Football, Diwali Festival and Cheeky Nandos

For a sociological analysis on social class, my class went to a local football game (on Saturday, Oct 15th) to see the "lower class" in action. It was quite the experience:

I assumed English people wouldn't be as aggressive as Americans when it came to sports. Boy was I wrong. The home team fans and away team fans had separate entrances and the stands were separated by large barriers and security guards to prevent violence. They also weren't allowed to drink in the stands...alcohol is allowed during halftime but it has to be finished before going back in. I could see why; fans were screaming at each other-chanting things at eachother I won't repeat. And we were in the "family section", which is a little less intense than the hard core (read: more vulgar) fans. 

I was half expecting a national anthem of some sort before the game started...and then I was like, wait I'm not in America! That was kinda strange. They basically just started playing. Below left is the one ritual-y thing they did...a bunch of fans ran out onto the field and helped bring this tarp out (with the home game's logo on it). But other than that, it was all about the game.

"Thursday [class] Leah and Wednesday [class] Leah" before the game. aside from having the same name, we are so alike it kinda freaks us out. 

And this is a picture of the "quote of the day" board at Tottenham Court Road tube station. It almost always makes me smile when I pass through:

A little taste of home with Good Ol' Abe :) although I think this is a Mark Twain quote so...

So that was my Saturday! I won't get too academic on you all, but it definitely gave us a lot to talk about in class the next week. An interesting difference between the UK and US: social class is not based on money here. It has more to do with the way you talk, your surname, the way you dress, and the way you make your tea. It's not as fluid (you can't just become famous or make money and move up the chain like you can in the US). For example, Tom Hanks, a wealthy actor who would probably be considered of the upper class in America, is of low class here. Not because he isn't successful (he sure is!), but simply due to his name, the way he talks, and how he grew up). 

Example 2: These pictures I took (left) on the walk to the game and (right) on the tube on the way home.

 The "Chav sweatsuit" vs. The "smart casual" style of the upper class.

Saturday night I stayed in and worked on homework (yes, I promise I do actual work as well!) The next day I did the same...until later that night, when Jenn and I took a trip to Trafalgar Square for the Diwali Festival. We both needed to get out of the house!

So many people. It was very similar to the Malaysia Fest I went to in regards to its setup. Food, vendors, and performers on the stage in front of Nelson's Column.

My almost roommate :)

We only had nine pounds between the two of us in notes, so we had only enough for food, and couldn't not fresh coconut water (left). 

 But we learned a lot from the vendors...I talked to the lady who makes delicious spices (middle) and Jenn and this guy (right) talked about the benefits of yoga and meditation for several minutes.

We managed to snake through the crowds and get fairly close to the stage :)

Here's a video of one of the performers who sings in several languages:

And here's a video of this crazy-good street performer (outside of Trafalgar square and the festival) I've seen a lot of really good ones here...but this one blew my mind. He stayed so perfectly still while still balancing off the ground. WHAT?

And when we gave him a few pounds, he did this:

We got sort of lost on the way home, but used that as a way to do some sightseeing. And then I figured out where we were and was proud of myself because I knew where the nearest station was! :)

 Big Ben + Sunset = Perfection

And one last picture because I was excited about this billboard. I honestly don't remember why: 

On Monday (last day off of the weekend), I spent the day working  procrastinating on homework until Claire and I left for the center. Neither of us have class on Monday, so we've made it a tradition to go into the city when rush hour is headed the opposite way. We work on homework until the Arcadia centre closes at nine, and then head to Nando's across the street from the school. 

From last week:

This week:

Next week I'll explain the phrase "Cheeky Nandos". It's a British thing that I don't fully understand as an American :) But the tradition has been a fun one...and it makes for a (relatively) fun Monday!

Me feeling like those TV geniuses (above): ferociously outlining my essay on a napkin because I "just can't find a piece of paper fast enough". Not so genius: the fact that the essay was due the next day. Whoops. Claire and I both pulled an all-nighter that night. 

Creepy face in the grocery store because this much ice cream is a necessary evil for sleepless evenings

At six in the morning the next day, we decided we might as well get ready for school and beat the traffic to get to the centre. So we got to see the sunrise on our walk down the hill!

We got to Arcadia and Claire looked at me and said, "Doesn't it feel like we were just here?" Haha. 

But I don't recommend it..I nearly fell asleep in class on Tuesday. I was in Holborn until 5:30 and then had to go to see 1984, the play, for my London Stage class at 730. I didn't get home until 10ish that night. Here's me (above) asleep in between class and the theatre. Out cold. 

Wake up cuz next up is: Grandma and Grandpa come visit!! Stay tuned. 

Shoreditch, Street Art, and Shared Beliefs

My plan for Friday (October 14th) involved meeting with my professor about an essay and then working on said essay.

But plans can change, right?

As I was logging off Facebook, READY TO WORK. READY TO STOP PROCRASTINATING. READY TO FOCUS. COME ON, LEAH, I saw I had an event bookmarked:

Arcadia Explores: Street Art Tour. Starts in 12 minutes. 

Welp. There goes my essay.

