further ventures outside of chelsea

These past few days have been wonderful days that stretch out far and wide. It seems like we have already done so much. We have gone to an assortment of galleries, a “Victorian thriller,” a poetry slam, Trafalgar Square (that was fully covered in green astroturf), and an incredible Surrealist Ball at the Victoria and Albert museum. I also found an artist that I love who has an amazing exhibit at the Tate Britain art gallery called “State Britain.” His name is Mark Wallinger (look him up!… he has really cool stuff and very interesting theory behind his art).

Well, I have been hungry to see different parts of London for some time now. Our student housing is on King’s Road in Chelsea, and in a local magazine, I found this:

             London’s most stylish streets: King’s Road

“Despite its reputation as the shopping Mecca for the stereotypical skinny-jean-clad, Ugg boot wearing, pashmina[the aforementioned trendy scarfs]-wrapped  Chelsea girl, King’s Road actually has a lot more stuffed up its designer’s sleeve.”

It goes on to talk about all of the posh and virtually unaffordable stores here. Also, there are Mercedes and Lamborghini dealerships just down the road from us. It has been uncomfortable living here amidst so much comfort (and enjoying some of that comfort, myself). Yes, I am hungry to see a part of town (if possible) where bus advertisements for credit cards don’t read “Now you can indulge and do good,” and shirts don’t say “I want to buy everything” like one I just passed. (You can find the same kinds of things in the States, I know.)

Finally, just this morning, I got a small taste of East London. We went to Camden Market, which is known for the bohemian youth that crowd the streets where vendors sell vintage clothing, antique jewellery, and hand-made bags. It was a nice change, prices were much more affordable, people looked real, and the market wasn’t crowded because of the coolness of the morning… and the rain. It was my favourite morning yet, although I hope to begin to branch out even more. As for now, I’ve got to run… thanks for reading. It has been fun to write about my experiences thus far!

 

Haiku 2 and a night rhapsody @ Picasso’s Coffee Bar

Haiku 2

(-a double haiku, since I did not write one for Saturday or Sunday)

A raincoat provides

priceless refuge as thund’rous

heavens heap torrents

of cool tears upon

umbrella-less commuters

caught (surprised) outside.

 

Night Rhapsody

10:22pm, approximately.

(No way to know for sure;

I have no watch or phone.)

The buses that pass outside this café

carry cool gusts of wind with them,

rustling the leaves of the trees

that dangle along the sidewalk’s edge.

And the street lights hum,

and speak not of the day,

but of the night,

whispering of evening strolls

and curb-side rendezvous.

It is bright here,

even at this mysterious hour,

and it is cold,

yet my shoes are off

with my feet propped up

in the chair in front of me.

And I leave them off

though I shiver,

in a subtle act of subversion,

to rebel against the coolness

of this supposed summer night.

Sunday: Mass at the Brompton Oratory

A humbly grey edifice serves as the outside of the oratory, and I am not prepared for what waits behind its cedar doors. As we step in, the hallway gives way to a magnificent sanctuary where countless marble columns climb up the walls and tiered domes tower 100 feet high, ornately painted turquoise, gold, and a rustic red. The priest reads in ancient Latin and the mesmerizing voices of the choir echo throughout the acoustics of the room, rising like the fragrant incense that drifts upward and meets in midair the light from the domes that pours downward. At the altar candles are lit, glowing fiercely yellow through the haze of the incense. And I wonder. I wonder about my experience of God: surely there is truth in the reverence of this liturgy, but something in me longs for spontaneity. And I wonder about my notions of God: surely there is beauty in the splendour of this throne room, but something in me longs for simplicity. Nevertheless, I rest in awe of this ceremony, content to collect questions rather than settle for comfortable answers. 

On rightfully approaching the conflicts and conditions of Africa:

 (a summary of my conversation with Lloyd)

We began by talking about logistics, but soon after, we moved into a discussion about the social and political condition of Sudan, specifically in Darfur. I told him I had worked with some organizations that work in and on behalf of the impoverished and displaced in Darfur.       

He asked me if this was “charity” work.

