#it’s mainly so i can save eras tour photos

[meangirlsbway]

TS side blog alert!!

@diamondsgottashine

i still will probably rb some taylor stuff here too but this is mainly so i can interact with the fandom more

tagging some mutuals who interact with ts stuff: @stillbluedawn @gonna-sell-some-cookies @dxntloseurhead @swimming-in-a-champagne-sea @parkitaco @stars-alinged

[behind-the-screen-of-bangtan]

The colors in BTS’ works - a noob study

I tried to see if there was anything worth analyzing about the colors and here’s what I came up with. As the title implies, I have no knowledge in color theory nor any observation skill so take it with a grain of salt and don’t hesitate to correct me if you see something wrong^^

When I talk about the main color of a video, I don’t mean it’s the only color used, I just mean that it’s the color that appears the most. It’s obviously completely subjective. Same goes with the identification of the colors: whether it’s a greyish blue or a bluish grey is up to everyone. Again if you disagree, don’t hesitate to tell me!

I’ll mainly focus on the MVs Lumpens worked on since they did the majority of the videos, including the BU ones. GDW did almost all the other MVs, they are usually a bit darker and more action-focused, think “Dope,” “Not Today,” or “Mic Drop”.

I also won’t talk about the Japanese MVs but usually, they have the same color pattern as the Korean version.

There’ll be five parts:

The creation of the world

The red string of fate

The Butterfly dream

The temptation of the Green Fairy

Finding New Neverland, namely accepting the world

The creation of the world

If there’s one dominant color in 2 Cool 4 Skool, it’s black. Be it the boys’ outfits, the background or the lighting, everything is mainly black. And it’s the case in the MVs and the photo concept. They just wear some gold accessories.

In O!RUL8,2? it’s the white that dominates. Interestingly, the two comeback trailers announcing this album start with black as the main color but end with white, like to make the transition between the two albums.

We can consider the boys are associated with the black color (2 Cool 4 Skool and their black uniform in O!RUL8,2?) while the outside world is white. They rebel against this world in “N.O” and win.

However, against all odds, they don’t turn the world in black, they themselves turn in white but with hip-hop outfits and gold accessories, like a white version of their 2 Cool 4 Skool selves. Where the black uniform seems to represent the world trying to force its ideal on the boys, to mold them to its convenience, the white hip-hop outfit could be the boys accepting the outside world without losing their soul, the white cover them like a second skin without hurting their core, namely hip-hop.

Now that black and white are at peace, they can coexist in Skool Luv Affair and Dark & Wild. Other colors will also start appearing, but everything remains quite monochromatic. The only notable color is the light/greyish-yellow, coming mostly from the lighting. Skool Luv Affair also has hints of green in reference to the chalkboard.

While we’re here, doesn’t “Danger” feels like the night version of “Just One Day”? In both, the boy is asking for the girl’s company but one is all black and the other is all white.

In parallel to those albums, we got two concerts: The Red Bullet and BTS Begins. The VCRs follow the aesthetic of an almost monochromatic world with low luminosity and a lot of black. The only exception is the outside scenes in BTS Begins when they all go to school and that have slightly more vivid colors - possibly because it is the outside world that they haven’t explored yet (but they will during 화양연화).

The concept photos also follow this idea. First black, then white, then the two together, then colors. From 2 Cool 4 Skool to 화양연화 Pt.2 we have:

The world stopped being a blinding white for the boy in black who’s now standing in a yellow desert.

The red string of fate

There’s one color I haven’t mentioned until now but that still appeared in a significant way: red.

Since this part is a bit long, I’ll rather redirect you toward A study in red, an old post I rewrote for the occasion.

To make it short, the theme the boys question during an era (happiness, love temptation...) has often a red color.

The boys alone in the desert finds a red string. He starts to follow it, hoping it will lead him to the sea.

The butterfly dream

They finished school and are ready to discover the other colors existing in the world. This way Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa doesn’t have a dominant hue but rather a more or less bright color palette.

What retained my attention was the green and the blue.

Note that I’m probably influenced by the Peter Pan references making me associate green with Peter himself and Neverland and “Sea” where the lyrics explain that the boys are searching for a sea in the desert.

So let’s rather just say the boys explore the outside world and so there are many colors.

One exception to this explosion of colors is “Save Me” with its grey tone. However, in the Concept Book, there’s a note saying “Save Me 화양연화 Pt.0.” And indeed the videos before 화양연화 had also a grey tone so it would actually connect well.

As You Never Walk Alone is the events between 화양연화 and WINGS, I’ll put it here. We still have a palette of colors, maybe slightly paler.

But the MVs have a dominant tone this time: green for “Spring Day,” pink for “Not Today.” I won’t detail “Not Today,” but you can consider its color like the pink of AWAKE or the purple of “Boy Meets Evil”

Interestingly, this green color is associated with the motel Omelas. And I just said we had a green Neverland in 화양연화. We could thus consider that the Omelas the boys are about to leave is the Neverland from 화양연화, the paradise where they thought they could stay young forever.

Where it gets beautiful is that the scenes outside have two main colors, yellow and blue, which mixed make green and that can also be connected with the yellow of the desert and the blue of the sea.

As they have blue and yellow maybe they can try to mix them to find back the happiness from Omelas/Neverland? Sidenote: in the NOW 3 in Chicago Dreaming Days, there’s a part called New Neverland and shot in a park with lots of green and blue. It tends to validate the idea above.

The boy found a green oasis on his path, but it’s not the blue sea he’s searching for.

The temptation of the Green Fairy

So actually the outside world isn’t all that great. Black makes its comeback but it doesn’t represent the boys anymore, it could represent the hostile world, the bad sides of life.

The Short Films are a good example. Four are mainly black: BEGIN, STIGMA, FIRST LOVE, and REFLECTION. LIE and MAMA are white with a hint of blue (sidenote: J-Hope and Jimin are a 화양연화 pair). AWAKE is blue. If we consider each short film as a step in the Demian progression, we can find an explanation:

the four black ones (Suga, RM, V, Jungkook) are still wandering between youth and adulthood, lost

the blue one (Jin) has reached adulthood, namely the blue sea. Note that considering the light blue of the room and the possibility Jin is the bird from Demian, we could also see it as a blue sky, the one you fly through to reach Abraxas.

J-Hope has almost reached the AWAKE stage so he has a white background with a blue pajama. Jimin lies and pretends he’s also near the final stage when actually he’s not.

We have a possible epilogue to J-Hope’s progression in “Boy Meets Evil.”

“Boy Meets Evil” is neither red (temptation) nor blue (AWAKE stage), it’s purple, right between the two. In the same idea, the hallway Jin crosses in AWAKE is pale pink so it seems that before reaching the final stage, you have to go through this pink/purple/red path.

“Blood, Sweat & Tears” (and the concert trailer for The Wings Tour actually) seems to be the same thing, but for the remaining boys. The temptation appears in hues of red and purple. And we even have a blue room, like in AWAKE.

But now let’s talk about the elephant in the room.

There’s green in “Blood, Sweat & Tears”. Like a ton of green. So much green, Jungkook actually mentioned it in the Episode.

You may remember I named this part “The temptation of the Green Fairy”. Green Fairy is one of the names used to designate Absinthe, the green liquid RM drinks in the MV. Basically, it’s associated with decadence, death, and poets.

So it seems this time the green color isn’t related to Neverland/Omelas/Youth but to the theme of the album, namely temptation. But why the change then? Usually, they have the red color for the theme of the album.

It’s just my guess but since another theme of WINGS is the end of youth, it could be that the boys are too old for Neverland and so it becomes toxic for them: they have to let go of their childhood (and find the New Neverland/Blue Sea).

