unhintheuk

[unhintheuk]

Sadly, our time in London was far too short to explore every facet of the city. Our first day we saw the essentials like Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, his lesser known cousin Little Ben, Westminster Abbey and Westminster Cathedral. Because of the Platinum Jubilee of HM Queen Elizabeth II, Buckingham was closed to the public due to the taking down of ornaments and seating. Luckily we got to see a foreign brigade march past us, but the video is too long to upload in this post so I’ll do it in the next. The Cathedral also had an active service going on, so we couldn’t go inside that either. Westminster Abbey was really spectacular to look at, but the price of admission was too rich for our blood. Instead, we went to a river boat for lunch and a few drinks but got to see some sights like Big Ben on the way. One of the other members of the group invited one of her friends who has been living in London for a few months to show us around to some of the gift shops and restaurants we could go to in Soho. We decided on Italian but the place we went to could have had some help in the back of house department. After, we came back for a siesta and went out for some drinks around the hotel.

The next day was a visit to the Churchill war rooms where PM Winston Churchill directed British efforts during WWII. It was a nice link between Bletchley, where intelligence was processed, and London, where official decisions were made. It also had a museum to the life and work of Churchill. I had never known how wide ranging his work was, from military service, to politics, and even literature and painting. After the war rooms, we walked around a bit and shopped for souvenirs around Piccadilly Circus and got lunch at Leicester Square. We decided after shopping to head back to the hotel for a snooze and later regrouped at Kensington Garden, a stunning public park right by our hotel. We found out the hard way that most places close their kitchens early on Sundays, but luckily we found a place that could accommodate eight people and got our last round of fish and chips there.

Today was our last day on the trip. I took it pretty easy and slept in and went to the scheduled Jack the Ripper tour in the evening. While I can’t say I was particularly excited or interesting in the subject, the tour guide did a great job of sucking us into the atmosphere of mystery of the case. After the tour, we bud farewell to the faculty of the trip because they’re leaving at 5am tomorrow. I’ve packed my bags and have everything ready to go for my flights back to Boston. Reflecting on this trip, it has easily been one of the best experiences of my life. I know for a fact that I’ve made friends that I would have never even met had it not been for this opportunity. Coming to a deeper understanding and appreciation for the differences between American and British culture couldn’t have been possible had I not seen first hand just how the jubilee affected public and private life. To see how different people approach similar situations differently is a key goal of higher education, and this trip really pinned that in my mind in a first-hand way.

[unhintheuk]

Skittle bowling was some really good fun. We went to the Sheepheid Inn, which is where uprising against the English were planned by Scottish clan leaders. It was awesome to experience some authentic Scottish heritage first hand - we were bowling on the same lanes as Bonny Prince Charles! The food was ok, but the experience was top notch.

The day after was a free day which I used to get some more souvenirs for my family. Like the last one, I went off alone, but Edinburgh is so easy to navigate that it wasn’t an issue at all. Plus, I wanted to give myself a break because the next day we had to be up early to go to York.

The bus ride to York was much smoother than I had though. We had our own private coach and the driver, Paul, was really experienced - except for when he got lost on his way out of Edinburgh. I think it had more to do with Dr. Ramsay chatting his ear off at 8:30am than anything else. On our way to York, we stopped at Alnwick castle where the first two Harry Potter movies were filmed. I haven’t really watched Harry Potter, so much of that went over my head, but it was interesting to learn about the history of the castle as it evolved from a medieval fortress to a ducal palace in the 19th century.

Unfortunately the weather was quite poor, but it paired well with the fish and chips that I had for lunch. We couldn’t take any pictures of the inside, but I can saw it was quite a different picture from Carrickfurgus castle. The nobility still own the property, and one of the heirs to the property was actually born there. Altogether it wasn’t super interesting to me, but for people with an appreciation for Harry Potter and the finer things in life, it would make an excellent day trip.

