CircularApril2009web

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10/04/2009 10:17:53

MARK CORCORAN

Contents

As the world around us seems to be falling to smithereens, we are often left with the impression that impending doom lurks around every corner.

Luckily a Circular magazine has no corners, thus trouble has no where to hide. So sit back, put your feet up and enjoy The Circular’s relaunch. I’m confident that you will agree The Circular has an array of top articles for you to sink your teeth into over lunch in Arthurs, on the bus ride home or in the back of the boring lecture!

FEATURES Invetigating political language.....................................2 Pat Ingoldspy: Content To Be.....................................3 Drinking Article............................................................4 The Author Who Never Grew Up...........................5 Killer Drugs...................................................................6

ABDULLAH ELNEIHUM I’m not sure what Hugh is on about this magazine being a ‘labour of love’.. it certainly was an experience to put it mildly!

FASHION

There were tears, sweat and blood put into this (minus the tears.. and sweat.. and blood..) but it was fun putting this issue together and we’re proud of what we’ve achieved so do enjoy the relaunch of The Circular magazine! Abe out!

Fashion w/ I.C.S............................................................7

TRAVEL Riding The Rails Of Europe........................................9 Travelling Into Your Professional Life.......................10

CULTURE Summer Movies Preview............................................11 Years of Refusal............................................................12 Whatever Happened To Good Old Romance?,,,,,12 Bodies: The Exhibition.................................................13

SPORT Top Sporting Underdog Moments...........................14

OPINION Social Networking.......................................................15

The Editors HUGH HICK It’s been a long few weeks struggling to get this labour of love ready, but its finally here. Whether you enjoy sports, travel, or just plain and simple informative discussion, we hope there’ll be something for you somewhere in these pages. I’d like to thank everyone who contributed to making this possible, and you, the reader, for taking a chance by opening this magazine and seeing what lurks inside.

NICOLE O’REGAN This has been an amazing experience, weeks of preparation and long hours have been put into this magazine but finally it has taken shape in the form of the INCREDIBLE Circular. It was fun, it was tough but it was definetely worth it. I hope you all enjoy this good read, which has a little something for everyone and will certainly keep you entertained. -Nicole!

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Contributions Editors:

Mark Corcoran Abdullah Elneihum Hugh Hick Nicole O’Regan

Director of Design: Designers:

Abdullah Elneihum Mark Corcoran Amanda Davis Hugh Hick Gus McSweeney John O’Donnell Mark O’Flynn Nicole O’Regan

Sub-Editting Director: Mark Corcoran.

Subeditors: Nicola Fox, Nono Madolo, Gus McSweeney, Lidia Okorokova, Anita Slowey.

Contributors: Abdullah Elneihum, Gus McSweeney, Mark O’Flynn, Mark Corcoran, Nicole O’Regan, Christine Maguire, Lydia Okorakova, John O’Donnell, Siobhán Worley, Hugh Hick, Cormac Coughlan, Malin Aambakk Boska.

Fashion Section: Fashion Director: Nicole O’Regan Graphics: Abdullah Elneihum Photography: Julia Kobalz Models: Roisin Trait, Nicole O’Regan

Disclaimer - The articles contained within this magazine are entirely the opinion of the respective writers, and in no way reflect the views of the editorial team or Griffith College.

10/04/2009 10:18:09

Features waved against anyone who disagrees with Israel’s militant force, its blatant motives and the “you’re either with us or against us” policies and attitude of its right-wing politics.

Maybe then they’ll call it ‘genocide’..

By Abdullah Elneihum Readers! Armed with the heavy hammer and chisel of cynicism, I’ve become increasingly aware of small changes in how we describe current events around us and events from the past! Would it be strange to claim that language is now changing our history?

We all know that a little over 5 million Jews died in Europe in the early 20th Century.

Likewise, do we all know that 160 million people, the Jewish Holocaust included, died in wars during the 20th Century? Why is it that we’ve popularly forgotten that Stalin’s reign saw the demise of 42.7 million people?

Or that Mao Zedong whiped out 37.8 million since 1928?

“Is

it possible for Israel to come out of its delerious state of denial before it is too late? “ Why is it that the millions who have died have never been dignified with an iota of the same awareness as that of the Jewish genocide? What has made the Holocaust so shocking that other atrocities that are equally as horrific may not be compared to it?

The argument that the Jewish Holocaust was particularly special because it ethinically singled out Jews isn’t true. Looking at Nazi deathtolls, Hitler murdered about 21,000,000 people, of whom 11 million were Eastern Slavs. These Slavs were ethnically targetted.

This has, however, been largely forgotten.

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There is no better or worse genocide, much like that there is no better or worse murder – it is all murder. But the use of language by particular, predominantly mainstream, media has globally allowed us to accept many horrendous events through complex language filtering systems.

I would like to make it clear, before I am blasted with empty claims of anti-semetism, that I am a supporter of a peace process and future autonomy in Palestine and Israel.

Injustices against the Palestinians aside, people need to move on from the days of “us or them”. There are too many human beings currently living in that tragic part of the world and it would certainly be unethical to remove a people – Arab and Jewish – by force, from a place they would consider their home.

Language has changed the way we perceive Palestine. It is no longer seen as a State by many countries. This is in no small part due to the displacement of Palestinians from their homelands to settle in other countries or to become refugees in their own homes through systematic Israeli legislation.

When a little village in Spain decided to commemorate “Palestinian Genocide Day” as a protest on the same day as the global “Holocaust Remembrance Day”, the AntiDefemation League wrote: “Applying the term ‘genocide’ to the ArabIsraeli conflict encourages hatred toward the State of Israel and deliberately insults those of us, both Jews and non-Jews, who seek to solemnly commemorate the victims of the Nazi campaign of slaughter.”

The Holocaust was a horrible event in history: correct. But it has nothing to do with the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Jewish holocaust seems to be now like a red card,

“People who who oppose Israel are not Neo-Nazi, anti-semetic sponsors of terrorism.”

In Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG), it states: “Any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life, calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; [and] forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”

From the little clear information one is able to gather on death tolls of the atrocities that occured in Palestine, 61000 mostly-Palestinianian arabs have been murdered, hundreds of thousands injured and millions more forcibly removed from their homes since 1948. And yet, blatant Geneva convention breaches coupled with global public outrage at Israel’s handling of Palestine is not enough to change right-wing Israeli motives.

