The project was a three week design-build workshop in which students from Columbia University GSAPP and The University of Tokyo worked together to design and build three demountable teahouses in a fast-paced atmosphere. The students worked for five weeks prior to the trip researching the culture and architecture of the tea ceremony as well as beginning their designs. Weekly charettes included critiques of the projects simultaneously being developed by the students in Tokyo. The collaboration between the groups provided invaluable knowledge, as architectural practice and education are fairly dissimilar between the two countries, and each group was able to share their expertise with the other.