Romanian Club

As Ian pointed out, the British Museum wasn't exactly the most un-academic thing to do on our last free weekend. So we finished the day (last Saturday 01/16) by going to an NYU event at a bar called Smithys in Islington (?), quickly returning home for a few rounds of Flip Cup, and going to a Romanian club called the Arc between Islington and Angel.

Though we didn't stay at Smithys for long, it looked like a fun place to hang out. We came home, and I played my first rounds of Flip Cup ever (This was the second night I'd ever drank. James recorded my misadventures of the previous night on his blog, lifeafterarc.blogspot.com). I managed to hold my own, even as we used cheap Tesco vodka and white rum instead of beer.

A bit before midnight, we made our way to a club. As we were walking, I irreverently added to the rainwater drenching London's streets (another first for the night). Anyway, upon spotting the Arc, we decided the other club was much too far. Much to our surprise, the Arc turned out to be a Romanian club, with neither music nor a DJ that we could understand.

Nonetheless, we spent the next two hours there, avoiding the advances of the older, mid- to late-20s crowd. Unfortunately, some of my friends weren't so lucky. Kevin found himself trapped by a girl who fancied him and her guy friends who encouraged her advances. I for one thought he was enjoying himself and pushed him into her arms, not realizing the unwanted spanks that would soon come his way.

We even formed a conga line and played limbo (two more firsts for a club). As you can see, this was not your typical Romanian club (if for some reason you have a typical Romanian club). As Yuha said it, "It was one of those nights you'll never forget, but one of those nights you'll never want to repeat." Actually I wouldn't mind repeating it. Any thoughts, Kevin? Just kidding

British Museum

Classes started yesterday so this weekend we waged our last stand against the oncoming siege of academia. On Saturday, we went to the British Museum. Putting the ethical implications aside, the selection was simply incredible; as an orientation leader had reminded us earlier "Britain had centuries to loot the greatest treasures from all over the world." Exhibits included Chinese ceramics, statues from Indian temples, African canoes, a replica of a Korean home, Middle Eastern bowls, etc. We didn't have time to take in everything (our stomachs led us elsewhere), but the museum is a must-see if you come to London. Below are some pictures.

I don't remember where this piece was from, but looks cool.


I loved the blue and white Chinese porcelain. There was a roomful of Chinese ceramics, all collected by a private Englishman.


Some of the amazing African art. Notice the artificial tree in the background. I think it's made from scraps of wood.

A statue of Mahavir, I think, in the India exhibit. The exhibit was so extensive, they even had sections on Buddhism and Jainism!

Vampire Weekend

It's been a while since my last post, but I'm finally in London! The past day and half has been crazy. I've been laughed at by an elderly British couple, been invited to play Flip Cup in the communal kitchen (could you imagine the field day RAs would have in the States?), and, most impressively, seen Vampire Weekend at a free concert in Somerset House. Yes, I did just refer to the US as the States. I've deluded myself into thinking I can be mistaken as a native Londoner (is that the word?) by the end of the semester. To that end, I've started to refer to the bathroom as the toilet, any attractive outfit as glamorous, and putting money on a gift card as topping up. I'm still working on perfecting the "Cheers".

The Vampire Weekend concert was awesome, and it was completely accidental. Three girls on the street asked us where to buy phones, and an hour later, we (Adam, Phil, and I) found ourselves accompanying them to a free concert. It was a outdoor concert surrounded by gorgeous buildings that looked like British palaces from movies (they may have been the Royal Courts of Justice) and located above an ice rink. Despite a technical glitch that blew out the speakers for the keyboard and ended their show early, the lead singer (Ezra Koening, according to Wikipedia) was hilarious in his dry wit, and the band was great. They played Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa, Oxford Comma, Walcott, and three or four songs from their new release, which they were promoting with the free concert. Unfortunately, I wasn't as big a fan of the new songs as I was of the old ones, but they were more high-energy and concert-friendly.

Anyway, I've forgotten to carry my camera around since I've been to London so I couldn't take any pictures of Vampire Weekend (even though we were really far away). I'll have to start doing so, and I'll keep you updated on the rest of orientation.

Trust the Post Office?

I found out that my dad used the Post Office to send in my visa application to the British Consulate. Yes, the visa application that contains my passport. According to the study abroad office, three students have lost their passports when the Post Office mis-routed their packages. God knows how they're handling it. My dad did request a return receipt so at least we'll know if my package gets mis-routed. I've got my fingers crossed.

Chinese Censorship

At work today, someone asked how I'll be able to survive without Google, YouTube, Facebook, or whatever else they censor in China (hopefully not this blog, right?) That's certainly one side of the argument, but you also have to note that a billion people are fine living under such conditions. Maybe they don't have the resources to fight the Chinese government if they'd like or to move to another country with the appropriate freedom, but certainly there are many content living within that system. You have to wonder why that's the case, when (I assume) Chinese citizens know that there are greater opportunities for information and freedom elsewhere. I hope to understand it better when I go to China.

You could use the analogy that the typical Chinese citizen has the access to information that Americans had before the Internet, five, ten, or fifteen years ago. Obviously we're much better now, but we were certainly fine before then. However, that analogy doesn't hold because at that time, no one had the access to information. Currently, others do while the Chinese don't. Maybe I'm overestimating the lack of information and the "option" to resist the situation. Who knows?

The idea I keep coming back to is one I learned last semester in World Cultures. For some reason, when Western scholars study China and the Far East, they tend to view them in a completely different universe, with their own context, with their own morals, with their own set of rules, that in no way can be understood using a Western context, morals, or rules. We see their culture as a polar opposite that cannot be reconciled with or viewed in the same context as our culture. However, that's wrong. There may be differences in values, belief systems, etc., but we need to view them as we would Europeans or South Americans. Differences in lifestyle for sure, but not alien ways of thinking or living. The human rights abuses, lack of environmental protection, censorship of information, etc. all sound so unendurable, but there are countries, and even states, much closer to home enduring similar issues. China isn't the only one dealing with these issues so we shouldn't view it as if it's on a separate planet.