I said no- not really (for I am increasingly becoming aware of the negative connotations of that word). I told him that it was more about social justice: about preventing massacres like the Rwandan genocide of ’94, empowering the oppressed, and “teaching a man to fish” instead of handing him a mackerel on a platter.

Lloyd accepted this answer, but was interested in my idea of what was going on in Darfur. “It’s not always as it appears on the TV,” he said.

I told him about what I had heard: about how the Janjaweeds (or armed horsemen from the primarily-Muslim North who are not as separated from the Sudanese government as one might suppose) are killing and torturing and oppressing the primarily-Christian South.  

Lloyd was discouraged by this (although one must take into account that he father is a Muslim from Northern Sudan). He went on to talk about how he gets enormously suspicious and disheartened when he hears that the UN or US are sending in troops to maintain the peace. “Do you think that the Sudanese government should be able to govern itself?” he asked. 

“Yes,” I said, “but it could be possible for a government to need support or enforcement.”

“I can see that,” he replied, ” but governements will always be governments. What difference do you think the UN/US/UK can really make?”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    This is when I thought… a lot. This is when all of our discussions from Lit Theory came to mind: can the subaltern speak? what does modern-day imperialism/ colonization look like? I thought about these things and about how the US tends to think that the spread of “democracy” will be the saviour of all nations. About how “We” (the white, western male) know the best way and the right way to solve problems and control issues. And I wondered: Could this monopolistic grasp of truth come from having air conditioning, cable, and picket fences? So I mentioned some of these things to Lloyd and he was intrigued. And I asked, “What do you think would make the difference?”                                                                                               *After a long pause, he said this: “Empower the people of these nations. Let the wealthy Americans invest in small businesses that will generate more opportunities. Let them pour their resources into building schools and equipping hospitals. Let those with skills and specialties teach the people trades and talents.”                                 In other words, empower Africans to be Africans and see what they can and will do. The last thing we need is clones of ourselves; of fat-and-happy Americans who like to run the show. Amen. I believe I will be seeing Lloyd around, and I will certainly be churning our conversation over and over in my mind. 

across the pond

We flew across the pond just the other day… It took a while longer than we thought due to an initial 3 hour weather delay. No worries, though: I listened to a couple of CDs (which were amazing gifts; thanks!), learned about a new and somewhat controversial artist (Banksy), and read up on the UK’s gov’t and politics… and I learned a lot about the system which is rather important… I’ll be working outside of Parliament in Westminster.

(Good news, by the way… we came across a British hippie and I want to talk with him… soon. He has—supposedly—been camped out in the square across from Parliament for the past 5 years in a peaceful protest about the war in Iraq. There are flags and signs reading “peace” outside of his tent. A few others have joined him. Hmm…)

The first two days here were pretty blurry. Exciting, but blurry. (I think jet-lag can be blamed for that.) We are living in Chelsea. We are a neighbor of Hugh Grant. Chelsea is more expensive and upscale that most of London… not a good representation of the city at large. (It actually reminds me a bit of downtown Charleston; just not as humid.) There are parks everywhere, though, and that makes me happy. We are also very close to the river. I love the group that we’re with, but I’ve found it tiresome to travel and site-see in the group, especially during the times that we had the tour guide. I hate feeling like a tourist, even though that’s what I am. I’d just rather blend in. Oh, and I’ve decided to write a haiku for everyday… or at least try to. Yesterday’s was this:

Tubes and trendy scarves

plus a plethora of pubs-

and this is London.

—>Not as poetic as I had hoped for, but it’s a start. I’ll blame it on the jet lag once again.

Today was better, though… no haiku just yet, but the day is still young. And today was the first day I wandered off by myself. I figured out the bus and tube system and found the building I will be working at (which is directly across from St. John’s). Then, I sat and read for a bit on a bench shaded by a canopy of trees, overlooking the River Thames (*pronounced “Tim’s”). I had not been there long until I met a student named Lloyd. He grew up in the UK and Northern Africa and his mother was from Egypt and his father from Sudan. I will write about the discussion we had soon… it was a very good and important discussion because of the way it made me think. (Andrew and Richard: you’ll be glad to know that the discussions we had in Lit Theory came to life today, as they tend to do again and again… good stuff.) More to come, my time @ the internet café is up!