Is it possible for Israel to come out of its delerious state of denial before it is too late?

Will our journalists and media corporations continue to propogate the words of powerful, tyranical nations or will a global conscience develop and sympathise with the tortured Palestinians? Is it possible that this would happen before the ordinary Israeli citizen cries out “We didn’t know!” to the world?

10/04/2009 10:18:14

Features

Pat Ingoldsby: Content To Be

By Gus McSweeney On a cold winter’s morning as everyone else weaves and rushes through the bustle of pedestrians at College Green, a lowly, striking figure, armed with a walking stick and trolley of books is setting up shop for the day. Beside the colonnades of the Bank of Ireland on busy Westmoreland Street, wearing his long black coat and customary hat, Pat Ingoldsby’s content and gentle manner cuts a striking contrast to the backdrop of urban panic that surrounds him.

Pat is a modern day street poet uncensored by the trappings of editors or employers.

True to the independent tradition of urban poet, he publishes his own work through his own publishing company, Willow Publishers, drawing his inspiration from the many characters he encounters and situations he observes from his pitch.

Pat Ingoldsby was famed in the 80s for his children’s TV shows Pat’s Hat and Pat’s Cash and featured as a story teller on Bosco during the same period. In the early 90s he began writing a column for the Evening Press which he later re published as a collection – The Peculiar Sense of being Irish.

After these successes Pat curiously withdrew from media in the mid 90s, choosing instead to ply his trade on the streets of Dublin selling his books of poetry. He began, selling his first book on North Earl Street.

He explains, “this was my happiest pitch ever, it was unique, and vibrantly Dublin.”

From this early experience as a street trader Pat drew inspiration from the vibrant characters that encouraged in him further creativity and publications.

Since then, the traders on North Earl Street have been moved on and Pat is now pitched on Westmoreland Street. I approached Pat about the possibility of conducting an interview with him about the last 15 years since his withdrawal from the media but he insisted that “all you’ll get from an interview with me is that my name is Pat, its Thursday and I’m fine today”. Sensing my disappointment he explains to me that that he is always available on Westmoreland Street to those who wish to “have a chat” but when it comes to interviews there’s nothing to chat about.

What is most endearing about this poet is his approachability. Anyone and everyone has access to Pat. There is a child like quality about him which is reflected in his poems and his humorous observations and experi-

ences of Dublin life. We find we are mutually acquainted with Malahide, where we both were raised, and we share a laugh about the “nudies in behind the sand dunes near the Malahide Estuary.”

Something you notice from reading Pat Ingoldsby’s collections is that often his poems are quite personal and that contained in these poems are many of the answers to questions you might have of the man.

Far From The Arts is a poem from his latest collection I’m Out There that that gives a frank explanation as to why he made such a dramatic exit from the media world to which he was once a contributor: I met so many puffed up, self important, ego centric, power crazy, vain glorious, empire building, busy little bags of wind during the times I had got a peripheral involvement with the arts that I put a distance between me and it.

My life has become better and better.

The further and further.

Pat doesn’t conform to the conventions of other artists seeking publicity. He’s content promoting himself by meeting and greeting his readers on the side of the road. Confident of the standard of his work, he takes pride in being a poet free from the self indulgences and pretensions often associated with patrons of the arts.

indifference is demonstrated through his poetry - his poems about his friendships with other traders, the homeless and the many passers by who stop see what “the fella in the hat” in selling.

He does in essence what every poet should and that is to inform readers about the ever changing climate and circumstances in which we live. As well as taking an anecdotal and humorous look at city life, his sadness of Dublin being lost to history is evident in the tone of many of his poems.

The downside to Pat’s bohemian lifestyle is being, he admits, “penniless”. Some days he may struggle to sell a book and on other days the mercy of the elements keeps him off the pavements of Westmoreland Street.

However, this is no deterrent for Pat. “I’m penniless but I’m out here living my life with these fine people”. Pats outlook and witty observations on life are that of a man simply content to just be. He’s not in it for the money he tells me, “because if I was I wouldn’t be here.”

Wishing me well and showing me his appreciation Pat sternly shakes my hand before sitting back down again. I turn away, leaving the tranquility of his pitch, to re-join the mayhem of the rat race that weaves its way down Westmoreland Street, armed with a new philosophy; to simply be is enough.

The first time I met Pat he informed me with pride that “all of these books here I published myself without any publicity” From this, one can deduce that any publicity he receives he generates himself through his work.

His audiences are the subjects of his poems and through their word of mouth they are his publicists. Showing no distinction between “classes” Pat writes for everyone.

His poetry has in the past been endorsed and read by those at both ends of the social spectrum. On the streets of Dublin this Pat Ingoldsby pitched up for the day in Dublin City.

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10/04/2009 10:18:14

Features

Are We More Than This?

By Mark O’Flynn So picture this, you are one of the oldest members of the Simpsons and you have a list of things to do before you die- what would be on this precious list though? Why to have one final drink in O’ Flanagan’s pub back in good ol’ Ireland of course! I am of course talking about the much publicised episode of “The Simpsons” where America’s most famous family travelled to taste a bit of Irish stout, better yet, culture.

I could not help but notice, however, that drink seemed to have been the only part of our culture that was dominant in this episode. Are we not known for anything else? How about our wonderful skills on the hurling field where champions all over Ireland have a final combat in our glorious Croke Park stadium to declare who the champion of the sport really is? Is that recognised abroad? As also, there is our unique language that no one can ever take away from us – Gaeilge! “Tir gan teanga, tir gan anam” (A country without a language, is a country without a soul) is the saying and I believe that there is no greater truth than that! But is this recognised in foreign places?

Most folk would say that people all over the world are very aware of our country’s history, but I have to disagree with that.

Recently, I had the pleasure of going on a ski holiday to celebrate the New Year, and on my last night, I went out with a group of people who were very welcoming. “Slainte!” we shouted every time we had another round of Bier and they became enthralled with this new word that I thought them. “Is that an English slang word or something?” asked Stefan from Holland. I then decided to start throwing more Irish at him, convinced he would eventually recognize my native tongue. However, he had never heard of Irish and assumed that the Irish only spoke English. “Isn’t that a shame” I thought to myself, My point is, will we ever exceed beyond our stereotypical drinking culture? Is it our imaginative Guinness ads that represent us abroad as a nation that is only good at one thing? And why is it that when a world famous cartoon series gets the opportunity to explore our culture, they have to use

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drink as the only reason to cross waters?

