explore the city i live in

I try to attend mass after my work but since there’s a two hour gap between when I finish my work and the mass, I usually just walk around downtown and just go where the road takes me.

It’s interesting just to walk around but where I live, the architecture is just meh. lol. I’ve seen a lot of ugly buildings. New York was awesome though. There’s a sense of energy there.

It’s fun to explore the city though. Yeah most of the time it’s somewhat boring but just to take the time out of your life (that most of the time you’re consumed in) and just step out and see the city as it is, it’s a wonderful feeling.

Sometimes I get so caught up in my life that I forget the city and take it for granted. But it’s not so bad to live here and just to seize the moment and just enjoy every moment I have here, that’s all that matters when we remember the cities we’ve been in after we’ve left.

I don’t think I’ll ever have the same kind of opportuntiy to explore the city as I have in these last six months but I’ll always remember these days. It was fun, it was light and I’ve developed a semi-bond with the city.

Ended up here by accident today when I realised that I had some time to kill in town. Unfortunately this happened at 4pm and the building closes at 5pm! So it was a very brief (but rewarding!) visit.

I popped into the Sir John Ritblat Gallery, which has a permanent “Treasures of the British Library” exhibition of books, manuscripts and other amazing historical documents spanning many centuries and continents.

• Jane Austen’s writing desk
• A handwritten copy of “Jane Eyre”, open at the start of the final chapter. It was thrilling to read those familiar words “Reader, I married him” in Charlotte Bronte’s own small but clear handwriting
• Beethoven’s tuning fork
• An excerpt from Peter Maxwell Davies: Eight Songs for a Mad King where the staves are arranged in the shape of a bird cage (like this)
• Leonardo da Vinci’s Codex Arundel notebook
• Captain Scott’s diary, open at the final tragic entry

There is a separate room for the Magna Carta off the main exhibition room. I was puzzled as to which documents were actually on display as according to the official website, Magna Carta has been taken off display until the summer.

I’ll have to go back in the autumn for a proper look and to also check out all the other exhibits.

Last night we went to the Griffith Observatory. I have never looked through a big telescope. The whole thing was so romantic. The building is beautiful and as you wind around it to reach to top lookout, the view of LA is amazing. I hate to say it, but the pollution and dazzling lights turn the moon red as it rises and actually add to the aura.

Being a full moon I was surprised that they had the scope pointed at Saturn. We waited in line along the roof for about half an hour with lots of other families – kids bundled up, thrilled to be out past their bedtimes. Waxing on about the cosmos. Once we stepped inside the dome we could hear the astronomer talk – You could fit 700 earths inside of Saturn. It has 60 known moons and its rings are made of rock and ice spread out for thousands and thousands of feet, but they are only 10 feet in width. In 2009 the earth will face the rings straight on and they will briefly appear to vanish.

At last it was my turn to walk up the steps and look out across all those miles of cold space. When you look at Saturn you are actually looking 70 minutes back in time, the time it takes the light to travel to us. And it was spectacular! Through the lens it got crystal clear and I could see the rings in such detail. It seemed to wink back at me – I guess the thickness and content of the atmosphere can change moment to moment making it fuzzy and then clear again. What a sight! To think that light traveled all the way from the sun, bounced off a far away planet and hit me right in the eye.

On our way out we checked out the moon from a telescope set up on the lawn. It was also amazing, but I guess the full moon is not the best time to view. Better during a half moon when the light is at a lower angle and highlights the terrain. Still, the creators look enormous and I can’t believe they are size of California. Will definitely have to see it again. The astronomer did not miss the opportunity to tell “the ultimate irony” – turns out the moon really does have about the same density as cheese.

Anyone who is near an observatory and has never done it – go, see! Its really a special experience. There will be good views of Saturn all month.

Another awe inspiring day of art intake. ACE Gallery has two locations, one in LA, one just down the street in Beverly Hills, and both have incredible, museum quality, exhibits right now.

Most impressive was Lauren Bon’s installation on the mythological connection between bees and meat. It is the most sense-stimulating art experience I have ever had. Its beauty is in the subtle transitions of smells and visual tactileness as you move between rooms of corn, cotton, and honey. In one room there is a glass case housing two large live bee colonies hanging from an orange tree branch. The bees come and go through short pipes to the outdoors. The form of the beeswax – its folds and ribs – blew my mind. I had no idea how complex they are. The way its structure is so uniquely formed to its environment and the creative ingenuity of its creators. And all the complex roles and relationships of each bee. Amazing! I could have watched them work for days.

The other gallery has the well matched work of Judy Fox and Martin Schoeller. Feminine creatures of sex as vulnerability paired with photographs of woman with masculine form. Both works are done with amazing execution and detail. This image by Judy Fox is titled Lust.

I just moved to a new city. So I want to explore it. Learn things like I knew my old city.

YAY! MandtlCandy and I hit Schuba’s last night to see a new favorite band of mine. Grand Ole Party. Amazing!! Absolutely fantastic!!! I had a great time. It was both of our first times at Schubas’s and its such a great place. Nice bar…medium sized room for performances…nice woodworking on the stage, pretty antiquey looking light fixtures on the walls and hanging from the ceiling. A PHOTO BOOTH! :) I will definately head back to see another show….or to have a drink or two. Fab time!

Went to see them at The Vic last night. Yes, i’ve been there before so its not really exploring….but too bad! Had a great time…like the venue just wish they’d add more stalls in their bathrooms or more bathrooms period! :)

I’ve often walked past the National Gallery (http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk), usually on my way to Covent Garden. But I finally set foot inside it today. It was pretty busy – probably because of the bank holiday and also because access is completely free (though there are collection boxes in the reception area).

We decided to do a circuit beginning with the earliest paintings (1250-1500) and then work out way up to the 20th century. In retrospect, we probably should have done it the other way around – as by the time we got around to the Van Goghs and Impressionists nearly 3 hrs later, I was nearly dead on my feet.

There’s just so much to see, you’d really need to go back for another visit if you have the time. I’d like to go back again one day on my own and wander around with an audio guide (these are available in various languages). I wonder if they contain answers to the questions that my friend and I were batting back and forth, like: “How long did it take to finish these paintings?” and “Do you think that the artists touched up their self-portraits?”.

The National Gallery in Trafalgar Square

The British Library (annoyingly, the Magna Carta isn’t on display until summer now – so perhaps I’ll go then)

Wednesday night my boyfriend took me to a really nice Irish Pub near his house to play pool and have a few beers, Mahoney’s. It’s a really nice bar, big and roomy with lots of tables and a huge screen that they use for movie night. They have yummie tater tots drenched in cheese and bacon bits with ranch dipping sauce…mmmmmmmm. We had a really good time. :)