A More Cultured London

This is a follow up to my previous, similarly belated post on my New Year's trip to London. My lethargy is dissipating with the rise of Spring, apparently.

Now, usually when I go to London I manage to visit the Tate Modern and the National Gallery, and this is about the extent of my cultural intake. Otherwise, I'm drinking it up in pubs and bars; shopping at Camden Market; making a pig of myself in Chinatown, on Indian food, and on fish and chips; and otherwise being a total hedonist. And, on this trip I did all these things as well. But, I did manage to make my trip slightly more cultured this go around.

Museums:
The Tate Modern hosted one of the better installations in the turbine hall that I've seen, namely a rather creepy, sci-fi installation by Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster called "The Unilever Series." This installation consisted of, amongst other things, grossly oversized objects, some representational and some not, that seemed to play at the edges of one's child's subconscious and hearken one's most primordial fears. A large copy of a cat's skeleton, a strange amorphous assemblage of iron-wrought blobs, and a massive, spiderlike sculpture that soared to the heights of the space bespoke of wonder-slash-terror with just the right edge of mystery and playfulness. Fun exhibit! They also had a fantastic Rothko exhibit, including the series of works usually on the permanent display that are best seen in dim light.

"The Unilever Series"


At the Saatchi Gallery there was a very interesting exhibit of new Chinese Art. Perhaps it's the oppressive nature of contemporary Chinese culture that inspires so many young Chinese artists to break out and express themselves through art. Some of the works were truly original and inspired, leading me to believe that China may be on the forefront of the new wave of contemporary art. (Though I wonder how much of that art can actually be seen in China itself!)



Theater:
I've never actually seen a play in London before. I had really been missing out! I saw two productions this time, each of which was breathtaking and had a stellar cast.

The Royal Shakespeare Company offered a magnificent production of "Hamlet," starring David Tennant and Patrick Stewart! Now, not only are these two men incredibly gifted actors, but as a sci-fi fan myself I was utterly thrilled to be able to see both these actors perform live. Now, for the longest time, David Tennant had been out with a back problem. But one day I was walking by the theater and found out he was back, playing the lead role of Hamlet! Without hesitation, I chose to wait for hours at the stage door in the hopes of gaining a return ticket (the play was, unsurprisingly, sold out). Gladly, I was not disappointed! I had a wonderful seat for what was a wonderful play. No, a superb play! No, a... Let me just put it this way: After seeing this production of Hamlet, I felt like I never wanted to see another dramtic thing ever again, the acting was all so perfect.

David Tennant after "Hamlet"

However, I did see another play, namely Drury Lane's production of "Oliver!" The selling point for this production was that it starred, in the role of Fagin, Rowan Atkinson! Mr. Atkinson easily stole the show, his Mr.Bean-esque brand of humor muted but still inspired enough to capture every scene he was in. I saw this production with my mom, which was quite special since she has always loved "Oliver." We even reserved a table at intermission to have dessert! The production itself was top notch. I will surely see more plays next time I am in London!

Mom enjoying dessert at "Oliver!"

Pub Crawl:
Now, a pub crawl may not seem like a very cultural outing, but it all depends on where you go - and who you are with! One of my hosts, Richard Chinn, is something of a self-made expert on London's history and was kind enough to take me on a tour one day of some of the most historic pubs in London. Most of these were found on the East End, an area once renowned for its criminal element though now becoming completely yuppified. It was fascinating to go to these places and imagine what this part of London once was like: boats from distant lands crammed together against the shores of the Thames, criminals and cutthroats swaggering about the crowded, dirty streets, and justice - in the form of hanging judges who strolled leisurely down the river, tried and hanged their suspects, and then moved on - was really very interesting. Plus, beer! Here are some of the places we stopped on our crawl:


The Prospect of Whitby, dating from 1543

Inside The Prospect of Whitby


The East End/Docklands today - once it was a lot different!


The Town of Ramsgate, another of Hanging Judge Jeffrys' favorite establishments, located right where the gallows used to be in fact!



The George, where legend tells (or at least my guide) that travelers a la the "Canterbury Tales" would begin their pilgrimages. Even Charles Dickens used to drink here!


My host enjoying a hot cider at The George

And now for something a little different:


That's the new and "improved" Intrepid Fox, once a punk rock landmark in Soho, now relocated and - well - just not the same. Ah, the more things change...


One thing that makes London great is the incredible variety of things to do there. One can go for the clubs or the galleries, the shopping or the history, and never run out of new experiences. It's a destination worth going, not just for a visit, but for a lifetime.

I was sad to leave London, but can't wait for my next trip!

Flying back to Montenegro