lizfairy

I want to be French.

Okay, not quite, but I do admire and adore much of French culture, art, fashion, intellect... I'm not saying I don't like any other culture, heck no, in fact I'm in amour with Italian passion in every aspect of life, India's perfectionist gaudiness, I could go on and name just about every country I've visited and an element of a stereotype which I've seen to be true and liked! It's just the French, unlike any other nation of people, convince me that France's culture is the intricate, mysterious, perfectionist, and at the same time tragic of those in Europe. Why do I use the word tragic? Are the French more unfortunate than any other country in Europe, or moreover, the world? No, I don't think they are, they hold the Louvre in Paris, a huge number of claims to fame, from the Eiffel tower to the chocolate eclair and croissants, Chanel clothing and Estee Laudee to classy french cinema, Eugene Atget's dramatic compositions of a Paris of the past to the stereotypical reality of a slim French woman in a striped top, smoking a fag looking the epitamy of cool.

The French girls portrayed in movies, and often seen in France, as would be evidenced by Mireille Recommends, author of 'The french don't get fat', and conveyed in the film Chocolat, this endless love of food, but a stylish fussiness and snobbery that disallows them from eating anything but the best, and nothing out of ritual. French diets would not be reduced fat croissants and coffee with sweetener then a special k bar for elevensies and than a half fat wrap for lunch with a diet chocolate bar, then make up for it later with a packet of biscuits of entire cheesecake. Oh no, French girls have style, discipline, and prioritise. Instead maybe, instead of their diet breakfast, they eat proper food. Maybe a pain au chocolat or croissant with a black coffee for breakfast, if really hungry maybe some fruit or yogurt before lunch time, and for lunch, a really satisfying proper lunch, whether it's soup, salad, vegetables, pasta, or meat. The French allow themselves a little bit of what they fancy everyday, but realise that in order to please the senses one must not over indulge them. Thus, life is passionate but holds mystery, cinema and fashion is classy, moving, but not over dramatic, and often focuses on little intricacies. Alcohol to is not such an issue in France, where people far more rarely drink to excess.

I realise I am agreeing with and emphasising stereotypes here, but truly, I have analyzed for long, and can see these as true, even with reference to French people.

A few things I like that have come from France...

Audrey Tatou-She is incredibly sweet, beautiful, petite, and charming as an actress in Amelie, Coco Before Chanel, Priceless and countless other movies.

The French Patisserie-Delectable looking even before smelling, scrumptious smelling even before tasting, melt in your mouth bliss.

Paris Je t'aime-Just one of the many movies that have come out of French cinema that I LOVE. Beautiful, empowering, even touching on Philosophy, this film encompasses incredible actors with acclaimed directors. I can't wait for New York I love you.

Paris-Monmatre is like the cherry on top of the cupcake of love. Cheesy, but true. I love just watching this city, maybe eating a crepe, visiting some galleries, strolling the shops, but mainly I like just watching.

The Costa Azure-One of the most beautiful stretches of coastline, with trendy yachts, Nice, dramatic cliffs, warm sea and sun, vineyards, Mediterranean flavors to life.

So I just finished reading the second book I have acquired from the library from the suggested reading list for Anthropology, 'Small Places, Large issues, An introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology' by Thomas Hylland Eriksen. I sympathised greatly with Eriksen both prior to reading, and throughout the book, for having such an overwhelming task, to compile a introduction to such a vast subject with far fewer rules and rigid foundations perhaps than of long studied subjects, such as Biology, Maths, and probably more comparatively, Philosophy.

Still, Eriksen I feel succeeded in introducing the subject from it's roots and origins, early practices and aims, and modern developments. He managed to use a wide range of case studies, and selected both widely known and less famous Anthropologists and Sociologists, in order to move between common subjects for study. The reading was very fluid, moving from such subjects as the individual's place in society, to local organisation, and then moving between various components of societies that enable them to establish boundaries, a unique culture (eg. in marriage, consumption, class and caste, poltics, importance of age/gender, religions and rituals), ethnic identity, multiculturalism, and guided the reader toward noticing dichotomies as a method of analysis, and the contrasts between variables, reinforced not as solid unchanging labels, but there to be able to conceptualise society, such as traditional societies in contrast to modernity, bricoleur to engineer, small scale to large scale, even if the comparison is given more as a scale in many cases than a two point distinguishable comparison.

