Oh Yeah, That's Why I Became an Anthropologist...

After almost 3 weeks of no word from the Natural History Museum on my research, and less than a week to go until I was supposed to begin, I was beginning to get rather worried. However, after leaving an email and a couple of phone messages early last week, my contact finally got back to me on Wednesday, and the ball started to roll. That same day I confirmed I'd be getting my research pass for the museum in time, and in the afternoon my call for participants was finally sent out to over 1,000 museum members! The emails started to come in that evening and, to date, I've had about thirty people contact me about being interviewed. That is really exciting, especially considering that is the exact number I am aiming for! I've done 3 interviews so far, and after talking to people who are often as enthusiastic, passionate, and engaged about museums as I am, I have (finally!) become reminded of why I fell in love with anthropology so many years ago. In retrospect, I think that my MA research with religious fundamentalists was really scarring in some ways - while I did meet some lovely people, overall it was a very stressful experience. And, given that I haven't done any primary research since then (2004 - I can't believe it's been so long!), it feels really amazing to be interviewing again. It's funny how much I've missed it - while I do have to admit that my social life usually gives me plenty of opportunity to talk to people, it's just not quite the same. :)

It hasn't been all work, though! Last weekend I finally saw the Victoria and Albert Museum with my friend Rob (also a Canadian who went to York U, but whom I met through a friend of a friend - it's funny where people end up!) and we both thought it was really neat; their collection is so eclectic. It was nice to finally see the museum after having worked in the cafe there quite a few times, too - honestly, it's one of the most beautiful places I've ever had the pleasure of working! My friend Dino was in town from Cardiff as well, so on Saturday we decided to catch up whilst checking out St. Paul's Cathedral and The Globe Theatre. Both were cool, and I'd love to see a play at the latter, if I can manage to fit it in before I leave. I also went to the Tate Modern on Sunday which, I have to be quite honest, is my least favourite museum so far... I like modern art for the most part, but much of what was there just didn't resonate with me. I'm also kind of baffled as to why everyone mentions enjoying the architecture of the building itself, when it really just reminded me of an old prison. (I'm probably biased because I used to work for Corrections, but still!) The early afternoon was much more fun, when I took time to enjoy the St. Patrick's Day Festival in Trafalgar Square with a pint of Guinness. What a great event!

This weekend was much quieter, although I had a great girls' night with Emma on Friday, when we watched a movie and celebrated Ostara (aka the Spring Equinox) with chocolate eggs. Yum. Saturday involved a trip to Stanford's, an amazing travel bookshop near Covent Garden, where I spent a long time browsing books and maps in preparation for my upcoming trip to France. I also went there to get a guide book for the Hadrian's Wall National Trail, which Emma and I are planning to walk over 6 or 7 days in May. It's 84 miles and goes coast to coast - I think it will be an amazing experience, and I'm really excited to finally see the wall before heading north into Scotland. While my plans after that are quite up-in-the-air, I think it's shaping up to be an amazing year.