Red is the general idea of temptation - think about the red apple - while green would be the temptation to live in the past - funny for a time travel story, isn’t it?

The boy misses the green oasis, he wants to step back rather than searching for the sea.

Finding New Neverland, namely accepting the world

And finally, we reach Love Yourself era. While it’s pretty clear all the colors are brighter than in any other era, it’s hard to find dominant ones. Be it the Highlight Reels or Euphoria, we have a color palette like during HYYH, probably meaning the boys are exploring the outside world.

But it seems yellow and blue are slightly more present in the MVs for the main tracks. You can also think about the blue mold and the yellow blanket in “Serendipity”.

They accept to renounce to the green and to rather live in a world with yellow and blue, namely the desert and the sea. Like they accept to love themselves no matter how imperfect they are, they accept the world.

The last hints of green are in “Serendipity” and “Epiphany”. In the first one, it’s probably a remaining illusion. Tear proved Her is a lie:

the black “Singularity” invalidated the green “Serendipity”. They’re still trying to escape the world of temptations like in WINGS

“FAKE LOVE” going from the blue sea to the yellow desert invalidated the illusion from “DNA” where blue and yellow existed together

The green in “Epiphany” is most likely Jin's last attempt to change the past: the current time is grey, it turns green when Jin travels back in time and goes back to grey when he reaches the same future. I said it’s his last attempt because at the end when he goes out, the colors stay grey and it fits with the lyrics.

As this time they accepted their destiny, it seems the yellow and blue co-existing in “IDOL” is for real this time.

The boy found the blue sea. He doesn’t hate the yellow desert anymore. He has reached the New Neverland.

As a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ll use an ugly one for my conclusion:

Nota Bene: it’s interesting to consider those colors based on the Teageuk. The red is associated with the negative cosmic energies and the Earth: it’s the dystopian world from where the boys started. The blue is associated with positive energies and Heaven: it’s the ocean the boys dream to reach. Yellow represents humanity: the boys are in the desert and eventually they realize it’s from this desert that the ocean comes from. Combining the yellow humanity with the blue hope gives green, which represents youth in Bangtan’s works according to the WINGS Concept Book.

[topweeklyupdate]

TØP Weekly Update #54: COVER ME (7/13/2018)

Finally, after months of solid drought, the barren wasteland known as the TØP fanbase has finally been blessed with rain. And not just a gentle sprinkle; it’s been a consistent heavy downpour, a veritable flood. Even before new music, this week gave us new content from the group every single day. There will probably be something new out by the time you’re done reading this. So let’s not waste any time! Here’s your week in Twenty One Pilots news.

This Week’s TØPics:

Your Band Is Back: Trench Coming This October

“Jumpsuit” and “Nico” Released

New Logo/Theming/Everything

Josh Speaks

And SO. MUCH. MORE.

Major News and Announcements:

This time last week, I was certain that we would be getting new music on the 6th because it was my birthday. Turns out, myself and many others in the Clique read a little too deeply into Clancy’s promise that “everything would be different” by morning. We did not receive new music on that date, which, for the record, was way earlier than most reports had pegged. The fanbase wanted music ASAP and interpreted the letter to fit that, and anyone who said the band lied about when music was coming was just not being honest with themselves. 

Things were different starting last Friday. On the one-year anniversary of their departure, Twenty One Pilots directly reached out to their fans for the first time, not through the wide platform of social media, but with an email message to their mailing list.

The message only consisted of the subject line “ARE YOU STILL SLEEPING?” and a gif of an opening yellow eye, with images fitting the iconography of the Dema site flashing under the eyelid. The Clique basically lost their minds at this direct contact, so much so that major publications like Billboard finally started to report on the long gestating speculation. Everyone was excited to see the eye open over the course of the day, bringing everything full circle and culminating (presumably) with new music.

That... didn’t happen. Rather, dmaorg.info was restored after being down for only a few hours, and this gif of torches was added onto the site. This indicated that Clancy had escaped Dema, and the Clique promptly set about assuming that the next day would mark the band’s full return. Further, the name of the gif, “they_ca_ntseeFCE300″, seemed to confirm what people would be speculating ever since Josh dyed his hair nearly two years ago: the next era’s color would be yellow (specifically, FCE300) to symbolize hope and light pushing back against the dark.

The next day brought with it another update from Clancy (and the general concession among the Clique to stop expecting new music every night and just go to bed). In one of my favorite bits of attention to detail so far, Clancy’s latest journal was messily handwritten on a scrap of paper, due to the fact that he had successfully escaped Dema and was now traveling through- big shock- a region called “Trench”. The writing itself is kinda rambly and generic (so I can relate), with Tyler Clancy marveling at how much he loves being in the trees being alone out in nature. That said, I do love that there is a definite story being presented, with Clancy experiencing changes, taking action, and going on a real journey through this world that Tyler’s created.

On the back of the paper, however, is something much more interesting: a blown-out image that, when reversed, revealed a dead body. That was creepy enough as is; far more creepy was the Clique’s CSI-level discovery that this ripped photo fit with several other dmaorg.info images in a giant puzzle. Who was this man? Was this a random poster that Clancy grabbed as he escaped, or are we supposed to take it as a metaphor? Was it a random citizen of Dema? A bishop? Clancy himself? Blurryface? So many questions.

Twenty One Pilots truly made their mainstream return on July 9th, when they posted a second video of a half-opened eye, not just for hardcore fans, but on all of their social media platforms. This return was accompanied by a total overhaul of the band’s general branding: a new yellow-and-black ||-// logo was revealed for the new era, while the old “silence” banners and even the website subscription box were covered up by bright yellow tape. Billboards featuring the logo on this yellow tape aesthetic sprang up in cities all around the world, from London to Toronto, Berlin to Melbourne, even an entire building in São Paolo. The boys were back.

On Tuesday, Twenty One Pilots again returned to social media to post a second video. The eye, now about 3/4 open, depicted even more of this medieval battle, now with the addition of the Watchers on the cliff throwing... something (rocks? rose petals?) into the air. Instead of generic white noise, this clip was scored by a muffled but still obviously crunchy bass line. As radio stations across the country began to tweet about a major alternative release coming Wednesday morning (with a few even mentioning they were from Columbus), we finally knew that we were going to be ok....

New Releases:

And then I was not okay.

Early Wednesday morning, Twenty One Pilots dropped two singles and announced the names and dates for the next album, Trench, and tour, Bandito. My prediction from last week was 100% correct, and you all may thank and validate me in the comments below like and subscribe. “Jumpsuit” is our main single with a full cinematic music video, while “Nico and the Niners” is the more lore-heavy low-key song for the fans. I’m going to pull back from fully going in on picking apart every sonic and thematic element of both songs and save that for (hopefully) a less busy week, but you know I gotta write about their first new music in two years. Cause that’s what I do: I write too much.

Guys, “Jumpsuit” is a straight-up banger. Featuring a killer driving bassline, some of Tyler’s most impassioned screams, and a truly devastating bridge, I have not tired of this song one bit in the last few days. It takes me on a complete emotional journey in just four minutes every time, and it does so mainly through its soundscape (there’s only the hook, three couplet verses, and that damn bridge). It’s so, so, so, so good, potentially (dare I say it) the best sonically arranged and produced song the band has ever released.

