Accommodations:
Best: Queen's University Belfast - The continental breakfast really set this place apart. It was nice to have a stable internet connection and an en suite bathroom. The only drawback was the lack of crockery, which meant I wasted $20 on a pot and a pan for cooking. The location meant I did a lot of walking too, but the weather wasn't bad so it worked out fine.
Worst: King's College, London - Lacked an internet connection, phone, or any telecommunications whatsoever. The bathroom was an entity unto itself - and that's not a good thing.
The Rest:
University College, Dublin - Nothing fancy here. Had internet, but Skype wouldn't work on my Mac. Laundry was expensive. Had a Centra (think 7-11) in the complex. Great access to buses.
University College, Cork - Best bed of the trip, en suite bathroom, nicest kitchen of the trip. No in-room internet - 4 computers in common room (3 of which worked). Laundry really expensive.
University of Ulster, Magee - The most uncomfortable bed on the trip and the kitchen was kind of gross, but that was due to a couple of the guys living there being messy and not caring about the rest of us. Decent internet connection. (2) Great roommates.
Fish & Chips:
Leo Burdock's, Dublin - Best fish of the trip. Didn't get enough ketchup. Take-out only, a beer would have been great.
Jackie Lennox's, Cork - Best chips of the trip, make that curry chips.
Galway (can't remember the name of the restaurant) - stopped here passing through to Derry. Fish was too greasy and the chips weren't any thing special.
Bishop's, Belfast - Not bad. I would say standard - nothing to write home about. Perhaps if I had got some curry for the chips.
N/A - Derry & London.
Archives:
Best: The National Archive, Kew - based on what I've written already, this should be no surprise. Everything an archive should be.
Worst: The National Library, Ireland - a colleague at Loyola warned me about this place before I left and he was right. This place was such a pain to work at. Unfortunately, I'll have to go back, but at least I'll be better prepared.
Some of the rest:
University College, Dublin - A wonderfully run archive, prior to Kew, the one of the best I went to. They didn't have much that I could use, but that doesn't take mitigate the quality of the facility.
National Archive, Ireland - Not a bad place to work. Their digital camera policy is a bit inconvenient, but it could be worse.
Cork City and County Archive - Pretty much the same as UCD. A beautiful facility with great people, just not a whole lot I could use.
Boole Library, University College Cork - A very nice facility with a very friendly and accommodating head archivist. I enjoyed working here.
Harbour Museum, Derry - Some of the nicest folks along the way. They had one collection relevant to my work. Allowed digital photos, weren't over-bearing, helped with last minute request.
PRONI - A very nice facility, easy to use, lots of useful material. No digital photography, which is a shame. That would definitely boost them in my mind.
Belfast Central Library, Newspaper Library - Great collection, allowed photography, late hours.
Imperial War Museum, London - Nice facility, horrible online catalog, would love to do more work there.
National Army Museum, London - Very nice, new facility. Catalog not online, yet. Great materials, friendly staff. No photos allowed.
British Library - Great hours, one of the best collections in the world.
Showing posts with label England. Show all posts
Showing posts with label England. Show all posts
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
More thoughts on London, it's archives, and Tube
The pace of research in London is very fast. It's a nice change of pace from Dublin which is the equivalent to swimming in a tar pit. The days at the archives are just flying by.
Tuesday I went to the National Archive, Kew. This place is everything an archive should be. The staff is really friendly and helpful, everything is automated, yet there still a significant degree of autonomy for the researcher. One doesn't feel like they're being a burden or sized up on a regular basis. Everything there is easy to use, or at least what I needed was. I was also able to use my digital camera, yet another boon. I'll be going back there on Friday as I put in a bulk order of documents.
Wednesday I spent at the British Library. They have SO much material there and I was able to view some of the books that I wasn't able to see at the National Library of Ireland. I'm glad I did because I found some really good stuff in those books. The system there isn't as fluid as the one at Kew, but, still, I didn't have too much trouble. The nice thing is that you can schedule what day you want documents delivered, so there are a few I ordered up for Saturday (and perhaps I'll order up a few more this evening). I didn't get out of the BL yesterday until about 7:45pm. Needless to say it was a long day, but it was also a productive one.
