*Snow

Yes! It also snows in Northern Ireland indeed! It's really wierd somehow...i thought atleast...Its also wierd to see the surrounding hills (did i mention you can see the hills from the city centre?...well you can) Well these were all white instead of their usual green...interesting site!

btw. The alleged 'bombscare' was a robbery!...well that's what the police guy told me!

"Motion" and...Queens!

So there is perhaps a bomb scare right outside our office right now! It's just a few metres away...ahum! The roads been blocked and cutoff for traffic and the army guys and buses are here. Not that anyone is 'scared' here in the office....but still its not very 'common' anymore to have them these days. I guess i'll find out more on the news tonight...or i'll ask one of the army guys outside....no worries though...it doesn't seem that serious.....

Was at Queens University today having made an appointment with the teacher of Anthropology of Art. It was really nice...funny enough she turned out to be dutch and had studied at the UVA! So we were speaking in dutch which felt abit wierd after not having used it for some time. She was also really enthusiastic about my subject too which nice and invited me to join her lectures if i fancied to!
Am off now to the Grosvenor community centre again tonight for the girls dancing lessons. I interviewed the girls from the Protestant side last week and this week its their turn.
Wish me luck....

*So finally after a week of freezing in our cold house we got our heating oil....but that wasn't the end of the story because it still didn't work after...shit! Finally it turned out that there was an airlock in the pipes...and by the time that got fixed...brrrr. Yesterday though a 'Knight in shining spanner' arrived and fixed it! Hurray!:) Warmth again atlast...or atleast as much as our originally freezing house permits!

Lyric Theatre & Linen Hall Library!

I was at the Lyric Theatre today. It is one of the most prominent Theatres in Belfast and was one which stayed open to audiences during the "Troubles". It's pretty small and old but yet provides many facilities for people in wheelchairs, the blind, signing for the deaf, and head sets too! Isn't that great? I've never heard of these facilities in Holland! I did an interview there with the organizer of an outreach initiative, and got some really good feedback!

p.s.still no heating tonight...brrrrrrr

Shankill tonight!

Tonight i'll be off to the Shankill area (a Prostestant neighbourhood) . There's another rounding up of a "Trash Fashion" project! Should be interesting again to go to. Will let you know how it went...'The girls in their outfits which they designed and created from recycled or secondhand materials'

*Some Annoyances; My budget is quickly running out... have been spending my sterling english pounds like i would euros (don't bother converting each time) ....and its more expensive here (most things get shipped cause its an island)...not good!:s
Came home last night and the heating stopped working! Apparently one has to fill up the tank with oil yourself, plus its not included in the rent...gulp! So there was no hot water this morning either, plus its freeeeezing in the whole house!

The dancing initiative and BEAT!

Last night i went to the Grosvenor Community Centre in West Belfast for the dance lessons project. It was really exciting for the girls...and for me ofcourse. The girls got salsa lessons from a Columbian lady. So it was i think the first time for many of the girls to meet up with girls from 'the otherside' let alone a foriegner. This confrontation was interesting for me to observe. I shall be following these girls once a week.

Went looking for the 'Beat initiative' today in East Belfast. It's a carnival orgainzation which do many cross-community works, so a very interesting orgainzation for me. It's close to an interface area and a 'hotspot' so to speak. Many segragated areas are sometimes literally around the corner to eachother so you can imagine what close confrontation can do....the whole area infront of it looks like an urban battlefield.
'The hanger in which all the props of the carnival etc. are kept'

Weekend in St. Columbs Park!

I had a really good and inspirational weekend in Derry!
I took a bus at 6.45 Saturaday morning (crazy i know;) and arrived in foggy Derry (just the way i remembered it from last time on Bloody sunday...fog, fog...and more fog!;).

I woke up so early to be able to take part in and observe an orientation weekend for community workers and artists interested in a project (Phakama) who are setting up projects for marginalised societies (mostly ethic minorities) using artbased approaches. We basically carried out such activites ourselves to experince them first hand and get to know eachother. We were an interesting group of people ranging froms clowns to representatives from the Indian and Chinese community .
Learnt some really good art-based 'group-building' techniques. Also got my first interviews done (yes!) with the art faciliatators who have been carrying out many cross-community projects. It was somewhat of a detour to Derry i guess but still very relevant to my research and basically had a good 'craic' too!;)
Also went to an opening at an art gallery and had some really good chinese!

