Aesthetic Dinner - TAS

On Tuesday evening I headed over to Bloomsbury Square to join my classmates and professor for dinner at a Turkish restaurant called TAS. This was my first time dining at a Turkish restaurant and was rather excited to find out what the food is like. Upon arriving at the restaurant I noticed that décor had a very natural and simplistic feel to it. The color pallet was very soft and consisted of mainly earth tones which created a very organic vibe. I also noticed the use of various contrasting textures on the walls and pillars. The windows allow plenty of light to pass through, providing the room with ample natural lighting. However, I found seating arrangement to be a bit congested and it was a bit of an inconvenience when trying to get in and out of my seat. The place setting was very simple and clean; all the dishes plated in a very minimalist style.

We started out with a pre-selected set of appetizers that consisted of: Humus (pureed chickpeas with tahini, garlic and lemon juice), Zeytin Yagli Patlican (aubergine, tomatoes, garlic, peppers and chickpeas cooked in olive oil), Tabule (chopped parsley salad with tomatoes, onions, cracked wheat, olive oil and lemon juice), Manca (spinach with fresh yogurt served with garlic), Zeytin Yagli Bakla (fresh broad beans, coriander, red & green peppers, dill, garlic, olive oil served with yogurt), Sebzeli Kofte (ground chickpeas and broad beans tossed in spices, deep fried and served with tahini sauce), and Borek (filo pastry filled with feta cheese and spinach). Each of the starters had a very different flavor to it and all were enjoyable but my favorite was the Humus which has a very smooth and creamy texture that paired perfectly with the bread. The Zeytin Yagli Patlican was sweet in flavor; the Tabule was tart with a strong lemon flavor; the Manca was refreshing and minty which I found to be rather surprising since it did not have any mint in it; the Zeytin Yagli Bakla had subtle kick to it which is most likely the work of the peppers; the Sebzeli Kofte had a denser consistency compared to the others and had a crunchy outer shell; and last, but not least, the Borek was creamy and had a fairly sharp flavor. For my main course I ordered the Kariski Izgara which is an assortment of grilled meats, i.e. chicken, lamb and meatball, paired with a side of couscous. The food was delicious; the meat was grilled perfectly and was not dry at all. The addition of the chili sauce added a nice burst of heat that warms the back of the throat, but be careful when adding the sauce – it is rather spicy and can overpower the rest of the dish if too much is added (not to mention you’ll be reaching for the water as well). We had the option of pairing our meal with a choice of house wines (red or white), compliments of Dr. Manley. I’m not big on wines in general and I found the flavors to be a bit too strong for my taste but it was nice to try them. Overall, my dinning experience at TAS ended up rather pleasant. Good atmosphere…good food…good company, what more can a girl ask for?

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The Canals

Today the canals are mainly used by the tourism industry and private boat rather – most commercial traffic is now on just a few navigation. The use of canals seems obvious, it a method of travel used to transport goods as well as people. But with alternative transportation methods such as automotive vehicles, trains and airplanes, commercial transportation through the canals seems unnecessary. With this in mind, one can’t help but question the original purpose of the canals? With a little research and the help of my good buddy Google, I discovered why the canals were built in the first place.

The Industrial Revolution forever changed the manufacturing process of merchandise. During the eighteenth century commerce was bursting in England and manufacturing was moving from cottage industry to factories. This introduced the concept of mass production of low quality goods. Additional roads were being built and improved but they couldn’t handle heavy bulk materials such as coal or fragile materials like pottery. A single horse can pull fifty tons in a boat, and there were over a thousand miles of navigable rivers, but the horses were become exhausted. Canals seemed to be the answer to moving such materials across long distances. The man most associated with the early canals was Francis Egerton, the Duke of Bridgewater, who, in 1759, built a short canal that by-passed the River Irwell. His Bridgewater Canal allowed his coals to travel from his mines at Worsley directly to Manchester and Livepool, without paying tolls to the Irwell Navigation. Coal prices were halved and he became even richer as the furnaces of the Industrial Revolution roared even louder. Over the next fifty years canal mania hit London and two thousand miles of canals were built linking the Rivers Mersey, Trent, Severn and Thames together.

Source: Canal Junction

London's History

Every country has had its share misfortunes; plague, fire, and cholera are all incidents that have greatly affected London’s history. Geocaching is a great way to discover more of London’s history as people uncover the locations and learn the significance of the caches. Geocaching has led me to several fascinating places, such as The Monument and John Snow’s pub, that I would have normally bypass without realizing the significance it holds.

Disease was rampant in the 17th century. In 1665, London received a devastating blow from the plague killing some 100,000 people. The plague was a horrifying disease that stalked the streets of London. It struck swiftly and causes agonizing pain to those infected as they struggle from fevers and swelling; victims died within days of contracting the disease. With no cure, people were dying at a horrifying rate as the plague swept through the country. Theories of the cause behind the plague abounded. These included clouds of poisonous air and livestock; many simply thought it was a punishment from God for their sins. In reality, the plague was actually caused by a bacillus in the fleas that lived on black rats. Rats flourished in the towns and cities and the plague bacillus was able to thrive due to the unseasonably hot weather. There are three human types of the plague: bubonic plague, septicaemic plague, and pneumonic plague. Historically, the majority of those infected died of the bubonic plague (most common and spread through fleas).