Some might find this as a humorous idea but I decided to look into this further by asking a few of our foreign students in Griffith College about what they think of our world famous drinking culture.

I decided to start in the SU building, where I came across two Chinese 2nd year accounting students (Grace and William) who gave some insight on their thoughts of the Irish before they came here.

“Apart from educational reasons, why did you two come to Griffith?” I asked. “Well because Ireland is not as busy as Beijing.

Here it is much quieter. We also heard that the Irish are very friendly people and welcoming to foreign students.”

So far I gather that we are perceived as an accommodating bunch that welcomes different nationalities with open arms. Good to hear I thought! “We also knew that the Irish like their beer very much and drink much more alcohol than the Chinese.” I knew it was going to come out sooner or later. “And have you drank more since the two of you arrived in Griffith?” Both Grace and William looked and each other and laughed ashamedly.

Looking for my next victim of questions I wandered around the Halls of Residence, when all of a sudden a very non Irish accent bursts into the air “Cup of Yorkshire tea Mark?” I look up to see Anna Topham from Yorkshire waving out her kitchen window.

standards. “Well yeah everyone always said that the Irish are really friendly and really chatty. It is quite easy to socialise with the Irish. Going on a night out in Ireland is pretty much the same as going out back in England.” So how come when we think of England and its culture, drink would not be at the top of the list? One thing was still bothering me, so I asked “Anna, have you found yourself drinking more since you came to Ireland?” “Oh yeaaahhhh!!”

Well so far I have gathered that the Irish certainly have the gift of the gab, and are good old drinkers but are we really so one dimensional? I decided to ask Peter, from Slovakia, one of the employees of Arthurs Bar “Well the history of Ireland is very attractive. I find it very interesting and, to me, it is something that would bring tourists over here. The scenery is also very beautiful.” And our drinking habits? “Oh yes, it is very bad with young people here and I think that it is getting worse.

We are a nation of drinkers. Am I ashamed?

Absolutely not. Am I a bit bothered? I’m afraid so. I am of the opinion that we, as people, should be known for something more than just drinking. What about the Arts? We have writers such as Oscar Wilde, Seamus Heaney and our very own Griffith College graduate Cecelia Ahern. As well as that, we have U2 and actors such as Brendan Gleeson and Liam Neeson.

So can their body of work come out on top in our cultre list? Maybe not in the near future….but in the mean time…..SLAINTE!

While sipping her brewing Yorkshire tea, Anna is in a pensive mood, trying to recall her reasons for studying in Ireland. Having no knowledge of Irish history, she was really diving headfirst into the unknown. But did her fellow people tell her anything about us Irish before she arrived on our shores? “Oh yeaaah! They said that the Irish are well into their partying so I should have a great time!

The drinking reputation is unreal over here” But did she have any idea of what the Irish were like apart from our high drinking

10/04/2009 10:18:15

Features

The Author Who Never Grew Up Circular’s Mark Corcoran chats Peter Pan with distinguished English author Geraldine McCaughrean.

“My school did a very good job of convincing me that I was stupid and would never amount to anything” muses Geraldine McCaughrean over tea and crumpet.

Born and raised in Enfield, North London, McCaughrean sits up straight in front of me after almost twenty years of being a full time writer. She is incredibly well spoken.

Born the third youngest to a fireman of a father and a mother who was a teacher, McCaughrean has gone from strength to strength and defied her critics since giving writing all of her time in 1989.

She has written over 140 books for children and adults won the Carnegie Medal, Whitbread Children’s book award (3 times) and the Guardian Children’s Fiction award among other things. So would this shy cockney lass, who went so far without the support of her teachers, change anything?

“I wouldn’t change my chosen career, I just would have started earlier and with more confidence” she offers. “In comparison to my brother and sister admittedly I

wasn’t a great joy to them (her school). I just assumed that I ought to get on with fairly menial jobs and confine writing into being a hobby. So I lacked that drive to get published”. Would a more supportive teaching staff have helped nurture and develop her budding talent? “I don’t know if it would have made any difference” she ponders, “in the long run it’s always luck when you get that first novel published. It would have been nice to set out with that burning ambition to do something and the belief that I was capable of doing it.”

“My school did a very good job of convincing me that I was stupid and would never amount to anything” In 2005 Geraldine McCaughrean put the final nail in the coffins of all of her doubters when she was selected by Great Ormond Street hospital to write the first sequel to J.M Barrie’s Peter Pan in over 100 years. I of course, like every journalist, wanted to know how McCaughrean dealt with the legacy of J.M Barrie. How did she feel when she heard this career altering news? How did she go about writing a new story with these characters, when Barrie’s tale seemed so stitched up?

So much to ask, where should I begin? The beginning is always a good place. Getting selected must have been an incredible honour….. “It was an honour, it was a gift.

I only went in for it in the way that you do when you go in for competitions in a newspaper, which is quite literally what I did. And I got this telephone call to say ‘Are

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you sitting down? Because you’ve got Pan’ and I was left thinking ‘now I’m going to have to write it’ (laughs). I knew instantly it was going to be not only the biggest, most important book of my career but that it was going to invite hatred and loathing from lots of people for different reasons.”

When did the inevitable pressure hit her?

“I was looking forward to the prospect of writing it until I started doing the newspaper interviews and without fail they would say ‘It must be very daunting to be treading in the footsteps of J.M Barrie’.

Everyone wanted me to say it (writing the story) was daunting and difficult but really it was quite fun.”

“It’s a great scenario, the whole Neverland set up and they’re very interesting characters, all of them. I would have found it quite difficult to do with two dimensional characters, Famous Five, Secret Seven something like that. But actually Peter is a very interesting, evil little toad some of the time.”