(Side note: I did pretend to contemplate whether or not I should go or stay but I knew for the entire 3 seconds of doing so that I was gonna go.)

But I'm so glad I did! I learned so much. Prepare for street art fact overload:

This is Shoreditch. Specifically, this is the parking lot that transforms into 'The Urban Food Fest' every weekend. I went to it here. 

Shoreditch is quickly becoming gentrified, and it was a little unnerving to see the new buildings encroaching into the old. The advertisement plastered on the building (above right) was put up this week, and is actually covering one of Stik's recent murals. Dr. Maguire, a professor at Arcadia who took us on the tour, showed us a picture from when he came last week. He said what we saw likely won't be there later, and if we come back in two years, street art in general will probably be nearly nonexistent. (above left: "Last Days of Shoreditch") Pretty crazy.

Stik makes stick figures that are often lonely and sad, to reflect his community (above)

The above painting is by Thierry Noir (in case you can't tell). We saw lots of his work later on. 

But more strange is the tiny street art on the ground below the large painting:

Ben Wilson paints on top of "baked hard chewing gum splatts". A little nutty, but talent nonetheless! These are really hard to find, but they are scattered around the city. (above left: a fried egg, above right: an imitation of the Thierry Noir's painting).

Ben Eine paints vibrant typographical letters. This reads "Last Days of Shoreditch" (above).

Dr. Maguire says he prefers "old" street art styles (above left), rather than graphitti-type styles used by amateurs (above right). I think I agree. Some serious talent below:

I spy a man hiding. 

This was brand new...painted in the morning, maybe five hours before we found it (according to the lady who moved away to let me take a picture): 

Street art has become commercialized (above right), a fact that Dr. Maguire finds a bit sad. What used to be a hobby that was used to make public statements has now become the means for money. People will tear down a wall with a Banksy painting and sell it for millions.

Another Stik painting (above).

Interesting irony: The "hipster" businesses, who were attracted to Shoreditch because of the popularity of the area (ie: street art), have put up big windows and walls with grates (left) to prevent street artists from "ruining" their walls. Some businesses (right) embrace this though and encourage artists to come. 

 Hipsters are gradually pushing the Bangladeshi people out...businesses like "Cereal Killer Cafe" and other hip culture is starting to overpower the authentic culture of the Bangladesh.

When the tour ended, he said, "Whatever you do, DON'T go get a bagel. You can do that in Camden."

Oh hello there. 

Some street art lasts longer than others. The painting below has been there for three years. And across from it is a street club. The company incorporated the street art in with their interior design to protect it from being destroyed/painted over:

This is in reference to the Ferguson shooting of Michael Brown (again, United States issues are world issues!) but the "Michael Brown" subject allegedly looks like Obama (his ears are a giveaway). If you look closely, the Nike logo is featured on Brown's shirt, with the words: "Don't Do It!". Fun fact: this was painted on a "virgin" wall (on a bare wall, not on top of another artist's work). 

Here's the ones protected (some even by plastic covering):

Should street art be covered in plastic? Or does it ruin the whole point of street art and become more like a museum...?

My all-time favorite.

This one is interesting too: contrast of love and war. 

"Big fish eat small fish."

And some other large ones:

Camouflaged on some of the street art: masks from another artist (bottom right):

Another Thierry Noir:

And this 3-D piece attached to a wall:

Artist Citizen Kane made the above 3-D piece two years ago in memory of his son who committed suicide. People took pieces off for themselves, but he came back and redid it. Dr. Maguire said Kane will likely continue to check on it and make sure it stays preserved in place.

One of the students pointed out that this building (below) was on Bacon Street. Hahaha:

Left: hard-to-spot street art, Middle: another mask, Right: spray paint on a bin that made me laugh:

This is Eine again with the block letters (below). It spells Scary. But because the Y is on a slanted part of the bridge, it looks like it says "Scar" from the other side. Dr. Maguire said no one could ever get a head-on picture of the full word until the panorama setting came out on smartphones:

And I have a few more pictures, but I don't want to bore you too much with my art love :) But here's one more Kenzie and I spotted that he didn't show us:

Oh, McDonald's :(

As you can see, I learned quite a lot about several artists (and street art in general). I find this an acceptable alternative to essaying. (I have yet to write that!)

But before I work on homework, here's some pictures from Thursday and Friday night, with people from Koinonia. It was so nice to be with people who love Jesus:

Dinner in some of the guys' apartment...(I almost didn't make it. My phone died, my written directions made no sense because of construction work, and it was dark. So I hailed a taxi for a five minute ride to the place. Late, but in time for a delicious dinner!) [left: Amy, me]

Me, Fiona, Paulina

It was neat to be with people from all over the world: England, Scotland, Ireland, Poland, Lithuania and even the Bahamas. Fiona is from London so she helped me get back without a taxi, and Paulina is from Krakov, so she had some good suggestions for places to go when I'm in Poland in a few weeks.

And lastly, one pic from Thursday night. We had our meeting, then went to a pub, and then I stopped at McDonald's for fries with these goofballs:

"She has a blog. We're gonna be famous!"

And now I really have to write that essay. 

Cheers!