We departed from Alnwick for York after a few hours, and I took the liberty of just hanging out at the air b&b for the night. We decided to do a “family dinner”, which was a ton of fun and was a great bonding experience. The next day I went out to see the York Wall, York Minster, and to see the statue of Constantine. The wall was built by the Romans to defend what they called “Eborcorum” and a fortress rests below the current grounds of the minster. While we were there, a bishop came out and led a prayer for Ukraine and the people of Ukraine who have been impacted by the war there. It served as a reminder that even though it’s a tourist destination, it’s still an active place of worship. We decided to go up to the tower and it was well worth the pounds. You could see for miles at the top of the minster and really put into perspective the relative agrarian landscape with the activity of the streets below. Most of the UK has felt this way to me. Despite being in cities, the country wasn’t some far away thing like how it is in the US. After the minster, we dove into a restaurant called the Fat Badger where I took the liberty of getting a dad selfie with their mascot. Easily the best lunch I’ve had during my time in the UK was there.

The next day we left York and went to Bletchley Park where the British cracked the German Enigma machine during WWII, which likely saved millions of lives and shortened the war by at least two years. It was somewhat underwhelming. Despite being the birthplace of MI6 and the CIA, it felt fairly empty and repetitive. Even the mansion that identifies it was only two rooms. After Bletchley we made for London, bid Paul farewell, and got our Oyster cards to travel the city cost free. We didn’t do much that day because we had a free day the following day, so we went to get a bite and some drinks and called it a day.

[unhintheuk]

The day after Pitlochry was a bit of a drag. We woke up early and went to a place called Heathergems. They take dead Heather flowers and compress them in such a way that it makes gems. While I was quite tired from the day before, I managed to find a gift for my mom for her birthday, which was huge because her birthday was June 1 and I was away. We went onto a train to come back to Edinburgh and it was packed to the point where I had to stand for the entirety of the two hour ride. I didn’t take any pictures because I could hardly move my arms! Luckily, the scenery was so beautiful that it distracted me for most of the ride. When we arrived in Edinburgh, me and a few others decided to taxi back to the dorms we we dropped our bags off in instead of walking up and down the hills of the city.

Later that night, we went for a ghost walk around the city. It was really interesting to learn about the darker history of Edinburgh through a guided tour, and the tour guide was just fantastic. We went to Greyfriar’s Kirkyard (Kirk means church) and we learned that the surgeon profession was propelled through a murder spree sponsored by a doctor who wanted fresh cadavers. We also heard the story of Greyfriar’s Bobby, who was a loyal dog who would sit at his late master’s grave every night after he died. The city was so moved by his loyalty that they named him the city’s dog for everyone to care for and gave him a key to the city. There’s a cute monument to him both by his grave and outside of the kirkyard. Next to that, in textbook Scottish fashion, is Bobby’s Bar for the locals to drink to his memory. The tour eventually brought us to an underground section that was buried by modern development where plague victims were quarantined. Unlike ours with Tiger King and a 24 hour news cycle, this quarantine area was dark, dank, and an area with a very sad outcome for the (mostly) children who were sent there.

The day after was a free day to explore Edinburgh. We all decided to go to the castle and explore some of the more fun side of Scottish history. We saw the Scottish military museum that went through the many times that Scotland has fought both with and against the English and how that has impacted Scottish culture.

The man in the painting was an acclaimed Scottish officer who, in his 80s, dueled with a man and won. Because of his age, they fueled with guns instead of swords, which is why he’s gripping a pistol in the portrait, done in his 90s.

The next day, I went about by myself to the Museum of Scotland. Unfortunately I didn’t get to explore it as thoroughly as I had hoped because of time constraints with skittle bowling that we did in the evening.

I did however get a good snap of the tomb of Mary, Queen of Scots, and of a tombstone of a highland warrior.