McCaughrean’s Pan tale, ‘Peter Pan in Scarlet’ was widely critically acclaimed and has been read in the deepest darkest corners of the land. At what point was the shy girl inside the author drowned out by a mature, imaginative, storyteller who had the confidence to take on a challenge as big as Peter Pan. “I don’t know that I ever gained the confidence” offers McCaughrean before pausing for a sip of tea, I’m still left with that feeling that someone is going to tap me on the shoulder and say ‘your not a real author ‘cos your not clever enough, your not an academic are you? You’re not even well read’”. McCaughrean admits that she struggled to hold an interest in books while growing up, how did she compensate for this in her bid to write professionally?

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Features “As a child, it was easier to write a story in order to climb into any imaginary world, it was easier for me to write a story then it was to read one, at least after books stopped having pictures in them and the print got smaller. I was an avid reader until that age” says McCaughrean before taking a poke at that mindset. “That is such a bizarre thing to do” she laughs, “just because you’ve got older the print gets smaller, that’s a really bizarre psychology” she smirks.

Confidence or no confidence, McCaughrean developed an imagination to rival any author. An imagination that enabled her to write a book like ‘The Kite Rider’, a story set in 13th century China. Perhaps her imagination was influenced by the role of her father in her upbringing. Surely having a father with such an adventurous job as a fire-fighter must do wonders for a child’s imagination.

“Should’ve been shouldn’t it? But he never talked about his work, (stirs in her chair) he never ever talked about his work. So I was barely aware of it, except when he came in to talk at my school, that was the only time I could say (chuffed voice) ‘that’s my dad’”.

McCaughrean admits reading through

literary internet blogs and cherishing the comments of bloggers who have just found her books and want to discuss their feelings about them to other like minded youths.

This way she can see her work spread.

And spread it has. It seems a McCaughrean book can be picked up in just about every country in the world today, for her books have been translated into 38 different languages, a fact that baffles her.

“It’s bizarre, it’s just so bizarre (smiles), most of those are accounted for by ‘Peter Pan in Scarlet’. I just don’t understand what the Koreans find so fascinating about Peter Pan; he just seems so quintessentially English.”

McCaughrean has no idea how her work has been so successful world wide. Maybe good writing has universal appeal? “I have no way of knowing how good the translations are. Some of the books I don’t even know from which end to read” she laughs.

So what does the future hold for this accomplished writer? What is there left to do? What is their left to win?

little books for schools….. My mental capacities, I can feel decaying already, my ability to find the right word, construct a sentence takes me much longer, noticeably longer to construct a page of writing. So I want to concentrate what mental time that I have to writing novels for teenagers.

Books for children old enough to care how the characters feel.

And so our meeting came to a close. I only had time to ask but one more question.

What was she most proud of? “The book that has the greatest hold on my affections is ‘The White Darkness’ (a novel which deals with Antarctic life). I don’t know why, but it’s like nothing I have ever done. After 25 years of writing books I didn’t think I could be taken by surprise by a book.”

As a child, the system did its best to make Geraldine McCaughrean feel stupid. A twenty minute chat over tea and crumpets is long enough to tell you she is far from it.

“I will concentrate on writing novels now I think” she offers. “I have always done a little bit of everything, retellings, picture books,

Killer drugs still making a killing

by Nicole O’Regan Drugs are popular among the rich and famous but they are even more among the poor and the down and out. Drugs to some are just about having a good time and flaunting how much spare cash you have but to others they are the only thing that keeps them going and it seems that even when times are tough the drugs business is among the very few that continue to thrive.

The price for a bag of cocaine, about half a gram, is now around €20! This is the lowest figure recorded for the cocaine market. Crack cocaine has also taken a dive in price to €80 from €100 a rock. Drugs are often associated with violence. Drug use is increasing but lets hope it does not provide us with a sequel to the 80’s.

People find themselves slipping deeper and deeper into the murky pit of debt due to their habit and it seems the number of people entering into this habit are on the rise. Drug treatment centres have reported a significant rise in the number of people seeking treatment

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over the past months. One centre has reported that the number of people seeking help for crack cocaine addiction has doubled over the past year. If Ireland is to remain known as the green country we must ensure the streets do not become tainted with the red and white of blood and drugs. With countless families already tormented by financial troubles this is yet another obstacle over which they must come.

A drug which has reappeared on the streets of Ireland is called ‘China white’ heroin. This drug which can easily be mistaken for cocaine is twice as strong as brown heroine. Heroin first burst onto the Irish streets in the 1980’s and if we were to see it return to the glory it once had would mean devastating effects for society. With the increasing number of jobs being lost in the country it could lead to recovering addicts returning to their old habits and indeed newcomers. The drug has also dropped in price making it more accessible, or at the very least allowing existing users the opportunity to accumulate more.

In light of this it would seem only reasonable to take action against this drug epidemic reoccurring yet a confidential drug whistleblower hotline has been axed. The hotline now works with a fixed rate per call and the funding is to decline along with the amount of phone calls made. The call-centre based in Manchester received 1,400 tip offs since 2007, 370 of which concerned Ireland. The hotline ensured that the information provided would be completely confidential.

Now people will refrain, in fear that they will be found out. This move could prove to be a huge blow to the people of Ireland dedicated to keeping the streets clean. It is however good news for dealers who will now have an even easier time hooking people on and forcing people to sell their drugs!!

10/04/2009 10:18:17

Dress for less!

Are you tired of paying too much for your clothes? Do you want to ďŹ nd a cheap alternative that will satisfy your fashion needs?

Well Circular has searched around and found the answer to all your fashion problems.

Just check out the prices of these gorgeous dresses and get yourself down to the Irish Cancer Society Shop on Camden Street.

Why not help others while helping yourself to a new wardrobe!

The Irish Cancer Society is dedicated to the prevention, early detection and ďŹ ght against cancer. Each year in Ireland over 7,500 people die from cancer.

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10/04/2009 10:18:20

Gold Dress €14.95 Navy 70’s Style Dress €6.50 Green and Brown €20 Grey/Black Dress €6.50

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10/04/2009 10:18:29

Travel

Riding The Rails of Europe By Christine Maguire

Inter-railing is fast becoming a rite of passage for many students. It is up there with travelling to Thailand and a year in Australia.

Its popularity resides in the fact that you visit so many countries in such a short time, making great new friends and consuming vast amounts of the local tipple along the way. For those under 26, unlimited rail travel around 30 countries from Austria to Turkey will cost €309 for 22 days, and €399 for a month. Unfortunately for mature students, the price is €469 and €599 respectively. The average hostel is €20 per night, and you can survive very comfortably on €50 spending money a day for food and alcohol. A month costs a maximum of €2500, including the rail ticket.

