Yup, it's that time of the semester again. Three full weeks of school before spring break, and they're going to be jam-packed. Not only do I have my fair share of exams and papers for class, but Panton is visiting for a week and I have my second actuarial exam the Friday before spring break. I doubt this will leave much time for travel or posts.
For spring break, I'll be spending a week in Italy, four days in Istanbul, and two days in Switzerland. I read that statistically the best part of a vacation is planning it. I guess that should be something to cheer me up as I study.
However, the weather is actually becoming nice. Still nippy but the sun actually comes out and you don't need to carry an umbrella every time you step outside. I wonder what London is like in the summer and if the UK has any beaches. Within a week of arriving, I was convinced that it rained year-round, but it doesn't seem to be the case.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
Theatre
For the last month, I've been going to a lot of shows, or theatre as the British call it. NYU London provides us with discounted tickets, usually for 5 to 10 pounds. Cheap doses of culture, who would have thunk it? I'm no theatre critic, but here goes.
Blood Brothers - For Spice Girls fans, Melanie C makes her theatrical debut in this musical, which has been running for over 21 years. The musical is entertaining and well-cast. I especially liked the male narrator and Mickey, one of Melanie C's twin sons. The plot revolves around fraternal twins separated at birth who fall in love with the same girl and who end up in very different positions in life. It deals with the nature vs. nurture argument and the British obsession with class. Except for one wretched line towards the end that beats you over the head with these themes, I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it. I saw it at Phoenix Theatre on Charing Cross Road.
War Horse - Let me start off by saying that after this show I had a night bus to Edinburgh at 11 pm so I was antsy for it to end and probably didn't enjoy it to the fullest extent. The play involves a boy whose horse is sold to the British army by his poor father and who enlists in WWII in an attempt to find his horse. The most incredible part were the mechanical, life-size horses. Operated by three people, these wooden figures perfectly replicated a horse's movements and were sturdy enough to hold a person on top of them. Undoubtedly, the story was touching, exploring the boy's sentiment towards the horse, a German soldier's ambivalence towards the war, and fraternal rivalry and despair. Steven Spielberg has bought the film rights of the original 1982 book by Michael Morpugo, which formed the basis for the play. Legend has it that it only took him one sitting to decide. I saw it at New London Theatre on Drury Lane.
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour - Running for only one act, I especially enjoyed this political play about Soviet Russia, written in 1977 by Tom Stoppard. Not comparing it to War Horse or Waiting for Godot, but it was much more of a gem, known on a smaller scale. Its layout is craftily handled with a full orchestra on the rotating part of the stage. The play revolves around two patients in a Soviet mental hospital, one for political dissent and one for genuine schizophrenia. Believing he commands a symphony orchestra, the schizophrenic patient adds much-needed comic relief. The perfectly timed and hilarious interactions describe the absurdity of the mental health system and reminded me of Catch-22. I saw it at Olivier Theatre in the National Theatre.
Off the Endz - Well, the Tube took over an hour to get to the other side of Zone 1 so I only saw the second half of the play. Go figure. It involved a black couple in England, with profanity and much more contemporary events than the other shows. Race is an interesting topic in relation to the identity of Great Britain, arguably even more so than in the US, and several of our lectures have been devoted to it. I definitely wish I had seen the first half. However, it was one of those shows where at the end you nod wholeheartedly at the message and then walk out of the theatre the same as before without changing your viewpoint at all. I saw it at Royal Court by Sloane Square.
Waiting for Godot - Obviously a classic. Ian McKellen (Gandolf) played Estragon, one of the play's five characters, and was hilarious. For all its interpretations and symbolic possibilities, I appreciated the fact that it didn't try to beat you over the head with one particular message. Living up to its title, it's entirely about two characters waiting for Godot and what passes between them in the meantime. As one critic (on Wikipedia, of course) said, not only is it a play about nothing, it's two plays about nothing since both acts are of the same mold. I definitely want to read the script now (yeah, I went in blind), but it's well worth it, even if you go in like me. I saw it as part of CACE London with Melissa Iglio and Stern students at Theatre Royal Haymarket by Piccadilly Circus.
But yeah, all the shows have been fantastic. If you have a chance to see them for a reasonable price (even a slightly unreasonable price), I'd recommend them, each for a different reason. For the next month, I won't be traveling since I have one of my actuarial certification exams on March 26, the Friday before spring break. However, it means that I'll be going to more shows since I'll be stuck in London while my friends jet off around Europe.
