【Travelers' Notes】Heartwarming Moments, Slow Travel in Historic Homes Around the World

Text by TRAVELER Luxe / Wei, Vicky Hung

Church bookshops, former mining factory cultural parks, Wasta Art Center, and bunker cafés "have not limited creativity, deeply integrating their unique spatial redesign philosophies. The spaces feature a mix of materials and forms, showcasing the charm of old architecture through a new lens. In these creatively regenerated buildings, let go of conventional perceptions and let your imagination roam freely at the intersection of old spaces and new design.

● The Bookshop from Heaven – Boekhandel Dominicanen
Boekhandel Dominicanen was transformed from a 1294 Dominican church. The building is designed in the Gothic monastery style, primarily constructed with marlstone and coarse gravel. In 1794, the French Napoleonic army occupied the church, diverting its fate ever since. For the next two centuries, it ceased to be a place of prayer and confession, serving instead as a warehouse, archive, and bicycle shed. In 2005, the Maastricht city government undertook renovation work on the church, restoring its stained glass windows, domed ceilings, frescoes, and carvings. The interior design by Merkx+Girod retained the grandeur of the columned, high-ceilinged space. On one side, they erected a modern black steel book tower, two stories high, featuring a cruciform reading desk that echoes the sacred feel of the church, and lighting inspired by the imagery of candles. They expanded the cellar to accommodate modern functions, while the former choir stalls on the second floor were converted into a café with breathtaking views overlooking the details of the dome frescoes and the vastness of the church hall.

After its renovation was completed in 2006, the space was occupied by the Dutch bookstore chain Selexyz and was hailed as “the most beautiful bookstore in the world” and “a bookshop from heaven.” The design by Merkx+Girod won the 2007 Dutch Architecture Award, the Lensvelt de Architect Interior Prize. In March 2014, the bookstore operated independently under the name Boekhandel Dominicanen, selling both new and used books, predominantly in English across all genres, along with a small selection in French, Spanish, and Italian. It is more than just a bookstore—it hosts over a hundred events annually, including book signings, lectures, music performances, and exhibitions, making it a vital public hub for arts and culture in the city.

【Info】 Want to read not only books but also the old times of a historic space? In the Coyoacán district southwest of Mexico City, there is a library called the “Elena Garro Cultural Centre,” where an old house becomes a beautiful furnishing in the reading space. This early 20th-century two-story red brick structure with plaster-covered walls is an officially protected heritage site in Mexico City. Designed collaboratively by the architectural studios Fernanda Canales and arquitectura 911, the project preserved the original house structure while adding several modifications—such as a square concrete-framed extension reaching toward the street, outfitted with a full-height glass wall that encases the old house like a delicate glass box. A skylight has been opened in the roof, and two old trees in front of the old building cast dappled shade inside. Natural ventilation and lighting flood the space, enhancing its tranquil ambiance. The design balances old and new, turning this historic gem into a serene reading haven.