Digital Madness at the Pet Shop Boys

I usually leave concert reviews for my other blog but at the rate I am going I won't get to this one for a while. This is not really a review anyway but a moan of sorts.

So yesterday a friend and I saw the Pet Shop Boys at the Hammersmith Apollo. The show itself was great - Neil Tennant sang just like he does on the discs, the light show was simple and elegant but not too obnoxious, the dancers a bit corny but talented, and the music infinitely danceable as always.

Unfortunately where we were there was not much dancing going on at all. Primarily because almost everyone around us were trying to capture the show on their digital cameras and mobile phones.

At the risk of sounding like an old fart, when I was younger we had to smuggle in our regular film cameras, try to force our way to the front and then snap a few photos when we thought we might not get noticed by security. Trying to get away with the camera was a bit like the drinking, something that we were not supposed to do but it was cool to see if we could do it anyway. But none of us were obnoxious (or stupid) enough to risk taking more than a few choice shots and for the most part we spent our time at the concerts listening, watching and dancing, which is what you are supposed to do.

Last night these people had their cameras up for perhaps half or more of the time during the show. Which is annoying on so many levels. I am short to begin with, so it is hard enough to see over tall people standing in front of me. But at times I was actually getting a better view of Neil Tennant from the cameras. Also, these people are standing there the entire time with their arms up in the air holding the cameras and so in a close crowd, their pits were almost directly in my face. And when you are trying to dance in close quarters like that, it is more fun when everyone is doing it, because you then have room to move around. I kept bumping into the woman's arm behind me because she was holding her camera almost directly over my head. I have to admit that a couple of times I intentionally waved my hand in front of her camera to block her shot. I could not resist.

I imagine today these people are posting their pictures and/or digital videos all over the web, so perhaps PSB don't really mind because they get a lot of publicity that way. I can't imagine that any are really all that great though and the friends who didn't go to the concert probably are not going to want to look at these fuzzy, far away images of the band on stage.

I think that bands should go back to banning cameras (and now phones) so that we can all have a good time, and keep the images in our heads as memories, where they belong.

One of the New Seven Wonders

We recently went for a week's holiday in Cancun, Mexico. Cancun is not the first place I would have chosen to go, especially from London, but I was pleasantly surprised. The hotel was very nice, the service superb and we had some really good meals as well.

We spent most of our days lounging on the beach, but we did get a couple of adventures in, one in particular to Chichen Itza, famous Mayan ruins a bit more than two hours' bus journey from Cancun. A lot of people I know have made the trip out there and it was highly recommended so we found ourselves a tour and signed up, even though we had to leave our hotel at 7:30 a.m.

The place is quite a surprise as I imagine it must have been when it was originally discovered. It is in the middle of nowhere in a tropical, humid forest and I guess at first the big pyramid was completely covered in vegetation. Our guide has been doing these tours for 35 years and it was impossible not to be as captivated as he was about the whole place. After seeing famous ruins in Greece and Italy it was also pretty neat to see a very active archelogical community around the place. It sounds like they are studying it and making new discoveries all the time, and tour guides like ours need to do 100 hours of coursework a year to keep their guide certification and to keep up with all the latest theories.

One thing that was like Greece and Rome (and perhaps more obnoxious) was the amount of junk for sale at Chichen Itza. People are lined up along the entrance so you have to walk a gauntlet of people trying to sell you t-shirts, fake mayan gods, embrodiered hankerchiefs, etc. A few even follow you on your tour but our guide warned us right away not to encourage them or we would be hounded for the entire time.

We couldn't climb the big pyramid for some reason, evidently it will open again in July after the Seven Wonders competition is over. That was fine with me since it was unbelievably hot and muggy and we were lucky to be there on an overcast day.

On the way back we stopped at a cenote or sinkhole, which was a cool cavern underground where you could take a dip in very pure water that flows eventually from the ocean. We didn't go in but were glad for the respite from the heat. A couple of days later we got to swim in another one anyway. I guess there are thousands all over the area.

After visiting Chichen Itza I would like to learn more about Mayan culture and history - seems a shame I spent so much of my life so close to it but never really learned anything about it.

You can vote for Chichen Itza and other of the 'new seven wonders' at this website. Not sure what the point is, but they will announce the winners in on the 7th of July in Lisbon. I was happy to have visited 7 of the 21 finalists - and interestingly enough, two in the last month.

Pictures are posted here.

Istanbul was Constantinople...

Now it's Istanbul not Constantinople...you must know the words.

And I do as well. And I had the words running through my head for almost two weeks after my weekend break to Istanbul. But it was definitely all worth it. This was one of the most interesting places I have visited in quite a while.

I was lucky to join AM and her friend for a bank holiday weekend in Istanbul. C had just spent two weeks in Turkey on an intrepid tour so by the time we got to Istanbul late Friday night, she was already an expert on the city (well, from our perspective anyway) and knew how to navigate the public transportation and the old town of Sultanamet.

We flew from Heathrow on was for me a surprisingly long flight. Of course if I had bothered to find Turkey on the map I might not have been so surprised. Three hours and two time zones later we landed at the Istanbul airport past 11 pm, with our hotel-hired driver waiting for us.

Traveling is all about changing your assumptions and my first assumption shattered was that Turkey was a poor country. Istanbul is quite cosmpolitan and its airport is not really any different from other European airports. My other assumption proved correct though was that the people were very friendly. When we arrived at our hotel the staff welcomed us warmly and when we asked if there was somewhere we could have a drink, they said most things were closed but they were happy to serve us, which they did until nearly one in the morning. I always remember my father telling me that Istanbul was by far his favorite place from all his travels, because the locals were so nice. He told me that he was forever being invited into people's kitchens and served tea and even though they could speak very little english, he had a great time visiting with the people he met there.