'That's us...the facilitators and the youth leaders standing in some branchy construction!'

Am off to the Dance project now....exciting! Will tell you how it went tomorrow!

p.s. I elaborated on my unfinished blogs below for those wondering at the spaces and ...'s

Meeting

Joined a meeting with community youth leaders at the Crescent Arts centre, one of the other organizations i'm working with. It was about a project which is being setup for 11year old girls from two community centres (one from West Belfast and one from South) I mentioned earlier. They will basically be following dance lessons together, from all over the world (Japanese/Indian etc.) and will be exchanging venues each time. The dance lessons aren't excatly the kind of art-based approach i was looking for but i'm still very interested in this particualr project to observe the interaction between these groups of girls who would otherwise not have met.
Oops...have to go buy some ingredients before the shops close...i'm cooking Pakistani food for the natives tonight!;)

...Gerry Adams!

There was a launch of the Hungerstrike commerorations at the Europa Hotel where Gerry Adams was the main speaker. So we HAD to be there ofcourse!!!;) And we were! We just entered the hotel and the conference room with no problem and Gerry was soon hanging around there with everyone else! It wasn't such a big happening as one might imagine but the small conference hall was soon packed. There were speeches made by some ex-prisiners and some family members of the hungerstrikers. It was a pretty short event, so the speeches were thankfully not soo long and draggy. So basically it was just a nice opportunity to have been there and to have seen Gerry Adams too (not that that's soo relevant for my research...but still u know;)
'That's him...chilling out!;)'

This afternoon I had a meeting with a lady carrying out research on community arts in Northern Ireland which was real handy, recieving many tips for orgs and literature etc. I still have a lot to catch up on!
Went to a fashionshow at a community centre in East Belfast (where i hadn't been yet). It was a rounding up of a past project (trash Fashion) for young girls which was interesting to have seen. Plus an opportunity to be in a community centre and check it out.

City tour, Murals, Music.....

I actually stumbled upon the director of 'The Wedding' play in a cafe a couple of days later! (Belfast is small ;) I approached him and will hopefully be setting up an interview with him soon! Thursday night we were invited to an opening at an art gallery, giving me another opportunity to check out the existing 'arts scene' in Belfast...which was nice!
Friday: Did some archiving research on reports and evaluations of previous projects at the arts initiative which is really handy! Thankfully all records are kept in conjunction with funding and self-evaltuaions etc.
Elena and i decided to take one of those city bus tours to get our bearings and some info etc. I have never been on a city bus tour (always think they're soo cheesy...and they are!;) But it did help to be viewing the city from atop (its an open double decker...and we were freeezing). The tour guide also made some corny tourist 'jokes' about the bombings etc. (which i guess is a good sign i suppose..if u can make jokes about it). We got a look at some of the 'peacelines' running throught the city and the divisions of the area.



Sunday: This day marked the commerorations of the Hungerstrike which took place 25 years ago. This is another 'landmark' in Irish history when 15 IRA and INLA republican prisoners in a British jail undertook a fast to retain their status as political prisoners. Ten of them died in consequence as the British government, led by Margaret Thatcher, demanded they be classified as criminals!
In honour of the hungerstrikers a new mural was unveiled on Falls rd. Elena and i went to see this. There are already as u can imagine already plently of murals commerorating the hungerstrikers but i guess this anniversary gave an opportunity to paint a new one! This particualr one only shows two of them.
After the ceremony we walked around the area taking fotos of the murals etc. We then decided to crossover to the 'otherside' to the Skankill Rd (the loyalist/protestant area). We walked through i guess what u would call an interface area, open space and some gates covered with paintings. Once on the 'otherside' we were approached by a group of very small 'gangster looking' kids (if i may say so...sorry) asking if we were 'Finn'ians'!(as in from the Sinn Fein, the republican side). They were only about 10yrs old! My first confrontation with sectratianism!
We walked along Shankill Rd. which has many murals too. and many Union Jacks Flags!
Anyway, we wanted to then crossover to the 'otherside' again but it had already gotten late past 6 which means all the gates close...which meant we had to walk all the way around! Fun!:s
That evening we went to the Culturlann (an Irish Culture centre) to an Irish music concert which was really good. This was a 'real' concert i guess, as apposed to the pub ones, the musicans also did some strytelling inbetween which was funny. I must say though i prefer listening to the music in a pub environment cause its more relaxed and its the kindof music which makes you want t get up an dance (not that anyone does unfortunately...but still) Anyway it was good fun.

