Freeeedom!!!

While I love London I must say that Scotland was probably my favorite overall part of this trip. Edinburgh, while still a big city is quite a bit more relaxed than London. What I mean by this is that there is not all of the hustle and bustle and people shoving you to catch the tube that you get in London. Edinburgh is a very relaxed large city and felt very homey in comparison to dark and unforgiving London. The people were extremely friendly and we were even told by some locals that if a traveler was ever stuck sleeping on the street that if they were to ask a native then they would most likely be allowed to sleep on that person’s couch for the night. Kindness just really seems to be the tradition here. Coming from a people that have been oppressed for centuries by the English, this really makes sense when one stops to think about it. Another tradition that seems to be true even though all of the natives joke about is how the Scottish like to do everything the opposite of the English. An example of this that our haunted tour guide gave us was their formal attire. The Scots wear big colorful kilts while the English wear black slacks. Another example is the demeanor of the people. While the English are very quiet, reserved, and closed off the Scots are extremely loud, friendly, and open books if one takes the time to talk to any Scot. The Scots also seem to have a habit of being drunk by noon everyday unless their work forbids it.

Traditions are not the only thing that differs between the English and the Scots. Religion has been a hot topic between the two countries since their earliest meetings. Scots have been persecuted by the English for being Catholics for many centuries. The protestant English attempted to force their religion upon the Scottish until the Scots finally stood up for themselves in the 17^th century. The Scots battled their way right up to London’s door step until the English finally gave up and told them that if they stopped they would be granted their religious freedom. While most of the Scots were happy with this and went home, not all of them were satisfied. With less than half of their original forces, a few Scots decided it was a good idea to take London. Unfortunately it was a terrible idea and they were quickly defeated by the English even with their forces stretched by the current war with France. The prisoners were thrown in a prison in Edinburgh by the rest of their original allies who had returned home and were left to starve and die from exposure in what is now known as the Covenanter’s Prison. Here most of the prisoners died from exposure. The men that died were merely tossed over the wall and left unburied. This meant that according to their religion they were doomed to eternal damnation for being denied a proper burial in the ground. What a sad fate this was indeed.

While I did get to see a lot I felt that there was an incredible amount of things that I was not able to do. I would love to spend a few weeks here instead of just a day and a half. I would recommend this trip to anyone and everyone because Scotland is truly a breathtaking country to see. Just remember to bring your hiking shoes so that you aren't forced to hike in Sperry’s like I was!

Am I Cultured Yet!?!

The Victoria and Albert Museum was awesome to see although, I would say it was my least favorite out of all of the museums that we have been to so far. There were displays from all over the world such as Middle Eastern exhibits, Japanese, and Greek exhibits. Obviously at a place like this you are going to see quite a bit of cultural fusion. Although they are very different you can see quite a bit of cultural fusion in Japanese and Chinese culture. A lot of the history and stories portrayed were similar on the pottery and armor and you could see similarities in the delicate features of their pottery and artwork. Both cultures are focused around the family and honor is the ultimate judgment of one’s social and moral fabric. There are extreme voids between social castes and this can be seen through examining the extreme poverty that characterized the lower class and the immense wealth and power of high class families and individuals. Both cultures also took immense pride in their military power. These cultures emphasize discipline and this can be seen in the images of samurai in Japan and other warriors such as the ninjas of China. 

                Besides the cultural fusion I noticed a great deal of artistic expression in not just the art but also the creations of each culture. These creations could and are sometimes considered an alternative form of artwork themselves. One such example of this that I thought was so amazing was the armor and weaponry of the Samuri. Having been around the culture all my life and having been to Tokyo really gave me an appreciation for the Japanese exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Something that I thought was very cool was all of the different katanas and in particular the hand guards that were on each sword. Each hand guard was different and unique. There were different patterns and symbols on each guard that meant something different. Each of these hilts told a story or something about the individual and their family that owned this sword. Many of these swords were passed from generation to generation so people really took pride in creating pieces of art out of these weapons. Besides the weapons the armor was also very unique and could be an array of colors. This exhibit was just one example of the blood, sweat and tears that goes in to creating this art that the English have so kindly collected for our entertainment and viewing pleasure.