At the same time, emphasis is put on the fieldwork methodology unique to Anthropology, and speaks wholly of Malinowski as the initiator. The reader is introduced to Franz Boas, Evas Pritchard, Max Gluckman, Sahlin, Levis Strauss, Karl Marx, Mary Douglas, Peter Winch, Daniel Miller, Dumont, James Frazer, and a variety of other influential Anthropologists, Sociologists, Philosophers and journalists. Many academic backgrounds are given credibility, as Anthropology is described as not providing right or wrong answers, but instead assisting in enabling us to familiarize the exotic, and make the familiar seem more exotic. In other words, we are trying to find the differences and similarities between different people.

More important in later chapters, Eriksen sways toward the idea of globalisation, issues raised by conflicting traditions, ethnic boundaries, minorities, the loss of cultural and social tradition, and potential assimilation of existing indigenous populations. He questions the role of Anthropology in the modern day and future, as nations are becoming far more interconnected and homogeneous, but concludes through various examples of globally different reactions to such trends, that there will always be social differences in different spaces, and that the Anthropologist is invaluable in recognizing, and recording traditions, as we may be able to compare the micro to the macro, or make sense of how the practices of indigenous villages are repeated to a larger scales in the 'global village', coined by Marshall McLuhran in 1994, but conflicting with Jonathan Friedman's view.

This book has enabled me to get an overall overview of commonly studied areas of Social and Cultural Anthropology, delivering various theories and perspectives on subjects, and brief introductions to popular themes. I have been able to begin an appreciation for certain particular areas, noteably ritual, witchcraft, and shamenism, and the importance of material culture and consumerism to the society, and how the perceptive views of such ideas vary greatly. I have also seen an ongoing debate as to whether noticed trends are humanistic, functional, or formulate a structurally functionalist vantage point. Regardless, it is important to see things not just in a local, but in a global perspective, or as Dumont said, from a totality.

Basicallly... MMM!

Base-
100g oaty biscuits (eg. hobnobs)
with 50g soy margarine, melted

filling
4oz (115g) brown sugar
4oz (115g) margarine
1 tbsp golden syrup
4floz (100 ml) soya milk
1 dessert spoon cornflour
½ tsp vanilla vssence
1 banana

1. Crush the oaty biscuits and combine with melted soy margarine

2. Roll out and place into a dish

3. In a saucepan with sugar thermometer attached, gently heat the sugar, margarine and and golden syrup.

4. Constantly stirring the mixture with a non plastic spoon, boil up to soft ball stage. Simmer at this temperature for 5 minutes, making sure not to let the temperature go any higher.

5. Heat the soya milk and heaped dessert spoonful of cornflour in the microwave until a thick white sauce is made. Stir in the vanilla.

6. Take the toffee off the heat and allow to cool for a couple of minutes. Beat the toffee whilst slowly adding the white sauce to it. Mix thoroughly, removing any un-dissolved lumps of cornflour.

7. Slice the banana thinly and line the base of the pastry case evenly.

8. Once cooled to room temperature, carefully poor the toffee mixture over the top, making sure as to cover the bananas completely. Refrigerate for a few hours before enjoying. The longer you leave it the firmer and less runny the toffee will be.

I poured over Alpro soya cream.

Mmmm.

Just a quick update, I got home the night before last from Italy once again.
During my time there I taught English to more Italian classes of 13-19 year olds. Some were too embarrassed to ask questions, whilst others were all too happy to emphasize their curiosity. I also met a half English girl called Amelia, and it was strange to hear a perfect English accent coming from a girl bought up in Italy with home customs shared between Italian and British.