'The Wedding'

No i didn't actually go a wedding yet!;)
Yesterday I got to see the footage of a community play which took place some years ago. A really ambitous 'cross-community' project ! It got community theatre groups from 'both sides' to get involved in making a play together and to influence the script. They actually switched roles...The Catholics played the Protestans and vice versa. It was called the 'Wedding' about a mixed marriage between a Catholic and a Protestant. The play first started off in a Catholic neighbourhood in someones house then the audience moved to the Protestants neigbourhood they then followed it to the church where they got 'married' with a party following afterwards in a pub where everyones mingled etc. I found this to be a really interesting concept as it is the excatly the kind of project i would be interested to follow. Its a pity its already taken place but I have however managed to get hold of the evaluation of the project and will try and meet up with the script writer/director and organizers soon!

*The sun is shining today again atlast!!! I just realised i haven't seen it all week! Its a really grey and gloomy place otherwise...and yesterday rained the whole day (yucky:s) the reason why there are so many pubs here maybe?!;)

Irish Music and Pubs!

What have i been upto these last few days? Well, the title speaks for itself i guess!;) But seriously, I have basically been out 'researching' to see what 'culture' Belfast city has to offer! Its just part of my research and a tough job i must say!;) I will try slot in some fotos as soon as i get the chance to.
Wednesday: Got my first real taste of traditional Irish music. Lovely! The musicans simply sit around a given table with drinks on them (you guessed it...Guinesses;) And they just play when they 'feel' like it. You get the fiddle, the guitar and the flutes (my favourite) and other instruments which i forgot the names of. I really enjoyed it cause it seemed to me more spontaneous and less forced like in a performance on stage. I can't really tell good irish music from bad but it all sounds lovely to me...maybe in the end i will have acquired a more critical taste.
Thursday: I walked into Crescent Arts Centre (another community arts org) to spread my horizons and meet up with the organizers there. There happens to be a really exciting project about to take place soon which i hope to be able to follow. It is a project working with teenage girls from both sides of the 'marginalized
communities', as they say, attempting to bring them together at venues on both sides (which is still a very sensitive issue in many parts). So it is quite 'ground breaking' so to speak and a great opportunity to follow this as i can be able to see and follow the beginings of such a project.
Visited another irish pub with irish music...really cosy. Met a girl who was a soloist singer for the Riverdance Show which tours around Europe!...even got a taste of it as she joined the musicans later on.

Friday: Got some more information on other art initiatives at the Forum. As many projects take place only once a week i hope to be able to follow more at a time to get a better understanding and fill up my time more constructively.
Met an arts student at a cafe and got a grand tour of the Arts college here. There are many students making art 'inspired' by the conflict (as one can imagine) and will try and hook up with some of them.
Visited another pub with irish music....
Saturday: New Belfast (the community arts organization) has been busy with a mural project for some years now since the Good Friday Agreement. They're getting communities to get involved in 're-facing' their areas . As you may know there are many segragated areas in Belfast and many of these are literally divided by walls etc. Many murals are painted in these areas marking territories and potraying in many cases agressive depictions and paramilitary propaganda. Its a really interesting project as its attempts to create more positive images and actually paint over the existing ones. The community get a chance thus to take control and to have a say in as well as design the images on the walls. This was not the case before ofcourse as these walls and buildings were 'taken over' by the 'gangs' on both sides of the community.