Blood Brothers - For Spice Girls fans, Melanie C makes her theatrical debut in this musical, which has been running for over 21 years. The musical is entertaining and well-cast. I especially liked the male narrator and Mickey, one of Melanie C's twin sons. The plot revolves around fraternal twins separated at birth who fall in love with the same girl and who end up in very different positions in life. It deals with the nature vs. nurture argument and the British obsession with class. Except for one wretched line towards the end that beats you over the head with these themes, I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it. I saw it at Phoenix Theatre on Charing Cross Road.
War Horse - Let me start off by saying that after this show I had a night bus to Edinburgh at 11 pm so I was antsy for it to end and probably didn't enjoy it to the fullest extent. The play involves a boy whose horse is sold to the British army by his poor father and who enlists in WWII in an attempt to find his horse. The most incredible part were the mechanical, life-size horses. Operated by three people, these wooden figures perfectly replicated a horse's movements and were sturdy enough to hold a person on top of them. Undoubtedly, the story was touching, exploring the boy's sentiment towards the horse, a German soldier's ambivalence towards the war, and fraternal rivalry and despair. Steven Spielberg has bought the film rights of the original 1982 book by Michael Morpugo, which formed the basis for the play. Legend has it that it only took him one sitting to decide. I saw it at New London Theatre on Drury Lane.
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour - Running for only one act, I especially enjoyed this political play about Soviet Russia, written in 1977 by Tom Stoppard. Not comparing it to War Horse or Waiting for Godot, but it was much more of a gem, known on a smaller scale. Its layout is craftily handled with a full orchestra on the rotating part of the stage. The play revolves around two patients in a Soviet mental hospital, one for political dissent and one for genuine schizophrenia. Believing he commands a symphony orchestra, the schizophrenic patient adds much-needed comic relief. The perfectly timed and hilarious interactions describe the absurdity of the mental health system and reminded me of Catch-22. I saw it at Olivier Theatre in the National Theatre.
Off the Endz - Well, the Tube took over an hour to get to the other side of Zone 1 so I only saw the second half of the play. Go figure. It involved a black couple in England, with profanity and much more contemporary events than the other shows. Race is an interesting topic in relation to the identity of Great Britain, arguably even more so than in the US, and several of our lectures have been devoted to it. I definitely wish I had seen the first half. However, it was one of those shows where at the end you nod wholeheartedly at the message and then walk out of the theatre the same as before without changing your viewpoint at all. I saw it at Royal Court by Sloane Square.
Waiting for Godot - Obviously a classic. Ian McKellen (Gandolf) played Estragon, one of the play's five characters, and was hilarious. For all its interpretations and symbolic possibilities, I appreciated the fact that it didn't try to beat you over the head with one particular message. Living up to its title, it's entirely about two characters waiting for Godot and what passes between them in the meantime. As one critic (on Wikipedia, of course) said, not only is it a play about nothing, it's two plays about nothing since both acts are of the same mold. I definitely want to read the script now (yeah, I went in blind), but it's well worth it, even if you go in like me. I saw it as part of CACE London with Melissa Iglio and Stern students at Theatre Royal Haymarket by Piccadilly Circus.
But yeah, all the shows have been fantastic. If you have a chance to see them for a reasonable price (even a slightly unreasonable price), I'd recommend them, each for a different reason. For the next month, I won't be traveling since I have one of my actuarial certification exams on March 26, the Friday before spring break. However, it means that I'll be going to more shows since I'll be stuck in London while my friends jet off around Europe.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Cambridge
Today NYU took us to Cambridge. I was amazed by the history of the university and town. The Romans were the first to settle here, to be followed by the Vikings and the Saxons. However, the date our tour guide stressed was 1209, when dissident students from Oxford arrived. It distinctly remains a student town. In the center of town, there were more bikes on the road than cars. Students were carrying field hockey (boys in this case) and lacrosse (thought it was an American sport) sticks. With the juxtaposition of the history and architecture, I can only imagine how cool it would be to go to school there.
The university (aka uni) system is interesting. There are 31 colleges within Cambridge University, but you can only apply to one. In fact, you can only apply to either Oxford or Cambridge, not both. Each college within Cambridge is more or less qualified to teach every major so there's no business school like Stern. There's no requirement to attend university classes, but you must attend weekly one-on-one supervision from your college.
Mathematical Bridge over River Cam. Its name derives from the fact that all its boards are straight though the bridge is curved. Of course the boards are tangent to the circle. I would take a picture of this bridge.
A courtyard in one of the colleges. Each college seemed to have one, and it made me miss grass.