Of course, I also spent a lot of time with Roberto. For his birthday we, and his friends, went to a pizzeria, followed by a trip to an 'Irish' pub, which didn't feel too different to any English pub to be sincere! The following night, to avoid being vulgar and going out for two nights to drink, we headed to a Ciocolatta cafe, a venue with an exciting bar like atmosphere, and a menu of tea, coffee, and over 20 flavors of Ciocolatta calda. For those not so familiar with ciocolatta calda, it is a double shot espresso sized rich, thick hot chocolate 'drink', though to an American or English tongue could be better described to have the consistency of pudding. It is delicious, and whilst I'm sure you could drink it, I and most others seem to find it more dignified to consume it with a spoon. Unavoidable is the chocolatey mess that forms around one's mouth. The flavor I decided to try was canella e arancia, which to those who cannot speak Italian, is cinnamon and orange. I was tempted to by the pistachio and ginger flavors.

Robbie also took me to the Museo di Civico in Cremona, a collection of art works from Renaissance periods and more modern works, pottery from around the world, archeological findings from Roman and Greek times, and violins because of Cremona's pride in Stradivarius. Other than cultural trips and walks around the old town and il Duomo, I did a bit of shopping, a lot of eating, and there was a lot of time for visiting relatives and romance.


Other than my trip to Italy... I just bought the canon 40d! :) I can't wait to experiment more with it. Also, I have the next week off college for some weird reason, but I'm not complaining.

Tonight my daddy and I are going to see New Moon and afterward eat out at Pizza Express.
Plus a new Shakeaway has just opened in Exeter near college. I better not live off soya milkshakes...

When I'm sad, like as of now, I try and think of the following two concepts, to remind myself of life's limited fairness, difficulty to figure out, and sheer craziness.

"Language is a virus" William S Burroughs.

Nature can be approached in two concepts, it's relation to culture in terms of being an inner human nature, or it's existence as the external nature, like the ecosystem in which humans live. With a huge belief in science's role as an empirical method, but only as that, I believe it is important to realize, that society is what molds individuals. Culture can be described as the cultivation of humans, and acquiring of various behaviors, beliefs and customs. Whilst obviously humans see a lot of fear in the 'real' natural world, we are all products of nature, just shaped socially, so as that we can acquire language and communicate in our societies.

With this line of human culture identified and simplified to this extent, can we seriously doubt Burroughs analogy? I know, if not in metaphorical terms, it's pretty unlikely, but after all, in cases of feral children we have seen humans that, despite acquiring the biology of a human being show in behavioral aspects not considered human. Instead they only share physiology, and innate needs from birth such as the need to gain energy through eating and drinking and releasing the waste, breathing, keeping warm and safe etc. The verbal language we as humans use to communicate both facilitates development and keeps us unhappy... Why? Because we can communicate to each other greater things, think through things verbally in our heads, rationalize, reason, and develop a greater array of emotions. We can persuade, advertise, argue, compliment, even entertain, or love.

Language is the expression of our value system of consciousness, and this in itself causes objectivity. Moral views and opinions change from individual to individual. Language is a relational concept. It can only exist if other concepts exist. Language is like a loop or cycle that repeats itself. You could sit thinking it through carefully and frustrated, and still return to the beginning of the chain of thought.

"The world's a stage" William Shakespeare.

Action and interaction are two keep aspects that hold together the framework of social life. Though an acting person in a movie or in theater is usually the only type of person labeled by society as an actor, Shakespeare seems to speak the truth. In varying degrees, I can see people from different cultures (from my etic perspective) all showing this same characteristic. Humans need to out act each other in order to reach the top. From the Western style parties in which ladies compliment each others prom dresses then bitch about them later, to the Indian and Italian theatrical way of acting and gesturing compared to the minimalist, subtle way of doing it in the UK. Obviously, as I mention myself as an etic, this is quite an ethnocentric way of describing this observation, only it does inform of cultural relativism, which is important to remember.

For this reason, I've always felt that when in the spotlight one should smile, cooperate with fellow actors, and try one's best not to be hated by the audience, if need be remain neutral if the conscious, being unavoidably objective doesn't agree in everything. Obviously we cannot always act and win an Oscar, unfortunately.


Bad week. Only up side? I've made some really good new friends at college and I'm definitely going to study Anthropology in London in 2010. I wish I could just hibernate for the whole of Winter. This Autumnal air is bringing me down.