So... what’s “Jumpsuit” about? Well, a lot of things, but in a word: pressure. Again, the lyrics are super vague, I think deliberately so. Clearly the song is about the singer feeling pressured by others into taking a path that he does not want to travel down. That bridge, delivered in an eerie detached falsetto, shows Tyler pushing back even at his weakest point, stating that he will not submit to what others want him to do unless they “grab him by the throat, tie him down, and break his hands.” Certainly you can argue that this is about the music industry. The “breaking his hands” line is killer in that context, as it signifies that the industry can’t control him without taking away the things that makes him valuable to them in the first place, his artistic ability and freedom. You can also say that it’s just playing straight into the concept, with Clancy breaking away from the bishops’ control. But the deliberate vagueness of the lyrics means that the audience can apply the message- and the empowerment of that killer bassline- to whatever struggle they are facing. That’s pretty darn rad.

The music video, directed by “Heathens” and “Heavydirtysoul”’s Andrew Donoho, is sick. Tyler (looking extra fly in his new yellow hooded jumpsuit) attempts to flee from this creepy Red Riding Hood old dude on a white horse (Nico?) through what is certainly a Game of Thrones filming location while other figures in yellow duct tape jumpsuits look on from the cliffs above. Tyler is captured by the bishop, who “smears” him by putting the black Blurryface makeup on his neck. Tyler is freed briefly from the bishop’s control when the other yellow-clad figures throw yellow petals down on him, but he is chased down knocked out or killed. The others flee the scene, save for one very handsome looking drummer boy... Oh, and there’s a bunch of intercut clips of Tyler on the car from “Heavydirtysoul” for some reason.

Besides those “Heavydirtysoul” scenes, which truthfully don’t connect much to the story of the video beyond artificially welding it onto the end of the Blurryface Era, this is one of the band’s best videos yet. It totally fulfilled all of my expectations of a more epic scope for this era, from the gorgeous Iceland setting to the dope as hell costumes to the implication that the story might continue on from this point. And there are tons of little Easter eggs, from brief flashes of the nine bishops to possible cameos from the Josephs and Duns. We don’t really know for sure if Tyler is playing Clancy or if the red dude is Nico, but it will certainly be fun to continue to fill in the blanks as we move forward and (hopefully) hear more from Tyler directly.

“Nico and the Niners” is a weird track, but one that I still absolutely love. In some ways, it’s a more traditional tøp track, with some of the raggae elements found on Blurryface and a rap verse to fit all of Tyler’s lyrics in. But in other significant ways, it’s a totally different path for them. For starters, just look at that title: it’s very explicitly about this album’s concept from top to bottom, with Tyler singing about fleeing Dema and its bishops’ control and even heavily referencing “Jumpsuit”; there’s clearly going to be a great deal of thematic cohesion in this project. But there’s also just the general vibe of it: just as “Jumpsuit” was a heavier rock song than anything we’d yet seen from the band, "Nico” is way more laid back, its repeated references to being high and even its visualizer of assorted shrubbery making it a potential stoner anthem (whether that was Tyler’s intention or not). Regardless, the song is brimming with character and hooks, and it’s already grown on me significantly in just a few days.

Oh, and one more thing: this song lives up to its Dema-referencing title and content by being cryptic af. The track is littered with reversed audio in the instrumental bits, including the “we are banditos” snippet from dmaorg.info and another sample of someone who sounds a lot like Josh saying “We will leave Dema at true east, renounce Vialism [the bishops’ ruling philosophy, alluded to be Clancy in an earlier journal].” I swear, if all it takes for Tyler to make all this stuff is a year break, he should do this after every album.

With all that new music, the fact that we finally have a name for Album 5 almost got lost in the shuffle. Trench was a popular guess over the last few days thanks to dmaorg.info, but it’s good to finally know for sure. Graphic designer Brandon Rike from the Blurryface Era is back again, revealing a cover featuring a badass-looking vulture/falcon/whatever, some new logos (including the return of FPE!), and some more yellow tape that appears to be covering the names of the rest of the album’s songs. Not too much else to say at this point; we’ll just have to wait until some of that tape gets peeled off between now and October 5th.

Finally, let’s talk about the Bandito Tour. It bears mentioning that, amidst the otherwise overwhelmingly positive positive atmosphere of the band’s return, this tour name received the most general opposition from fans and non-fans alike. The fact that “bandito” was probably going to turn up in a lyric from two decidedly white dudes was already enough to put some folks on edge, but the idea of an entire tour of predominantly non-Hispanic tweens flooding arenas and calling themselves banditos was enough to turn a few people against the band. And look, I get it- I hear “bandito” and the first things I think of are John Wayne Westerns and Speedy Gonzalez, and I get why a lot of fans might feel uncomfortable with that. But, to be fair, the band hasn’t used any of those stereotypes and banditos is a word for outlaw used in a number of Romance languages. Perhaps most interestingly, there’s not yet any evidence that the word even appears in the album itself. So far, the only appearance of “bandito” is in a coded message on dmaorg.info and in reversed audio in “Nico”. If this does turn out to be a name meant to only make sense to the most hardcore of fans, it is almost redeemed (I mean, I still think the name is a little silly, but I’m already in presale).

So, with that out of the way, let’s actually talk about the tour itself. It will be an international arena tour- even if the band’s sound is not going in a pop direction, they still clearly feel confident that the Clique will show up wherever they go. The first show will be hosted in Nashville (their first arena concert in that market) on October 16, not even two weeks after the release of the full album. What a baller move, and much preferred to the Blurryface rollout where we didn’t hear most of the songs on the record until nearly two months after the album release and they didn’t play near me for even longer. The boys will tour the U.S. until November 21, even playing arenas in a few markets that they’ve never played large venues in before, and then hit up Australia and New Zealand in December.

The most objectively interesting leg will be in Europe from January through March. Not only will the band play their first arena shows in markets like Moscow, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Central Poland, and Manchester, they will return to markets like Dublin and Glasgow they’ve been absent from for years. Most exciting, Twenty One Pilots will play their first shows in Bologna and Stuttgart and venture into the countries of Ukraine, Switzerland, Spain, and Portugal for the first time ever. Needless to say, the rabid fanbases of all of these regions are super excited, and I’m super excited for them!

Other Shenanigans:

While Tyler has continued to stay silent (much as he has since mid-Blurryface Era), Josh immediately jumped back on Twitter with a standard Josh joke and even resumed his morning workout Snapchats. On Thursday, Josh even called into BBC Radio One with Annie Mac to give a quick interview about the new era. He didn’t provide a ton of information, but it was just a delight to hear our kid’s voice again. A few tidbits of info:

Josh reported that he was calling from Trench, I hate him.

The sick bass riff on “Jumpsuit” was born from soundchecks toward the end of Emotional Roadshow. He says that, as a result, it sounds closest to the Blurryface sound, serving as a good transition into the new era. (If this is what he thinks is close to Blurryface on Trench, this album’s gonna be nutter butters.)

Both Josh and Tyler are really nervous about the elaborate rollout, both out of the usual fear that no one stuck around and out of wariness of severely disappointing people when they hear the actual music (so far, so good...)

Trench continues to have the “diverse” sound of the previous records and also was designed to be played live.

Josh also tuned into Apple Music’s Beats 1 for an interview with Hanuman Welch. This conversation was less about the new album and more about the “hiatus”. More tidbits: 

The band views collaboration as a “sacred” thing, and while they’re not against it in the future, it has to be done in a context that makes sense and not merely for marketing purposes.

The band has never used the word hiatus because they’ve been working. They drew back from the spotlight to allow themselves some time to recharge, but also because they were worried of oversaturation (particularly after the Grammys pushed them into that next-level pop culture sphere). Rather than make a bunch of social media posts that didn’t mean anything just to stay relevant, the band decided to draw back, focus on music, and in the process “thin the weeds” of fans who weren’t the diehards.