There is also the likelihood that you may miss a train, or get off at the wrong stop and have to pay €60 to stay in a hotel in Dresden. It is impractical to have every hostel booked, as one delay could result in your carefully constructed itinerary becoming a mess. Before you go, only book very popular hostels that are likely to fill up in advance, or one in a very busy area. It is generally easy to find a hostel on the internet a couple of days in advance, which is fine.

“.. the hardcore backpackers look at you in disdain, and others give you frightening glares of hatred as their shoulder straps begin to chafe their skin in the burning heat. “ Once your ticket is paid for, it’s time to start planning where to go. There is so much choice and it is impossible to go everywhere. Research what each place has to offer and then make the tough decision of what to leave out.You should definitely find how long it takes to get to each destination, because the distance from Rome to Bari may look very short on the map, but don’t be deceived as it takes about 8 hours.

‘Lonely Planet’s Europe on a Shoestring’ is the backpacker’s bible, and will make your trip a lot easier as it has so much helpful information.

It is impossible to plan every detail of the trip, as inter railing doesn’t work like that.

You may fall in love with one place and stay another night (or three in some cases!) or you may meet up with fellow backpackers and decide to make a detour with them.

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straps begin to chafe their skin in the burning heat. The key is not to over pack.

Bring three-quarter lengths, light tops and comfortable shoes, but also bring a heavy jumper and rain jacket. Remember you can wash your clothes so you don‘t need a new outfit for each night.

If you travel on the night trains, a supplement will apply for bunks or couchettes.

Alternatively there are compartments with three seats on either side,that you can lie across if it is not too busy. Police check passports at borders and conductors have to check your tickets every few hours so it won’t be the best night sleep you have ever had. Beware of thieves on trains, especially in Italy and Eastern Europe, as there are a lot of horror stories. It’s a good idea to buy a money belt and keep passports and money etc in it, and sleep with it under your clothes. For some trains a reservation is necessary and high speed trains also require a supplement which is about €8.

The most important thing to bring is a digital camera with substantial memory, and preferably someone you get on well with. It may seem like a good idea to go in a group of ten, but its very difficult to please everyone and after a couple of weeks tensions can run high and you may be tempted to throw certain people into the Seine or the Vltava River.

It is important not to try fit too much in, although it is hard when you want to go everywhere. It is better to cut back and stay at least three days in the majority of places.

Don’t forget you can always leave early if you’re not impressed and go somewhere else. That is the magic of inter-railing!

A backpack is a necessity. If you’re really clever, you’ll invest in one with wheels. It is worth the money and you’ll be the envy of everyone else weighed down by their pack.

The only downside is feeling like a bit of an amateur when the hardcore backpackers look at you in disdain, and others give you frightening glares of hatred as their shoulder

The worst thing about inter-railing is that it can be a bit stressful figuring everything out, and that you may want to kill your travel companions at times. But the good cancels the bad when you get that smug feeling after finding the right train and locating your hostel in a strange country, which makes you feel like a seasoned professional. Or when you realise that you have just seen the Eiffel tower, the Berlin Wall and Dachau concentration camp in the space of a week, or when you have a list of new friends from New Zealand, Canada and Chile and have been on three bar crawls in three different European cities and that you still have another two to go!

10/04/2009 10:18:32

Travel

Travel Into Your Professional Life Lidia Okorakova discovers that business doesn’t neccesarily need to be all work and no play...

Have you ever thought of combining travelling with the relevant professional experience and making important contacts while all the time partying and taking in the atmosphere of a foreign country?

help young journalists tackle the problem of communicating with other young specialists in the industry and making some important contacts, while learning something new and up-to-date about their profession.

If this sounds exciting and new to you, then look no further.

FEJS hold a conference that takes place in a different country each year. Over a hundred students join a five day session during which they have meetings with high echelon journalists and have fun at some of the numerous workshops and parties.

At first, abbreviations such as FEJS,YP, EASA,YEUR, ERA (AEL) may seem as obscure and irrelevant as they come, but in reality. nothing could be further than the truth. They are words in the vocabulary of the language that every ambitious young businessman, journalist, architect or lawyer should be fluent in.

They stand for Federation for European Journalism Students (FEJS),Youth Press (YP), European Architecture Students Assembly (EASA),Young EU-Russia (YEUR) and Academy of European Law (ERA-AEL). But what exactly do those organisations do and how do they relate to you?

Most of these organisations are nonprofit and run by young dedicated and truly enthusiastic people. Take FEJS as an example: it was set up in 1988 in order to

At the same time, EASA brings together, now prepare yourself, almost five hundred architecture students from around the world for one month every year. Any ideas of luxury can be thrown out the window for these students as they spend their days leading a backpacker’s lifestyle, sleeping in tents, eating food from their own plastic or iron plates that they’ve brought from home and singing songs in a camp.

One of the participants, when asked what makes her come back to the EASA each year, told us: “Well, I come back annually because of the people that I met there.

It’s a great emotional thing, every creative

person should go through it. Because of the people, fun, freedom, beauty, ideas, design, songs, collaboration. EASA is everywhere.

It’s an absolutely ideal community, you know, through the course of life EASA people support each other.”

If you always wanted to set up a business or perhaps have one on its feet already, then Young EU- Russia forum welcomes you on board. This organisation was set up to provide a platform for young businessmen from across west and east Europe and Russia to have serious debates on the current issues that they face every day when they deal with taxation office, banks administration or labour unions.

A young entrepreneur from Russia describes what his experience with Young EU-Russia Business Summit was like : “I’ve participated in conference called Young EU-Russia Business Summit. The most important thing is that I’ve gained from this conference many new friends and business contacts. This helps me to build my own career. The second thing is deeper understanding of different countries culture.

The Academy of European Law is somewhat different to EASA, FEJS and YEUR as it is run by the European Union officials. It was launched to provide young lawyers with opportunities to communicate while participating in various conferences and schools in summer and applying to their academic courses during the rest of the year.