Today, I spent at the National Army Museum. When I initially contacted them via email they sent me a list of files that they held. Ok, cool. Once I got here they had their collection accessible via an online database (run on Macs no less!), which was nice. One of the staff told me it'd be available on the internet later this year. So I looked through their holdings and found some other stuff relevant to my research. London keeps coming up aces in terms of finding materials. So I spent the day looking through this material and taking notes. In fact, I was typing as fast as I could by the end of the day trying to get one last document typed out before they closed. I was the last one to leave, but I managed to get everything I needed, at least for the time being. All in all, it was a very successful trip to a very nice little archive.
The one thing that is clear to me is that I will have to come back to London, perhaps a couple of times, in order to get through all the stuff here. The one thing that I wasn't able to figure out for this trip was anything at the Royal British Legion Headquarters. So I'll have to see about that on a subsequent trip. (After my experience in Belfast, I really need to look into the Dublin Branch as well. They may have what I'm looking for and not even realize it.) But I will say that spending so much time at these various repositories has made my time in London go by quickly, which I appreciate, especially since I'm toward the end of the trip, pretty burned out, and not smitten by my accommodations. I have, however, been able to achieve the level of productivity I've strived for all along in London, which was not always the case in other places.
Although I may find the Tube's cash fares expensive, it's easy to see where the money goes. What a great system. The trains are on time and there are displays telling you how long until the next train arrives (like the DC Metro). The cars are clean, as are the stations, and while they may be labyrinthine, everything is clearly marked and it's easy to figure out where to go. The train cars are pretty quite for a subway. Usually, there are a few windows open in each car for ventilation, and even then it's possible to listen to music without having to decimate your eardrums or to have a conversation without having to yell. It's not quite like the Montreal Metro, which has rubber wheels and is really quiet, but when compared to the CTA subway there is a huge difference. It's nice to have an automated voice over the speaker that tells you what station you're approaching/at, and what is next. On the CTA the only time one seems to get this type of information is when the driver feels like telling the passengers. Sure they have certain announcements about keeping the CTA clean and the like, but nothing like the Tube. CTA buses have this feature, but it doesn't work on every bus. I haven't ridden the buses in London, but I certainly did in Ireland, and it's safe to say that based on my experience there and what I've seen of the buses in London, they're well maintained and clean, again, unlike the CTA. This just hammers home how absolutely terrible public transportation is in Chicago. People piss and moan about a $0.25 fare increase, but having seen other, better systems it's worth it for a higher fare. Besides, on the Tube a cash fare is £4, but if you have an Oyster Card (the same thing as the Chicago Card (Plus)) then it's only £1.50, and on top of that there is a daily cap so you won't be charged anything above the cap if you have the card (assuming I'm reading the literature correctly). But a difference between £1.50 and £4 is huge. Perhaps that's the sort of price structure we need in Chicago to really initiate change. The smart cards are so much more cost effective for the transit system there needs to be a much stronger incentive for people to use them. It's kind of like in Ireland how they charge you for plastic bags at the grocery store. Every one there has reusable shopping bags. After the initial adjustment period most people will probably just go with the flow, and be more content with their service.
Tuesday I went to the National Archive, Kew. This place is everything an archive should be. The staff is really friendly and helpful, everything is automated, yet there still a significant degree of autonomy for the researcher. One doesn't feel like they're being a burden or sized up on a regular basis. Everything there is easy to use, or at least what I needed was. I was also able to use my digital camera, yet another boon. I'll be going back there on Friday as I put in a bulk order of documents.
Wednesday I spent at the British Library. They have SO much material there and I was able to view some of the books that I wasn't able to see at the National Library of Ireland. I'm glad I did because I found some really good stuff in those books. The system there isn't as fluid as the one at Kew, but, still, I didn't have too much trouble. The nice thing is that you can schedule what day you want documents delivered, so there are a few I ordered up for Saturday (and perhaps I'll order up a few more this evening). I didn't get out of the BL yesterday until about 7:45pm. Needless to say it was a long day, but it was also a productive one.
Today, I spent at the National Army Museum. When I initially contacted them via email they sent me a list of files that they held. Ok, cool. Once I got here they had their collection accessible via an online database (run on Macs no less!), which was nice. One of the staff told me it'd be available on the internet later this year. So I looked through their holdings and found some other stuff relevant to my research. London keeps coming up aces in terms of finding materials. So I spent the day looking through this material and taking notes. In fact, I was typing as fast as I could by the end of the day trying to get one last document typed out before they closed. I was the last one to leave, but I managed to get everything I needed, at least for the time being. All in all, it was a very successful trip to a very nice little archive.