Okay... I have to admit I was slightly skeptical about the prospect of listening to a song called 'The Anthropology song', but man, this is heart-felt.

Aristotle: "What does it mean to be a good person?"
Descartes: "What does it mean to be?"
Nietzsche: What does it mean?"
Bertrand Russel: "What does 'it' mean?"
C.S.Lewis: "What does it?"
Lil John: "What?"

hu·man (hymn)
n.
1. A member of the genus Homo and especially of the species H. sapiens.
2. A person: the extraordinary humans who explored Antarctica.

(No I have no idea who this guy is)

Emiliana Torrini is amazing!
I knew this before, only I just reminded myself of her brilliance listening to her last album for the first time in ages. Beautiful, Bellissimo, or whatever word you wish to describe it with.

I can fully comprehend why some who think humans were magically created from a puff of magic smoke foresee Darwinism as a threat to their ideals of creationism, but regardless of faith, why is it some say evolution isn't happening and hasn't happened? Paleontology has provided extensive collections of evidence, and even the humble flu virus and irritating problem of lice infection in children are modern displays of evolution. So I think we can conclude that evolution is indeed, a fact. The struggle for existence leads to survival of the fittest, only those species with randomly caused but advantageous qualities are likely to survive in changing environments and pass on their alleles to next generations, making them more frequent in the gene pool.

What I cannot understand is the debate still existing around the word evolution. Isn't it just a process, a way of describing a mechanism by which living organisms adapt and change?

( Who, )

So it's early October, and I wanted my dad to buy some berries, but it turns out at £1.99 minimum, my daddy didn't want to buy me any berries. Not quite end of story. It's so misty today, and I feel terribly run down with flu, but I headed out in the drizzly English countryside right next to my house to make use of the air whilst it's not quite bitter, and the berries whilst they're ripe but not rotten.











And then I had to add some to my vegan chocolate cupcakes, recipe from 'vegan cupcakes will takeover the world. It tasted like black forest gateau after my experimentation.

I have produced 5 final outcomes for 3 people, they just require mounting.

I will post these soon!

Rotations start on Monday, and I'm doing fine art for the next 2 weeks. Turns out our residential trip is to NY to so I'm happy :) Would have loved Moscow to though.

What is annoying me and forcing me to send this needless post however? Seetickets.com is annoying me... I've been on the phone and site from 11am til now (16.45), waiting to purchase tickets. I went so crazy earlier that during my tea break (being in a que around 15:00) I went to vent in the kitchen, cooking up some vegan carrot cookies and chocolate cupcakes.

Oh yes I'm so mad and angry I resorted to baking. I'm obviously beyond crazy...
Now to pull those devils out of the silicone pan and try and concoct some kind of frosting. Hmpth.

People from all over Devon and Dorset meet up on the cathedral green to support the global climate wake up call.



Alarms set to 12:18, picnickers and students and workmen on their lunch breaks are temporarily distracted by the alarm bells ringing of many mobile phones.



Situated in close proximity to the vegan/veggie cafe The plant Deli cafe, this event had a huge and successful turnout and gained many new Avaaz supporters as locals became curious and came over at the sight of commotion and the press (me and another guy working for the Echo and Express)

My next project brief.

I have to interview three of my new classmates who I picked at random from a hat, and produce a series or one off portrait or symbolic series based upon them. It's easy to build up my own perceptions by spying, interviewing, looking at their facebooks, analyzing their writing, their facial expressions, their clothes and possessions, their way with words, their friends, their interests, their social groups...

As Andy Warhol said, "I like people, they're so interesting".

Besides this I also need to do an essay on a photographer who's inspired me.
Piece of cake. (I wrote about Steve McCurry)

:)

Testing, testing, Pop art testing...

So, I've just started at Exeter college, the university of arts London Art & Design foundation diploma. I've now officially been going for a week. I wake up at 6:00 every morning but Tuesday, my day off to catch a 6.50 bus. I've met a load of people, and what's best (and most interesting), is that I don't know who I'll be friends with yet and I don't know how my friends group will be, if existent. It's looking pretty positive though so far. People seem really eclectic in this art group. Sure, there are the stereotypical pretentious art 'experts' who critique on everyone's work after spending ages rambling about how he managed a scribble and what it conveys.

