Trinity Frontier, Volume 1, Issue 2

issue 2 March 2017

Politics, Culture and Travel

travel to:

asturias, Colombia Israel, Bratislava and Istanbul

Political analysis & insight from:

Myanmar, Europe, Georgia, Northern Ireland, Krakow & USA march 2017

Carol O’Brien

Secretary: Navika Mehta

International Relations and Politics Editors: Alex Peters

Society and Culture Editors: Neasa Candon Conor Gallagher-Chu

Travel Editors: Catherine Hearn Laura Thomas

Public Relations Officers: Coline Dumoulin Hannah Rieger

Business Manager: Ghalya Farahat

Layout and Design: Sara Makdessi www.saramakdessi.com

editoriaL TEAM

Editor-in-Chief:

EDITORIAL Welcome to the second issue of Trinity Frontier magazine! We are a new student publication that revolves around the themes of international issues and global perspectives. Frontier was created to showcase the best in student journalism and travel writing, and to be a platform for students to share their thoughts, ideas and stories from across the globe.

We hope you have enjoyed this issue. To those of you considering submitting a piece next term – please do! We can’t wait to hear all about your summer adventures.

Finally, this issue would not have been possible without the support of Trinity Publications, our sincere thanks to them for all the support.

Thanks for reading, Carol O’Brien Editor-in-Chief

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND POLITICS 4 See No Evil, Hear No Evil: The Unknown Tragedy of the

World’s Most Persecuted Minority Paul Gorby

6 A New Right: A Look at the Right Wing Populist Parties Contesting

This Year’s Elections Throughout Europe Andrew Prylowski

9 The Challenges facing Georgia’s international security

Frida Bowe

11 Northern Irish Politics: Will They Ever Learn?

CONTENTS

Fiona May

SOCIETY AND CULTURE

14 Krakow and the Baptism of Destruction Isabel Wolfer 16 That’s Mrs. Mathieu to you

Maia Mathieu

18

The Spirit of Self-Promotion: «Candid» Profile Pictures and American Capitalism Isabel Wolfer and Mila Stieglitz-Courtney

20 Asturias: Spain’s Hidden Treasure?

Poppy Ashmore

TRAVEL

24 Cooney’s Guide to Colombia Rachel Cooney 28 Understanding Israel: the place and the people

Sam McMahon

30 Bratislava: Slow Down in the Slovak Capital

Neasa Candon

34 A commentary on Myanmar’s culture, society and the city of Yangon

Navika Mehta

36 Istanbul - A Photo Essay

Hannah Rieger

Myanmar

See No Evil, Hear No Evil: The Unknown Tragedy of the World’s Most Persecuted Minority

by Paul Gorby

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n early April 1994, while the foundations of the genocide in Rwanda were being set, the world’s attention was focused 3,000 kilometres south, on the first set of free and fair elections being completed in South Africa. In 1915, while countless Armenians were being displaced and exterminated in the Ottoman Empire, Western nations largely focussed on fighting one another and failed to see the unfolding human rights catastrophe. Today the world is at risk of suffering a comparable tragedy, and once again world leaders have failed to take notice or implement

“The Rohingya have been described as the most persecuted minority in the world.” any preventative measures. For decades now the Rohingya people of Myanmar have been systematically denied recognition and basic human rights by their government, and the world has barely noticed as the Burmese military has increased its attacks on this Muslim minority group.

The Rohingya of Myanmar are roughly one million in number, making them a sizeable Muslim minority in the predominantly Buddhist country. The largest section of this ethnic group resides in the province of Rakhine, on the border with Bangladesh and next to the Bay of

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Bengal. The Rohingya have been described as the most persecuted minority in the world, and the legal foundation of this persecution can be found in Myanmar’s 1982 Citizenship Law. This law was drawn up by the military government of General Ne Win, and includes a long list of officially recognised ethnicities. The law, which excludes the Rohingya from citizenship, remains in place today, effectively rendering the Rohingya stateless. The Citizenship Law, which has been admonished by human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, has served to deny those who identify as Rohingya from basic human rights such as freedom of movement, as well as access to education, healthcare, land ownership, and job opportunities.

This denial of human rights is reflected in the poverty rate of Rakhine, which stands at 78%, significantly higher than the already sub-par national average of 37%.

Even today this persecution is supported by many members of Myanmar’s Buddhist majority, who see the Rohingya as colonial-era immigrants from what is now India and Bangladesh. The most recent crackdown by the Burmese military has been conducted in response to the murder of nine border guards on 9th October 2016 in Rakhine, believed to have been perpetrated by Rohingya militants. Immediately after the attack, the Burmese military imposed strict curfews on the province and refused access to journalists. This was followed by a campaign of destruction, which included mass executions, torture, rape, and

Myanmar

photo by Firdaus Latif

“The ease with which world leaders have maintained a kind of wilful ignorance towards human rights travesties throughout history has shocked historical commentators.� arbitrary arrests. The villages of the Rohingya have been systematically burnt, and some have even reported that the Burmese military burnt children alive in their homes. In one notable incident, the military used helicopters to gun down fleeing Rohingya villagers.

It has been estimated that in the closing months of 2016, hundreds were killed and over 30,000 displaced by the military campaign. By February 2017 the total number of those displaced was estimated at 70,000. The majority of these refugees have attempted to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh. Many do not survive the journey across the Bay of Bengal, a stretch of water which has been described by the United Nations as three times more dangerous for refugees than the Mediterranean. Those who make it

into Bangladesh, though free from violence and military persecution, find living conditions just as poor as those they were subjected to in Myanmar. The Bangladeshi state has denied that the Rohingya are native to their country and has even refused them refugee status. It has even attempted to close its borders to the migrants, abandoning those who have already made it into the country to live in squalid and ill-supplied refugee camps. In early February, the government of Bangladesh announced its plan to relocate the new Rohingya refugees, alongside over 200,000 Rohingya who had fled previous outbursts of violence in Myanmar, to a small sedimentary island in the Bay of Bengal. The island regularly disappears at high tide, and the plan has faced immense criticism from human rights activists.

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europe The Burmese government, led by notable human rights activist Aung San Suu Kyi, have repeatedly denied claims of human rights violations, and have largely remained silent on the issue. Many within the military lay responsibility for any human rights violations in Rakhine on Rohingya militants. By contrast, John McKissick, an official of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights in Bangladesh, has claimed that the Burmese state is pursuing a policy of ‘ethnic cleansing’ in the Rakhine province, and Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak, along with several other international commentators, has stated that the treatment of the Rohingya amounts to genocide.

According to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide, the acts of killing or deliberately seeking to make life intolerable for an ethnic, religious or racial group are classified as genocidal. With this in

mind, it seems difficult to deny that the treatment of the Rohingya has at least the potential to be genocidal. The ease with which world leaders have maintained a kind of wilful ignorance towards human rights travesties throughout history has shocked historical commentators. Yet when similar situations develop in the present – at a time when information can flow more freely and our knowledge of such occurrences has reached previously unimaginable heights – contemporary world leaders are content to treat such travesties as someone else’s problem. In reality, there are no excuses for failing to act to prevent genocide and ethnic cleansing, and future generations will judge us harshly should we choose to close our eyes and cover our ears to the creeping tragedy of the Rohingya.

Paul Gorby is a Junior Sophister History and Politics student.

A New Right:

A Look at the Right Wing Populist Parties Contesting This Year’s Elections Throughout Europe

by Andrew Prylowski

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europe 2017 is an important year for elections on continental Europe, with elections taking place in France, Germany, and the Netherlands to name but a few. In hopes of following in the success of Brexit and Trump, other right wing parties are hoping to use populism in order to cause a political shakeup in their own elections.

Already in December of 2016, Italians voted against reforms to their constitution that they believed gave the government too much power, prompting the resignation of their Prime Minister.

Meanwhile in Austria, far right candidate Norbert Hofer came close to beating Alexander Van der Bellen to the presidency, gaining 46.2% of the votes in a country well associated with a troubled history with fascism. The new wave of the right using a populist platform has dramatically

upcoming elections. Among those speaking at the conference, as well as representatives from Austria and Italy, were the three leaders who I will profile for their upcoming elections; Geert Wilders, Marine Le Pen, and Frauke Petry. All three bring similar ideas of nationalism, being against immigration, against the EU, and wanting for a return of sovereignty to European countries. At the conference, they denounced the policies of Merkel and Brussels, whilst praising the British people for their victory, with Le Pen hoping that 2017 would be the “year of the Continental peoples rising up”, and following in their footsteps. But currently, where are they expected to be after the votes are counted?

The first of this year’s elections takes place in the Netherlands, as Geert Wilders hopes to lead the Party for Freedom (PVV) to victory in the Dutch Elections. Only having been founded in 2006 by Wilders himself, the party has garnered much support in the last decade, being part of a

changed the nature of their policies, and the level of support they receive. Discarding the old ideas which the far right has been known for, such as anti-Semitism and homophobia, instead they have embraced these communities they once persecuted, presenting a more normalised and popular party. On this base, they claim to have the best interests of the average person at hand, while the current ‘establishment politicians’ do not.