The one thing that is clear to me is that I will have to come back to London, perhaps a couple of times, in order to get through all the stuff here. The one thing that I wasn't able to figure out for this trip was anything at the Royal British Legion Headquarters. So I'll have to see about that on a subsequent trip. (After my experience in Belfast, I really need to look into the Dublin Branch as well. They may have what I'm looking for and not even realize it.) But I will say that spending so much time at these various repositories has made my time in London go by quickly, which I appreciate, especially since I'm toward the end of the trip, pretty burned out, and not smitten by my accommodations. I have, however, been able to achieve the level of productivity I've strived for all along in London, which was not always the case in other places.
Although I may find the Tube's cash fares expensive, it's easy to see where the money goes. What a great system. The trains are on time and there are displays telling you how long until the next train arrives (like the DC Metro). The cars are clean, as are the stations, and while they may be labyrinthine, everything is clearly marked and it's easy to figure out where to go. The train cars are pretty quite for a subway. Usually, there are a few windows open in each car for ventilation, and even then it's possible to listen to music without having to decimate your eardrums or to have a conversation without having to yell. It's not quite like the Montreal Metro, which has rubber wheels and is really quiet, but when compared to the CTA subway there is a huge difference. It's nice to have an automated voice over the speaker that tells you what station you're approaching/at, and what is next. On the CTA the only time one seems to get this type of information is when the driver feels like telling the passengers. Sure they have certain announcements about keeping the CTA clean and the like, but nothing like the Tube. CTA buses have this feature, but it doesn't work on every bus. I haven't ridden the buses in London, but I certainly did in Ireland, and it's safe to say that based on my experience there and what I've seen of the buses in London, they're well maintained and clean, again, unlike the CTA. This just hammers home how absolutely terrible public transportation is in Chicago. People piss and moan about a $0.25 fare increase, but having seen other, better systems it's worth it for a higher fare. Besides, on the Tube a cash fare is £4, but if you have an Oyster Card (the same thing as the Chicago Card (Plus)) then it's only £1.50, and on top of that there is a daily cap so you won't be charged anything above the cap if you have the card (assuming I'm reading the literature correctly). But a difference between £1.50 and £4 is huge. Perhaps that's the sort of price structure we need in Chicago to really initiate change. The smart cards are so much more cost effective for the transit system there needs to be a much stronger incentive for people to use them. It's kind of like in Ireland how they charge you for plastic bags at the grocery store. Every one there has reusable shopping bags. After the initial adjustment period most people will probably just go with the flow, and be more content with their service.
Monday, August 4, 2008
London town
You get a shiver in the park/it's raining in the park, but mean time....
It'd be nice if the Sultans could Swing me a better lot in London. It should be clear that for me telecommunications is the central factor determining the quality of my accommodations. In this respect, London is the worst place so far. Oh, there are internet ports in the rooms, but one must have a King's College login to access them. No guest access here like at Queen's. There are no phones in the apartment and no common room with computers for people to use. That puts London just below Cork on the telecommunications scale. Frankly, I'm disappointed. For a place that caters to international travelers--in LONDON of all places--you would think they'd have some sort of solution to the telecommunications question. There is a bar directly across the street that has "free" wifi (with purchase of course), but that's hardly acceptable in my book. Nevertheless, it's something I'll have to deal with. Let's just say I'm glad I'm only here for a week. I couldn't afford to be here longer!
The room itself isn't too bad. There's a mini fridge, two pillows, and the sheets are really comfortable. The bathroom, however, is one of the most "European" things I have encountered thus far. I will upload a photo later, but it's basically a triangle with one corner being the "shower," with a bar bisecting the triangle that holds the curtain rod. When the shower curtain is closed, the toilet is inside the shower. I shit you not (excuse the pun). Now I was a part-time custodian for about 3 years in undergrad and I am by no means a germophobe, but I do not like grimy things. This bathroom scares me. Needless to say, another reason I'm glad I'm only here for a week.