The Cavendish Laboratory where the electron, proton, and neutron were discoveredA in chronological order. Cambridge is known for its scientific research. Apparently its staff at the time of award has won over 30 Nobel Prizes, which my tour guide made clear is more than some countries like Russia. Why he chose Russia and not one of the other 200 countries, I don't know.
A popular pub. I never know pub was the short form of "public house." Apparently Watson and Crick were known to hang out here and publicly announced that they had discovered the structure of DNA here. Also, this pub was frequented by many American soldiers during WWII due to its name.
The gap between the Senate House and Corpus Christi College. Apparently there's a group called the Night Climbers at Cambridge who climb the old buildings, and this jump is a favorite. I would love to try it, hopefully successfully.
King's College, home of countless notable alumni.
The ceiling of King's College Chapel. Eleven buttresses on each side of the chapel allow it to have stained glass windows and no internal supports. This chapel blew me away; it was the most memorable part of Cambridge. It was started by Henry VI but finished five monarchs later by Henry VIII, and you can tell the transformation of the architectural style from one end to the other. The chapel is immense (88 m in length), and the carvings on the Henry VIII western end are intricate. As our tour guide explained it, the chapel was meant to remind you that God would protect you in your next life, but that your king (Henry VIII at the time) would protect in this life so you should be a loyal subject.
One of the stain glass windows. All the windows took 30 years to put into place, and even their later restoration took five years. The top half depicts scenes from the Old Testament and the bottom half from the New Testament. Apparently the kings thought there was a direct correlation between the two texts.
There's also a vibrant marketplace, which has stood in the same spot for over 500 years, and punting (aka river tours by boat) on the River Cam. As you can see, I enjoyed Cambridge, well worth the day trip. We'll see what Oxford has to offer in a few weeks...lol
The university (aka uni) system is interesting. There are 31 colleges within Cambridge University, but you can only apply to one. In fact, you can only apply to either Oxford or Cambridge, not both. Each college within Cambridge is more or less qualified to teach every major so there's no business school like Stern. There's no requirement to attend university classes, but you must attend weekly one-on-one supervision from your college.
Mathematical Bridge over River Cam. Its name derives from the fact that all its boards are straight though the bridge is curved. Of course the boards are tangent to the circle. I would take a picture of this bridge.
A courtyard in one of the colleges. Each college seemed to have one, and it made me miss grass.
The Cavendish Laboratory where the electron, proton, and neutron were discoveredA in chronological order. Cambridge is known for its scientific research. Apparently its staff at the time of award has won over 30 Nobel Prizes, which my tour guide made clear is more than some countries like Russia. Why he chose Russia and not one of the other 200 countries, I don't know.
A popular pub. I never know pub was the short form of "public house." Apparently Watson and Crick were known to hang out here and publicly announced that they had discovered the structure of DNA here. Also, this pub was frequented by many American soldiers during WWII due to its name.
The gap between the Senate House and Corpus Christi College. Apparently there's a group called the Night Climbers at Cambridge who climb the old buildings, and this jump is a favorite. I would love to try it, hopefully successfully.
King's College, home of countless notable alumni.
The ceiling of King's College Chapel. Eleven buttresses on each side of the chapel allow it to have stained glass windows and no internal supports. This chapel blew me away; it was the most memorable part of Cambridge. It was started by Henry VI but finished five monarchs later by Henry VIII, and you can tell the transformation of the architectural style from one end to the other. The chapel is immense (88 m in length), and the carvings on the Henry VIII western end are intricate. As our tour guide explained it, the chapel was meant to remind you that God would protect you in your next life, but that your king (Henry VIII at the time) would protect in this life so you should be a loyal subject.
One of the stain glass windows. All the windows took 30 years to put into place, and even their later restoration took five years. The top half depicts scenes from the Old Testament and the bottom half from the New Testament. Apparently the kings thought there was a direct correlation between the two texts.There's also a vibrant marketplace, which has stood in the same spot for over 500 years, and punting (aka river tours by boat) on the River Cam. As you can see, I enjoyed Cambridge, well worth the day trip. We'll see what Oxford has to offer in a few weeks...lol
Ben and Jerry
On Thursday, Ben and Jerry's announced that all their ingredients would be Free Trade Certified by the end of 2013. They held a promotional event by Leicester Square where the actual Ben and Jerry spoke for a few minutes and employees gave out free samples of all their flavors. Without a doubt, I was there.
Ben on the left, Jerry on the right. I didn't get a chance to stop them and talk, but they seemed friendly and receptive to whoever pushed their way through the crowd towards them.
