle Corregdora – Vision Plan 2014 and various trees, lightpoles and a bicycle.

Kate Ryan: The challenges have been around different ideas.

VISUAL: Kate Ryan, Master of Urban Planning and Environment speaking to camera. She is sitting beside her open laptop and a fellow student (William Frederick Reif) is in the background.

Kate Ryan: There's so many ideas, people have got so many amazing ideas that to nut it down to one or two is really challenging.

VISUAL: Two female students sitting on a lounge speaking with each other.

Kate Ryan: But also ...

VISUAL: Group of students all sitting together in a room and speaking in small groups.

Kate Ryan: ... having to come up with ideas within a day ...

VISUAL: Three male students sitting together speaking (Steven Petsinis, Tom Lolicato and an identified male student.

Kate Ryan: ... and then develop them and then deliver them.

VISUAL: Tom Lolicato, unidentified male and female students sitting at a table writing their street plan on a large yellow sheet of cardboard and speaking together.

Kate Ryan: That's amazing and so for me, that's been the best part of it.

VISUAL: Close-up of the street plan on the yellow cardboard.

Rebecca Sinclair: And there's so much knowledge between everyone.

VISUAL: Students working on street plan, camera is further away now.

Rebecca Sinclair: We've got International Development ...

VISUAL: Video of a group of five students (three male and two females) sitting and working at table, the camera is taken from above looking down on them.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... Architecture, Planning; it's insane.

VISUAL: Video of same group, minus one male, camera is now side-on to them.

Rebecca Sinclair: And we've got a really good, I guess ...

VISUAL: Video of a group of five female students (Rebecca Sinclair, Adelle Main, Gillian Le and two other unidentified female students) seated and working at table, they are speaking together.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... social bond so it's quite easy to be able to throw ...

VISUAL: Close up of Gillian Le whilst at the table.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... ideas around all the time.

VISUAL: Close up of computer screen, unidentified person is pointing at it.

Kate Ryan: We're trying to squash as much work as we can ...

VISUAL: Close up and pan across table of the five female students.

Kate Ryan: ... so that we can get out and explore the city and learn even more.

Rebecca Sinclair: So today is our final day of putting ...

VISUAL: Rebecca Sinclair sitting on outside table speaking to camera. She waves, laughs and then stands up.

Rebecca Sinclair: ... everything together and it's a lot of stuff to do and tomorrow is D-Day, so yeah, I'm off (laughing).

VISUAL: Time lapse of students working in two rooms in the house.

VISUAL: Time lapse of houses on road, city buildings are in the background, clouds are flying past and the sun is setting until it turns dark.

VISUAL: Students sitting in lecture theatre listening to a male lecturer.

VISUAL: Close up of male lecturer.

VISUAL: Video of male student’s silhouette, their presentation is behind them on a screen.

Jayden Craig Holmes: So we were able to come up with some great ideas ...

VISUAL: Video of Rebecca Sinclair and Adelle Main giving their presentation.

Jayden Craig Holmes: ... which we shared together at the presentations this morning.

VISUAL: Photo of a scene on Corregidora Street with sketch of their plan overlaid included more trees, table seating and a bicycle.

Jayden Craig Holmes: Each group came up with a different vision plan but ...

VISUAL: Photo of a scene on Corregidora Street with sketch of their plan overlaid included four tables with chairs and umbrellas.

Jayden Craig Holmes: ... there was a bit of cross-over which shows that we're all ...

VISUAL: Jayden Craig Holmes and unidentified student at the conclusion of their presentation, they are both smiling.

Jayden Craig Holmes: ... thinking along the same lines for the future of the street.

VISUAL: Close up of students applauding the presentation.

Jayden Craig Holmes: So ...

VISUAL: Jayden Craig Holmes, Diploma of Languages (Spanish) speaking to camera, smiling.

Jayden Craig Holmes: ... a bit relieved (laughing). It was a big day yesterday, we didn't get a lot of sleep.

VISUAL: Three female students laughing together.

Jayden Craig Holmes: But also quite sad, it's been a great time.

VISUAL: Video of a group of the students walking at a ruin (possibly at Teotihuacan).

Jayden Craig Holmes: We've all bonded really well together ...

VISUAL: Three female students laughing together and looking at something off-camera.

Jayden Craig Holmes: ... the group's really tight now.

VISUAL: Video of Steven Petsinis speaking with an elderly male Mexican on the street.

Steven Petsinis: The advantage of coming here and doing it and ...

VISUAL: Video of crowd walking on the mall, some are sitting on concrete benches.

Steven Petsinis: ... you have to walk the street, you have to ...

VISUAL: Steven Petsinis speaking with another male Mexican on the footpath.

Steven Petsinis: ... get the idea of the context of the street.

VISUAL: Steven Petsinis speaking to camera.

Steven Petsinis: No matter what you do on a computer screen, there's nothing like being there.

VISUAL: Danielle Moorhead, Master of Urban Planning and Environment speaking to camera.

Danielle Moorhead: When you're out working with actual professionals you learn a different way ...

VISUAL: Group of students standing in the street listening to tour guide.

Danielle Moorhead: ... than just academically creating an assignment.

VISUAL: Male student and female student standing behind glass railing on a rooftop looking out at city.

Danielle Moorhead: So, for me, RMIT ...

VISUAL: Students walking towards Café Toscano, Mercado.

Danielle Moorhead: ... giving me the opportunity to come here ...

VISUAL: Close up of Danielle Moorhead speaking with a group in a restaurant and laughing.

Danielle Moorhead: ... and do that has been one of the ...

VISUAL: Danielle Moorhead speaking to camera and smiling.

Danielle Moorhead: ... things that will stay in my mind forever.

VISUAL: Students are standing in a circle and are clapping to the Spanish music. A male and female student are dancing to the Spanish music which is being performed there. The guitarist’s hand is in the foreground.

VISUAL: Jayden Craig Holmes with his back to the camera standing on a lookout and looking at the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan.

VISUAL: Students walking down footpath, students at the front of the line are boarding the bright yellow tourist bus with Mexico written on the side. The camera is at the end of the queue waiting to board the bus.

William Frederick-Reif: Anybody wanting to come to ...

VISUAL: Video taken from bus window of city, two people on a motorbike are driving beside the bus.

William Frederick-Reif: ... Mexico City should just come.

VISUAL: Unidentified student taking footage through the lens of their camera of the passing images from the bus window.

William Frederick-Reif: It's more like home than you think ...

VISUAL: William Frederick Reif walking down street. He is holding some food in a serviette.

William Frederick-Reif: ... except with better Mexican food.

VISUAL: Food vendor table, someone’s hand picks up a clear packet of green tube?shaped potato crisps.

VISUAL: A female student eats one of the green crisps and smiles at the camera.

VISUAL: A food vendor serving up some shredded roasted meat.

VISUAL: William Frederick-Reif taking a mouthful of the food he is holding, shaking his head and speaking to camera.

William Frederick-Reif: El rico!

VISUAL: Male and female students dancing together to the Spanish music. The Spanish musicians are in the background dressed traditionally in white, black and red bow ties and wearing straw sombreros.

VISUAL: More students are joining in the dancing, clapping and smiling. A male students wearing a big black sombrero twirls in centre of screen.

VISUAL: Close-up of two male Spanish performers who are playing guitar, singing and smiling; camera is side-on to them.

VISUAL: RMIT University logo and website www.rmit.edu.au. This video feature the song ‘Swimming with water bears by Cam Gilmour, used with permission.

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