For the last few albums, the music has come from a specific personal place the band was at while write, whether it be a spiritual journey with Vessel or tackling insecurities on Blurryface. Josh says the same remains true with Trench, but notes that there will be a little more fleshing out themes by working on a specific story with this one (he still says it’s not really a concept album, but ok).

Believe it or not, we are not done. While the boys were blazing a brave new path forward, another bit of content reminded us of where the band came from. Greg Wells, the producer who made Vessel the masterpiece it was, gave an hour-long interview to Billboard’s Pop Shop Podcast. He mainly speaks about getting started in the industry back in the 90s and working on the mega-blockbuster Greatest Showman soundtrack, but he does talk about Vessel for a bit approximately forty minutes into the interview. I won’t give the exact time-code, not because I’m lazy, but because the entire interview is worth listening to. Greg just seems like a rad dude. His laid-back nature and the seriousness he takes with his craft really shine through; he and Tyler must have gotten along just fine.

Community Spotlight:

The Clique took some heavy losses over the last year, as a great deal of old fans moved on to greener pastures. But that just left room for a whole host of new fans to rise to the occasion and help us get through that long drought. Today, I wanted to give a shout-out to GingerSheep and Stolen Potential, two Clique vloggers that have really kept the fanbase informed and uplifted and have been working their butts off reporting on the daily content. I know how long it takes me just to research and write one of these- I can’t imagine the work that then goes into filming and editing on top of that nearly every day. Hats off to you, good sirs. Make sure you all check out their channels if you haven’t already! But, you know, don’t stop reading these. I have bills to pay with all the Tumblr money I’m not making.

Well, that wasn’t too much, was it? If you made it all the way to the end, mad props. See you next week for a slightly tamer week (probably).

Power to the local dreamer.

|-/

[tslyricx]

14. LONG LIVE

This is the last song of the standard version of the album, Speak Now. In it Taylor finds herself looking back at the memories of her career, none of which would be possible without her band, producers and, of course, us, who the song is dedicated to.

Taylor has said that this song was written for her band and her fans, so the opening lines are reminiscent of the many shows they have played together, and the moments they have experienced with us: “I said remember this moment, in the back of my mind The time we stood with our shaking hands The crowds in the stains went wild” The “shaking hands” part implies that they used to get nervous, since shaky hands are a common symptom of anxiety or nervousness in front of audiences. “We were the Queens and the Kings And they read off out names The night you danced you knew our lives Would never be the same” She’s referring to the moment that they won their first award as a team. That moment made them feel like they were the Queens and the Kings of music. They couldn’t help but feel excited about what the future held, so they danced in celebration of it.

The “night” she is probably referring to is likely November 11, 2009. This was the 43rd annual CMAs, where she picked up a number of awards; for which she received a lot of love from her fans and band.

Then, she says: “Long live all the walls we crushed through”; they are destroying all the prejudices and the fake ideas that people has about them. She is again going to mention this, in the following verses (“cause for a moment a band of thieves / in ripped up jeans got to rule the world”). Also, she is calling out all the critics that have looked down on her for her lyrics and her tendency to write mainly about love, but who cares? She may not have a gifted voice, but she writes from the heart and remembers her roots. Well, she and her band, now, are on the top of the world: “And the cynics were outraged Screaming “this is absurd”.

In the second chorus, she adds: “Long live all the walls we crashed through All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you” The “kingdom lights” are the lights from the stage and the glowing things in the audience Taylor would occasionally ask them to hold up during concerts. Only those in the venue could fully enjoy this interaction, which she cherishes. “Long live all the mountains we moved” The dictionary definition of the phrase “to move mountains” says: “To achieve spectacular and apparently impossible results”. So, for that, here’s the tea: Speak Now debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. It sold 1,047,000 copies in its first week, making it the 16th album in the USA history to do it. Her album before that (Fearless) later became the best selling album of 2009, selling over 3.2 million copies. Her hit single You Belong With Me was certificated 6x platinum by the RIAA, and gained the largest crossover radio audience since Faith Hill’s song Breathe did in 2000. I think, it’s pretty safe to say that these are some of the “mountains” they’ve moved.

After, she uses the metaphor of fighting dragons to represent the struggles and obsticales that she and her band have faced. Back in Medieval times, people took dragons very seriously; they believed them to be real and fared dealing with them: “I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you” Earlier in the song, Taylor mentions how they are the Kings and the Queens, which were the prominent form of government back in the Medieval era.

Finally, the bridge comes, one of my favorite parts of the song: “Hold on to spinning around Confetti falls to the ground May these memories break our fall”. Life flies by so fast, it can seem as if everything is spinning, just as Taylor spins on the stage. Confetti falls to ground as the show ends, celebrating another successful performance. Whenever Taylor loses her fame and “falls” from the public sphere, may these memories they have together be their saving grace.

Taylor said on her website:

“This song is about my band, and my producer, and all the people who have helped us build this brick by brick. The fans, the people who I feel that we are all in this together, this song talks about the triumphant moments that we’ve had in the last two years. We’ve had times where we just jump up and down, and dance like we don’t care how we’re dancing, and just scream at the top of our lungs, “How is this happening?” And, I feel very lucky to even have had one of those moments, nonetheless all the ones that I got to have. ‘Long Live’ is about how I feel reflecting on it.

This song for me is like looking at a photo album of all the award shows, and all the stadium shows, and all the hands in the air in the crowd. It’s sort of the first love song that I’ve written to my team.”

Favorite lyrics: “Long live all the mountains we moved/I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you/ cause for a moment a band of thieves, in ripped up jeans got to rule the world /One day, we will be remembered”.

Album: Speak Now released on October 25, 2010.

Witten by: Taylor Swift.

Hidden message: For you.

Picture: Closing act of The Speak Now World Tour, in 2011.

[the-hope-in-my-galaxy]

My BTS WINGS Tour in Chicago Fan Account

THIS IS A LOT. Like 4 whole pages in google docs 😬. Don't feel obligated to read the whole thing just because you follow me. If you have any questions to ask me feel free to message me :-)

OK first things first shout out to the uber guy who was blasting a kpop spotify playlist when he pulled up to get me lmao

He told me he personally wasn't into it but that he had been driving people to the venue since like 11:00 AM and he already saw people lining up so i was like 💀

I got to the venue by 6:30PM and had to wait like 5 minutes to get in

OK…..so I ended up getting an ARMY bomb ewhvfqghrlhotw

And….here’s the kicker……….it was $60 🙃🙃🙃

It was impulsive af but i had the money and i was so afraid i wouldn't get anything else because shiz was selling out fast so i panicked 😬

I waited in this long ass line because i knew I had to get some kind of souvenir but by the time i got to the front the ARMY bombs were the only things left

And you know what's hilarious? i ended up not even using the ARMY bomb because after waiting in the second line i didn't even have enough time to charge it 🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃

So i was just like Fuck It and bolted to my seat which was 2nd tier

Even though my seat wasn't close to the guys...it didn't feel too far away? The venue is really nice tbh like i was of reasonable distance and could see everything fine.

My seat was at the end of a row in the middle seats so i didn't feel squished which is a HUGE bonus cuz that was my main concern so overall I think my seat was pretty good.

Before i talk my head off about the performances i want to give a big shout out to the people who filmed, did artwork and put together the VCR’s throughout the concert. Everything was so beautiful and fit the themes and songs well.

After the first VCR, which was arguably an art film, these guys came out with Not Today and y’all….

It wAS SO HYPE

That was honestly when i realized that this was...Actually Happening.