There were two cow mascots and a hazelnut mascot (we think, it was more or less a brown circle). Of course we took pictures, but they're all on my friend's camera. There were tons of little kids (apparently there's no school on Thursdays in London) who we had to slyly edge out of our way as we took pictures. You know what I'm talking about, you pretend that you're going to stand back and give everyone else a chance first but you edge your way up nonetheless, with an innocent smile the entire time. Hey, it's not like you see a hazelnut everyday (or a girl in her twenties willing to lick a hazelnut costume. Think about where the costume has been, and it stops being as cute)
They were actually a funny duo. Jerry recommended that we take a free sample, go to the back of the line, start eating the sample and finish right in time for the next sample when we get to the head of the line. Ben explained his theory that you feel cold only when there's a high spread between internal and external temperatures. That's why you should eat ice cream and lower your internal temperature...bogus by the way. As usual, it was rainy and freezing in London so our experiences handily disproved it.
However, it was a marketing lesson of sorts. They talked about how they tried to stimulate ice cream consumption in winter months to boost sales. Ben said that the Hot Fudge flavor had been created with that goal in mind. Hopefully, in winter months, people can associate with Hot Fudge and will eat Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Of course, Ben and Jerry's is one of the good companies (even though they sold out to Unilever), but it was interesting to see how psychology plays such a key role in every marketing decision they make.
Anyway, getting onto the good stuff. Our group split up where Natalie and Yuha stood in line while Angela and I waited to rush the employees who came out of the nearby movie theater with trays of samples. In the end, all of us had three and a half samples. The only one I didn't enjoy was Strawberry Cheesecake (I'm not quite sure what other flavors I had, but they were good). However, other people started copying Angela and I so the employees started semi-clotheslining people as they rushed up to them. We managed to grab our last sample before the clotheslining began. Eat that, Ben and Jerry's lol
Ben on the left, Jerry on the right. I didn't get a chance to stop them and talk, but they seemed friendly and receptive to whoever pushed their way through the crowd towards them.There were two cow mascots and a hazelnut mascot (we think, it was more or less a brown circle). Of course we took pictures, but they're all on my friend's camera. There were tons of little kids (apparently there's no school on Thursdays in London) who we had to slyly edge out of our way as we took pictures. You know what I'm talking about, you pretend that you're going to stand back and give everyone else a chance first but you edge your way up nonetheless, with an innocent smile the entire time. Hey, it's not like you see a hazelnut everyday (or a girl in her twenties willing to lick a hazelnut costume. Think about where the costume has been, and it stops being as cute)
They were actually a funny duo. Jerry recommended that we take a free sample, go to the back of the line, start eating the sample and finish right in time for the next sample when we get to the head of the line. Ben explained his theory that you feel cold only when there's a high spread between internal and external temperatures. That's why you should eat ice cream and lower your internal temperature...bogus by the way. As usual, it was rainy and freezing in London so our experiences handily disproved it.However, it was a marketing lesson of sorts. They talked about how they tried to stimulate ice cream consumption in winter months to boost sales. Ben said that the Hot Fudge flavor had been created with that goal in mind. Hopefully, in winter months, people can associate with Hot Fudge and will eat Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Of course, Ben and Jerry's is one of the good companies (even though they sold out to Unilever), but it was interesting to see how psychology plays such a key role in every marketing decision they make.
Anyway, getting onto the good stuff. Our group split up where Natalie and Yuha stood in line while Angela and I waited to rush the employees who came out of the nearby movie theater with trays of samples. In the end, all of us had three and a half samples. The only one I didn't enjoy was Strawberry Cheesecake (I'm not quite sure what other flavors I had, but they were good). However, other people started copying Angela and I so the employees started semi-clotheslining people as they rushed up to them. We managed to grab our last sample before the clotheslining began. Eat that, Ben and Jerry's lol
Monday, February 15, 2010
Rugby Game
On Saturday, NYU took us to see Saracens vs. Worcestor Warriors at Wembley Station. Even though the 6 Nations rugby tournament was in its second week, England wasn't playing that day so I'm assuming most English rugby fans had their eyes on this game.
Well, it was .... interesting.
First, the ridiculous Saracens song. Every five minutes, a thirty-second chant consisting of "Stand up, for Saracens, for Saracens. Stand up" played, and the crowd went insane. Everyone would jump up, wave their flags, move their arms like they were dancing to the Monster Mash, and sit back down just as quickly. At first, we had no idea what was going on, but by the second half of the game, we were joining right in. Granted, it was more out of mockery than camaraderie, but you have to listen to the song to understand. You can find it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKWmLGnlRug, and the chant they played at the game lasts from 0:32 to 0:58.