If this sounds like the sort of thing that might interest you then visit the following websites for more information: http://www.easa2010.tk/ http://www.fejs.org/ http://www.young-eu-russia.org/ events

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10/04/2009 10:18:33

Culture

In a World Where People Like to go to the Cinema …

If you only read one preview of movies appearing in Irish cinemas this Summer, make it John O’Donnell’s.

BLOCKBUSTERS X-Men Origins: Wolverine(May 1) The Summer blockbuster season kicks off hard on Mayday with X-Men Origins: Wolverine. This not a sequel to X-Men 3, it’s the first in a series of prequels.

This explains where Wolverine comes from and why he’s such a badass Star Trek(May 8): J.J. Abrams directs, as the crew of the Enterprise get lost in space.

Terminator: Salvation(June 5) T4 is directed by McG - the man who brought you Charlie’s Angels: Full Throtle and The O C. He has described the story’s theme as “individual’s free will versus their destiny”. If I were him, I’d go with Christian Bale versus big robots with guns. You saw how he reacted to the lighting guy walking on set, imagine how pissed he’ll get when Johnny 5 starts poppin’ caps.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen(June 26) This is the big one (literally). Michael Bay has been leaking false information to keep audiences geusing as to what will happen. Financial info from the studio as well as the trailer have given us three tid-bits though. 1) Bigger budget; $200million pre-marketing. 2) Bigger cast; nearly 40 transformers. 3) Bigger robots; check out devastator in the trailer!

G.I. Joe:The Rise of Cobra (August 7) Attractive people in tight clothes blow stuff up. Check out the trailer on youtube.

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COMEDIES Year One(June 19) Jack Black and Michael Cera are cavemen who get kicked out of their village and set off on an adventure.

Brüno (July 10): Sacha Baron Cohen follows the Borat formula to bring the other other character from Ali G in da USAiii to the big screen.The alternative name for the movie is “Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt”. Need I say more?

Adventureland(July 17) Superbad writer Greg Mottola covers the same basic premice, but sets it in 1987.

The Land of the Lost(July 31) This parody of a 1970s TV show, that nobody remembers, sees Will Ferrell and Anna Friel travel through space/ time vortex to a land of fantastic creatures. Will Ferrell + Dinosaurs beat that.

Funny People(August 28) Judd Apatow directs Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen – That sounds hilarious!

Sandler’s character has an inoperable health condition – That sounds less funny. Lets hope Apatow can do comedy-drama as well as he does the gross-out thing.

familiar. Oh this one’s in 3D. Well then, that’s different. Wait, No it isn’t.

ROM COMS The Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (May 1) Matthew McConaughey runs into an ex at a wedding and blah blah blah.

The Proposal(August 7) Sandra Bullock forces Ryan Reynolds into a marriage of convenience. What are the chances they will fall in love for real? Good question, but I’m more puzzled by this one – Isn’t she about twenty years older than him?

The Ugly Truth(August 14) Gerard Butler tutors Catherine Heigl in how to get a man. Apparently Butler and Heigl’s agents are battling it out for the title of ‘least imaginative hollywood hack’.

DRAMA Angels and Demons(May 14) Audiences lapped up the da Vinci Code despite a rinsing from critics. Many put this down to the media furore surrounding the book. Can the prequel generate the same hype?

Public Enemies(July 3) Michael Mann directs as Christian Bale plays a cop chasing a gangster played

by Johnny Depp during 1930s Chicago crime spree. Put down this paper and go mark the date in your calender.Then come back to the paper.

HORROR The Haunting in Connecticut (June 19) Family move into a house, that used to be a mortuary. Weird shit happens.

Final Destination: Death Trip 3D(August 21) Teenagers cheat death and then death comes looking for its dues. Sounds

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (July 17) HP has been getting darker and darker as the series has rolled on. The sixth is expected to continue in that vein. Due for release at Christmas, the Half Blood Prince was delayed, apparently because of the writers’ strike.

10/04/2009 10:18:35

Culture

Years Years Of O Refusal

by Malin Aambakk BOSKA

This is Morrissey the way we like to hear him. Catchy guitar based rock, with lyrical themes such as morality, lost love and death. You can even find hints of humour in between the lines, whether this is intentional or not, is not clear. With Morrissey one thing remains undisputed; he always has a message to deliver. His performance does at times sound whiny, but this is also some of the reason we like him.

Where critics and fans alike thought that Morrissey had found his ”comeback sound” with 2006s Ringleader Of The Tormentors, this album might come as a bit of a surprise. It has both a rougher

sound and more up tempo songs than his two previous albums, and this actually suits the aging musician. He might however have problems transferring the energy of these songs onto the stage. Still it really works on your stereo.

The opening track proves this. Something Is Squeezing My Skull is by all means a brilliant opening track, and does not only show the best of the 50 year old Morrissey, but also excites the listener and makes us curious whether he can maintain the high level throughout the record.

Regretfully I will have to say no to that.

At times it can get a bit boring, but the overall impression is not bad, mostly due to songs such as Black Cloud and That’s How People Grow Up. The last song on Years Of Refusal is by no means a bad way to end the record, and shows that Morrissey has more than enough selfirony to go around.

Years Of Refusal may very well be considered one of Morrissey’s best solo releases, because there is no shortage of quality. But the boring and less enthralling parts of the record stops it from being the very pinnacle of his solo career.

Nevertheless, we are enticed as to what lies ahead.

Whatever happened to good old romance?

By Siobhan Worley

Romantic comedy of the year ‘He’s Just Not That Into you’ has set alarm bells ringing for countless women across the globe. Excuses excuses. excuses , “ He’s just so stressed right now with work”, He’s just petrified of commitment until eventually the penny drops. . .HE IS JUST NOT INTERESTED!

my holy grail and wish to be baptised immediately .

It seems Irelands too busy to date. Instead of writing a letter, we send a text, instead of being asked to dance we force feed sambucca at the bar. I find it hilarious when quirky character Mary claimed with all these new communication developments we now have to check “ seven different technologies to realise we’ve been rejected, its depressing”. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Bebo have all moved into the modern Irish dating scene.

All we have to worry about is having a flattering profile picture and a personality blog bordering interesting and slightly schizophrenic. It is fair to say the traditional dating outlooks are dramatically changing and somehow I feel we are missing out on just spending quality time together.

