The Beatles Walk

Having been home for a while now I think it's safe to say that I have had enough time to fully process everything I did while abroad. Everything was so fast pace and nonstop it was hard to process it all at once. Having slept for about a week and being well rested I'd say now's the time to reflect on my final days in London...
One of our final events in London was the Beatles walk. For me the Beatles walk couldn't compare to our trip to Liverpool. I loved everything about Liverpool, the museum, the bus tour, the Cavern, John and Paul's houses, everything, so I may be a little biased when saying the Beatles walk can't even compete with our events in Liverpool. That being said, however, there were things on the Beatles walk that I really enjoyed.  My favorite parts had to be seeing the building where the Beatles played their rooftop (and final) concert and walking on Abby Road. I was a little confused when the tour guide took us though the sort of high class fashion/shopping district. As he started talking the pieces sort fell into place. The Beatles, along with various other stars of the time, shopped along those stores. The guide talked about how it used to just be where the Beatles and other stars, or people who could afford the items in the stores, shopped. However, as the Beatles got bigger so did that shopping district. People wanted to dress like they dressed and shop where they shopped. As the guide talked it was clear to see just how big of an impact the Beatles had on people and their style because of the fact so many people wanted to look like the Beatles. That area of shops no longer became stores just for the stars but for the average person as well and as the fashion streets filled it made it harder and harder for the Beatles to go out into the shops they did before when not as many people were there. There was also a mural close to the fashion district that is very Sargent Pepper like. To me nearly everything about it screams Sargent Pepper. It's bright and colorful and has a mass of people just like the album cover of Sargent Pepper's. It just goes to show just how influential the Beatles were with their album art and how it seemed to inspire the creation of this huge mural with Sargent Pepper like qualities.
We also stopped at On Air Studio which is where the Beatles recorded a few songs such as "Hey Jude", "Dear Prudence", "Honey Pie", "Martha My Dear", and "Savory Truffle". The Beatles style of music has always been a little different from everyone else. As time went on they began making changes to their stand out sound and again making it a little different from the other musicians. They started drifting away from the sound of music people were used to hearing from them and making it more of the music they wanted to play. Even the lyrics in their songs changed, some having had more meaning behind them than others. The lyrics seeming more mature in some ways and having a deeper, and sometimes hidden, meaning behind them. They seemed to change for the better because fans stayed loyal to them and their music no matter what they came out with. I think people found the change in sound and lyrics more interesting because people began listening to their music and trying to figure out what the hidden meaning underneath it all meant. People wanted to understand the music, and know what it the songs were about maybe so that they could relate more to the music or just to have an idea of what the music is about. For me music is about making your own interpretations of the combination of sound and lyrics; it's not about trying to figure out the composers meanings it's about finding your own meaning. But because the Beatles music was different people were trying to figure out the Beatles meaning behind the songs and not just their own meaning.
   Having the chance to walk across Abby Road was a lot of fun. I'm sure the locals just love when groups like ours come and stop traffic to take pictures walking across the street, and not stopping until we get the perfect one. Getting the chance to see where the rooftop concert was held was also a sight to see. I love the story of the rooftop concert as well. It just goes to show that no matter how "big" you are you can still get in trouble for being too loud and to never mess with the local tailors.  

The Mural, very Sargent Pepper like if  you ask me.



On Air Studio sign.



The rooftop concert buiding.

Abby Road walk with Susan, Kate T., Me, and Kim. :) I just had to take my shoes off so I looked more like Paul. I'd say it worked, we're like twins.

All Things Beatles

What better way to get to know and understad the Beatles than to spend a few days in Liverpool. Being in the area where the Beatles started let me see more into the Beatles and who they were. I think it made me appreciate and understand them so much more than I did before.

The Beatles Story museum was very interesting. It was interesting to hear some of the people who were a part of the Beatles lives tell bits and pieces about them and hear the personal stories behind them as well. Walking through the museum, looking at all the pictures and things, and listening to the audio tour I think really helped make the experience all the more fun and allowed me to get the most out of it. Seeing and hearing their story gave me a better understanding of who they were. For me I think their early years when they first started were their best years. They were just four guys in a band playing the music the loved. John's songs being more about him and more personal while people person Paul wrote about the people around him.When the Beatles started to do more 'buisnessy' things, and especailly when Brian Epstien died, a lot changed for the Beatles. To me it seemed like they started trying to do too much at one time.

The Magical Mystery bus tour was a lot of fun. It was sort of surreal to drive around and see the places that the Beatles saw every day growing up. I thought it was a lot of fun driving down Penny Lane, while listening to Penny Lane, and seeing the inspiration for the song and what the song was about. I also liked that we got to see the gate to Strawberry Fields. I wish we could have actually gone into Strawberry Fields to see the place that John wrote about and seen the place that inspired the song. Being by the gate was powerful in itself but to have actually been in the fields would have made for another surreal moment.

The Cavern Club was tons of fun! I actually thought that The Beatles Story Museum did a very good job when they replicated it. Being at the Cavern was another one of those surreal moments. For me it's amazing to think that I was in the same place as the Beatles when they first got their start. When I was there there was a guy, Tim Shaw, playing all Beatles songs and playing them very well. There was actually a very good crowd there that night listening to him play; I can't even imagine what it was like when the Beatles were there. There were pictures there of the Beatles when they played there and I thought that was really cool to see it was sort of like proof that, yeah, this really is where they got their start. It's interesting to think how the Beatles started playing in the small, little Cavern Club (most likely packed wall to wall with people) and moved up to playing in big time, sold out arenas. I think the Cavern was very much a part of who they were as a band and I think they kept that with them even when they got big.

