ancientaviator62,
Amen to that ! When I think of some of the concrete egg-boxes we put up in the '60s, I can only hope that my old gunner "Stew" (who became an architect post-war) had no part it....D
MPN11,
I wondered that, too. But I remember that when I first went out for a couple of weeks in '54, construction was going on furiously day and (under arc lights) by night. Arbeit might not necessarily macht frei, but it certainly produces results when there's enough of it. And this at a time when the rose willow herb would flourish on many of our bomb sites for years yet.
As for Berlin, not only were they recovering what bricks and masonry they could for re-use, but (so I'm told) the Berliner Omas collected much of the rest and built an artificial "park" (in the form of a small hill) with it. (More information on this would be welcome)....D.
Yamagata Ken,
Has come in on your point, MPN11, (never got to Japan, myself, so IK), but their version of an automated car-park system seems rather frightening. The only "Paternoster" system I ever came across was in the ICI building in Billingham, but that was just a snug passenger cabin (2 pax max), and that was a bit scary for the newcomer, as you had to hop and off the moving lift (it didn't stop at all - except perhaps in emergency if a slow passenger got trapped between it and the gateway ?) But I never heard of anyone getting squashed in that way...D.
John Purdey, Welcome aboard - to this Best of Threads !
The Law of Unintended Consequences strikes again! But seriously, if the houses were in a terrace (as they must have been), wouldn't the party wall in the cellar be a load-bearing structure ? (Yes, I suppose they could have put in a RSJ - and all they'd need would be a small door, anyway). But even so, it was a construction job they could well do without, having to build the West Wall and patch up a Dam or two while they were at it.....D.
Regards to you all, Danny.