The next morning we started our day with breakfast at the rooftop terrace of our hotel, with an amazing view of the entire city - agia sophia and the blue mosque on one side and the bosphorous and the modern city on the other. After our meal AM and I ventured out to visit the Hagia Sophia, an amazing site that started as a Catholic church during Constantine's rule, was converted to a mosque by the Ottoman empire, then most recently has been turned into a museum. The Ottomans had painted over most of the original mosaics inside the dome when it was converted and they have been trying to restore them recently, so some look pretty good and others are still mostly rubbed off. What I thought was unique about the mosaics is that the Holy Roman emperor at the time had himself put in the mosaics, once with his queen. Seems pretty presumptous that he could be pictured hanging out with Jesus, like they lived in the same time. But I guess when you are the emperor you can do whatever you want. The dome and the colors inside were unbelievable and we spent a while getting close up to many of the different patterns and colors.

After the Hagia Sophia we went across the street into the cistern, that was the original water source for the ancient city. It was dark, cavernous and filled with water - a pretty neat place. I wish my photos came out a little nicer. Everyone goes to visit the medusa heads, which are upside down pillars with medusas on the bottom. One is turned on its side and no one really understand why they are there.

Next we went back to the hotel to pick up C and then hit the Blue Mosque. The Blue Mosque looks kind of like the Hagia Sophia but instead of a museum it is an actual working mosque. We could hear the call to prayer from the blue mosque (and probably other mosques near us, there were dozens) five times a day. But unlike the little mosques this one is a big tourist attraction and thousands of visitors go in every day. It was the first (and only) Mosque I have ever visited and it was quite an interesting experience. First we had to go around to the visitors side and queue up with the other tourists. There was a door in the middle where all the muslims could go in for prayers. We had to remove our shoes and cover our heads (though not all the tourists did). Once we got inside the first thing I noticed was the distinct odor of stinky feet. All those bare feet on the carpets take their toll. But the decor inside outweighs the smell - absolutely beautiful detailed ceilings in vibrant blues and reds. We stayed for a while and spied on a tour, watching the men praying towards the front of the mosque, towards Mecca. The women were relegated to the back on not so comfortable looking stone benches, without much view of the ceilings.

Later that afternoon we took the ferry over to the Asian side of Istanbul (Istanbul is in both Asia and Europe) and met one of our co-workers who lives and works in Istanbul. He took us on a great tour of this side of the city, which is the more residential area. First we went to the major shopping street, where I was shocked (and a bit dismayed) to find it was just like any other big city shopping street, with gap, body shop, zara and at least 8 starbucks we counted. It actually reminded me most of NW 23rd in Portland. But it was fun to wander around the western and Turkish shops and see who was out on a Saturday afternoon. The starbucks were packed too, with everyone sitting outside and enjoying their lattes and frappuccinos. Afterwards we went to an amazing restaurant right on the waterfront and had an amazing meal, complete with two very nice bottles of turkish wine. Afterwards we went to probably the nicest coffee house I have ever visited, a gloria jean's that had taken over an old turkish mansion, while our friend watched the football match in the bar. Turns out it was a deciding game between the two Istanbul teams and the entire area was watching it. When the local team, Fenerbahce, won, the whole area went bonkers, honking horns, signing, shouting, etc. It was infectious and a great atmosphere. On the way home we saw the police lined up at the other stadium, there were something like 4,500 police for 3000 away supporters. I guess Turkish sports fans have quite a reputation.

The next day we took a boat cruise on the Bosphorous, the strait that divides Europe from Asia and connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara. We saw beautiful views of the old homes, the different sides of the city, and a bunch of 'summer' embassies of various countries. We spent a couple hours in a small village at the end of the tour where we had another amazing seafood meal then headed back into town. The ferry itself was not really a tourist boat but a regular transport ferry, and people got off and on at different destinations.

After our ride we went over to Taxim Square, which is the heart of modern istanbul (and turkey for that matter) and another area full of shopping and coffee shops. After seeing so many different coffee shops, chains and non-chains, it began to occur to us that in a country that is 99% Muslim, maybe coffee shops are more appealing than bars. They were certainly all full of people. We got to Taxim via the Funicular (the third oldest underground railway) and the streetcar, which dropped us off at the square. There has been a great deal of political unrest in Turkey lately, due to the tension from the very secular government and miltary and recent elections and this square is the center of it. Kemal Ataturk, considered the father of modern Turkey, changed Turkey to secular state, banning headscarves from government areas, encouraging everyone to wear western clothing and in general trying to modernize the country. Just a few days before we visited about a million Turks demonstrated against the election of a Muslim president and you could still feel the tension in the square - with snipers on the walls surrounding it. For a while we just sat enjoying coffee and watching the different kinds of locals walk by - from young girls in jeans and t-shirts and boys with what seemed to be the standard Turkish cut (kind of a standing faux-hawk with sideburns) to young girls and women in various grades of muslim dress, wearing brightly patterned scarves or plain ones, sometimes with regular clothes, sometimes with full-length light coats, rarely actually with full on burkas. I think I see more burkas in London actually.

Finally, on Monday, we rose early to get a chance to shop in the Grand Bazaar. My plane left early so I had limited time to shop, probably a good thing, but I did manage to get a very nice orange leather bag and of course some Turkish delight to take home. The Bazaar itself is a huge mall-like maze of shops - selling mostly rugs, pottery and leather goods. The charming merchants are always flirting with you to try to get you in and once you are in they are dying to sit you down, serve you tea and sell you more than what you bargained for. I think you could probably easily spend an entire day there and not see half of the place.

All in all it was a great trip and I would love to go back someday and seem more of Turkey, especially the mountains and the coastline. Photos from the trip are posted here.