They garner support for policies which they have not shed, such as the perceived threat of mass immigration, membership to the European Union, and terrorism, bringing them to the forefront of political discussion. Even while not in power, they have altered the issues which voters care about, producing a much more right wing outlook, one which the current people in power must adapt to or risk losing seats in the next election.

On the 21st of January, in the city of Koblenz in Germany, a conference took place for the members of Europe of Nations and Freedom, a group of right wing MEPs representing various countries. They billed 2017 as ‘The Year of the Patriots’, hoping to forecast success in the

minority coalition in 2010, but fell to 10 seats in 2012. Wilders is a loud and controversial politician, with strong opinions on Islam, wanting to ban the Qur’an and construction of Mosques. He has been in court multiple times, for ‘inciting hatred’ against Moroccan immigrants. Yet his messages seem to resonate with the Dutch people, as he further targets migrants and the EU as threats to the Dutch identity. At Koblenz, he talked about the dangers of the rapid ‘Islamification’ of Europe, as “equality between men and women, freedom of expression, tolerance of homosexuality, all our freedoms are disappearing”. The current Prime Minister, in hopes to regain lost support, recently echoed Wilder’s ideas of immigrant assimilation, saying those who ‘refuse to adapt, and criticise our values’ should ‘behave normally or go away’.

The next major election is the French presidential election, the current party leading the polls for the first round of voting are the National Front (FN), led by Marine Le Pen. The party was previously led by her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, being extremely far right, and unsuccessful. But in 2011, Marine came to the leadership

“In hopes of following in the success of Brexit and Trump, other right wing parties are hoping to use populism in order to cause a political shakeup in their own elections.”

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europe following her father’s expulsion from the party after comments he made about Nazi gas chambers being a “detail of history”. In the last five years, she has revolutionised the policies of the FN to a populist stance, purging it of anyone who could be considered as racist or anti-Semitic, so as to not allow opponents to rightfully slander the party with these insults. Now, the FN appeals to a much larger group of people, and is the most popular party amongst young people in France.

“The turbulent world of politics which we witnessed in 2016 looks to continue through to the current year.”

Of course, Le Pen still pursues policies of reducing immigration, saying they should no longer receive free support from the government, as well as starting a referendum on the country leaving the EU, saying that Brexit would set off a chain of “dominoes” of countries also voting to leave.

While she is currently leading the first round polls, and despite controversies surrounding opponent François Fillon, it is unclear whether she will win in the second round, as other parties may unite against her. Even if this were to happen, they would be the party in opposition, allowing them greater influence over French politics.

The third important election, taking place in

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Germany, is being contested by Frauke Petry, leader of Alternative für Deutschland (AFD).

Their support has grown considerably over the last year following a string of terror incidents in the summer and the Berlin Christmas Market attack, which the party blamed on Angela Merkel and the EU‘s open door migration policy. Petry talked at Koblenz about how “mass migration is sold to us as ‘diversity.’ Well, we don’t want this ‘diversity’ that Brussels dictates to us”. While they are only expected to be the third largest party after the elections in September, it would allow them enough seats to enter the Bundestag, undermining Merkel’s CDU and creating a more unstable and hostile parliament as a result.

While the chances for each party in winning their respective elections seems varied, they all share the same vision, of a Europe made up of nation states, sovereign and able to govern to their own self-interest, who have control of their borders and are free from outside influence. Seeing the populist victories in the USA and the UK, they believe that they too can bring a drastic shakeup to the usual establishment politics, restoring true democracy. The turbulent world of politics which we witnessed in 2016 looks to continue through to the current year, and whether or not any of these parties come to power in Europe, there will be a definite swing to a more right wing view throughout the continent, leading to further sentiment against continued uncontrolled migration, as well as the uncertain future of the European Union. The use of populism by these parties has clearly allowed these messages to be broadcast further and be taken seriously, as people look for an alternative to what they believe to be a failing Europe.

Andrew Prylowski is a Junior Freshman Single Honours History student.

georgia The Challenges facing Georgia’s international security

by Frida Bowe

T

he current Georgian cross-partisan foreign policy document clearly states, “Integration into European and Euro-Atlantic structures, joining the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization represent country’s foreign policy priority” Simultaneously, Russia is still the main language in the region and its influence is obvious, due to “the close geographical, economic, cultural, ethnic and historical links between South Caucasus and adjacent parts of the Russian Federation.” (Gahrton, 2010) However, after another year of failed EU and NATO integration, the Georgian people’s support for the West is falling and pro-Russia allegiances are gaining political support.

Invaded by the Red Army in 1921, Georgia remained a Republic in the Soviet Union until declaring independence in 1991. During the 1990s the relationship between Russia and Georgia can be described as complicated but not “catastrophic”, despite the disagreements on territorial issues.

The main foreign policy challenges faced

by Georgia during this period were the South Ossetian and Abkhazian secessionist movements.

The two regions had enjoyed autonomous status within the Georgian republic under the Soviet Union, so when Georgia declared independence, South Ossetian leaders attempted to achieve their own independence. However, this resulted in a failed military retaliation from Georgia in 1992, where the country was beaten by “a combination of local fighters, irregulars from the Russian Federation, and stranded ex-Soviet soldiers who found themselves stuck in the middle of someone else’s civil war and chose to fight on behalf of the secessionists.” A similar scenario took place in 1993 regarding Abkhazia, again resulting in defeat for the Georgian army. Consequently, the two regions have retained their status as separate from Georgia, with independent political, economic and military structures and a common cultural identity.

Russian-Georgian relationships started to deteriorate substantially in the 2000s, with Russia

imposing visa restrictions on Georgians as reprisal for Georgia’s lack of cooperation when it came to fighting Chechen guerrillas seeking refuge on Georgian territory. Following this, Russia started to issue passports to citizens of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2001, making the majority population Russian. To illustrate the level of tension, from 1999 to 2000 “Russian warplanes infringed on Georgian airspace at least 25 times”, a clear indication to Georgia that Russia did not fully respect their sovereignty.

In 2003, the situation for Georgia changed with the peaceful ousting of Eduard Shevardnadze, a former soviet bureaucrat and corrupt ruler of Georgia for eleven years (Kirchick, 2010). The event, dubbed the rose revolution resulted in the democratic takeover by Mikheil Saakashvili, a Western-oriented politician who introduced a number of economic and political reforms. After the Rose revolution, Georgia-Russian relations deteriorated further, with Russia utilizing its power as the largest importer of Georgian goods and supplier of gas to the country to indicate their disapproval of the direction the country were taking.

In 2008 the bad relations culminated with the brief war between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia. Georgia used military force to attempt to regain control over South Ossetia but was quickly repelled by Russian forces. Following on, Russia then recognized the independence of both South Ossetia and Abkhazia, stating that it would guarantee the regions security. Without any further developments in the region, “polls consistently show that Georgians strongly reject independence for, or the Russian annexation of, its separatist regions” (Cecire, 2015).

NATO membership has officially been on the agenda for Georgia since the Rose revolution.

At the NATO Bucharest summit in the spring of 2008 NATO did not, as Georgia had hoped, offer a Membership Action Plan. Instead the alliance promised that bringing Georgia into NATO would be an eventual goal as long as Georgia “meets all necessary requirements.” This was

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georgia reaffirmed in 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2014. Since then Georgia has contributed extensively to NATO operations, especially in Afghanistan where the country is the second largest troop contributor (Barnes, 2015).

In October 2015, the current Georgian president Giorgi Margvelashvil, stated: “We have a clear vision that we are developing ourselves in the direction of the [European Union] and of NATO” (Hudson, 2015) By this he clearly indicated that for Georgia, being a member of NATO would be a step towards stability. For many Georgians membership seems like a de facto guarantee of sovereignty due to the protection of the US that it entails. However, NATO’s slow response over the last eight years has given the people mixed signals. The Georgian Defence Minister Tina Khidasheli stated at a visit to Washington last fall, “A weak NATO signal could demoralize pro-West voters, who will stay home, and pro-Russia forces will have the initiative” (Hudson, 2015). A poll conducted spring of 2015 suggested that 31 percent of Georgians approved of Georgia joining the Eurasian Union, up from 11 percent in 2013.

According to Michael Cecire and Carnegie Europe, Georgia currently fills the NATO requirements to join the alliance. The country’s military force is strong, the state has illustrated clear loyalty to the West by contributing militarily as a non-NATO member and the country is getting increasingly democratic. However, despite the country seemingly possessing all the credentials on paper “NATO has refused to establish a clear set of benchmarks Georgia could meet in order to gain entry” (Cecire, 2015b). Meanwhile, Montenegro, a substantially less democratic country, was at the 2015 December NATO summit offered membership.

The reason for Georgia’s continuous rejection may be due to the fact that a large section of its territory is currently unclarified and effectively occupied by Russia. Despite Georgia’s efforts over the last decade to please the Euro-Atlantic structures, as long as its territorial situation remains unsolved and relations between Russia and the West hostile, there seems to be little chance that NATO will shift radically at the Warsaw summit in May 2016. An alternative for Georgia put forward is for the state to follow the example of countries such as Switzerland, Israel

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and Singapore and adopt the “total defence doctrine” (Cecire, 2015b). Following the realist philosophy, Georgia would expand its military so that the country would hopefully be able to deter a conflict with Russia and be ready to protect if it occurred. This option could be combined with the alternative presented by both Michael Cecire and Per Gahrton, of Georgia aiming for a position equivalent to that of Finland or Sweden, outside of NATO but still a partner state. The title of “Major Non-NATO Ally” could have powerful implications without coming at a high cost (Cecire, 2015). It is also more likely that the fellow NATO countries can agree upon such a position, as it would be less of a threat to Russia than Georgian NATO membership.