Like these guys i care about so much were performing right in front of me

I screamed so damn loud lmaooo

After Not Today they did their introductions and they were all SO CUTE ☺️

Ofc Hobi did his iconic “I’m your Hope!” and my heart fell out of my ass LMAO

Yoongi was so freakin Extra™ he took his damn ear buds out and made that cocky hand gesture where he closed his eyes and put his palm to the back of his ear to get everyone to scream for him I CAN’T with him 😒

But.. i still screamed as loud as i could 😏

I screamed for all the members everyone did

After their cute introductions and small talk they continued on with the concert where they performed Am I Wrong (an under appreciated tune), Baepsae (LIT 👅👅👅 they all looked so hot) and the Dope which i hadn't listened to in a while so i felt nostalgic jamming to it.

And then we got to the solo stages...

Jungkook is such a talented kid tbh. Like i joke about him a lot in my tags but he looked so cool performing Begin. His footwork was something else 👌🏾

After him was Jimin with Lie and HE HAD HIS TIDDIES OUT (I’m calling his mama lmao). But no it was just a reallllllly low cut shirt like 👀 I see you chimchim. The performance was literally art in motion for me with the choreography and background VCR, and the song itself is just a masterpiece, my fave solo after MAMA. Jimin is so captivating to watch.

After him was Yoongi with First Love and it was so beautiful and passionate. The background VCR had really well done art and complimented the beauty of the song. Yoongi has such a cool energy to him, very confident and unafraid. I really appreciate what he had to offer.

And look... I already knew Yoongi was a good looking dude but like…Idk what happened but this concert made me realize how beautiful he really is??? Hobi is my bae you guys know that but Yoongi had me swerving a couple of times jesus 👀

After that they came back together as a group perform Lost (vocal line only, and another under appreciated bop) Save Me (my favorite group performance, when Hobi’s part came on I screamed and then loudly repeated the only english line he had in his verse,”The best of me!”) and then I Need U (a classic)

After that was Namjoon who performed Reflection which was very mellow. It is a very vulnerable song that encompasses emotions I think anyone can relate to. I am glad he could openly share those feelings in a song. When he go to the part where he repeats the “I wish I could love myself” line we were all chanting WE LOVE YOU like the fans at Brazil and Newark. It was so sweet ☺️

After him was Taehyung with Stigma and HE DID THAT. Tae really gave his all during that performance. I still worry over his vocal technique tho cuz he is a natural baritone and that solo had a lot of high notes. But he was so immersed in his song and it was so soulful like 😭 I’m super proud of him.

And after him...MY MAN CAME OUT 😰 😰 😰  

Y’all i was NOT ready Hobi KILLED IT. Mama is such a bop but the meaning behind it is so gorgeous this boy really does love his mom. He danced, rapped and during the ending chorus he had his lil singing adlibs and I was just felt so content and happy seeing him perform with all his energy. He really is our Hope 😭😭😭😭

And during Hobi’s solo they showed soooo many baby pictures 😱 they showed pictures of him I never seen before including awkward pre teen photos of him posing like a superhero and I LOVED THAT cuz we all have those super awk photos we took when we were 12 thinking we looked badass and then we see them now and we’re like 🙄 so I’m really glad he was confident enough to show that he’s just as human as everyone else. And then...

JIN’S SOLO MADE ME CRY 😖

ALRIGHT so here’s the deal…

Hobi is my Official Bias™ and Yoongi is my now confirmed Bias Wrecker™ but…

Jin is…idk I can’t explain it but he has such a special place in my heart. He gets overlooked a lot and in his solo song Awake he sings about this. Feeling like he is sometimes not a part of his own group and I’ve felt that way before so many times. Hell all my life even. When he was singing his solo I honest to god teared up like he’s just such a great guy with a great sense of humor who works so hard in everything he does. I sang most of the song and I screamed so loud for him, everyone did. I just hope he felt loved that night ❤️

Jeez i teared up just writing that…

And then….after that was the cypher 💀💀💀

EVERYONE was hyped, rap line went off, it was around this time were my voice was starting to hurt 😥

After that was Fire, another hype song

And then it was a huge mashup of their debut/rookie years title songs. It made me realize how far they’ve all came when it comes to music.

Diring that they performed Run which is the era i really started to stan them. It brought back some more nostalgia, mainly back to when the fandom life didn't feel so damn dramatic 25/8 😒

After that was when the started to talk with us again. They talked about how they spent their time in Chicago and how happy they felt to be there.

HOBI WENT TO THE CHICAGO AQUARIUM AND GOT THIS CUTE SHARK HAT AND HE WAS SHOWING IT OFF LIKE IT WAS A TROPHY IT WAS SO CUTE!!!!!!

Namjoon said he went to look at Lake Michigan and the Michigander in me was like 😵😵😵

Like yes boys come to Michigan sometime! Swim across the lake lmao 😭

Namjoon also said that if he had to chose any US city to live in it would be Chicago which i thought was super cute and everyone around me was going nuts. I like Chicago a lot too and i hadn't been there in such a long time so it was good to come back for the concert. Hopefully I can stay longer next time

Also! The Chicago Armys did the rainbow project as well!!! It was so pretty. The organizers did such a great job. I remember when American Armys were first talking about making a project with the light sticks but people (including other American fans) were sort of putting them down because they thought we should leave making good fan projects to the Korean Armys which made me go??? But you guys really pulled it off!!!! Im proud of y’all.

The boys looked shocked that the American fans did it again because they had already did the same project at the Newark concerts, they all looked so happy and commented on it and how grateful they were.

After that they performed their more recent songs off the WINGS album including 2! 3! Hope For Better Days which had a beautiful montage of all the members from debut era. I know i keep saying this but it was obviously nostalgic

The also performed the WINGS Intro which I LOVE and wish it were made to a full song but for the concert they made it longer than usual so the boys could goof off and interact with fans and the stuffed animals the fans tossed at them. Jungkook wore these cute bunny ears  ☺️ ☺️ ☺️ super cute. They all looked like they were having a blast with the fans at the floor seats. That was the only time I felt jealous of not getting a floor seat. There’s always next time tho!

The last songs they performed were Boy Meets Evil(Hobi’s other solo that was the album intro, and ofc he freaking killed it!!! He is such a talented dancer and i hope he goes on Hit the Stage one day so everyone, especially non-fans, can finally see how great of a dancer he is) BST(LIT!) and Spring Day(Beautiful performance, a great way to end the concert)

The boys stayed on stage for the longest time even after Spring Day ended. They all took their sweet time doing final bows and saying goodbye to the fans. They were so sweet this whole concert and always kept the crowd hyped when they could talk to us throughout the concert. I'm so thankful I saw them. I'll never forget this and I hope to see them again.

[gsmatthews95]

A journey to the heart of Bavaria

A DOUBLE POST. I'm so sorry I actually forgot to post the last piece I wrote last week.... I've been busy... Actually not really... More lazy I'd say, however not as lazy as many may lead me to believe as I post my ultimate and final piece of this epic five month literary masterpiece that has explained, over exaggerated and immortalized the past, and last, five months of this trip. It has been momentous. It has spanned many a country. There has been fun. There has been culture. There has been beers. It has been exceptional, however, as I write this in the departure terminal of Berlin tegel airport heading home for the first time in 13 months, I am excited to be heading home. There is trepidation, a new era of my life awaits, but, the thought of seeing people I haven't seen for over a year, seeing my family, seeing Roland and even seeing the yids been barca at Wembley is driving me on. Possibilities is the word of the day. Deep I know, I'm just writing this so you don’t judge me so much when I write the actual meaty part of this article, which will be arriving imminently. I'll post now on the back of a few weeks in ze Deutscheland, mainly in Berlin but with a few days down in deep Bavaria, doing all things German. Yes everything. This involved: beers, hiking, eating sausage, saying tchussi, looking at pretty buildings, obeying j walking rules, discussing brexit, meeting an old friend and, oh yes I remember, drinking more beers st Oktoberfest. It was very fun.