We have been set mainly induction projects, the first was "I am". The objective was to produce three 10X10cm squares in any media based on the title.

I came up with several ideas on identity, masks to emphasize my shyness and hidden identity, wooden elephants walking toward a sunlit window, to act as a metaphor for my desire to travel, my ambitions, my feeling of being in the dark and wanting to break free. I also did an image of myself crouched, hands covering face in black and white, and another revealing my face 'turning my body into colour'. I thought of this to symbolize how I don't quite agree with the Buddhist teachings of harmlessness, that you shouldn't harm anything with eyes. Sure, they may be the windows to the soul but do I cease being a human because my eyes are hidden? Do I loose the essence, and colour of my humanity and life?

Masked






How important are Eyes?







Finally, my final idea was to take an Anthropological view point. I am... what am I literally? I am human. The human being is my species, I am an animal. I wanted to convey human aspects of myself which are animal, and have sensual and expression function. I didn't want to start the course by telling people about what I was like. I wanted to present the raw ingredients of me as a human being, flesh, disgusting tongue, pores and all.

Raw Human

I'm not suited for studying Zoology. Sure, I like animals, but I'm not a scientist. I like travel, culture, people watching, art, essay writing and trying to read people.
I'm therefore applying as soon as possible for Anthropology.

I got a funny buzzy clicky feeling as the thought appeared in my mind, it just seems to fit my aspirations perfectly. I can be a better photojournalist if I understand people and culture and customs and etiquette. Heck, I spend most of my life watching people, nosying into people's lives online and reading up on culture and etiquette. Kate Fox's 'watching the English' is one of my favorite new books. Thoughts of anthropology... Where have you been all my life?


Other than that, my boyfriend is currently at his cousins catholic wedding being forced to attend confession despite being atheist, I just bought a new sketch book in town, and my mum's cousin is visiting from Canada. She has a strange mixture of Canadian and Northern in her accent.

1. Go take a walk along the marine parade, followed by the cob. It may be obvious but I need to emphasize it. Even as a convert to more exotic and more chaotic destinations such as India, I still appreciate the sea and it's infinite scale. The seascape is stereotypical, with the seaguls, the distant cliffs, and fishermen. Besides, it's fun to people watch.

2. Take another walk long the undercliff foot path, starting in Ware cliffs. This walk starts in Minehead and continues around the whole stretch of the south west, including Cornwall. The swamps and dense forest in this section though make this one of the most intriguing of all. You may even see some wildlife if you're quiet.

3. Go to the Scott cinema. We're lucky, in a small seaside town, to be equipped with a cinema. It may be small, but it's worth going to. I've seen many films here with friends.

4. Take a drink in the Harbour inn. This surprisingly stylish restaurant/pub serves up popular sunday roasts, beside being a favorite with local artists for an afternoon drink. The atmosphere here is often great, and there is occasionally live music.

5. Avoid the gift shops. That's right. Unfortunately there is nothing worth buying here, as all worthwhile goods can be bought far cheaper in Exeter or online.

6. Be a foodie... Buy perhaps a pasty at Mulberry manor, fresh bread from the town mill bakery, fudge from Quality corner, tapas and cocktails from Sontanos, and picnics from the good food store.

7. Check out the art galleries. There's a great number of them, the biggest probably being the town mill gallery, which has seasonally changing exhibitions. A good time for artists is the art season during September, during which many local artists open their gardens to the public to show off their paintings and sculptures.

8. Take a boat trip around the bay. Maybe even ride to Beer. There have been basking shark and dolphin sightings during the summer months.

9. Come for fossil week in late Spring. Lyme Regis is the site of Mary Anning's fossiling, so why not relive it? Maybe even pick up a chisel and hammer and see if you have any luck in finding some prehistoric creature. If not you can always buy one.

10. Enjoy the sea and beach. Jump off the North wall at high tide if your daring enough. Make sand castles, sunbathe if you're lucky enough that weather permits. Eat your chips on the beach but be sure those seagulls don't finish them for you. It happens.