There are signs that more and more Georgians have become increasingly tired of the game played by the West and would like to see a change in strategy. A national survey in 2014 indicated that of 21 issues, the one that Georgians felt the government spent the most unnecessary time on was that of Euro-Atlantic integration (Wilfore, 2014). Also, the Orthodox Church in Georgia has close ties to Russia and is becoming increasingly anti-western (Cecire, 2015). In 2006, Michael Menteshashvili, a member of parliament for the ruling party, stated that though Georgia aimed to be independent of Russian energy “We cannot keep Russia out for ever!” (Gahrton, 2010: 207). In other words, Georgia’s geographic proximity may necessitate closer relations to Russia in order to gain a stable economic partner and reduce the military threat. However, a path toward the East could also result in Moscow dominance and with it “a complete Russian monopoly over trans-Eurasian energy and trade flows” (Cecire, 2015).

In conclusion, this article has argued that the Georgian foreign policy document should advisably be adjusted. The threat of Russia is a major challenge, and with repeated rejections of NATO membership Georgia has to look for different options. A plausible solution would be to increase its security and develop a formal partnership position with NATO. Frida Bowe is a PPES Senior Sophister specializing in economics and interested in post-soviet countries. * Barnes, Julian E. October 9, 2015 “Georgia Seeks Ways To Avoid NATO Rejection.” Wall Street Journal.. http://blogs.wsj.com/brussels/2015/10/09/georgiapostpones-bid-to-advance-nato-membership/.

northern ireland * Cecire, Michael. November 2015, 2015a “Divide and Conquer In Georgia.” Foreign Affairs.. https://www. foreignaffairs.com/articles/georgia/2015-11-10/ divide-and-conquer-georgia. * Dempsey, Judy. December 7, 2015. NATO Membership for Montenegro but Not for Georgia. http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=62197. * Gahrton, Per. 2010. The Geopolitical Setting: A Renewed Great Game. Pluto Press. * Hudson, John. October 1, 2015. “Between Russian

and U.S. Saber Rattling, Georgia Seeks a Middle Path.”

Foreign Policy. http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/10/01/ between-russian-and-u-s-saber-rattling-georgia-seeksa-middle-path/?wp_login_redirect=0. * Wilfore, Kristina. August 2014. “National Democratic Institute.” https://www.ndi.org/files/NDI_Georgia_ August-2014-survey_Public-Issues_ENG_vf.pdf.

Northern Irish Politics: Will They Ever Learn?

by Fiona May

W

hile everyone else in the UK and Ireland was hoping for snow days to get them off school, in Northern Ireland things were slightly different. We used to hope for bomb scares. While this is now pretty rare and Northern Ireland is a much less violent place than it once was, things are by no means perfect. Our politicians get on like school children, tribal politics dominate the issues that matter and it is questionable whether power sharing will ever really work. After managing a whole nine months in government before the whole structure collapsed, it was election time once more on 2 March. And the most terrifying thing? Despite all that has happened over the past few months, nothing much has changed.

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northern ireland The May 2016 Northern Irish Assembly elections were a rather unremarkable affair, with the DUP remaining the largest party in Stormont with 38 seats from a possible 108 and Sinn Féin the second largest with 28 MLAs elected. The Ulster Unionists and SDLP, the secondary Unionist and Nationalist parties respectively, gained 16 and 12 seats; whilst Alliance, the only non-sectarian party in government gained 8 seats. Arlene Foster became First Minister which was a popular choice within the party, and Martin McGuinness remained

“Trust is more fragile and power sharing between five parties representing two opposed communities is delicate.”

photo by NICVA

Deputy First Minister – this is a formality more than anything as both are equal roles despite the titles. They managed to agree on a programme for government, a tougher task than one would think in Northern Ireland and all seemed to be going well.

However, in December 2016 it emerged that a botched Renewable Heat Initiative (RHI) which encouraged users to switch to biomass heating systems, could end up costing the taxpayer more than £400m.1 The fact that this scheme was approved by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment when Arlene Foster was in charge made the

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situation worse. After a tense few weeks where Sinn Féin demanded Foster should step down until an investigation could take place and Foster refusing and denying any wrongdoing, Martin McGuinness resigned and the government collapsed. Nobody was surprised.

Neither side acted perfectly, but there is no denying the fact that the DUP did themselves no favours. Arlene Foster probably played no direct part in the scheme; but the fact remains that as the highest authority of the department, she was ultimately accountable for everything that happened within it. Refusing to take any responsibility combined with a rather smug

northern ireland “It means that people would rather vote for a party that have brought into question their ability to effectively govern Northern Ireland than risk a party of the other tribal bloc being the largest party in government.” attitude was not the right approach and as a long term player in NI politics, the DUP should have known better. Politics in Northern Ireland requires a different approach to other places. Trust is more fragile and power sharing between five parties representing two opposed communities is delicate. Parties too often put themselves before the good of the bigger picture and it is the people that suffer.

The March 2017 election saw an increased turnout to vote for an assembly that would be decreased in size to 90 MLAS. Angry voters were determined to have their say. There can be no doubt that the election was a disaster for Unionism, losing their majority in the assembly.

Yet it was still not surprising that the DUP, with twenty-eight seats out of a possible ninety, remained the largest party in government.

They may have been punished with ten MLAs losing their jobs; but given everything that has happened they got off far too lightly. For those who dared to hope for some sort of progressive change, it is nothing short of a tragedy. Sinn Féin fared much better with twenty-seven seats and with the exception of the UUP, the middle ground of the Green Party, SDLP and Alliance also did well. But it will not make much of a difference. The status quo was maintained and Direct Rule, the prospect that brought everyone out to vote in the first place, still looks likely unless Arlene Foster resigns. What does it say for Northern Ireland if arguably the biggest scandal of them all makes no difference? It means that people would rather vote for a party that have brought into question their ability to effectively govern Northern Ireland than risk a party of the other tribal bloc being the largest party in government. It means that fear and mistrust dominate politics when twenty years on from The Troubles, it should not be that way.

From the perspective of a young person, one of the most damaging repercussions is that it is

driving our young people away – the so-called ‘brain drain’. For me, university in Northern Ireland was not an option. I needed to escape and as a History and Political Science student, a huge part of that is because I do not believe in the ability of our politicians to look after my interests. Like so many others that managed to get out, I will not be coming back. Sectarian issues do not affect us the way they did our parents, and perhaps this is a sign of how far Northern Ireland has come.

However, it is not enough and it is no longer good enough. If things keep going the way they are, Northern Ireland will suffer greatly from losing some of its brightest talents and leaders of the future. It is issues and not denominations or divisions that matter to us and it is about time both voters and politicians started recognising this.

Northern Ireland needs a change, be it a new largest party in government or perhaps a new type of power sharing, where the SDLP, UUP and Alliance go into Formal Opposition. It might not be easy to begin with, but with our economy stagnating and Northern Ireland running at a loss, we cannot keep relying on the UK to bail us out.

Northern Ireland must learn to help itself, to make people believe that politics in this country can work and give young people especially a future here that they do not currently see.

Fiona May is a Senior Freshman History and Political Science student.

1. “Renewable Heat Incentive scheme: Eastwood calls on first minister to explain involvement.” BBC News.

Dec 2016.

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krakow

Krakow and the Baptism of Destruction Isabel Wolfer

T

Second World War scarcely touched the Baroque cathedrals and gothic basilicas of Krakow. Having been proclaimed the capital of Nazi occupation in Poland after it surrendered without armed resistance in 1939, there was no sense in destroying the center’s infrastructure, and the pseudo-historic claim that Krakow was an ancient German city essentially translated into a policy of preservation. he violence of the

Streets were not maimed, but renamed.

Apartments in the Old Town were not hazed, but rather filled with Germans. The Polish resistance had not launched a destructive insurrection as they had done in Warsaw, and the Germans made a full retreat when January of 1945 came, saving the city from open conflict with the Red Army.

As a result, the material articulations of Krakow’s medieval past - Wawel Castle, Town Hall Tower, Cloth Hall – still stand today.

Krakow, however, is not a case of selective conservation. The visitors who can walk down Floriańska Street and visualize the Middle Ages without stressing their imaginations can just as easily roam through the still streets of Kazimierz – the city’s historic Jewish district. If they were to cross the river, they could see the Jewish ghetto and pause at the apartments – now sad Samsung shops, clothing stores, and places to buy fish food – in which so many of Krakow’s Jews had lived and died. If they wandered further, they could take a right and find a playground built next to a remaining segment of the ghetto wall.

I never bother taking headphones with me when I go out for the day in Krakow. Regardless of where I go, I recognize the buildings from archival footage I watched in the US Holocaust Memorial Museum Library; the entire city seems

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like a cemetery. Listening to Blondie while walking through a graveyard feels offensive; it feels unfair to meditate on anything other than Jewish life when standing in front of buildings in which it had once been breathing.