With little time to recover from the plague epidemic, London found itself in the face of another catastrophe. In September 1666, much of London vanished in the Great Fire. The fire broke out early Sunday morning and lasted for four days and nights – the last of the fire was extinguished on Thursday night. The fire destroyed over 13,000 houses, 87 churches, St. Paul’s, and the main buildings in the city. Only about a handful of deaths were officially documented but the actual death toll figures remains unknown. The London that grew up after the Great Fire was very different from the city it replaced. The urgent need to rebuild presented an opportunity for development and served as a driving force for the city’s expansion. The London that rose from the ashes formed the basis of the modern city we see today. Designed by Sir Christopher Wren, the building simply known as “The Monument” was erected in commemoration of the Great Fire of London. The structure stands tall at 202 feet and has become a familiar London landmark.

In 1854, a severe outbreak of cholera occurred in the Soho district of London, in and around Broad Street. Poor sanitary conditions of the city’s water supply served as the source of this terrible outbreak. Due to the large influx of people and lack of proper sanitary services, the River Thames became contaminated with the waste thus leading to the chorea outbreak. Early theories blamed the infection on mist and miasmas. John Snow, however, was skeptical about these theories and performed data analysis to prove theories on the source of cholera. His analysis led him to a water pump located on Broad Street which he later proved to be the source of the contaminated water. Snow went back to remove the pump handle and the cholera outbreak ended almost instantly. In the present day, the site of the water pump is marked by red granite on the curb outside of the present day John Snow pub.

data sources: wikipedia & channel4.com

The National Gallery

For class I visited the National Gallery where I was able to see many beautiful and fascinating pieces. One that I particularly liked was “The Ambassadors” (1533) by Hans Holbein. The painting contains a still life several meticulously rendered object and is also a double portrait. However, the feature that separates this piece from other paintings is the skewed skull located towards the bottom center of the painting. It is a particularly well-known example of anamorphosis in painting. The two portraits are of two young males, one in secular attire while the other is dressed in clerical clothes. They are both situated by a table which displays open books, two globles (one terrestrial and one celestial) and other worldly objects. The objects are symbols used to link the figures to the age of exploration. The skull is meant to serve as a “memento mori,” a Latin phrase meaning remember you must die and designed to remind the viewer of their mortality. In addition to the basic memento mori (a skull), Holbein uses the “vanitas,” or still life, to explicitly remind people of the vanity of worldly pleasures and goods. Common symbols are musical instruments and books – both are present in the painting. It is possible that the painting is meant to illustrate the existence of the three different levels. The celestial globe – along with other astronomical instruments – on the upper shelf portrays the heavens. On the lower shelf down are books and a musical instrument used to represent the living world. Lastly the skull, rendered in anamorphic perspective, is designed to signify death.
When view over the shoulder from the right hand side of the paint, the image of a skull becomes unmistakable. The underlining message of this piece is that death is inevitable. Humans are mortal being, whether or not they choose to believe so. When the time comes, wealth and power can do nothing to prevent the inevitable fate of all beings.

The Saatchi & Tate Modern

Modern art has never really been of a particular interest to me, but visiting the Saatchi and TATE Modern gave has given me a new appreciation for the art form. While I remain confused and in the dark, in terms of the message in which the artists were depicting, there were several pieces that I found to be rather fascinating. The following are pieces that I liked best.

Like Everyday Series
by Shadi Ghadirian
















Ghadirian uses a variety of everyday objects as masks to cover the faces of the women in her photographs. I find this clever in the way she presents the message of stereotype that people may have in respect to gender roles in society. The photos portray an interpretation of housewives being reduced to their identities as cooks and cleaners. I find this series of artwork to be very strong and encourages women to empower themselves through the use of negative stereotyping.

Ghost
by Kader Attia
















I find this to be a very strong piece. There are a large number of figures which represent a group of Muslim women in prayer. At first site it looks like the foil is molded over some sort of material or mannequin since the pieces are able to hold its shape very well. However upon closer inspection and venturing to the opposite side of the room, I discovered that the figures are hollow and the foil itself is a freestanding material. The artist renders the bodies of these individuals as vacant shells; voided of all personhood and/or spirit. I found this piece to be of great interest. The details in each individual shell are astounding; no two are the same. The details are elaborate to the point where you can basically figure out what each individual is doing where they are looking at. If you look close enough, you can almost make out a face in one of the shells as it stares directly at you.

The Unilever Series
TH.2059
by Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster
















I found this to be very interesting and very confusing at the same time. There seems to be a plethora of messages presented in the pieces. It seems like the artist was trying to create a sense of escape from reality and into the world of science fiction. The books on the beds consist of science fiction tale, many of which involve some sort of battle or another. The beds may represent the source to where individuals come to escape to an alternate reality. The series have a multitude of fascinating pieces of work that challenge how individuals see certain objects. The audience is often left in confusing, determined to figure out the meaning behind the different pieces of work and wondering how they all connect to one another.