Scouting the auditorium I catch a similar glint in each viewers eye. It is not of typical casual viewing, but instead a look of understanding, recognition and a security in knowing the person sitting beside you is also relating to one of these characters complex love lives. Irish men prefer the sweeter female type. It seems so easy. The women of Ireland swoon at the likes of Austin Powers with a clean shaved beard and the men fantasise of sleeping beauty with a strong deodorant. Surely it can’t be that simple?

This film categorises the sexes into two groups. The rule and the exception. The exception is a Cinderella story, only on rare occasions will the prince and the pauper meet and live happily ever after. The rule is learning the prince who doesn’t fit your glass slipper on or return your tiara is not the person of your dreams. Therefore you should keep kissing your frogs in Copper Face Jacks and pray your beer goggles haven’t been tampered with like the night before.

“Instead of being asked to dance we force feed sambucca at the bar” It is actual fact that the complicated male species think with the logical side of their brain and the women with their emotional side. Men decide rationally, and women irrationally. Drama queens, us?? That would be correct as much as we greatly deny.

Sitting in Dundrums Cinema Screen Three I closely analyse the main characters and compare these five neurotic women and their intricate love lives to that of my own.

Gigi, Anna, Janine, Mary and Beth. Five completely different women all suffering from the same misfortune. Is this a new movie or a new religion? If so, I have found

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10/04/2009 10:18:36

Culture

An Out Of Body Experience While many gasp in awe and horror and the wonders of Bodies:The Exhibition, Hugh Hick has other concerns on his mind....

With the opening of “Bodies: The Exhibition”, the puzzling question of how our bodies actually function is finally taken out of the hands of academics and placed in a domain accessible to even the least scientific among us. But have the exhibitors truly revolutionised the cause for anatomical science, or in their pursuit of a new respect for these earthly vessels, have they merely violated the sanctity of the most complex puzzle ever assembled?

This endeavour, run by Premier Exhibtitions, sets out to help people “to learn about their own bodies” and teach them “how to take better care of their health and make positive life-style choices. It does this through the impressive display of dissections of several “full body specimens”, illustrating the effect of such health hazards as smoking obesity on the relevant human organs. All well and good.

Visitors will also be treated to a plethora of fun bodily facts, ranging from the incredible (all the blood vessels in the body joined end to end would stretch 62,000 miles or two and a half times around the earth) to the downright bizarre (every person has a unique tongue print.) No matter what you think you know about the human body, there’s something here that will impress and astonish you.

shrine to that person’s memory, and as a legacy reaching far beyond their blackened lungs earned through a lifelong 20-a-day habit.

Whether the individuals involved in this exhibition would have consented to this sort of treatment is not nearly as relevant as the fact that they were never asked. Given the emphasis that even the increasingly secular western world places on post-death rituals, it is hard to imagine that such concerns merely slipped past the mind of the innovators of this exhibition. Rather, I suspect they made the educated decision that the realm of human knowledge is worth the sacrifice. How kind of them to make such a burdensome decision

“.. sliced open and put on display for the voyeuristic pleasure of the curious masses.”

When it gets to the origin of the “specimens” on display, however, this oasis of knowledge abruptly turns to a mirage. The only information given out to the viewing public is that they all formerly lived in their less decomposed state in China, died of natural causes, and were “unclaimed”. All other details, where known, are kept in the strictest confidentiality.

One thing that is safely in the realm of conjecture, however, is that on their death bed, these soon-to-be skeletons surely had no knowledge of their pending afterlife in a travelling museum. No consent form. No complimentary cup of tee and explanation as to the gargantuan advances in human knowledge their donation would be making.

And certainly, methinks, no tip-off that the very heart that served them so well would be sliced open and put on display for the voyeuristic pleasure of the curious masses.

What the organisers of this exhibition fail to mention in their otherwise thorough audio tour is that the Chinese, like most other cultures, place a great value on what happens to their body after death, with many opting for tradition “tree burials”, to lay them at peace close to nature. The body remains an important temple and

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on behalf of the deceased!

And so we’re left with what could be described as the 21st century version of a travelling freak show. It may be wrapped up in the cosy package of bringing science to the masses, but ultimately, does the appeal of the exhibition truly lie in anything more than its sensationalism for the majority of its audience? Is the captivation these bodies hold really any different to that of John Merrick over 150 years ago?

The ethical questionability of it all has not gone entirely unnoticed by the viewing public. One acquaintance of mine described it as “the most morally repugnant thing I have ever seen”, while another was relieved that “it wasn’t my bloody body on display”.

This isn’t to say that the exhibition holds no value. The insights it gives into our own body are unique and certainly interesting, but is such a spectacle truly enough to justify what is essentially grave robbery? No matter what the answer, the question is surely one that will spark much more debate before the exhibition finally closes its doors and moves on next month.

Bodies: The Exhibition runs until 24th April 2009.

10/04/2009 10:18:37

Sport

By Cormac Coughlan

When

people think about great moments in sport, you are forced to think about decorated heroes, who overcame all the odds to win. But for a moment to be great, you don’t have to win. Be it a single act of incredible courage or just an individual’s attitude towards life. Truly great moments in sport have very little to do with winning.

Lean on me Derek Redmond didn’t finish in 1st place in the 1992 400m race in Barcelona.

He didn’t come 2nd or 3rd; both he and his father came dead last. Derek had battled with injuries his entire career and was forced to drop out of the 1988 Olympics four years previous with an Achilles tendon injury. Seconds after the gun sounded to start the semi final of the men’s 400m race, Derek lay on the ground writhing in agony. He had pulled his hamstring but this time he was going to finish the race no matter what. He struggled to his feet and began to hobble his way towards the finish line. By now the other athletes had finished the race.

Derek’s father Jim then broke through the line of security and ran to his son’s aid. “You don’t have to do this,” Jim said to his son.“You don’t have to put yourself through this.” When Derek insisted that he was going to finish the race, Jim replied, “Well, then were going to finish this together”. Derek wrapped his arm around his father’s as he began to head for the finish line, while a capacity crowd roared its approval even as security guards and track officials tried to halt the pair. “I don’t speak Spanish,” said Jim, “and I wasn’t going to be stopped by anything.