Yet, while in cities largely destroyed during the war - Warsaw, or Poznań, or Dresden, or Berlin - I can choose a playlist without hesitation. Bombed and hazed, such cities are in most capacities unrecognizable from how they had appeared before the Holocaust. Reminders of genocide are less constant when the places once inhabited by an annihilated community and their oppressors have been demolished. While the soil under my feet in these cities has, like in Krakow, absorbed blood, there seems to be a thicker layer of pavement.

poland For all of the medieval and early modern historical treasures maimed, there was something regenerative about the decimation of the streets and buildings that occurred at a time when moral order was so obscenely inverted. While erasing elements of their distant past, the destruction of war afforded places like Berlin and Warsaw a welcomed distance from their recent history. Berlin was arguably further ‘baptized’ by the wall and its fall. Through iconic photographs of Conrad Schumann leaping to the west and the romantic one-liners of American politicians, something became associated with

“it feels unfair to meditate on anything other than Jewish life when standing in front of buildings in which it had once been breathing.” the city other than the genocide that many of its officials had perpetrated.

As an emotional distance from the Holocaust was not organically provided by the physical destruction of Krakow, the city seems to have constructed a distance by highlighting the prewar era. One compelling example of this effort can be seen in photographs displayed throughout the town; at the central bus station thirteen images of early 20th century public transportation stand prominently near the entrance. A black-andwhite portrait of Krakow’s medieval skyline greets shoppers at the grocery store. In coffee shops inside the train station, mirrors are covered with men in Gatsby era suits and women with bobbed haircuts enjoying their journey in a comfortable cabin –an image far different to conventional

conceptions of train cars in Poland.

Perhaps these examples are merely a matter of coincidence; perhaps, however, they are a manifestation of a similar effort made in another part of Poland that has struggled to disassociate itself from the Holocaust. An hour west of Krakow is the town of Oswiecim, a small town that is better known by its German name, Auschwitz.

Here, the main square is covered by enlarged photographs of pre-war life, and bicycle racks are decorated with nineteenth and early twentieth century images. 75 years on, the photos constitute a self-affirming and self-reminding statement that the town existed before the war.

Krakow carries the cardinal privilege of preserving the physical remnants of hundreds of years of Jewish life. Yet, precisely because of the ample presence of Jewish homes, synagogues, and mikvahs, the absence of the people who had once filled them is palatable; the city is ghostly.

Unable to situate its redemptive narrative in the promise of the future – manifested by cold glass buildings and a modern skyline - Krakow so often looks back to a time in which empty buildings were filled, still streets were crowded, and the Jewish presence in the city was more than photographs of what had once been.

Isabel Wolfer is a Junior Freshman TSM History and Jewish and Islamic Civilisations student.

march 2017

15

Mrs. mathieu

That’s Mrs.

Mathieu to you.

Maia Mathieu

M

onday May 1, 2006, was a bright, spring day in Edmonton, Alberta, and it was the day that my partner of two years and I were married.

I could write pages of sentimental recollections about being young and in love, and, more practically, carefully-mapped memories of choosing to elope rather than planning something international, complicated and expensive and the understanding that formalising our relationship was important, legally. My other half is American, and I’m Irish-Canadian, and by the time we were married, together since 2003, we’d established quite the paper-trail of visits and a basic understanding of the immigration law of Canada. To ensure that we could stay together, marriage was an important step. As citizens of different countries, there was always going to be a stink made about borders, so, as pragmatists, we legalised our relationship. As romantics, we bought white-gold rings and stargazer lilies and had a wonderful day.

Unlike in the fairytales, the wedding didn’t lead

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to a ‘happily ever after’; in fact, in a lot of ways, that’s where the story begins. As a well-travelled, dual-citizenship-holding white person, you don’t ever expect to have to stare down a border guard telling you that you’re an illegal immigration risk. You don’t expect that feeling of the floor

“as pragmatists, we legalised our relationship.

As romantics, we bought white-gold rings and stargazer lilies and had a wonderful day” falling away from under you, and your stomach pitching down after it, as your systemic privilege is undermined by a single word in your passport: female. You see, my husband is trans,

mrs. mathieu and therefore, legally, in the eyes of the United States, our marriage was classified as ‘same-sex’, and our perfectly-legal-in-Canada marriage was not recognised south of the border.

It was 2009: Obama was only in his second year as president, and Obergefell v. Hodges was but a distant dream, not taking place until 2015. We had lucked out a time or three, encountering the sympathetic, queer-sympathetic border guards on small crossings, who would stamp our passports

a line on a map between us and we’ve spent much of our marriage fighting to make sure that it would never be the case again. So, when I read the stories of couples like us from over here, I cried frustrated, vindicated tears, just as I cried when equal marriage passed here in Ireland; when straight, cisgender people ‘gave’ us the right to be legally recognised for the couple we’ve fought so hard to live as.

The recent ‘Muslim ban’ as it’s come to be

“It was an education in being a second-class citizen, an insight into the lives of the Dreamers and the Undocumented, and a visceral realisation that what is legal is not always what is right” and wish us all the luck that their uniform said they shouldn’t. But none of that precedent mattered, on later occasions, the empathy of some failed to ‘justify’ my entrance into the United States for a bigoted border guard on a power trip.

Since, ultimately, I couldn’t stay in the U.S., and a Canadian immigration application for my husband was very expensive, we moved to Ireland with two suitcases each and crashed with my father until we could start to get our lives together. To come here, leaving behind friends and family and the life we’d tried to build through years of border-hopping, work visas and nonsense, to leave the garden I’d tended through a hot summer, producing almost more courgettes than we could eat and a single, perfect melon that tasted like sunshine, truly felt like surrender.

The moment the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court ruling passed, interns sprinted through the streets of Washington D.C. to prevent deportations of people like me- spouses or longterm partners of American citizens who were moments away from being kicked out of the country by the cold, legal authority of immigration services. It was an education in being a secondclass citizen, an insight into the lives of the Dreamers and the Undocumented, and a visceral realisation that what is legal is not always what is right. My husband and I had fallen in love with

known in Trump’s America, political jockeying over Brexit and the ending of the Common Travel Area taste to me like bitter memories, and break open old scars that I’m all too aware could have been deeper, colder, more deadly. It’s a brave new world of populism, scapegoating and nationalistic chauvinism, and to most of us, it’s unthinkable that we could be the ones on its receiving end.

But it was not too long ago that I myself stood silent and cowed as a border guard told me I had no legal relationship with the love of my life. He called me ‘Miss’, but what was missing was my voice. Since then, though, I’ve found the words for my outrage. You’re reading them, perhaps you heard them at the Q-Soc EGM last Fall, as the unthinkable started to become a reality. Love doesn’t always trump hate, but organisation and standing together can. The time to stand passively by is over - call me cynical for thinking it, or pragmatic, even, but either way, just be sure to call me Mrs. Maia Mathieu is a mature JF BESS student, and a queer femme feminist with a chip on her shoulder. Don’t call her ‘miss’.

march 2017

17

self-promotion

The Spirit of Self-Promotion:

“Candid” Profile Pictures and American Capitalism Isabel Wolfer and Mila Stieglitz-Courtney

S

ocial media etiquette is a form of cultural etiquette. By extension, the popular consensus of what constitutes a good profile picture on Facebook varies from country to country. Since moving from the United States to Ireland, one significant difference we’ve noticed is the sudden scarcity of “candid” pictures. While there are of course exceptions, most of my Irish friends choose a friendly picture from their debs, or a bedroom selfie catching them at a nice angle as the one photo to represent their online persona. Were we to flip through the profiles of our American friends, we would instead see endless over-the-shoulder-shylylooking-away-hand-runningthrough-silk-hair-oh-wait-Ididn’t-even-know-cameraswere-in-the-tri-state-area “candid” profile pictures; each usually boasting no less than 100 likes, most of which are from fellow Americans.

The contradiction of staging a candid photo seems too obvious to spell out. Merriam-Webster defines candid as ‘indicating or suggesting sincere honesty and the absence of deception’. Yet to stage something is to perform for an audience,

and performance is, of course, predicated on deception. The contrived “candid” photo is therefore a fabrication of sincerity; a deception which is widely admired in American society for the ‘sincerity’ it is lying about, as evidenced by the hundreds of likes garnered by such pictures.

It is possible that the greater prevalence of this contradictory habit among young people in the United States is an expression of American identity. When growing up in a society so firmly based in individualistic, capitalist values, it is easy

“On your Facebook profile, the product so often being sold is the best version of yourself. And selling is, of course, the cardinal crux of capitalism and the quickest shorthand for insincerity”

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to develop an unconscious understanding of how to best make use of platforms for personal advancement.

Your profile picture serves not only as an instrument of self-expression but also as an agent of self-promotion, particularly for teenagers or college students acutely conscious of how

self-promotion

“When growing up in a society so firmly based in individualistic, capitalist values, it is easy to develop an unconscious understanding of how to best make use of platforms for personal advancement” they are perceived. For many, this photo both presents and represents an ideal version of the self. It is an effective vehicle of communication, saying: “See! I’m not awkward! I’m beautiful! I’m smart! I’m interesting! I’m loved!”