Probably my favorite part of the trip was being one of the lucky few who got the chance to go inside the childhood homes of John and Paul. It was the most surreal moment of the trip. I was speachless walking through their homes. Neither home was what I was expected it would be they were better. Hearing the stroy about how Aunt Mimi would have college studets stay in and pay rent to make ends meet made it seem so real. When we think about the Beatles, or any famous person for that matter, we don't really think about them dealing with issues, like money, that the rest of us do. It's like we forget that they had a life like ours before they got big, we just don't think about it. Being in John's home and hearing Aunt Mimi's story brings a whole new perspective on things for me. Back to John's house... I have to say if i lived in John's house I would have John's room. It was small but cozy at the same time and easy to see how creativity would flow looking through the window to the street. There were a few sketches and drawings that John did when he was little that I thought were hilarious. I think seeing these sort of showed the real John and who he was. As a Beatle I think his writing was sort of the same as when he was a child but it was more advanced writing.
Next was Paul's house. I loved being at Paul's house. I loved all the pictures hanging on the wall that his brother took of Paul and John playing and practicing their songs in the living room. I'm still in awe that I was in the places where a lot of the Beatles songs were born and where the two grew up. My favorite story from Paul's house was the story that he and his brother would have to go to the back and climb the drain pipe to climb through the window when their dad would lock them out because they were late for dinner. My favorite picture was of Paul climbing up the drain pipe. For me this made Paul seem more real and in a noncreepy way made me feel more connected to Paul because I have had to crawl through my window I don't know how many times. It's the little stories and things like that that remind me that they were like me before they got big. I loved hearing the little stories like that and getting the chance to see their homes. It was an amazing experience and feeling I will always remember.

All in all I would say Liverpool was an eye opening, learning experience that gave me a whole new perspective on life, the Beatles and their lives.  

My BME Experience

So far England has been nothing but good to me! London was amazing and I'm glad we're going back. I feel like there was a lot of unfinished business that's needs to be taken care of there before I leave. I think I can wait a little longer though. With plans to go to Scottland this weekend and talk about going to Ireland our next free weekend, along with the much anticipated trip to Liverpool sometime soon I think London can wait just a little bit. I no longer have a sense of time or know what day it is any more but that's ok that just means I'm having too much fun to notice or care.

While in London I had the wonderful opportunity to go to the British Musical Experience (BME). Those of you that know me very well will know that music is a huge part of my life. All the different sounds in the insruments and the tones of the voices, it's hard not to like a little bit of everything. I didn't really know what the BME was going to be so my level of curiosity was high before I even walked in. The BME was very interactive with a lot to look at and listen to. With displays of clothes and instruments from famous musicians throughout the decades it was easy to be amazed. It's hard for me to focus on just one thing to talk about because there was so much. It was sort of make your own tour which I thought was awesome I could go through each decade room and pick and choose the information I wanted to listen to and skip over those I didn't want to listen to. I found myself skimming through te selection screne finding Michael Jackson and already knowing his short facts, I even knew some Beatles ones.

It was interesting to me to see not only how the fashions changed throughout the decades but the instruments and how they, and their sounds, changed. I guess you instrument sort of becomes part of your style when you're a famous guitarist. Though I don't play guitar I love their sound and the designs that some stars have on them. I saw one splattered with paint, some with band logos on them with flames, and even half guitars. I found the half guitars interesting actually. I always wondered why a musician would pay so musch money for an instrument and then smash it to pieces, it never made sense to me. To see the damage and know the story behind it was pretty cool.

Being a '90's kid how could I not like the Spice Girls display? Honestly back then I never really listened to them. Being older I see things differently now, i have learned to appreciate music in more than one way besides like the sound. I was a '90's kid, it's the era I grew up in and the Spice Girls were apart of that era. Though I didn't listen to them every day, like I did Nsync, they are still a part of me and my era in a small twisted way. on display there was an out fit that each Girl wore along with their toy doll.

Another display I liked was a small display they had set up with a few pairs of Elton Johns glasses. Elton john is know for wearing some crazy cool glasses. They were covered in glitter and there was a pair even shapped like music notes which i thought was awesome. It was neat to see some of Sir Elton John's signature eyewear so up close.

Seeing as I'm taking a class on the Beatles I have to talk about their diplay. It was completely filled with Beatles paraphernalia from Beatlemania and contained a jacket (worn by Ringo if I remember correctly). It was actually one of the most filled displays, but let's be honest how couldn't it be they're the Beatles! It was actually one of my favorite displays. There was so mcuh paraphanalia like the toy drum, the lunch boxes, the albulm covers, and so much more. It's interesting to see just how big of an impact the Beatles were and how crazy people were about them. 

The experience was amazing. The interactive screens and  little tid bits of background information of the displays that we got to pick and choose from made the experience better. Though I didn't go into the dance room I thought that was pretty awesome as well. All in all I thought it was an awesome stop for us to make on out Study Abroad trip. It is definitely something I will remember forever.


Until Next Time!

Karly Mason

Counting Down the Days

13 days until I'm on the fight headed to Britain; an experience I am oh so nervous about but also very excited for. I think the thing I'm going to miss most is my pool. My entire summer is spent in my pool so being away from it for a month is going to be weird. But hey I'm going to England so I'm ok with that. Time is flying! I feel like I have so much to do and not enought time to do it. I need to see all my friends and family before I leave, they're just as excited as I am (almost). But first I have to get through exam week... eww...