THIS BLOG IS DONE

hey folks who no longer read this blog b/c it's been inactive for so long, i'm starting a new blog at www.spiritdittes.wordpress.com. why? well, it seems i've entered a new stage in my life that's requiring a different set of priorities, vocabularies, reasons for documenting, etc. and so to reflect this change, i've moved on to another blog. the rest of my stay in london was eventful, memorable. it was only upon returning to nyc that i realized how the place was beginning to become my frame of reference. i've had the joy of seeing three friends from london visit nyc in this last month, so i don't feel that i've lost that life completely, yet. for the sake of closure, i'm going to say that the travels and adventures of this blog have ended for now. here comes adulthood.

EVERY WAKING MOMENT

the last three days i've been staring at this computer. this paper's been my most challenging one at queen mary and my corneas can't take it. i'm going blind y'all. after this baby's done by 5, i'm off to see stuart hall speak on a panel on cultural identity and the photographic archive at autograph abp (the nonprofit i desperately wanted to work at if i could stay in london). one. week. left.

MUST DO TO DO'S

been counting down the days and i have ten to do the following!

1. finish paper on tourism as a form of neocolonialism
2. have an english roast
3. explore brixton/south london
4. visit sir john sloane's
5. have high tea
6. walk around hampstead heath/crouch end
7. check out goldsmiths' centre for cultural studies
7. say my goodbyes to everyone

i'll leave happy if it all happens.

SILENCE IS GOLDEN

spent a massive library sesh today and adrian joined me after i migrated to soas. when i was at senate hill, i was accosted by this huge black man who wanted to know where i was from, where i was from originally, whether i thought america would survive the recession despite being colonized by england and its foreign policy with iraq (WEIRD), whether i had heard about the earthquakes in southwest china, whether i thought london was better than nyc, whether i thought america was ready for a black president, blahlbhablhahh dayam he just would not stop interrogating me as i was looking for a book on jamaica kincaid! maybe he'd been deprived of human interaction from being in the library for too long, but get these crazies awayy from me plzz

OHGAWD THE END IS NEAR

i handed in my second to last essay last wednesday and spent the rest of the week slacking. spain was amazing, i almost cried during the 200th dos de mayo celebration in madrid even though the language was completely lost to me. the performances were really spectacular, i have a video of napoleon rapping. i'll definitely go back with some spanish under my belt, i'm ashamed really of how little i know ESPECIALLY since i have so many spanish-speaking friends that i love dearly!

anyway, have mostly been making lists for various things (things to do in london before leaving, people to see before leaving, things to prepare for job, things to do during the summer, they go on...) and hanging out with dana! we saw a cindy sherman film, officer killers, yesterday at the tate modern. it was good fun, but i was expecting more gore. the talk before it was disappointing and made me miss swarthmore. i miss swarthmore!

SO MUCH that i'll be going to graduation on june 1st. i changed my return date to nyc for may 28th, in time to celebrate my birthday with people who appreciate my existence. may 31st i'll be visiting swarthmore for graduation, returning to nyc day of, which gives me about a week to settle and remind myself of how much i loved newyork/thestates/myformerlife.

but i will miss london dearly. queen mary has been ridiculous, but it's grown on me. mile end too. ahhnoththinkngaboutitnothigaboutittt.

THE EVENTUAL RETURN

so i've been back in london for about a week now. returned from paris last friday and found myself panicking over two papers due next monday (when i leave for spain), i've finished one! and given myself a brief rest for this massive entry on paris that will probably be the first to take over this entire blog's webpage. the weather there was a bit temperamental, but this visit probably ranks highest on my list of the most pleasant vacations i've had in my (short) life, thanks to the delightful company of magali duzant and michelle lee! it was very convenient to just walk around the entire city, it's such a pretty one with its slate blue rooftops! i mostly explored by walking, observed french society, sat in cafes, gorged on tasty pastries, saw beautiful art, visited cemeteries, went to markets, watched the L word with the girls, and listened to stories about snooty french art students.

first day in paris!


their flat was chilly because the french don't believe in double-paned windows, avec an outdoor dining table


aforementioned anti-climatic passing of torch


passed japan town/street, i've heard japanese cuisine in paris is suspect b/c they're mostly run by vietnamese and the fish is not fresh...i miss sushi


street of the bad boys (or something like that) in the marais, avec gun-totting panda


maison europeenne de la photographie


lunch with mags at a cute restaurant/bookshop


sacre coeur


jardins du luxembourg, magali and michelle add a bit of humanity


paris at sunset near the apartment


one of the stalls at an antiques market


some were like movie sets


there were often protests with frightful policemen patrolling with guns and bulletproof vests


debuffet piece at the pompidou


proust at the cemeterie du montparnasse, had trouble finding him so i just followed these two women, one of whom, upon arriving, proceeded to look at me and say "proust." indeed.


truffaut, one of the more touching graves with rocks placed upon ticket stubs


yummy pastries from patisserie sadaharu aoki


the louvre, i went to see winged victory but quickly ran away after seeing all the tourists


musee de l'orangerie to see monet's lillies


my last few days were filled with photography-related events, modeled with michelle for magali's jean project


and met alec soth! future famed photographer who was showing at the jeu de paume and kindly gave magali's photo class a tour of his work.


this was my last day. i was sad to leave. it's a bit lonesome living on one's own, i forgot how nice it is to have someone to start the day with! anyway, i'm back to normalcy till next monday when i go to barcelona, valencia, and madrid!

XENA IN FRENCH

HEY GUYZ REMEMBER ZENA WARRIOR PRINCESS, SHE'S STILL ON TELEVISION IN FRANCE


i didn't think the show could get any more ridiculous but yes. yes it can. a decapitated head is speaking in french right now. too funnyy.