[unhintheuk]

After the Parliament, I walked around and got some souvenirs for my family. I didn’t go too crazy because I knew that I wanted to get something when I left for the highlands the next day. The morning of going to Pitlochry was hectic because we had to walk half an hour to the Waverly Train Station. Once we got on the train, the ride felt to go much faster than two and a half hours. I was surprised by the majesty of the passing countryside and was blown away by the gorgeous views in Pitlochry. After a quick lunch, we went down to the Blair Atholl Scotch distillery. I learned about how the distilling science had evolved over the years and how integral to the culture of the Highlands it was. We even got to do a scotch tasting, which was really neat after learning how different distilling practices yield different results. To me, it all tasted like whisky, except for the last one which was a Blair Atholl special. Only 6,000 bottles were ever produced right before the pandemic broke out, so we got a chance to sample some. I figured that my step dad would like it a lot, so I got a bottle of it for him when I got back.

After the distillery tour, we went to see a suspension bridge that connects the two sides of Pitlochry across a river and did some preparation for the hike up Ben-y-Vrackie, the local mountain, the next day. We had to leave fairly early in the morning, around 9:30, because the trailhead itself was almost an hour away from our hostel. It was daunting at first, but with a few breaks, some water, and encouragement from my friends on the trip, we conquered it handily and spent some time enjoying the view from the peak.

This was unfortunately our last day in Pitlochry. I spent the rest of the day packing my bags up for the train the next day and spent some time at the local pub with friends from the trip. Funny enough, I met a guy whose dad used to be a member of my fraternity when he was in college. It just goes to show how small of a world it really is!

[unhintheuk]

(Pictures of Carrickfurgus castle)

The day after, we made for Scotland. This was the portion of the tour I was most excited for. The grandma is from Scotland and I’ve never been, so I’ve been really looking forward to experiencing the culture of my family’s homeland. We landed in Edinburgh and walked through the town, seeing some sights and getting our bearings. Some of us decided to hike up Arthur’s Seat, which is a mountain hiking trail just east of our lodging. The view was immaculate and you could see all the towns and Burroughs that surround Edinburgh, which gave me a deeper appreciation for the vastness of Scotland, though it is a small country.

The next day we saw the Scottish Parliament building and learned more about the political history of Scotland. It was interesting to learn about, but what struck me the most was how modern the architecture was. Having only been built in the early 2000s, it was no surprise that it wasn’t the classical looking building of the US Capitol or UK Parliament, but walking up to it I thought we were going to a fine arts museum. There was much pride into to be felt there, as so much of Scottish history is of fighting for popular representation against English oppression. The last picture is of the Parliament mace, which has the words “There shall be a Scottish Parliament” inscribed in the bottom, which are the first words of the act of British parliament that established the Scottish parliament.

[unhintheuk]

This past week has really been a blur. Since my last post, I’ve gone on the Coiste/Epic tour through Belfast which highlights historic places and events during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The Troubles was essentially a civil war between the Irish Republican Army (IRA), a separatist faction looking to reunite the north with the Republic of Ireland, and the Loyalists who fought to maintain Northern Ireland’s status in the UK. It was very interesting to hear from real people from the two sides, both of which who were involved in the fighting. From Coiste (Republican tour), their framing of it was primarily political, mentioning that there were Catholics who fought on the Loyalist side and Protestants who fought on the Republican side. It was a stark contrast both from how I’ve learned about the Troubles in school and from how the Epic (Loyalist tour) framed their side. I got see sights like the so-called “Peace Wall” that separates West Belfast along these socio-political lines, a graveyard where many Republicans are buried, and the famous Bobby Sands mural. On the Epic tour, we went through the main strip that cuts through the Loyalist section of the Peace Wall and saw tons of plain propaganda that highlights the (mostly) Protestant victims of the Troubles. The Epic tour was also mostly framed around Catholic/Protestant language, which highlights how even though most people today regret the Troubles and resent the lasting divide it’s left, there’s still not much agreement on what it was actually about.

TRIGGER WARNING! - THE NEXT SET OF PHOTOS SHOW GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF HUMAN SUFFERING. IF THIS UNSETTLES YOU, PLEASE CONTINUE TO THE NEXT SECTION.