As I headed down on my flixbus, I anticipated what these 3 and a half days had in store for me, I was excited, raring to get started and seeing Manuel, who I hadn't seen for 4 and a half years. Wow long. Would we still be friends? Would we recognize each other? Would he find me as intensely irritating as the majority of the rest of the world? After all lots has changed in the last 5 years, and I mean lots. I feel like a new person post gap year, uni and second gap year. It was unbelievably comforting therefore, to realise immediately, literally within 3 seconds, how nothing had changed. Conversation was never forced, all was comfortable and he had a good plan, now I knew it would be a good trip. The first evening was uneventful. Not bad by any means, exactly what we needed in fact, a whistle stop tour of Munich, a taste of the local beer brewed next to the monastery manu went to school in, ye that local and our first maaaaaaaas (1 liter of beer, yummy) before we headed back to tegensee (is that how you spell it) but Ill get to that. First I need to briefly mention a phenomenon I've never seen before and even after explanation from manu before we got there, something I had no idea what to expect. Dont expect to understand  it just reading this, apologies. So it is an artificial wave on the river in the middle of Munich. It is maybe 10 meters wide and is always going. It is a mecca for surf bums from apparently all around the world. World famous in the surfer dude world. Rad eh? Or gnarly? I dunno I don't surf. It was however, EXTREMELY impressive as they surfed from side to side rapidly, doing their little tricks and jumps for the ever growing crowd who. Completely ignoring privacy ideas, filmed the whole lot. This included yours truly as I filmed a wee vid for memories sake. That was cool. The rest of Munich is beautiful. The building are all nice, well up kept and most importantly, colourful. I like colourful and painted buildings. Oh yeah we also climbed up a church to get a nice panoramic view of the city, very nice if not a wee bit tiring and sweaty. Anyhow, in tegensee we visited the famous tegensee brewery and even saw the monastery Manuel was educated in, very cute. We also consumed another beer and half a pig together as we munched down two bangin meals, George approved. Manu, day 1 was successful. 

On to day 2. With an early night under our belts it was an early (read early as: 9am) start as we prepared for a hike. Ooo exercise. The fourth of Manu's week, the second of my month maybe. Having arrived in the dark I couldn't see the surroundings of the house as such I had a rough idea of what I  might expect but these expectations were far below the reality as I woke up in awe of the landscape surrounding the house. I can only describe it as living in the Alps. Which is literally where we were. The mountains towered on all sides of us with the Xmas trees adorning each summit. Sadly no snow. Although this made for a much more enjoyable, Clear and warm hike. So usually when heading on a six hour hike in the alps you may need to drive somewhere first or get a bus or train. With kreuth, this is not the case. From the back door we wandered thru the picturesque, tiny alpine hamlet towards our everest. The hike was beaut. Not too strenuous, but hard enough and long enough to make us feel like we got our exercise for the holiday and give us a carte Blanche for Oktoberfest he he he. It was the classic situation when the tourist is stopping for photos every two minutes as each view gets better than the previous. The sun was shining the mountains were infinite and there was barely anyone there, a perfect threesome some would say. Having only got lost once (and only slightly) and with me only asking "are we there yet twice?" We hit the summit. EXITO. A very nostalgia moment from the glory days of bariloche in Argentina. Off came the shirts, out came the sandwiches and the sunbathing began. It was lush. When fully whelmed we headed for a beer at a little chalet thing. And headed home in anticipation of meeting a new puppy and then oktoberfesting. So the best surprise of the trip was undoubtably the datshund (sausage dog) puppy. Oh my lord he was adorable. So small. So scared and so perfect. He was amazing. With a little brown beard and brown feet he was the epitome of perfection to me, sadly all good things have to come to an end and this good thing was cut so cruelly short as we rushed to catch the train to Munich for some beers in lederhosen. The journey continued up to the next chapter which will most probably be written in less adoring detail as the details blur slightly and tales become less "travel blog worthy"....

Our destination in Munich was Manu's friend, Georg's house. Pronounced gay-org. So we had a Georg and a George, a nice meeting of cultures... Or just two similar names from different countries. He was at Oktoberfest however, so our plan was to get to his apartment, get let in by a friend, put on the lederhosen (I was wearing Manuel's brothers), get drunk enough for a club and then find the after club. We did this all very successfully if I say so myself drinking g n t with ice, being classy while saving money and time. The night was good as we wandered to the club thru the swathes of drunk oktoberfesters and had a boogy. This led us to the next morning. The real Oktoberfest. It was an early kick off, 9:30am, heavy. We donned the lederhosen, got some beers and begun the day of fun. Georg managed to talk his way into the main tent, no mean feat, highly impressive and then also managed to worm us two in with him after a few lengthy discussions. My hat was off to him, highly impressive bullshitting ability. The tent was big, loud and there were a lot of beers. It was heavy and passed with lots of fun and a few incidents. The rest of the evening and night passed as such and I feel the contents of this period is not best suited for this blog, lol. Leave y'all hanging! Don’t worry as this is the last piece I'm sure I'll be the only reader anyway. I'm writing this post really for the first few more cultural days anyhow. 

The next morning started eventfully again as we woke up in an unfamiliar bed and had to wander back to the living room where mine and Manuel's allocated beds were. This marked the beginning a quintessential hangover day. Very slow, painful and unproductive as we reconsidered our lives, contemplated our life decisions and made promises to our future selves. It was amusing as we wandered from place to place aimlessly, just looking for grass and shade by the end. As it all became a bit tiring for our brains and legs we decided the sofa was the best place for our miserable bodies and we returned to watch the full extended edition of LOTR the two towers. It was epic and it led me perfectly up till my night bus back to Berlin. All in all a smashing few days in Munich hosted immensely by Georg and Manuel. Cheers boys. Oh yeah and I slept very well on the night bus home. Literally the full 8 hours. It was a perfect night bus as it left at 11:15 and got in around 7-7:30. Short but all spent asleep. George approved greatly. This trip was a nice final outing of what can only be described as an absolute belter of a year.

Now onwards and upwards as I look to move out permanently and find a nice enjoyable job that pays the bills. Also I'm gonna try and post this from the plane because I get ten minutes free WiFi and I couldn't imagine a better use of that than updating this bad boy.

G over and out for the last time for a little while. Hopefully not too long. I look forward to our next meet.

G. XOXO

[roodiaries]

The Return to Asia: Singapore Stories, Big India & A Nepali Christmas

Embarking on my first trip outside of Australia since arriving on the island-continent in February 2016 was something I'd looked forward to and planned for months while farming in South Australia (scroll down to previous blog for more info). A voyage into the unknown Indian subcontinent was an exciting and unexpected opportunity to see places I'd wanted to visit for a long time. On the one hand, it seemed a little absurd to be travelling 10,000km away (more than halfway home in fact) when I could easily see great places closer to Oz. But on the other hand, my ex-colleagues and friends from Loja, Rene and Soledad, were doing a tour of Southeast & South Asia, and the most interesting part of their trip took them through India and Nepal. So why not? I'd saved enough money and hadn't seen them for ages, so 6 flights over 17 days were soon booked and I was ready for the adventures with the Ecuadorians to begin!