Second, the kids. I couldn't believe how young everyone was; there were six-year-olds yelling at each other about the game. If they formed a mob, I would've been quite frightened.
Third, the half-time show. About 250 girls (and 2 boys as far as I could see) came onto the field to dance to The Saturdays, a British girl band that I'd probably liken to Miley Cyrus. They did a routine of jumping up and down, moving side to side, and punching the air. I never thought I'd see such a sight at a rugby game. If anything, I expected a Linkin Park-like pump-up band exuding masculinity and all its stupidity, not a pop group. Like I said, interesting.
Fourth, the butt boosts. Whenever there's a throw in, players from both teams get thrown in the air so that they are nearly twice as high as everyone else on the ground. They achieve this feat by launching themselves backwards off the ground, only to have a teammate behind them push their butt with open palms upwards into the air. At least, that's the best explanation I could see.
Now getting to the actual rugby. Finally a part of the experience that went according to expectations. All the violence and roughhousing required that trainers ran up and down the sidelines, waiting for players to get hurt (which they did). The game seems to involve a fair deal of luck since the touchdowns (?) only came from broken tackles. Otherwise, the game just seemed to move back and forth at mid-field with each team destroying the other. I've got to admit that watching some of the more painful tackles and surprisingly broken tackles was quite enjoyable and voyeuristic (in a non-sexual way).
Saracens won by a score of 25-20. I was rooting for them since they were the home team and the favored team to win the Guinness Premiership. However, I don't think I'll be going back to a rugby match, at least not before I see a football match. Hopefully, there, I'll be more prepared for the experience that comes with the game.
The crowd leaving the stadium for the Tube station. It's easy to see why European riots at rugby or football matches break out. Probably for this reason, there was a police barricade at the Tube station. They only let people through in stages so you're not killing each other (as much) to get into the Tube, like they do in Washington DC on July 4th. I don't think I've seen this at an American sports game, but it's effective.
Well, it was .... interesting.
First, the ridiculous Saracens song. Every five minutes, a thirty-second chant consisting of "Stand up, for Saracens, for Saracens. Stand up" played, and the crowd went insane. Everyone would jump up, wave their flags, move their arms like they were dancing to the Monster Mash, and sit back down just as quickly. At first, we had no idea what was going on, but by the second half of the game, we were joining right in. Granted, it was more out of mockery than camaraderie, but you have to listen to the song to understand. You can find it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKWmLGnlRug, and the chant they played at the game lasts from 0:32 to 0:58.Second, the kids. I couldn't believe how young everyone was; there were six-year-olds yelling at each other about the game. If they formed a mob, I would've been quite frightened.
Third, the half-time show. About 250 girls (and 2 boys as far as I could see) came onto the field to dance to The Saturdays, a British girl band that I'd probably liken to Miley Cyrus. They did a routine of jumping up and down, moving side to side, and punching the air. I never thought I'd see such a sight at a rugby game. If anything, I expected a Linkin Park-like pump-up band exuding masculinity and all its stupidity, not a pop group. Like I said, interesting.
Fourth, the butt boosts. Whenever there's a throw in, players from both teams get thrown in the air so that they are nearly twice as high as everyone else on the ground. They achieve this feat by launching themselves backwards off the ground, only to have a teammate behind them push their butt with open palms upwards into the air. At least, that's the best explanation I could see.
Now getting to the actual rugby. Finally a part of the experience that went according to expectations. All the violence and roughhousing required that trainers ran up and down the sidelines, waiting for players to get hurt (which they did). The game seems to involve a fair deal of luck since the touchdowns (?) only came from broken tackles. Otherwise, the game just seemed to move back and forth at mid-field with each team destroying the other. I've got to admit that watching some of the more painful tackles and surprisingly broken tackles was quite enjoyable and voyeuristic (in a non-sexual way).Saracens won by a score of 25-20. I was rooting for them since they were the home team and the favored team to win the Guinness Premiership. However, I don't think I'll be going back to a rugby match, at least not before I see a football match. Hopefully, there, I'll be more prepared for the experience that comes with the game.
The crowd leaving the stadium for the Tube station. It's easy to see why European riots at rugby or football matches break out. Probably for this reason, there was a police barricade at the Tube station. They only let people through in stages so you're not killing each other (as much) to get into the Tube, like they do in Washington DC on July 4th. I don't think I've seen this at an American sports game, but it's effective.
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