A few friends and I went for a Thai meal in the new Thai restaurant in Lyme Regis to say goodbye to those of whom were immediately heading off to university or arts college.



The Bay hotel has been renovated a lot over the last few years. Apparently, when I was a baby my parents stayed with me in one of the high up rooms before we moved to Lyme from Bath. It has a good position on the marine parade just meters from the pebble beach and a short stroll from the sandy beach, the cobb, and the shops on Broad street. I was happy to see a good vegan selection, lots of vegetable, noodle and tofu dishes, and desserts.

With a small appetite for savory however I just opted for a Mushroom tom yum soup, and asked if they could make it extra spicy. It was good and flavorsome, plenty of lemongrass and chilli in there.



Afterward I had banana in coconut cream, though unfortunately I forgot to take a picture. It was a little too salty but I enjoyed it anyway. 2 of my friends found it too rich.

My options are improving! Today I also discovered The terrace art cafe in Seaton. It's a vegetarian/vegan cafe. I didn't have time to stop but had to get a takeout tofu cheesecake. There were three flavors but only one remaining.

The Lime, coconut and ginger tofu cheesecake (and a marks and spencers espresso, thanks moka)

The extremities of fusion 'high tea'... When English tea is replaced with Italian espresso and clotted cream scones are replaced with NY vegan cheesecake with an Asian flavor.









MMMM. I need to get back there and try out the vegan cookies, crumble and other varieties of cheesecake. And maybe some 'proper' food.

I love London, really, the diversity and variety astounds me. If I lived there I can imagine hopping almost hourly between crazy manias, from yoga to painting, karate to animal activism, Otaku to historian... London has everything. Despite often feeling terribly imprisoned on this little island, the global hub of London offers a huge consolation to the feeling of wanting to travel and escape the familiarity of the rural and remote South West England.

On monday my parents and I went to the lovely capital.

My dad and I started by exploring the Sri Mandhir temple in Neasden whilst my mum slept in the car. It is the largest Hindu temple outside of India.

Only a religious organisation could come up with such funds... The white marble was sourced from Bulgaria and the famous Carrara in Italy, and taken to India to be handcarved, before being shipped back to the UK... That's a hell of a load of airmiles!








Next door is a vegetarian restaurant, sweet shop, and fully stocked asian grocery. It stocks loads of egg free cakes, exotic juices, spices, and pulses.
The sweet shop is seriously to die for!







Since our last visit 6 months ago, the restaurant has had serious refurbishment. The menu to has changed from spiced up pizzas to authentic vegetarian North and South Indian cuisine. I had a plain dosa with sambar and coconut chutney whilst my dad opted for paneer masala and lemon rice. Good stuff.






We took away from samosas, kulfi mix, Indian sweets, hot masala chilli sauce and rose syrup.

After a good lunch we woke up my mother, and proceeded to drive on to Richmond via the North circular.

It was time for shopping therapy! I found a UNIQLO, my absolute favorite clothes shop beside Hollister and Zara. Being a Japanese clothes shop, the fashions are often slightly retro, and fit petite sizes often with a taylored look. Often to, one can find cheap cashmere, angora, and other good quality fabrics.

I bought a coat, heat tech socks and stockings, a linen shirt, a John Basquiet t- shirt, some synthetic suede boots, and a dress t shirt. I would have bought some jeans had my funds allowed it. Afterward, I picked up some Emporio Armani sunglasses from Cancer research for £12.50! Absolutely chuffed with my new findings!

Beside shopping, I quickly learned that Richmond is a beautiful borough of London.
The location beside the Thames adds a certain grandeur and prestige to a town already high ranking in class; the narrow side streets are laden with gelaterias, patisseries, and boutique shops radiating continental Europe. I smiled at the site of Ciao ciocolata and mulino Bianco in a deli window! The charity shops to are adorned with plenty of Italian and French second hand books, beside designer clothing.







Of course, the most impressive area is by the riverside.























...What else can I say?

If ever in London, I thoroughly recommend these slightly alternate destinations.