Churchill's War Rooms

The Winston Churchill War Rooms were a brilliant site to behold. You are underground the whole time and it really feels like it. The air is stuffy, the ceilings are lower, and the quarters are very tight. You can tell just from the feeling in the air when you enter that this was a place of business and not pleasure. As you walked through you were able to see Churchill’s room and all of the other officers’ rooms including his wife among them in her own private room. I thought it was very interesting that they had a separate room for the couple. I wonder if it was because the couple was very modest or if it was a gender and demoralizing the troops sort of thing. If they were to hear Churchill getting lucky all the time or even occasionally it might demoralize the other men since they were not lucky enough to have their own women there for comfort and pleasure. There are many explanations but I feel that this one is the most likely. The next thing I noticed about Churchill and the British government was that it did all it could to exemplify strength. I repeatedly watched and read military propaganda how Churchill hates to be underground. In fact he refused to go underground until part of his home was hit and destroyed by a bomb during the war. After he moved underground the videos said he still came up frequently to show the enemy that he was not scared and valued his freedom. There was also a great deal of pride in place being displayed. Every bit of war propaganda that had to do with recruitment called upon the British citizen’s patriotic side. Posters with Winston Churchill made statements like ‘Churchill needs you’ as Churchill’s image pointed out singling you out. These sorts of posters and videos were everywhere and by the end of the trip I myself almost felt the need to go join the British Army! While the war rooms were a very fun and interesting experience I cannot tell you how nice it felt to get back outside and take that first fresh breath of cool, crisp air. Freedom had never tasted so good.

Unraveling the Mysteries of Art

The London Art Museum and Portrait Gallery was one of the most interesting museums I have ever had the pleasure of exploring. The immense collection of fine art tends to take one’s breath away when your eyes first catch sight. There are paintings from most famous names in the art world such as Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh. I personally liked Monet’s photographs the most although possibly my favorite painting was by another artist whose name I seem to have misplaced. I will try to find the name but until then I can only describe the setting to you. The scene is that of a coast and the setting sun low on the horizon igniting the sky in a multitude of fiery shades. The ocean water was a light and crystalline blue hue and glistened from the sun’s light. This setting really spoke to me and was a place that I quickly found desperate to find. I had found a new paradise to seek out. This level of skill and artistic expression was one with which I had never met the likes of previous to this visit. I noticed that many artists expressed themselves through paintings of religious vision. There were many paintings of saints, priests, Jesus, and other holy figures strewn throughout this museum. One reoccurring scene that I saw was of Christ driving the traders from the temple; which was over 400 years old. Not only did these paintings have skill, they had age old skills that have bested the trials of time and still awe art connoisseurs when viewed today. Surprisingly, the most beautiful thing about these paintings is not their visual appeal but, instead the stories that they tell. You can see classic tales unfold from painting to painting. Each painting has a story behind the story to be told and this is what makes them all the more exciting. Luckily, for those that did not brush up on their history there are plaques next to each picture explaining what is going on. I could have spent all day unlocking the stories hidden deep within each painting and in fact I did. 

Trooping the Colour

Last Saturday we got to see a very special event, this event was the Trooping the Colour. This was a very cool event because it is tied directly in to the power and traditions of England as a whole. This event shows off the size and obedience of their forces. This parade is all about presentation and oh boy are they spot on! It's quite impressive to watch the queen inspecting each and every one of her units or the fly by over the royal family. Besides showcasing its military power they showcase the unified strength of the royal family. It is quite impressive to see the family as a whole unit. They are all so good looking and appear very regal standing in unison up in front of everyone. Besides to showcase power this parade is very important because of how old of a tradition this event is. The tradition has actually been going on for a couple hundred years! It is customary for the queen to stroll through all of the ranks one by one inspecting each and every unit. After this the queen picks one unit to 'Troop the Colours'. After this the queen returns to Buckingham Palace with the royal family. The queen then leads everyone out to the porch for a fly by with jets shooting colored trails and a 41 gun salute. It was truly something special to be able to partake in an event like this because in comparison our traditions are so young. I would love to have something back in the states because I feel that it creates a sort of closeness to the people that we don’t feel with our president. We are always kept at a distance from the president but you could almost walk right up and touch the queen if you really wanted to here. It just goes to show how much the royal family actually cares about its subjects. 

Fight Night

Last night, June 13th, was one for the books! My company that I am working for out here, UCMMA, held the first event since I've been out here that I have been able to attend. The event was Warrior Challenge 15, 19 amateur fight, two of which were title fights. This was an amazing night and I was lucky enough to have full access as a staff member to everywhere in the building. This was a very fun and unique experience because this is a level of authority that most people at the fights do not have. Two very strong elements of identity that I noticed being exhibited at this event were power and pride in place. 