On the research front, today was very productive. I spent the day at the Imperial War Museum, which is one of the coolest museums in London (again, another one I think the Colonel would thoroughly enjoy). When I got to the reading room they had the files I had requested waiting for me at an assigned seat. The chairs were comfy and the room was big and bright. Really, it was ideal for doing research. The only drawback was that of the probably 30 seats available they crammed everyone right next to each other so there wasn't much room to work. That kind of sucked, but otherwise, I enjoyed it. I must say that most of the research facilities here have been great, with the obvious exception of the National Library of Ireland. Tomorrow's plan is to go out to the National Archive at Kew. I know that I can use the old digital camera there so hopefully I'll only need the one day there. We'll see. It looks like it's probably a 45 min Tube ride in the morning. If you think that public transportation in Chicago is expensive where a cash fare for a single ride is $2, try London where the same goes for £4 ($8). Yet another reason I'm glad I'll only be here for a week.
Finally, a totally unrelated thing, but one I think worthwhile - a format change for this here blog. I've decided that an "Album" of the week isn't really cutting mustard any more. Sometimes I find myself picking an album because of a particular song on it. Since the music industry seems to be going retro to the 50s and 60s where singles ruled, I'm changing the Album of the Week to This Week's Music, which may include a single song, an entire album, or a live concert. Since, personally, I prefer live music, I'll provide links whenever possible to live music. Singles and records, I assume people (and I use this term loosely since there are 4 people reading this) can do a Google or iTunes search for a song or album.
It'd be nice if the Sultans could Swing me a better lot in London. It should be clear that for me telecommunications is the central factor determining the quality of my accommodations. In this respect, London is the worst place so far. Oh, there are internet ports in the rooms, but one must have a King's College login to access them. No guest access here like at Queen's. There are no phones in the apartment and no common room with computers for people to use. That puts London just below Cork on the telecommunications scale. Frankly, I'm disappointed. For a place that caters to international travelers--in LONDON of all places--you would think they'd have some sort of solution to the telecommunications question. There is a bar directly across the street that has "free" wifi (with purchase of course), but that's hardly acceptable in my book. Nevertheless, it's something I'll have to deal with. Let's just say I'm glad I'm only here for a week. I couldn't afford to be here longer!
The room itself isn't too bad. There's a mini fridge, two pillows, and the sheets are really comfortable. The bathroom, however, is one of the most "European" things I have encountered thus far. I will upload a photo later, but it's basically a triangle with one corner being the "shower," with a bar bisecting the triangle that holds the curtain rod. When the shower curtain is closed, the toilet is inside the shower. I shit you not (excuse the pun). Now I was a part-time custodian for about 3 years in undergrad and I am by no means a germophobe, but I do not like grimy things. This bathroom scares me. Needless to say, another reason I'm glad I'm only here for a week.
On the research front, today was very productive. I spent the day at the Imperial War Museum, which is one of the coolest museums in London (again, another one I think the Colonel would thoroughly enjoy). When I got to the reading room they had the files I had requested waiting for me at an assigned seat. The chairs were comfy and the room was big and bright. Really, it was ideal for doing research. The only drawback was that of the probably 30 seats available they crammed everyone right next to each other so there wasn't much room to work. That kind of sucked, but otherwise, I enjoyed it. I must say that most of the research facilities here have been great, with the obvious exception of the National Library of Ireland. Tomorrow's plan is to go out to the National Archive at Kew. I know that I can use the old digital camera there so hopefully I'll only need the one day there. We'll see. It looks like it's probably a 45 min Tube ride in the morning. If you think that public transportation in Chicago is expensive where a cash fare for a single ride is $2, try London where the same goes for £4 ($8). Yet another reason I'm glad I'll only be here for a week.
Finally, a totally unrelated thing, but one I think worthwhile - a format change for this here blog. I've decided that an "Album" of the week isn't really cutting mustard any more. Sometimes I find myself picking an album because of a particular song on it. Since the music industry seems to be going retro to the 50s and 60s where singles ruled, I'm changing the Album of the Week to This Week's Music, which may include a single song, an entire album, or a live concert. Since, personally, I prefer live music, I'll provide links whenever possible to live music. Singles and records, I assume people (and I use this term loosely since there are 4 people reading this) can do a Google or iTunes search for a song or album.
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