If social media is a way to brand yourself with flawless qualities, American cultural etiquette permits practices which aim to ensure the greatest personal advancement is achieved. Why stage a candid photo when you look great in a staged picture that admits it’s staged? Because it is more impressive to be cool without trying to be. The people who don’t explicitly indulge in their beauty – by, for example, spending an hour alone on their windowsill with a selfie stick - somehow appear more beautiful to American eyes.

The concept of the “candid” profile picture fits squarely into a wider dialogue surrounding sincerity in American modernity among social critics. When speaking of his students at Yale, academic William Deresiewicz notes that many of the young Americans who pose for seemingly “unposed” pictures are seldom shallow or daft when you actually interact with them; rather, they are polite and affable, and are often socially intelligent and creative in their small talk. It’s compelling, Deresiewicz notes, that these adjectives are the same as those often used to

describe a salesman.

On your Facebook profile, the product so often being sold is the best version of yourself. And selling is, of course, the cardinal crux of capitalism and the quickest shorthand for insincerity.

Perhaps this is all just a coincidence. But maybe it is no fluke that the youth of an intensely capitalist, intensely individualistic, and intensely competitive nation tend to be more deceptively strategic on social media than people in countries where those values are less pronounced. For in the United States, the cultural fidelity to selling is perhaps so strong that any means – deception included – becomes unconsciously acceptable in the country’s social etiquette. Contrived “candid” profile pictures are insincere just as selling is insincere. And, if we are being straight about the real American identity, selling in the United States probably takes precedence over sincerity.

Isabel Wolfer is a Junior Freshman TSM History and Jewish and Islamic Civilisations student; Mila StieglitzCourtney is a Junior Freshmen TSM Economics and Geography student. Both have, on occasion, admittedly staged a candid photo or two themselves!

march 2017

19

asturias

Asturias

Spain’s Hidden Treasure?

by Poppy Ashmore

photo by Belén Blanco

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spain

“Asturias?” I hear you mutter with furrowed brow and bewildered eyes; “Is it a dish one eats with fish? Perhaps a castle designed by Gaudi? A painting hanging in the Prado museum?”

No, no and no. Asturias is a province on the north coast of Spain, shunned by the unrelenting sun that scorches throughout the vast expanse of Spain. An emerald gem, the hidden region enjoys a climate

before I knew it I was packing my bags to move to a place I had never heard of; Asturias, Spain’s paraíso natural (natural paradise). Self-proclaimed fan, Woody Allen, propelled the region into the international spotlight with his blockbuster film, ‘Vicky, Christina, Barcelona’, with scenes filmed in Oviedo and Avilés. Today a life-size statue of the director lies just off Oviedo’s high-street, Calle Uría.

my narrow mind that was the source of my angst. It dawned on me that Asturias was not the Andalusian model I had believed existed throughout the Iberian Peninsula and that, to appreciate the region, I would first have to discard my preconceptions of it. And so, I cast aside all dreams of paella, flamenco and sun-kissed limbs, and learned to embrace Asturias’ idiosyncrasies.

“Asturian people go as far to say that Asturias, having ardently resisted the rule of the Moors, is the real Spain; the rest of the country is merely conquered territory” almost tantamount to the one we in Ireland endure.

This picturesque region first caught my attention in 2015 when I was ‘banished’ to Oviedo, the capital of the Principality of Asturias for my mandatory Erasmus year.

Places in the prestigious University of Salamanca and in sunny, flamboyant Seville had been snapped up, and

Once I had recuperated from the devastating realisation that my Erasmus would not be spent basking in golden rays on my terrace, I decided that I had been a tad too harsh in bestowing the honorific title “temple of doom” on Oviedo, or Uviéu as it is called in the Asturian language, Bable.

Perhaps, I thought, it was not the rainy, narrow streets but

My time in Oviedo unearthed in me the fallacious perception we have of Spain.

Spain is not one unified nation with a homogenous culture throughout, but a nation comprised of seventeen autonomous communities, each with its own distinctive identity and heritage. There is a stark cultural dichotomy between the industrial North

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21

asturias and touristic South. This can in part be attributed to the climatic difference, a chasm visually depicted by the juxtaposing images of umbrellas adorning the streets of Oviedo just as orange trees line the streets in AndalucĂ­a. However, the Celtic roots in regions such as Asturias and Galicia, accounting for the local gaita (bagpipes) and Celtic jewellery, also demarcates a distinction between these northern areas

Asturias is home to hearty dishes such as fabada asturiana (a rich bean stew), cachopo (which can only be described as a breaded veal, ham and cheese feast) and arroz con leche (essentially cold rice pudding doused in cinnamon).

The lush, mountainous dairy pastures of the region produce some of the best cheeses in Spain, with Cabrales reigning supreme alongside well known cheeses such as Roquefort and

drink as it is poured. The sacred ritual demands that the server retains a poker face and averts eyes away from the glass while pouring. I can however personally attest to this being a mere perpetuation of tradition and that sneaking a glance at the glass while pouring will in no way alter the flavour of the beverage. La Calle Gascona is the de facto street in Oviedo for eating out or having a few casual ciders with friends. Tierra

photo by Kevin Mier

and their southern counterparts, which bear the mark of their Moorish conquest. In fact, Asturian people go as far to say that Asturias, having ardently resisted the rule of the Moors, is the real Spain; the rest of the country is merely conquered territory.

This climatic disparity is further reflected in the gastronomy of the regions.

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Gorgonzola as the international lords of the blue cheese world.

Spanish cider, or la sidra as they say in Spain, is completely unlike what we consider cider to be. Firstly, it is not carbonated and must therefore be poured by an escantidor (pourer of cider) from above the head. Pouring it from a height allows air bubbles to be trapped into the delicious

Astur serves a smorgasbord of regional culinary delights and is the uncontested star of the Gascona.

Oviedo’s enchanting and compact casco antiguo (old town) is a myriad of colours, with pale sandstone buildings flanked by those rendered pastel pink, blue or lemon.

Narrow streets spill out onto spacious plazas strewn

spain with cafes, and surrounded by arcaded buildings. Quaint little bars and cafés are prevalent throughout the casco antiguo.

Per se on Calle Canoniga has a rustic feel and serves a selection of teas and homemade cakes in addition to alcoholic beverages.

Sol y Sombra on Plaza del Sol stays open late and with cosy couches, board games and classic tunes is a dependable haunt regardless of the time or day. The interior is outlandishly decorated with old video games and dominatrix style Barbie dolls, locked in birdcages and bent into an assortment of positions - and the clientele is as eccentric as the décor.

Golden shells are sprinkled throughout the streets serving as a constant reminder of the city’s rich religious heritage as they shepherd pilgrims along the ‘Camino de Santiago’, the Way of St. James. The bijou Cathedral de San Salvador has been lauded as one of Spain’s most beautiful gothic cathedrals. The Holy Chamber is a UNESO world heritage site, and contained within the walls of the 16 century cathedral are many venerable relics.

The salience of the Cathedral is illustrated by the reverent saying: “He who goes to Santiago but not to Salvador, Visits the servant but not the Lord” The Asturian coastline is speckled with a plethora of picturesque villages and beaches: from Medieval maritime village Llanes, with its 13th century architecture, to Luarca, the green coast’s white village (la villa blance de la costa verde), to the arresting

beauty of Cudillero, a village of vibrant houses built into a mountain, sliding downward towards the harbour. The village is surrounded by cliffs of 100 feet, and the nearby aptly named Playa del Silencio (beach of silence), a long sandy cove backed by a formidable rock amphitheatre, is undisputedly one of Spain’s most majestic and pristine beaches. Asturias is a treasure trove of idyllic nooks and crannies that expand inland beyond the coast to the wonder that is Covadonga.

Nestled in the heart of Asturia’s hiking district, Covadonga is the quintessential tourist attraction. The Picos de Europa mountain range serves as a charming backdrop to the glacial lakes and grandiose Basilica of Covadonga.

Covadonga is the renowned location of a major 8th century Spanish victory over the ‘Moors’, a battle led by Don Pelayo and accredited with providing the impetus for the Reconquista (reconquest) of Spain, a struggle to evict Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula that spanned over 750 years. Pelayo later became the first King of Asturias and the Covadonga Cave holds his tomb today.

Despite my initial misgivings of Asturias as the gloomy North, over time it and its friendly inhabitants wiggled their way into my heart. Asturias is an emerald in the crown of Spain; a lush expanse of pastures, rearing snow-capped mountains, with a cobalt coastline dotted with pristine beaches and fishing villages seemingly untouched by time.

A sleepy region, almost devoid of tourists, it hides tucked away

photo by Kevin Mier

between the rugged coast and mountains sheltered from the hustle and bustle of the world and is irrefutably Spain’s hidden treasure. I’m honoured to have once called it my home.

Poppy Ashmore is a final year student of European Studies.

She is determined to one day succeed in making a DIY basket for her bike. (Any advice would be much appreciated).

march 2017

23

colombia

Cooney’s Guide to

Colombia!

by Rachel cooney

Ahhhhh Colombia…land of coffee, ‘Love in the Time of Cholera’ and Sofia Vergara! I had the chance to spend five weeks there last summer and it was by far my favourite trip of 2016/possibly ever. Colombia has it all really; the breath-taking Andean mountains, gorgeous beaches, tropical jungle, major cities and relaxed small towns.