Power was a very obvious element to observe at an event like this. You have all of your drunken men walking around in their Tap Out shirts trying to puff out their chests to look more macho. Then you have all of the girls that are often times also drunk and competing for all of the men’s attention. This is very entertaining to observe because in this case the real men, and sometimes women, are the ones that are fighting in the cage. These are the entertainers that put their own well being on the line for everyone else’s enjoyment. However, although the fighters are very important, they are not the top dogs in this setting. The ones with the real power are the staff, venue owner, and company owner. They all have the ability to go to the restricted areas, to tell the fighters when, where, and what they need to do, and are the ones that make the event happen in the first place. This is where the real power lies.

            Pride in Place is also HUGE in a place like this. While interviewing the fighters for their introduction videos I made sure that they stated where they are fighting out of and where their hometown is. There are plenty of rivalries between towns and places like west or east London so this is an important bit of information to state. Not only does it get the fighters hyped and fighting with a sense of pride but, it also gets the crowd going. You will see people go insane when a fighter from their country, town or ethnicity comes out. You’ll often times see a fighter flying their country’s flag if they are foreign, as they walk down the walkway to the cage. This happened last night and let me tell you the place almost rioted! For anyone interested in the sport I highly recommend that you go check out a UCMMA event. The professional fight productions are out of this world and I can promise you that you will have a great time. I will definitely be watching these fights when I come back to London next because they are a blast!   

A Humbling Experience

I could hardly contain myself as a walked through the doors of the British Museum. Looking around at all the exhibits from different cultures and eras I could not help but feel what I imagine Augustus Gloop felt as he waddled his way in to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, pure and utter bliss. There was everything from Africa and North America to ancient Greece and the Egyptians. One thing I noticed wherever I went was the intricate level of artistic expression. The Egyptians pottery and walls told stories of sacrifice and war along with their legends and the story of the rise of their empire. The Greek’s sculptures, paintings, and pottery portrayed their gods, the ideal images of men and women, and told their epic tales of battle and conquest as they carved a bloody path through history. Old arrowheads in the North American section and other regions showed intricate craftsmanship which was truly a sight to behold. Each tribe or group of people had marks and styles that were unique and helped to tell where each piece of weaponry came from and had its own individual strengths and weaknesses.

Not only did the level of artistic expression tell stories from culture to culture but it was meant to convey and showcase each respective culture’s power. The Egyptians were buried with all of their riches in death so that they could take them to the afterlife. Pharaohs and important individuals were therefore buried with extreme treasure troves of riches. This is why their tombs were often booby trapped and guarded to prevent grave robbers from entering and stealing their riches. Polished stones and jewelry were big in North America and Africa while gold seemed to be the theme in Greece and Egypt. Overall, I was very impressed with the museum. I enjoyed the other sections such as the Japanese, Chinese, and Indian sections although for the sake of space I chose to focus on the others in this entry. However, I believe that one of the coolest if not my favorite attraction that I got to see was the Rosetta Stone. Not the computer software that many of you are thinking of but the actually Rosetta Stone which was used to translate multiple forms of hieroglyphics and still to this day remains one of the keys to all languages. I can honestly say that I was in awe while admiring this piece of history. It was something that I had never really expected to get to see. If any of you ever have the chance you must go see this museum. It doesn’t matter if you don’t like museums, it would be a tragic mistake to not check this place out if you are ever lucky enough to have the chance!

The Masquerade Ball

This post is definitely going to be an interesting one. However, let me start of by giving you some background information about how I found this event. While sitting at work one day I asked my coworker what some local events were that tourists would not know about that would absolutely blow my mind. He proceeded to tell me a number of places but one stuck out to me in particular. This event was a pagan masquerade ball. The pagan religion is almost more of a general spirituality and consists of any native or typically polytheistic religions or non Abrahamic religions. This includes beliefs such as animism, pantheism, shamanism, and polytheism among other beliefs. So in other words the group of people that would be at this event were open to anything and were going to be a very relaxed and open minded group of people. After we obtained our masks we went to the event which was at the Coronet off of Elephant and Castle. We walked in and were immediately blown away by what we saw. There were about six different rooms with various forms of entertainment in each. There were naked dancers and people walking around all over although the majority of people were clothed. Everyone had masks and everybody was in a great mood. There were various forms of artistic expression going on. Whether it was bod painting, classical dance to the orchestra that started the night off or the comedic burlesque show up stairs there was something for everyone. There was also a room with multiple types of reptiles and tarantulas that could be held by anyone. At one point I had a medium sized boa constrictor wrapped around my neck, a chameleon on my head, a large leopard gecko in my hand and was petting a bearded dragon. They were all very nice and I had a great time playing with them. However, due to my arachnophobia I opted out of holding the large tarantula knowing that I might have a heart attack and die on the spot if I did. This was probably one of my favorite nights and I had a blast with my friends. I even learned how to waltz from a professional french dancer that was there! This group only puts on 3 or 4 events a year and they are huge productions so I am very happy that we went. I would recommend going to anyone that ever gets the chance because as long as you have an open mind you will not regret it!

