[November 25] London: Imperial War Museum & A Very Happy Thanksgiving

How annoying—we didn't get any vacation for Thanksgiving! Haha. Meh. 

For my WWI class on Thanksgiving, we went to the Imperial War Museum. I did some research there for my paper about propaganda posters during the First World War and their use to recruit women. I've 'always' sort of been interested in propaganda posters. I think if I had to have a job during WWI, I would have liked to make propaganda posters. Tsk tsk!

On this visit to the museum, I looked at a couple of exhibits I didn't get to on the first time. There was a huge Holocaust exhibit that was moving and disturbing on so many levels, I can't really get into it. Then there was also an exhibit about spies that was awfully fascinating. Here are some interesting quotes I found from that exhibit:

So, moving on: This year was my first thanksgiving away from home. But we still had a nice Thanksgiving meal with some friends! Rachel did a really nice job of arranging everything, don't you think? She made a turkey, which I think is impressive, since I cannot even manage to make sweet potatoes with marshmallows. Yeah. They literally caught on FIRE in our stupid oven and I had to dump them in the sink and there was smoke everywhere. Embarrassing and it made me panicky, but in the end, I thought it was rather funny... !!! Don't tell anyone though, please. ;D

After stuffing my face, I went out DaNcInG! To burn off all those calories... but not really. :]

[November 23 Part One] London: Imperial War Museum

For my British Women's Social History class one day, we met at the Imperial War Museum to look at British women's role in the First World War. Wow. I loved this museum. Really well-done and I am especially interested in WWII—and now, thanks to this class and also my History of London focus on WWI, I am also really interested in WWI.

A piece of the Berlin Wall that was outside of the museum:

Even though I really don't like riding in airplanes, I have a sort of fascination with them. Probably because I just CANNOT understand how they actually work!

I thought this was particularly interesting because it shows bandages that were made out of lace. Women had a really huge and absolutely crucial role in the war effort and I imagine a women cutting up one of her pretty dresses to make bandages for the soldiers. This just really stuck out in my mind.

I guess the military would try to use pigeons as messengers? I'm not exactly sure how this would work, but interesting nonetheless I thought.

A paint set and some paintings made by soldiers on the warfront:

A display that showed women's involvement in making munitions. Thousands and thousands of women did this dangerous work, but it gave them a new sort of freedom in that it paid very well.

Propaganda posters recruiting women... I think if I had a job during WWI (which most everyone did), I would have been good at creating these posters:

There was an exhibit were you could walk through 'the trenches' and it was a bit scary...

There was also a lot about WWII which I looked at just because of my own personal interest. Something that is just really striking to me are the gas masks. Really haunting and spooky, I feel.

I sort of choked up when I saw this picture... the baby with it's 'gas mask' on:

This is an example of a bomb shelter during WWII... honestly, it doesn't look too safe to me!

This violin was made out of some wood on one of the battlefields... I just thought that was neat.

[November 13] Liverpool: BEATLEMANIA: ladies and gentlemen... THE BEATLES!

I've known Beatles songs for literally as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure this is because my parents always listened to the local 'Oldies' radio station in the car... I mean, me and my brother probably know most of the songs they played on that station in general. But, I digress!

I remember one year for Christmas I got the Beatles '1' album and then some other time I got the Yellow Submarine soundtrack. I had fun listening to these albums for a few years. Then when I was 13 or 14 years old, for some reason, I became more obsessed with them. I got really into listening to the lyrics and trying to figure out what was going on in the song instrumentally... then I got Abbey Road for Christmas... and my obsession with the Beatles spiraled out of control. The following summer I checked out every book about the Beatles from the library I could get my hands on and read them obsessively. I wanted to know every little fact and silly detail about the Beatles.

So, coming to England, I knew I HAD to go to Liverpool, the city the Beatles are from!!! Luckily I found another obsessive Beatles fan, Anne, and we made plans along with my new friend from Dublin, Peter, to make a pilgrimage to the home of the Fab Four. Anne and I left the dorm a bit before 6am (yes, this is how dedicated we were) to take the tube then take the train to Liverpool, about a 2 hour train ride. First, the three of us went to the Beatles Story Museum, a very well-done museum about the Beatles. I felt like there were some gaps, especially in the later years, but nonetheless, I very much enjoyed it.

John Lennon's hideous suit they all wore in the beginning:

I very well may have been one of these girls back in the day... I mean, you can't even tell which one is me...

WE'RE SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND!

WE ALL LIVE IN A YELLOW SUBMARINE

There was actually a Yellow Submarine you could go inside but the pictures didn't turn out. However... this one did:

At the end of the museum, there were four sections devoted to each of the Beatles solo careers. These are a couple George Harrison quotes that were on the wall that I like... In case you can't read them, the first one says:

"There's high, and there's high, and to get really high—I mean so high that you can walk on the water, that high—that's where I'm going." -George Harrison

And then: "The world used us as an excuse to go mad."

After the museum, we had plenty of time until the MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR departed... so we walked around Albert Dock for awhile.

THE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR BUS:

First, we visited Ringo's childhood home:

And then drove down Penny Lane...

"Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes... There beneath the blue suburban skies..."

George Harrison's childhood home:

Brian Epstein's home:

"Let me take you down, cause we're goin' to... Strawberry Fields..."

John Lennon's childhood home, where he lived with his aunt:

Paul McCartney's childhood home:

I think the guide said this is the largest Anglican church in... Europe perhaps?

Me and John Lennon just chillin' out:

The Cavern Club! Where the Beatles first started out playing!

The people of Liverpool must be so sick of The Beatles!!! After having dinner, we got on the train back home... pictured below is the train station, obviously. The guide said that Brain Epstein would go into London to try to them them a record deal and when he'd return the Beatles would run to the station to see if he had. Cute. ;)