Colombia is also home to some of the friendliest people I have ever encountered! My pals and I stuck to mostly Northern Colombia with a good dose of Bogotá (the capital, located in central Colombia). In this article I will break down each area we visited and the must see spots, as well as some observations, recommendations and a few essential Spanish phrases. Procrastination at its finest! ¡Vámanos!

Bogotá: Colombia’s capital is absolutely massive.

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I would thoroughly recommend a trip to the downtown historic centre, La Candelaria, where you can check out the impressive Plaza de Bolivar, the Spanish colonial architecture and some amazing graffiti. It’s also very close to the Universidad de los Andes, one of the largest and most prestigious universities in Colombia, so if you get lost, there’ll be plenty of students to help you out! There’s also a good range of cheaper places to eat around there, from burritos to pizza. For more traditional local dishes, I would strongly suggest a visit to ‘La Puerta Falsa’, very popular with tourists and locals alike. Hike or get the lift up Monserrate mountain; the views are well worth the trek (no shame in it, I got the lift). In terms of nightlife there’s a few cool bars around the Candelaria and the unmissable super club Andres Carnes

colombia de Res, located just outside the city in Chia. The place is legendary (smart dress only though, no trainers).

Some top tips for Bogotá: • Due to the altitude (it’s the third highest capital city in Latin America) it’s never particularly hot so pack a pair of jeans and a hoodie.

• If flying into Bogotá airport, or Colombia in general, have your hostel address and telephone number handy, as you will need to fill in a customs slip at security.

• They will ask you questions in customs upon arrival, a lot like they do in the US. Don’t be scared!

• Bogotá has a city wide BRT service, TransMilenio, which is very efficient and pretty cheap. You can buy a tap card, share it with a few people and top it up as needs be.

Medellín: a.k.a. the City of Eternal Spring- with year round temperatures hovering in and around the mid-twenties and plenty of trees and lush parks, it really lives up to the name. We flew here from Bogotá - flights were around 35-40 euro and took approximately 30 minutes. VivaColombia is the cheapest airline for internal flights and flights to nearby countries such as Panama and Ecuador. Flights can get very pricey in South America so Skyscanner becomes your best friend. The public transport is fantastic in Medellín, much better than here in Dublin; a light over ground rail system wizzes around the city and there’s even cable cars. It’s hard to know where to begin as there are so many options!

We spent a week in Medellín in total, and loved every minute of it! Comuna 13 is a must; formerly one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods in Colombia (as it was controlled by Escobar’s forces) it then endured turf wars between a plethora of gangs which continued well into the 2000’s.

Nowadays however, it is a vibrant and thriving neighbourhood, and the locals are eager to show that the violence of the past has been left behind.

A trip to downtown is a must to see the tree lined

square filled with sculptures from the famous Colombian artist, Fernando Botero. As an absolute sucker for cable cars, I of course adored the Santo Domingo line. Used by tourists and locals alike, it offers stunning views of Medellín, and a trip to Parque Arvi is a nice little get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Plenty of day trips are possible from Medellín; the legendary coffee fincas are just an hour away as well as the unmissable El Peñón de Guatapé (a monolith located in the town of Guatapé). A steep(ish) 740 step climb to the top is well worth the workout for the views (and the ice-cream) once you reach the summit. Day trips can be easily arranged through hostels and typically run at 30 euros for the day (they tend to include food and transport too!)

Top tips for Medellín: • You should try arepas everywhere in Colombia, but only Medellín have the insanely delicious arepas de chocolo.

Pancake like in form, baked, and made from sweetcorn with a hearty chunk of what looks like cottage cheese but is known as ‘quesito’, they will not disappoint. My mouth is watering remembering them (just like my eyes water when I remember my dissertation deadline…)

• Don’t keep mentioning Pablo Escobar for obvious reasons.

• Take a shot of Colombia’s spirit of choice, aguardiente! It’s particularly famous in the region of Antioquia. By no means do I recommend downing a naggin of this… but a shot or two does the trick!

Santa Marta: Situated on the Northern coast, we flew here too, as Colombia is massive! It’s a small enough city in comparison to the other two, and is mostly used as a base to facilitate trips to nearby tourist attractions, such as Minca and Parque Tayrona. Average temperatures ranged from 29-35 degrees and humidity tended to be around 90% every day. I strongly encourage you to get a hostel with a pool! Hangovers are no joke

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colombia here either. Not going to lie- there’s not a whole lot happening in Santa Marta, it looks like a shell of a city and a quick walk about down town would suffice in terms of site-seeing. However, while there I did have the chance to see the excellent Bomba Estero play live, as part of the Santa Marta annual cultural festival - give ‘em a listen if you want something upbeat and summery! There’s a variety of day trips you can take from Santa Marta, as they’re all in very close proximity…

Minca: My personal favourite, Minca is a small town nestled in the mountains. The cool air comes as a welcome break from the stifling humidity of

recommendations: • Get there early to get a tent or hammock. I’d recommend a hammock as it is roasting and you will wake up in a pool of your own sweat after a night in a tent.

• Sun cream! Being burnt is not ideal.

• Insect repellent is a must. Deet 50 should be enough. The place is filled with mosquitos and carries the risk of malaria.

• There have been cases of malaria so bring the anti-malarial tablets.

• There’s only one restaurant on the camp site and no ATMs so make sure to bring cash to buy

“Public transport is an adventure in itself in Colombia, be prepared for reggaeton…and a very bumpy ride”

the city. Check out the Casa Elemento hostel for amazing views of lush green hills from the world’s largest hammock, while sipping a Club Colombia.

Sunrise from this vantage point is also a must see. Plenty of hikes to be done and the novelty of getting a moto-taxi to the hostel is well worth it!

Despite the fact that the heavens opened up and it rained so hard I couldn’t see or even open my eyes… it was all part of the adventure.

Parque Tayrona: Also pretty popular on the ‘Gringo Trail’, we spent two nights there. The beach there is lovely, particularly Cabo San Juan. Parque Tayrona comes with its own list of

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foodies or alternatively bring food, but bear in mind there’s nowhere but your rucksack to store it.

I’ll be honest about Parque Tayrona, I wasn’t wild about the place. It was very very humid and not a whole lot to do come night time. I also may have sweated out my own body weight in the two days I spent there, especially as it’s an hour and a half hike to the campsite.

Palomino: A small town about 40 minutes from Santa Marta, and it’s lovely. A relaxed vibe prevails and the beach is gorgeous. Probably best sunset I’ve ever seen! Also plenty of hostels

colombia around.

Aracataca: Calling all García Márquez fans! This is the small town where the main man himself was born and raised and is said to have served as the inspiration for the town of Macondo in ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ or if ye want to be fancy about it, ‘Cien Años de Soledad’. It’s about an hour and a half away from Santa Marta and is easy to get to via public bus. Public transport is an adventure in itself in Colombia, be prepared for reggaeton (style of music very popular in Latin America) and a very bumpy ride. The bus will drop you on the side of the motorway, and from there you wander down through the town yourself. There’s not a lot to see or do and I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re a fan of García Márquez. There’s a very impressive model of the house he grew up in, which now functions as a museum dedicated to him and his work. (Free in too!) There was also the added novelty of my friend Kate and I being the only foreigners in the town that day (which was gas).

All the aforementioned places near Santa Marta can be reached using public transport, which I’d recommend as it is much cheaper and fairly regular. Top tips for Santa Marta and the surrounding areas: • Bring a swimsuit/trunks/bikini, whatever ye like.

An absolute necessity and there didn’t seem to be too many places selling them.

• Insect Repellent. Mosquitos everywhere.

• Do NOT drink the water from the tap… it is advised you only drink bottled water, which can be bought very cheaply in the supermarket.

Cartagena: The most popular tourist destination in Colombia and without a doubt the most expensive. Situated on the Northern coast it’s very very very hot. My friend’s brother perfectly captured the intensity of the heat when he described it as ‘’being too hot to go to the jacks’’.

It was. No matter how many cold showers you take, you’ll still be sweating profusely. That said, Cartagena is beautiful. So many colours and such beautiful architecture and plenty to do!

Unfortunately, we only spent three days there before we had to carry on with the next leg of the trip but I would love to go back. I’d recommend walking around and soaking up the atmosphere with plenty of refreshment breaks. Gabriel García Márquez’s wife still lives there and the city provided the setting for the film adaption of the

famous novel ‘Love in the Time of Cholera’…very romantic indeed!

Top tips for Cartagena: • Do try to find a hostel with air conditioning…you can thank me later.

• If looking to exchange currency, make sure to shop around the bureau de changes (there’s a ton) and check their rates as they tend to offer a better rate than the banks.

• Budget accordingly as it is more expensive in comparison to other cities in Colombia.

To finish, I’m including some essential holiday phrases, with some Colombian slang thrown in for good measure. Spanish is a great language as it’s phonetic so they’re not madly difficult to pronounce. The first section is more specific to Colombia and the second are just some everyday useful phrases: Chevere – Cool Listo – Okay, Ready, a general affirmative/ indication you understand what’s going on Guayabo – hangover ¿Qué Más? – How ya? (Informal) Con Gusto – You’re welcome Mucho gusto – Nice to meet you Agua – Water ¿Dónde está? – Where is….