Trouble in the court! Adventures at Hampton Court Palace!

Hampton Court Palace was truly a great sight to behold. While very different looking than London Tower or other old palaces it was not meant for withstanding a siege. This palace was made to be a work of art as was very easy to tell through the immense amount of artistic expression that could be seen while exploring this massive palace. There were extravagant pieces of art hung all throughout the palace and the décor was of the highest class. There were paintings of everyone of any note that had lived there and rooms were extremely over sized in comparison to the number of people living in each room. All of the outfits were of the finest quality and were made to accentuate the desired bodily shapes of each gender. You can tell that people really took pride in the place that they were living in. As we walked in to the dining hall we were greeted by King George the I from Hanover, Germany. He was sitting at an elegant table with an extravagant feast laid out in front of him. He began to speak to us about how proud he was about how large his buffet was and how the people were all starving but found satisfaction and happiness from watching their king eat. He then went on about how fancy his hall was and began to brag about all of the folded napkins and how artsy they were. There was everything from folded flowers to folded napkin animals all over the table and he would not stop talking about how elegant the Hanover people’s art of napkin folding was and how we must be so impressed. Unfortunately, the happiness did not last. The King was having a feud with his son the Prince of Wales and we were later brought in to the thick of it during our ‘tour’. The group was divided at the beginning and as a loyal follower to my king I stood by his side during the argument as the other lowly peasants went with the popular choice and stood beside the Prince of Wales. The argument got very heated and it ended with the prince and his wife being banished from England. There is obviously a huge amount of pride in place here as shown by the extravagant day long stories that unfold at different times throughout the day. The actors never break character and can be found walking around at different times throughout the castle and its grounds having authentic conversations from that era. I will definitely have to come back and follow the stories throughout the whole day so that I can see the entire tale unfold before my eyes and maybe even play a key role in it myself.  

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre

What an experience Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre was! I had read so much about this place and read so many different fictional stories from books such as The Shakespeare Stealer that mentioned this place but seeing the recreation of this place was really something else. While the old Globe Theatre burned down, this one is across the river due to the change in size of the Thames river but is an exact replica of what they believe the original Globe Theatre was supposed to have looked like. For this blog entry I will focus on the elements of class and gender. Where an individual sat directly corresponded to their social class. If you were a lowly peasant you would be on the floor which was standing room only. If you were royalty or of upper class you would sit in the various levels of balconies that wrapped around the Globe Theatre. If you were very important you would sit in the Lord’s Room which was located above and behind the stage. While at first glance this might not appear to be the best seat, let me assure you it was! This was because it was the best seat to be noticed in. Only the rich and powerful were able to obtain these seats and therefore they were placed in the spot where you would be seen the best throughout the show. Anyone who was facing the stage would see you up behind it and be in awe that you were able to obtain such an amazing seat. However, I would personally prefer the floor standing room in the very front where you could lean against the stage and interact with the actors. I would much rather have a blast and be part of the show than sit up behind it so that people could simply admire me. As for gender, once you went in to the museum you could see replicas of the clothes worn by actors for shows on various mannequins. However, on closer examination you would notice that all of these mannequins (even those in dresses) were men! For those of you that do not know, women were not allowed to act during Shakespeare’s era. All rolls, including those of female characters, were played by men. While this might seem disturbing to you to think about men playing romantically involved characters with other men, it was perfectly normal back then. While I have no problem with this it was quite entertaining to see the ugly and brutish looking ‘women’ mannequins in their elegant dresses. Overall this was a very exciting trip. The replication of the Globe Theatre was exceptional from the handmade wooden structure with wooden pegs to hold it together to the thatched roof; every detail was definitely on point. I definitely plan on going back to see a play here before I leave!