So i shall hopefully be able to catch one of these mural projects in action!!!
Visited The Crown Saloon, a Victorian style pub dating back to 1826, very pretty and carved completly out of wood. Its a 'neutral' place where one is not allowed to enter with football shirts or sing nationalistic songs. It was apparently owned by a Catholic/Protestant couple who wanted to be able to create a place where all could meet. One should be able to see it on a webcam.
'So here it is...nice and Victorian'

Went that night to the Cresent Arts Centre to the New Moon Party. Really fun!...kind of 'kraker' and full of poeple from the 'arts scene' basically, so a good chance to 'network' etc too. Also it is meant to be a place where 'everyone' from both sides of the community can come to so is an 'neutral place'. They basically start out with diverse performances and had a really cool surfer band playing from Berlin this! I was really lucky to get in though cause it was actually 'sold out'...the new Belfast crew sneaked me in at the back hihihi...

Sunday: Had a lazy sunday together with Elena. Took a stroll into town, had lunch and caught a movie.

Hope to meet up with a student from the Arts Research Centre who has been carrying out research on community arts for 2 yrs already. It'll be great to get some insights and discuss this topic with her.

Enter Belfast!

So I landed in Belfast airport Saturday afternoon!!! It's crazy...but true!:) What a change!
Things went really fast in the end! I juggled between many locations considering which could be the best place to divert my research to and in the end N.Ireland just seemed the most appropriate and realistic option out of all of them. There are many similar aspects between the situation of Ahmedabad and that of Belfast which i can implement!
I was also very lucky to have Elena (my fellow classmate) already situated here which has been a great advantage and help!
It's also been amazing how things have been falling into place so smoothly since i got here and how 'lucky' i have been with everything up till now! I can hardly believe it...especially considering my recent track record ;) I've also met soo many friendly and helpful people...its not normal!

Saturday: I quickly 'acclimatized' which was pretty 'easy' considering the similar weather conditions and the language. Though i must say its still takes getting used to...have to ask people to repeat themselves at times...and have already learnt some 'craicing' new expressions;) . I also have to get used to the many ominous security gates, walls and barbed wire in certain locations.
The first night i spent at Elena's friends which was really handy and comfortable for the start!
'My first impression of N.Ireland were the very strange and very unhandy setup of taps! The two extremes...no middleway';)

Sunday: We went to off to Derry where the annual 'Bloody Sunday'March takes place! This was a great opportunity to get right into the atmosphere and to be able to participate in an event which has had such a significance in Northern Ireland's history. It was absolutely freeeeezing but well worth it! I also met up with some artists and even got a an appointment for the next day with a playwright!'Elena and the native...Sean!'

Monday: So i stayed back in Derry and had a really nice meeting with the playwright who has theatre company called 'Soul purpose'. He writes plays about the conflict and tours with them around the country performing in theatres, community centres and various locations where theatres don't normally go to. It was great to listen to his theatre concepts and i was given many scripts and a report of his recent work. He even bought me lunch! There is however not a play touring at the moment considering the 'conflict theme' though i may perhaps get a chance to see one of the performances next month. It was still a great start, inspiration and material to begin with. Got a lift back to Belfast and that evening Elena and i moved into our 'own' place! Ate my first 'fish n chips'!!! It was what can i say...very 'oily'!;)

Tuesday: Whilst in Holland I had already sent off emails hither and thither and was able to get in touch with an organization in Belfast and was able to make an appointment with them.
It was really sucessful! The coordinator was really interested in my research and has 'opened the doors' for me to be able to base my research from their organization! It is called the New Belfast Arts initiative and is situated in the Cathderal Quarter, a kind of artistic neighbourhood here in Belfast where many things 'are going on'. Even though we haven't made concrete plans and i haven't found a concrete project to follow it's still wonderful to be able to operate from this organization office, a beautiful studio, who have many contacts etc. I may also be carrying out some volunteer work for the organization and make myself useful around here which is a good exchange i think. Check out their website: http://www.newbelfastarts.org/newlook.htm

So as you can imagine i am feeling really relieved and optimistic at the moment, especially considering how much time i have already lost and all the 'bad luck' i've been having. I am really happy to be able finally given the chance to be able to catch up on my research as soon as possible! So this is a fresh new start...a fresh new weblog and fresh new 'proper' research updates ;) I hope you will enjoy reading them......till soon!

Anecdote: Guess which restaurant is around the corner to our house?...An Indian one! And guess what our roommate is called? Amrita!!! ...India is still lurking about somehow! ;)

p.s. I've already counted more than 10 'real' redheads...and still counting;)