Fortresses and feminism

After our packed week of sight seeing through London, we fortunately had the opportunity for two free days to get to know the city better. I decided what I was going to devote my free Saturday to long before even crossing the pond. The plan essentially fell into my lap one day at home when I was reading Zite, a personalized news app that I recommend anyone and everyone to get. Under my feminism tab was an article about controversy surrounding an upcoming feminist conference that was set to take place in London in July. I was immediately fixated on the idea that I could (and would) attend this conference. Listening to and learning from the speakers, attendees, and guests of RadFem 2012 from across the entire world taught me so much about radical feminism and how other women view the world and understand women's oppression. (I apologize Mrs. Boswell for writing such a terrible run-on sentence right there.)  To give you an extremely brief background, radical feminism is a branch of feminist theory that connects women's oppression to our patriarchal society's focus on male supremacy.  RadFem 2012 challenged me to view gendered issues through new lenses and exposed me to global injustices women face everyday.  Although there are extremities of radical feminism I may not agree with, I am very happy that I attended the conference and look forward to sharing my experience with my gender studies pals and professors back at school.  Plus, it was the first time I navigated the tube by myself!

On Sunday, me, Mary Frances, Noel, and Jenny toured the Tower of London and learned the expansive history of the royal palace beginning in the 1080s proceeding the reign of William I.  The Tower is more of a small city exploding with history as each monarch added a new addition during their reign.  We explored on our own after realizing at the first Tower gate that patience for walking with crowds is not a virtue we possess.  During our exploration, some hotspots we visited included the Tower Green- where Anne Boleyn was executed in the palace, the Crown Jewels exhibit- where we drooled over diamonds as big as our fists, and the White Tower- where famous foreign invaders were housed and tortured during their imprisonment.  Since the Tower is of course now exploited as a tourist attraction, we ate lunch at one of the many restaurants and then browsed the gift shops.  I'd say the Tower's feel is a bit different than what it was in medieval times- less torture, more tourists.

Glimpse of the Tower of London

To top off the day, me and the girls attending Evensong at St. Paul's Cathedral.  Although I was trying very hard to be attentive to the sermon, I was so mesmerized by the beautiful interior that my focus probably drifted more than it should have.  But can you blame me??