The most interesting part of this tour was the differences in framing. While the Republican side mostly revers what they see as freedom fighters and oppressed people fighting for freedom, the Loyalist side viewed the Troubles as a long stretch of terrorist violence targeting Protestant communities. While both sides have their merits, I’m unconvinced that either side is just, knowing that many bombings, killings, kidnappings, rapes, and other violence were both unprovoked and unwarned leading to senseless deaths on both sides. I asked our Republican tour guide how he became radicalized, and he said that he doesn’t like that term because of modern connotations with the “senseless” acts of violence from groups like ISIS or Al Qaeda. To me, s the dead don’t care for semantics. After the tours we did a Q&A with two former fighters, one from the IRA and the other from a Loyalist paramilitary group. They told their stories of how they went from kids throwing rocks at police cars to robbing banks and murdering people to further their side’s agenda. It was quite sad to hear that the only political solution for the Sinn Fein party, which is the political branch of the demobilized IRA, is reunification with Ireland. The Unionists actively oppose this position. I worry that if moderate solutions cannot be agreed upon, radical violence will re-emerge in the community and they’ll be back where they started.

The day after, we went to see the North Antrim coast and saw some cultural sites, like the Carrickfurgus castle and the Giant’s Causeway. This is a security studies trip, so the castle was a way of comparing how the idea of security has changed throughout history. It was really cool to see some of the implementations that the castle had to stop invaders and to learn more about the history of Northern Ireland. At the Giant’s Causeway, we got to enjoy some uncharacteristicly good weather for Ireland and hiked up a trail where we could see Ireland for miles and one direction, and the vast ocean we had just crossed in another. I was blown away by the beauty of it all. If you ever get a chance to go to Ireland, I highly recommend you go to the Causeway, regardless of if you’re a hiking fan or not.

[unhintheuk]

Once we got off the train to Belfast, we made for our hostel. While not the most luxurious accommodation, it suffices to say the least. None of us were expecting it to be as cramped as it was, but it’s only for a few nights while we’re in Belfast. A couple pieces of advice that I have is to make sure you have Pounds going into the UK and not wait until you’re already there to change currencies because there aren’t many places, at least in Belfast, that change monies. Another piece is to make sure to travel with someone because it definitely eases the anxiety of traveling to a foreign country and if you get lost, at least you’re with another person.

Today, we saw the Titanic museum and some other sights along the way, like the Prince Albert clock dedicated to Queen Victoria’s husband.

We also saw the government building where much of the cities politics play out. Right now there is some trouble brewing in Belfast with growing tensions between the Sinn Fein and Unionist parties, which are the political representatives for what was the IRA and Loyalists some 40 years ago. We decided not to tarry long there and went straight to the museum.

The Titanic museum was incredible to say the least. It was very thorough in its explanation as to how Belfast became a major industrial city, going from linen production to steel and onto ships. In fact, the shipbuilding industry was a major reason as to why the UK wanted to keep Northern Ireland after Irish independence. One really great section was the cable car ride that walked us through a day in the life on a worker on the Titanic, or generally working in the ships being built in Belfast. It really highlighted the tough, many times painful work that young men did to make these vessels which are a major piece of Belfast’s history.

Tomorrow, we’ll be going on the Coiste tour, hearing from former members of the Real IRA and Loyalists who fought each other during the troubles. I look forward to hearing their stories and asking them questions related to radicalization, political violence, and extremist doctrine today in Northern Ireland.

[unhintheuk]

As my first every experience traveling abroad, I was both anxious and excited to finally go on the UK Comparative Security Systems study abroad. I half expected everything to go wrong, but everything went smoothly and I landed in Dublin, Ireland right on time. The pictures above are of me in Logan Airport waiting for my flight, night over Boston, sunrise over the Atlantic, and right before landing in Dublin. Once I landed, I decided to get a quick latte and find a cab to Connolly station where seven other students decided to meet up. One tip I have for Connolly Station is to make sure your phone is charged because there wasn’t a single electrical plug in the building for travelers. We departed at 1:20 on a bus (not in the plan) to another station about an hour away because there was maintenance on the line going into Belfast, which is where we needed to go. I decided to sleep for a bit on the bus, so I didn’t get any snaps, but once we got to the train I took some pictures of the countryside.