Por favor – please Gracias – Thank you No hablo español – I don’t speak Spanish Me llamo – My name is…

Cerveza – Beer (Club Colombia is the most popular in Colombia and the following colours are different types of the same brand. My fave was the gold.)

Rojo – Red Negro – Black Dorada – Gold Me traes… – Could I have…

Me regalas… – Could I have… (more polite) ¿Cuánto cuesta…? – How much is…?

Soy de Irlanda – I’m from Ireland Baños/Servicios – Toilets * By no means is this a complete guide, I would strongly recommend getting a guide book!

Rachel Cooney is a final year sociology student. She loves beer, cats and pole dancing.

march 2017

27

Israel

Understanding Israel: The place and the people

by Sam McMahon

I

n August 2016, myself and a close friend of mine, Laura, went on a 3 week trip to Israel, working and travelling around the country. A mutual friend of ours, Anu, is half Israeli. Her father is from Jerusalem and grandparents still live out there. Every year, Anu would go out to visit her grandparents in Israel. I guess this is where we first got the idea of visiting this country.

Laura and I were both on a budget, so we wanted to do this trip with minimal expenditure, whilst still being able to explore this fascinating part of the world. Through an online site, we came across a backpackers hostel in Tiberias, a small town located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. After a couple of emails with the hostel owners, we’d signed up to work at this hostel for 2 weeks during August, in return for our board and keep. After that was confirmed, it was only a matter of booking the flights! We found relatively cheap ones from Dublin to Istanbul to Tel Aviv with Turkish Airlines. Total cost of the flights came to about €240 return.

After we booked the flights and confirmed our stay with the hostel in Tiberias, I met up with Anu’s dad, who lives in Ireland. He was able to tell us about where to go; where not to go; who to watch out for; what foods to eat; what to say at

airport security etc. Coming into Tel Aviv security can be quite a daunting experience if you don’t know what to expect. After travelling for the best part of 20 hours, we arrived in the blistering heat of Israel and were immediately the only two people stopped by a small security man, as if he’d been told to look out for us. After we told him our story, that we were in Israel solely to visit our friends grandparents in Jerusalem, he let us pass.

We then joined the crowds and queued for approximately 2 hours at border control. (We were told this was a short waiting time!)

Everyone is interrogated when coming into the country. Fortunately we had been well prepped by our friend’s dad and were told to say that we were visiting our friend’s grandparents in Jerusalem for the duration of our stay in Israel. We gave them their names, home address and phone numbers as proof. Under no circumstances did we say we had intentions to visit anywhere outside of Israel… Enough people were being taken aside for further questioning, and Laura and I did not want to join them. They’ll try and catch you out.

You may, like ourselves, have the most sincere intentions in the world for wanting to visit Israel, but you’ll probably still feel as though you’re attempting to smuggle a

“coming into Tel Aviv security can be quite a daunting experience if you don’t know what to expect”

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israel couple of grands worth of cocaine into the country.

Despite our experience in Tel Aviv Airport, the remainder of our stay was relatively less hostile.

As Israel is a fairly small country, travelling around the country is pretty manageable. A four hour bus journey later, we arrived in Tiberias. We didn’t know this at the time, but Tiberias is one of the three holy places in Israel: a holiday haven for orthodox Jews.

We spent the first two weeks of our stay around Tiberias. We visited Nazareth, Zefat and Haifa as well as a three day trip up to the Golan Heights area. We stayed in a spectacular hostel up there. It was situated in a Kibbutz near Odem, a couple of kilometres from the cease-fire zone between Israel and Syria, Golan Heights Hostel. Bombs, sometimes strong enough to vibrate the window frames, were an hourly occurrence. Missiles, which seemed to be going off over our head, were frequent during the night.

Armed military, road barricades and army tanks surround the general Golan area. However, despite the ominous military presence, the surrounding landscape, environment and people made it one of our favourite places in Israel. There are very little bus connections up in the Golan Heights, so we primarily relied on hitch hiking. We were assured my numerous other travellers and locals that this was the only way to travel around the Golan

Heights. This is an area of Israel you have to visit if you enjoy hiking and the great outdoors. Definitely worth visiting Normad Fortress, the Banias, Mount Bental and a full day is needed to explore Yeudia National Park.

We spent our last week of Israel exploring Jerusalem and the Dead Sea area. We were fortunate enough to be able to stay with our friends grandparents who lived just outside Jerusalem… Jerusalem is a fascinating place.

The old part is where we spent most of our days, exploring the walled city, side streets and stalls.

The old part is divided into quarters; you have the Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Armenian quarters.

The Christian, Muslim and Armenian areas of the old city flow into each other and you’ll only know you’ve crossed into a different area solely from what type of merchandise the stalls are selling.

Entering the Western Wall, however, you must pass through a security check. Exploring the Temple of the Mount is a must. Modest dress code applies in all historical sites of Jerusalem and Israel, so make sure to cover the knees!

Headscarves are often given to tourists when entering into these sites.

After exploring Tel Aviv, Tiberias, the Golan and Jerusalem, there was only one place left that we wished to see: the West Bank. Despite being told by all Israeli’s that visiting this terriorty would be a complete waste of

“this was one of the most eye-opening, culturally diverse and incredible trips I’ve ever been on”

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bratislava time, we wanted to experience the other side of this country for ourselves. Here’s one key piece of advice: Due to lack of public transport routes between Israel and Palestinian Territories, visit these areas as part of a tour group! There are many travel agencies, at very competitive prices, who will pick you up in Jerusalem and bring you to the likes of Bethlehem and Jericho, as well as down to the Dead Sea and Masada. This is exactly what we did. Tour guides have permits to cross between Israel and Palestinian territorieseasy access between these two parts is quite difficult otherwise. The contrast between Israel and Palestine is stark. Within only a couple of kilometres, it feels as though you’ve just travelled thousands of miles to a developing country. The Palestinians are extremely hospitable and love

when tourists come to visit. They will present you with the most lavish experience possible. Whilst this can be quite intimidating, it is definitely something I’m glad to have experienced. Top tips for the Dead Sea; under no circumstances put your head under water, always swim on your back and bring flip flops to the beach.

Overall, this was one of the most eye-opening, culturally diverse and incredible trips I’ve ever been on. Actually visiting the country will give you a much clearer idea of what we’re hearing about on the news today. Only after you talk to the people, from both Israel and Palestine, will you be able to fully comprehend the overall situation, and the needs of the people.

Sam McMahon is a fourth year Law student.

Bratislava

Slow Down in the Slovak Capital Neasa Candon

Planning a Summertime interrail, or quick pre-exams trip away? Yearning for good food, rich culture and strong drinks on a modest budget? Bratislava has everything you’ve been searching for…

Why Bratislava?

A forgotten gem of Central Europe, Bratislava is generally missing from popular travel blogs and 20-cities-to-visit-inyour-twenties-style lists. It has a tiny population (less than half a million inhabitants) and tour guides often ask their guests (in jest) whether they have mistakenly happened across the city in the hope of reaching Slovenia! The absence of Bratislava from the Euro-tourist’s map is due perhaps to its complex cultural history, spanning from the imperialist Austro-Hungarian

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Empire to its incorporation into the Soviet regime, leading to the establishment of Czechoslovakia in 1918.

After over 70 years of imposed shared national identity, Slovakia became a sovereign state in 1993, joined the EU in 2004, and adopted the Euro in 2009- yet it has stayed largely under the radar in the almost quarter-century since independence. Despite this underrepresentation, Bratislava is a vibrant capital, glowing in traditional charm by day, and playing host to a dynamic party scene by night.

bratislava Visit…

Because Bratislava’s main sights are located in close proximity to each other, it’s the perfect city for a walking tour. Free walking tours around the Staré Mesto (Old Town) are common, with tipping at the end of the tour customary (approx. €5 per person), but not obligatory.

Although main sites such as the Blue Church, St Michael’s Gate and the Holocaust Memorial can be found easily with the help of TripAdvisor and Google Maps, good tour guides will often give insights into the city’s unique traditions and cultural practices. One such tradition is the Slovak meniny, or ‘name days’: each day of the year is associated with a certain name and, on a person’s ‘name day’, birthday-style celebrations are held. Beyond walking tours, St Michael’s tower can be climbed for a small fee (€2-€3), providing an excellent view of the Old Town and main streets. The ‘other side’ of Bratislava- made up of Soviet-style apartment towers and concrete buildingsseems a stark contrast to the rustic charm of the winding, cobbled streets and fresh, pastel-coloured buildings of the old town. This distinctive aesthetic is best observed from the grounds of Bratislava Castle, which can be entered free of charge.

Stay at…

Considering its small, compact nature, Bratislava is perfect for either a weekend break or an interrail stopover. The old town consists of only a few main streets, filled with attractions, bars and cafés but minutes’ walk from each other and open late,

so it’s best to opt for a central location. We stayed in a small private AirBnb room just off the main street Ventúrska for two nights, totalling €15 each per night. Although this is relatively cheap in Western European terms, and generally an AirBnb average, the cost of living in Bratislava is far lower than that of other European cities, and more spacious accommodation can be found from only €9 per night on sites such as hostelworld.com.