I drove down to Adelaide with Renmark chums, Sam, Eisen & Yumena, for a rather formal - but nonetheless interesting - tour of the Cooper's Brewery: I was impressed that the current owners of South Australia's most famous beer are the descendants of the original 19th century brewer, Thomas Cooper (also a Yorkshireman!) I finally fled South Australia by night-flight to Sydney and spent a few days there sorting myself out while staying with Mark in his trendy Rozelle neighbourhood. Though his controlling housemate Vanessa took me for a stranger and demanded I leave when she found me laptopping downstairs one morning!

The first part of the trip was a long-awaited stopover return to Singapore, five years after I was there studying on exchange at the National University of Singapore. That was my first time living abroad and the source of a great many adventures in SG and eight other countries in Southeast Asia in 2011-12 – it's a shame I wasn't writing a blog then: it would have documented the ups and downs of several hapless bumblers traipsing around the region, full of legendary shaggy dog stories concerning daylight (wallet) robberies, Full Moon hospitalisations, back-room blackjack scams, rabid dog chases, giant bee attacks, volcanic dust storms, monkey madness, the ping pong mafiosas, asthmatic scuba and much worse. It was the quintessential Year Abroad and can never be topped. Singapore was the hub of this action, where I lived for 9 months and made many friends who I now consider some of my best pals. It's certainly one of my favourite cities and I was buzzing to be back!

I met up with one of the few Singaporeans I still keep in touch with, JD, who picked me up from the airport. The overwhelming humidity left me feeling suffocated and exhilarated in equal measure, and for the next four days it would be back to the body-punishing air-con-too-cold/outside-too-hot routine. I hung out with JD (who bought me lunch every single day: legend!) and another friend, Caryn, and I was able to experience once again the exquisite rooftop bars and incredible food. Seriously, I'd missed the hawkers! And I rarely give such high priority to food during a travelling experience: Singapore is a special case because it has it all. There's no getting bored with their array of cuisines, both local and from around Asia. I spent my time catching up with a couple of people over dinner and checking out a few sights that hadn't been around when I'd last been here (they build things incredibly quickly in SG: mostly because the mainly-Indian/Bangladeshi workers are made to labour relentlessly, part of the darker underbelly of a city that glimmers innocently on the surface). These sites included the Gardens by the Bay complex, which is a set of greenhouse domes, pathways, ponds and canopy walks, cementing Singapore's moniker as the 'Garden City'. I soaked in the views and gazed up at the ostentatiously luxurious Marina Bay Sands Hotel (the one that looks like a giant boat balanced on three towers), recalling the time when Kev, Mark, Scottish Kev and I sneaked up there somehow and chugged numerous tins in a state of embarrassingly British-hooligan rowdiness to disturb the genteel revelry of the upper echelons of international society. Much of the rest of the trip was a nostalgia tour of sites I used to hang out at: Clementi Mall where we'd sink large cheap Tiger beers on week nights till late; 'The Bridge' at Clarke Quay where students, locals, tourists, businessmen and everything in between mixed together in a cacophony of merriment; the utterly fake but still-enjoyable Sentosa Island with its cargo ships and oily sea; and of course, the university itself where I revisited classic food stalls, took the free shuttle bus round the tropical campus and felt like an old soul (I wanted to say to someone “you should have seen how it was in my day...”). It was genuinely emotional to be back here, but also a bit sad without the characters who made the experience what it was.

After a few hours' transit in Kuala Lumpur (the Airport King of Transfers), I glided 4000km north-west to the much cooler climes of Delhi, at the heart of the Indian subcontinent. It was with Malaysian airline, Malindo Air, certainly the best of the airlines I flew on during this trip, though my mind was preoccupied by thoughts of how to find my hostel in Delhi, and whether I would be overwhelmed by pushy taxi drivers upon arrival and give in to the pressures of culture shock when swapping the relative calmness of the developed world for the more haphazard ambience of the developing. In fact, it was a gentle introduction to a city with a metro population of about 22 million as I passed unnoticed in the dark through rows and rows of stationary three-wheeled tuk-tuks (or ‘auto rickshaws’ as they’re supposed to be called in India) and along the brightly lit and incredibly busy Qutab Road in Paharganj district. Something I already knew in theory but which became apparent in reality was the sheer diversity of stuff going on to bombard the senses, especially the eyes. Animals wandered willy-nilly along alleys and main roads: not just dogs and cats, but goats, rats, chicken, pigs and cows (which are of course holy to Hindus so unfortunately nobody shoves them out of the way). Countless ramshackle stalls sold spices, curries, chai tea and a million other exotic fares I had absolutely no comprehension of. People just wandered the street, some sitting around chatting, others lying under a bridge ready for another night on the street. Rickshaws and motorbikes weaved and squeezed in and out of the crowds, beeping their horns constantly as a customary announcement for people to shift their arse: I've never been anywhere with so much beeping; it's unbelievable.

I found my hostel – Zostel on Arakashan Road – without too much trouble, due to good signage. One thing that makes India more accessible than many countries is its use of English as a widespread second-language: most people in the cities speak it to a decent level, and others to a basic level, while road and shop signs are usually in both Hindi (the national language) and English too. It's clearly a positive effect of British involvement for 200 years: first via the East India Company's more stand-offish economic rule, and from 1858-1947 as full-on Empire rule. Though you would certainly have to mention some of the brutal things the British did here as well (e.g. the Amritsar Massacre in 1919; response to the Bengal Famine in 1943). I remember one Indian girl in a university class I did about her country's history ask me: “how does it feel to know what your ancestors have done?” I really didn't know what to say to that.

I only had one full day in Delhi, and made the most of it with a taxi tour to see some of the main sites here and in the British-built Indian capital of New Delhi, in practice a mini-city within the city of Delhi. Here, the traffic was less and the tree-lined boulevards spoke to a distinctly colonial era, adorned with pretty fountains and majestic buildings. One of these was the museum and former home of PM Indira Gandhi, India's first and only female leader (and no relation to Mahatma Gandhi), with a great collection of photos and artifacts on display. Outside was a boardwalk with a piece missing and a placard that stated it was the place where Indira was gunned down by her own guards in 1984, as a victim of the very religious communalism she had tried to fight her whole career. The exact same thing happened in 1991 to her son Rajiv, who was also PM. Three notable Gandhis assassinated in modern Indian history!

We saw the hugely impressive Qutb Minar, a treasure bestowed upon the city by the first Muslim ruler to conquer northern India in the 12th century (Qutab-ud-din Aibak from central Asia). Also there is the millennia-old Iron Pillar of Delhi, which my guide explained has non-rust qualities unfathomable even to modern-day scientists. I took a peek inside the Lotus Temple at dusk, a strangely captivating Baha'ist place of worship, open to all faiths as a site of reflection and peace. The Baha'is believe in respect for nature and the unity of all people under one God, irrespective of religion, race and nationality. It's hugely idealistic but logical and forward-thinking, and from my experience a very tolerant group, numbering some 5 million followers worldwide.

I met up with Ecuador chums Rene and Soledad at last and we spoke in Spanish almost the whole time, as I wanted to practice: it was strange speaking it in India, because I would often distractedly turn to a local and address them in this continentally inaccurate tongue - “disculpe señor, don- oops!” Not that I was very good – I fumbled through subjunctives and reflexive pronouns like a true amateur. ¡Qué bestia! I was also at the wrong end of most of the trip banter, accused of being 'cold and complaining too much,' like a proper Englishman and the antithesis of the passionate Latino personality. And for only saying “hello” in a casual manner when I saw them for the first time, rather than exploding with enthusiasm and darting over to adorn them with plentiful hugs and kisses. So I had to tone down the negative comments for the sake of the group morale: “Wow, isn't this wonderful, I just love the fact that this great big greedy fat pig is rolling around in shit so much, it's amazing!” It was all in good fun though, and sarcasm/complaining is a way of adding spice and good craic sometimes: things are boring if they're always rosy and dandy (I think this is more of a British/Irish thing?)

