Casa del Ojo de Agua, also referred to as the “Jungle House” was designed by architects Ada Dewes and Sergio Puente and built in 1990, Mexico (Anderson 42). The Franz Alexander House, found in Palm Springs, California, was designed by Walter S. White and built in 1955. These two houses differ in the way they are integrated into nature and their inhabitants are exposed to their surroundings; as Casa del Ojo de Agua is built into a mountain populated by dense vegetation; hence exposing its residents to the wilderness, while the Franz Alexander House is set in a desert; thus exposing its occupants to rocks of different sizes and desert plants. The architects of both houses attempt to create place by designing structures that are fit to the respective…show more content… According to Unwin, “Through identifying ‘places’, and organizing them, you make sense of the world you inhabit” (Unwin 33). Even though both houses are secluded from the typical living area – the city – the architects of the jungle house strive to create a sense of place amidst the woods, while White tries to create a place resistant to the harsh climate of the desert3. The Jungle house is a two story, partially enclosed building with no roof. This “House of the waterhole”-a weekend house- comprises of a bedroom and lavatory on the first floor and a dining room on the upper level (Unwin, 9). Its lack of conventional walls and roof is compensated by the sides of the hill it is built into and the shades of the mango tree it incorporates. The architects enhance its accessibility through the steps that connect the house to the bottom of the hill. In addition to sheltering its residents from the potential harms of wildlife, it creates place by bringing them closer to nature; therefore granting them the relaxing experience obtained from weekend houses. The Franz Alexander House, also a two story house, provides its occupants with a living space -place to eat, sleep, rest, cook and groom4. Furthermore, White adds a circular pool to the design to make living in the desert tolerable, if not convenient. The wave shaped roof compliments the pool, hence mimicking a waterbody. Since the house has its own garden, it makes up for the lack of vegetation of the desert. All these features evolve the house into a home by incorporating both privacy and sense of place into the building. In both cases, the architects succeed at creating a “Place…where the mind touches the world” (Unwin,