Aim to stay close to Ventúrska, Michalská or Hviezdoslavono námestie, close to the castle,

the day (€3-€4), drop into Štúr Café, conveniently located less than a 5-minute walk from Hviezdoslavono námestie, the starting point for most guided tours. While you’re there, why not treat yourself to a cup (or rather more accurately a bowl!) of the best hot chocolate around for under €3! Ditch the student bargain dinners and splash out at the wonderful Gatto Matto, offering rich, succulent main courses from only €7, delicious desserts, and wine for under €2 a glass.

Even better, unlike many other European destinations (we

“Bratislava is a vibrant capital, glowing in traditional charm by day, and playing host to a dynamic party scene by night.”

main attractions, walking tour starting points and an abundance of clubs and eateries.

Eat at…

Bratislava is a true treat for the taste buds, with the price tag proving particularly appetising.

For a deliciously filling brunch sandwich to set you up for

see you, Germany), bread and water for the table are generally free of charge in Bratislava.

Predrink with the locals at hipster paradise RE:Fresh. While cocktails are a little pricy, glasses of wine start at 90 cent, and beers from €1.50, with cheap snacks available from the kitchen ‘til late (try the pestoparmesan chicken

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bratislava wings- heavenly!). If drinking isn’t your thing, or your liver is still recovering from the wild pub-crawls of Prague, head to one of Bratislava’s many latenight cafés. Serving coffee, cake and crêpes with light jazz and Parisian décor, Café Mondieu is the perfect late-night retreat for laid-back tourists and locals alike.

Don’t stop there!

With Ryanair flights departing Dublin daily from €35 each way, Bratislava makes the perfect short break. But why stop there? The central location of the Slovak capital, Europe’s only capital city to boarder two countries, makes it the perfect starting point for a continental adventure! Nový most, Bratislava’s central bus station is located 2 minutes’ walk from the main street, providing connections to some of Europe’s greatest cities: Vienna, Brno and Budapest.

At only an hour’s drive apart, Vienna and Bratislava are Europe’s closest capital cities!

The marvellous grandeur of Vienna and all it has to offer was detailed extensively by travel guru Irene Brockie in the last issue of Trinity Frontier; a worthy read for anyone` planning a visit to the Austrian capital. Up-and-coming travel giants MeinFernbus provide multiple transfers between the capitals daily and tickets are a steal at only €5 each way!

Prague’s little brother, Brno, has been grabbing the attention of travel experts in recent times, and for good reason.

The Czech Republic’s second largest city is as rich in culture and architecture as its capital,

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without the commercialisation and tourist-traps which are now commonplace in central Prague.

Prices for the 100 minute bus journey between Bratislava and Brno start from as low as €6 with MeinFernbus.

Budapest has become a firm favourite with both weekendawayers and interrailers in recent years. For a chilled-out trip, take a walk by the Danube,

relax in the thermal baths and sample the nightlife in one of the capital’s many ruin bars. For those interested in Hungarian cultural history, the House of Terror Museum is a must-see, along with the riverside Cipők a Duna-parton (Holocaust shoe

memorial), and special-interest free Communism and Jewish District walking tours. For the 3 hour drive between Bratislava and Budapest, MeinFernbus tickets start at just €8.

Why travel by bus?

Despite many travel forums hailing the use of interrail travel passes, bussing it can often prove to be a more

comfortable and passengerfriendly experience. While train prices fluctuate regularly and can increase dramatically when booked last-minute, international bus companies such as MeinFernbus, Eurolines and SlovakLines

bratislava generally provide steady fares which do not increase much until the night before departure.

Although rising train fares can be avoided through the use of interrail passes, these passes tend to be quite expensivethe cheapest ticket on leading site interrail.eu’s site costs ₏175 for up to 5 days of travel within 15 days. Beyond price, a number of other factors stand

be longer, they generally require no more than one change over, allowing for longer periods of sleep and relaxation than the now infamous multiple, timepressured changeovers required on international train journeys.

When travelling on local routes, trains tend to be crowded, seats fill up quickly, and little room is left for luggage storage; however, purchasing a bus

in favour of bus travel. While the majority of train companies require payment for the use of Wi-Fi services, internet access is available free of charge on an increasing number of buses, along with power sockets.

Although bus journeys tend to

ticket guarantees a seat for the passenger and, as bags are stored in the hold at the beginning of the journey, a busy bus tends to be an altogether more peaceful experience than a busy train.

So why wait? Whether by bus or by train, to Brat, Bud, Brno or Wien, the hidden gems of Central Europe are waiting to be discovered. Rummage around for your passport, hunt down those bargain flights and get planning for your perfect tripand, of course, be sure to visit Bratislava along the way!

Neasa Candon is a Third Year TSM student from Dublin, studying Sociology and German. She is a lover of travelling, sociology and chocolate.

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yangon

Myanmar’s Culture, Society and the city of Yangon A commentary on

by Navika Mehta

I had the opportunity to visit Myanmar last summer. I was welcomed by a rainy yet pleasant day. The city of Yangon is an interesting blend of colonial era buildings, modern infrastructure and golden Pagodas (Buddhist temples). Yangon has the largest number of colonial building in all of Southeast Asia. Pagodas in Yangon are covered with sheets of pure gold and are found on every corner. The main pagoda is the Shwedagon, which is constructed with gold plates, adorned with precious gems and crowned with a 76 carat

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diamond. It’s known to be about 2600 years old but there is no official document that confirms this. It contains 8 hairs of Buddha. It is constructed on a hill and is visible from every part of Yangon.

It’s exceptionally beautiful at night, when its bright structure contrasts against the dark sky. My experience at the pagoda was incredible, it is an extremely peaceful place to just sit and relax and take in the beauty and history surrounding it. No building in Yangon is authorized to be constructed taller than the Shwedagon Pagoda.

myanmar Yangon boasts of splendid green forests and lakes. The Kandawgyi lake and Inya lake are great for running and yoga. The Kandawgyi lake gives a brilliant view of the Shwedagon Pagoda and the Kandawgyi Palace Hotel that is built with stone and golden teak in the classic Burmese style. A

is Aung San Suu Kyis’ father. Burmese people apply ‘thannaka’ – a yellow powder made from ground bark – to their faces as a natural sun block. I had the opportunity to see some beautiful woodcarvings made by artists in Myanmar from barks of trees that were uprooted after the 2004

“Yangon is an interesting blend of colonial era buildings, modern infrastructure and golden Pagodas” wooden bridge runs over the lake for joggers.

Inya lake offers a floating golf driving range and is across the newly constructed Myanmar plaza.

The people of Yangon follow Buddhism. They do not believe in plucking fruit from the trees and only consume it when it falls. They are against harming stray dogs in any way and often are seen feeding or playing with them. They are extremely friendly and ever smiling. The general greeting is “Mingalabar” (pronounced ming-la-baa) and the reply is the same. The taxi drivers try to charge more when they realise that you are a ‘tourist’, but some are exceptionally nice and refuse to charge anything, treating you as a guest. Men and women wear Longyi, a sheet of cloth 2 meters in length, tied around the waist, running to the feet. It’s best suited to the rainy weather and is also worn as formal wear in offices. People in Yangon start their day at 6am with a heavy breakfast, lunch around noon and dinner at 6pm. During these times, the streets are filled with pop up vendors serving Burmese cuisine. I particularly enjoyed the seafood and would recommend Mohinga soup made with rice noodles and fish.

Myanmar is blessed with an abundance of ruby, jade and sapphire mines. The Bogyoke Aung San market, in Yangon, offers a great collection of shops that sell jewelry made from these jewels.

This market is divided into sections that offer cloth material, shoes, hair and body products, paintings, jewelry, food and much more. It was named after Bogyoke Aung San, who is considered the father of the nation of modern-day Myanmar and

Tsunami. There are dining tables, giant benches, structures of animals etc. made entirely of one single bark. These are made by some incredibly talented artists who have learned the art from their ancestors. Overall, Myanmar was an adventure. The warm hospitality of the people, larger than life structures and the beautiful environment makes me eager to return and explore more of the country.

Navika Mehta is a Senior Freshman PPES student from India. She enjoys travelling and exploring new cultures.

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istanbul

Istanbul

A Photo Essay

by Hannah Rieger Hannah Rieger is Frontier’s deputy PRO. She is in her first year of TSM Jewish and Islamic Civilisations and Spanish.

In the hustle of the largest European city men still find the time to enjoy tea and a game of backgammon.

The Hagia Sophia was originally a Byzantine Church. It was later used as a Mosque and is now a museum. 36

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turkey

Underneath the historical centre of the city lies the Cisterna Basilica. The cistern was featured in many films such as the James Bond film “From Russia with love” (1963).

Baklava and other Turkish sweets and pastries are made and sold on almost every street…

Roasted corn on the cob and maroons are one of the most common street foods sold from carts all across the city. march 2017

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Inside the Sultan Ahmed Mosque which is known as the Blue Mosque for a reason.

Sultan Ahmed Mosque by night.Â

Besides spices and Turkish Delights, sponges from the Aegean Sea are also commonly sold.

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Panoramic view from the confluence of the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara.

Maiden’s Tower is located on a small islet at the Bosphorus.

The idea of buying a cat is very foreign to the people of Istanbul. If you want a cat you just put food out for some of the many street cats and wait. march 2017

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