We travelled by train southwest to Rajasthan state, a name evoking romantic images of a distant desert land where the Maharajas live in fairytale palaces. Our destination was Jaipur, the famed 'Pink City' and state capital. We stayed in the lovely Vinayak Guesthouse with helpful staff and a rooftop restaurant playing Indian melodies to set the mood. In and around town, there was plenty to see, including the vast sandstone/marble Amber Fort where the local Maharajas ruled before Jaipur itself was founded in the 18th century by Jai Singh II. The dastardly monkeys were also a factor here, scaring us when they tried to grab our stuff! The Hawa Mahal is another strange archictectural marvel in the centre of town: an eye-catching facade built simply so the women of the court could watch events through secret windows unseen by the men of society. 

Jaipur is a major market haven, and the stalls selling clothes at very cheap prices abounded on every street and alley. Rene certainly got his money's worth, bartering frantically with one old guy for about 20 minutes to get a dozen scarves while the whole street came to watch! I particularly enjoyed the salesmen chat given in one shop: “do you exercise? You look like a Maharaja with that beard. You're a good size, not too tall.” All my insecurities put to bed in one very charm-ridden compliment session when perusing the shop, though unfortunately this was a much pricier one and smooth talking wasn't enough. In a more modest stall, I bought a single Indian-looking shirt, and the seller insisted on showing me a picture he said he'd had taken with 'Wolverine' in his other shop; I went with him and there was indeed a picture of Hugh Jackman... looking stressed and trying to escape the public attention, surrounded by bodyguards (I bet he wished he really did have claws)!

I'd had a great deal of trouble trying to book trains around India: simply signing up for the IRCTC website is a mission in itself involving mind-bogglingly complicated levels of email codes, proof of identity and fake Indian mobile numbers, and had had to book two of the three train journeys with a travel agent for an extra charge (feeling exasperated after weeks of trying online). For the one from Jaipur to Agra, however, I hadn't been able to book, so we ended up in the second-worst class. We were also a bit nervous because we'd been told by an Aussie couple in the guesthouse that their train had been delayed... by 17 hours! Our train was thankfully on time, but seeing hordes of people pile into the carriages nearby was a dread-inducing sight, and I imagined we'd probably end up having to stand in the toilet for 4 hours. Actually, we found seats and had a fun experience with the locals, drinking plenty of sweet chai tea (for 10 rupees each – equivalent of 20 cents), which all of us came to love. There was even space for Niña Soledad's enormous suitcase too!

So the third and final point on the Golden Triangle was Agra, another Mughal-built city. But whereas Delhi and Jaipur's interesting monuments and atmosphere went a long way to overcome the cumbersome cluster-fuckery of street life, Agra was a total shit-hole redeemed only by the Taj Mahal (which is a pretty decent redeeming feature to have in your city to be fair). We actually stayed at the place Karl Pilkington stayed at on An Idiot Abroad (he storms out because of the smell and the 'ensuite shed'), but they'd clearly improved it since then. We saw this amazing Wonder of the World from across the Yamuna River at sunset, before arriving at the South Gate at 5am the next day. We queued with our new friends from the hostel for over an hour waiting for them to open the bloody gates, and pretty much missed the sunrise, shivering in the early morning fog, hungry and tired. The bucket-loads of tourists almost ruined it for me: the ridiculous rituals of needing to have every possible picture of every possible pose with every possible family member left me seething: I wanted to slap them repeatedly across the face and run off with their camera. See with your eyes, not with your lenses! Not that my friends were much better to be honest... I never used to be this intolerant of tourist habits: I think it was the tiredness and me getting older and more cynical, plus I'm being a bit of a hypocrite because I took some pics too. Anyway, after the photos were all taken and ready to become people's next Facebook Profile Picture, we spent hours exploring the Taj itself and admire its pure white marmoreal exterior and impressively detailed austere interior (it is a tomb after all, built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan for his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, in the 17th century). A classic Indian site, and a worldwide icon deserving of its revered status.

Next stop was Nepal, the 'Roof of the World' and a wonderful travel destination as it turned out. Flying in with the snow-capped Himalayan skyline to the north was an awe-inspiring site. We spent a few days in bustling capital Kathmandu and nearby historic city of Bhaktapur (richly decorated UNESCO World Heritage Site and former capital of the region), and two days in chilled second-city Pokhara to the west. I found Nepal to be much more relaxing and less pressured than India: locals didn't seem to stare as much; they didn't push you to buy things; less bartering; there was much less traffic too. A hike we did along a ridge above Pokhara at sunrise was the main highlight for me: the sun revealing the mighty peaks of Machapuchare (6997m), Annapurna I (8091m) and Dhaulagiri (8167m), some of the world’s tallest mountains. We walked about 10km between the villages of Sarangkot and Naudanda, past quiet farmsteads and small sloping allotments, taking in the ridiculous views both above and below us. It would have been cool to do a proper Himalayan trek, but due to money, time and (above all) general fitness, it wasn't possible this time around.

It was pretty bizarre being in Nepal for Christmas, but the locals celebrated with New Year-style parties and the cool temperature and tasty roast turkey dinner helped make it feel a bit more Christmassy! I was in great company but still felt a longing to be in Durham with my family, only able to speak with them over a WhatsApp call for about 5 minutes because of the dodgy connection. Rene and Sole left for Burma, and I spent the evening of Christmas Day in a hippie hostel called Fireflies. It wouldn't be somewhere I'd normally choose, but I felt a need to connect with people seeing as it was Christmas Day. I bumped into Georgia, the California girl I'd met at Delhi Airport when we were both late for our flight, and met a lot of other friendly international people for another meal, good conversation and some beers. On my last day in Nepal, I ventured to the hilltop Monkey Temple (Swayambhunath), an ancient and holy Buddhist site centred around a golden stupa with the eyes of Buddha gazing down at you from each side. As with a lot of structures in Kathmandu and elsewhere, it was severely damaged by the 2015 earthquake: the city is still punctuated by piles of rubble and wooden beams propping up historic buildings. But the Nepalese people have made tremendous efforts of rebuilding and maintaining their incredible architectural treasures.

My last stop was almost 24 hours in Kuala Lumpur, again in transit. I spent the fourth night of my life at this airport (mad considering I've never lived here), curled up on some carpet somewhere, too tired to care and using my trusted Osprey bag as a pillow. Then I went to explore the malls of KL (and saw the new Star Wars, which was bloody fantastic), and took the opportunity to nip to Putrajaya, located between KL proper and the airport. Putrajaya is its own Federal Territory (like KL), was only built in 1995 and contains most of the government offices, despite KL still being the Malaysian capital. I told the taxi driver to take me “somewhere good” because I didn't have a clue about the layout of the city or what it contained; laying this responsibility of my entertainment upon a stranger was almost too much for the poor man, but he dropped me off in the sweaty heat at Putra Square beside the PM's house and the pretty pink Putra Mosque, overlooking Putra Lake (they're not very inventive with the names of stuff here!) It was a pleasant day's excursion but I was ready for a long uncomfortable Air Asia flight back to Sydney to celebrate New Year and continue my life in Australia. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I'd missed my new 'home' country. But it had been one hell of a trip.

Thanks for reading, I’ll post soon about the new life in Sydney (sticking to Australia next time),

Oliver

(see below for photos!)