J Mac With four minutes left in the final home game of the season, Jason McElwain or J Mac to his friends got his one and only

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chance. Jason was diagnosed with autism at age of two but he never let that hold him back. Having not made the varsity basketball team he took up the role of student manager at his school, Greece Athena High. For three years J Mac paced up and down the sidelines in his blue shirt and black tie missing only one game.After an air ball on his first attempt from the court, 17 year old Jason McElwain, who is autistic, caught fire. He nailed six three pointers and finished with 20 points in those four minutes.An outstanding score by anyone ones standards. He was the games highest scorer. When the final game buzzer went off the crowd went wild. After being carried off the court on his teammate’s shoulders, McElwain said accurately, “I was hot as a pistol.”

Paddling into History Eric Moussambani learned to swim just eight months before in a river near his home in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.Yet he found himself competing in the Olympics in the 100 meter freestyle, thanks to a wildcard rule that allows each country to enter one athlete in each event even if he or she doesn’t meet the qualifying standard. So you might be wondering how did he manage to get past the wildcard heats. Well, the other entrants all managed to false start leaving Eric as sole swimmer in the wild card race. At first the spectators thought it was a joke as they watched a man from Equatorial Guinea thrashing about, struggling to make the finish. But then people realized that they were witnessing one of those rare sporting moments when somebody says I am going to do this no matter what.

The crowd rose to their feet and began cheering for Eric. When Eric reached one end of the pool he made a speed turn which he had learned the previous evening. By the time he had swam the 100 meters he had been in the pool for nearly two minutes, which double the record time. Moussambani received a

standing ovation after touching the wall.

“I send hugs and kisses to the crowd,” Moussambani said. “They kept me going.”

Do you believe in miracles?

The 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid will forever be associated with ice hockey.

The Soviet Union entered the Olympic tournament as heavy favorites and with good reason. They had won every ice hockey gold medal since 1964, and all but one gold medal since 1956. Though classed as amateurs, the soviet players essentially played professional in a well developed league with excellent training facilities. Their team consisted of some of the best players ever to take to the ice. Including Boris Mikhailov and Sergei Makarov. Just to give you an idea of how good this team was, in a warm up game the Soviets played the NHL All-Stars.The Soviets Destroyed them 6-0. So when the 1980 Olympics came around, nobody gave a group of American college kids a snowballs chance in hell. But those bunch of kids were about to shock the world.

“Eleven seconds, you’ve got ten seconds, the countdown going on right now!

Morrow up to Silk. Five seconds left in the game. Do you believe in miracles?

Yes!” When the clock ran out on the U.S. Olympic Hockey team’s 4-3 semifinals win over the fearsome Soviet Union, the shaggy haired college kids who made up the squad flooded the ice and instantly and inextricably became linked to the word of “miracle”. I know I said wining had very little to do with great sporting moments. But it was the perfect moment, a marriage of hope and improbability that became extinct when professionals were later allowed in Olympic competition.

10/04/2009 10:18:38

Opinion

Social Networking sites are not your bleedin’ mate!

by Gus McSweeney

Not only does indulging in the unavoidable phenomenon of social networking highlight the primal self indulgence inherent in all of us, it is also damaging to our social environment and growth.

I know that you can’t be friends with everybody.

Recently I reviewed my friend list of 180, and after deleting those who failed to meet the criteria of what I consider a friend, I was left with a slightly more realistic number of 115.

Of those 115 I could have probably sacrificed another 20 for the cause, but I didn’t relish the thought of explain my rejection to them later.

It isn’t difficult to comprehend the popularity of sites such as bebo, my-space or facebook because they provide a global forum of interaction – predominantly for the 18 -35 demography - unlike no other. Allowing us to communicate with “friends” (and in this context I use that term very loosely) we are able to share videos, photographs and exchange text in an instant.

So where is the catch? My cynicism is instinctual and tells me that when something is too good to be true, it’s usually false. And that’s exactly the case here. Social Networking is false; the arena of interaction it provides is semi fictional and lacks the intimacy of real face to face contact. Aside from that, many of the “friendships” we form on these sites are with friends we ordinarily wouldn’t chose in the real world.

“I am not nearly narcissistic enough to believe that people give a f*ck about my two week holiday orienteering in Spiddle” Is there any harm if, like most users, you enjoy a healthy social life away from the company of your computer? No there isn’t but I must question the motives of those (and there are many) who use these sites as extensions of their personalities. Those who obsessively advertise their daily lives to their

“In all honesty do you really think that you should meet Sophie, who you haven’t seen since 4th class, for drinks? “

Rasher McGinty enjoying a bit of social banter,

798 “friends” and almost involuntarily send out invitations of friendship to people they would ordinarily never engage with.

It’s at this point that I myself must admit to being somewhat guilty of this shameless self promotion. I do have a Facebook account and ashamedly I use it. Quite a lot. However I don’t upload photos nor do I accept or make friend requests to people whom I don’t consider to be a friend. I don’t claim to be an exceptional case or to have more dignity than the next social network user. I believe friendship has value. Also, I am not nearly narcissistic enough to believe that people give a f*ck about my two week holiday orienteering in Spiddle, nor do I believe they wish to see the photos. Above all else,

Of the 65 people I deleted, only 1 re-requested my friendship. The fact that I wasn’t missed showed me that I didn’t need this many friends, but on some level I believe we want them. We want them because we see them as a reflection, albeit an inaccurate one, on who we are, how outgoing we are and most importantly how “popular” we are.

These friends, whether we believe them to be real of not, relieve our social insecurities.

In much the same way that mobile phone texting has robbed communication of vocal intimacy; social networking sites are replacing the public sphere of interaction, the true domain of friendship, where oration and imagination was how information was once processed. This is why those few of you that are left who do not engage with any of these sites refuse to do so with pride.

Your distaste for facebook/bebo/myspace is a symptom of your lust for life, where the more honourable, humane way to interact is in person or at least verbally. For this, I salute you.

Social networking sites are commodities that serve a purpose but, like one too many glasses of wine, over indulgence can make you seem both irritating and pretentious. So take a step back from the on-line lives you’ve created for yourselves and ask how real are they? In all honesty do you really think that you should meet Sophie, who you haven’t seen since 4th class, for drinks despite your insistence that she does.

Users of these sites should judge their friends in the on-line realm the same way they would in the real world. Be honest and choose them carefully.

Good ol’ days of social networking.

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10/04/2009 10:18:39