Constitutional Monarchy

Do you guys know who either woman pictured above is? Chances are, if you recognize one, its the woman on the left. If you recognize both, then good for you!

On the left is Queen Elizabeth II, current monarch of the UK and on the right is Theresa May, the current Prime Minister. They are both figures of power across the nation but have very different roles. When I first arrived in the UK, I often wondered why there is still a monarch if there is another government system in place.

Like the United States, the UK has a three-branched system of government which functions much like ours. However, their system is known as a Constitutional Monarchy. So where does the monarch play into all this.

As the diagram shows, the Queen is the face of the UK and she signs Bills for them to become Laws so does this mean she does have some executive power?

While the Queen does sign Bills, she only does so for ceremonial purposes once it has already been passed. In fact, this is the basis of most of her duties. 

The Queen is also symbol of national identity and relations to maintain consistency through shifts from Prime Minister to Prime Minister. She is also in charge of any public recognition that needs to be given and is a symbol for voluntary service, as her life is devoted to the country. 

Additionally, any war declared and any treaty signed, whether done so in the knowledge of the Queen or not, is done on her authority. In this way she is also a symbol of unity.

In addition to the powers listed above setting the standard for fun hats, the Queen also has a few other unexpected powers endowed by her role.

She technically owns all swans and dolphins within 3 miles of the British coastline, as well as sturgeons, porpoises and whales because they are considered 'fishes royal'. She also does not require a driver's license or passport as they are both issued in her name. Despite this fact, she still drives and travels quite frequently.

She also has her own personal poet, has the ability to appoint Lords to sit at Parliament and doesn't have to pay taxes (though she still does). She can still appoint knights as well and is not required to disclose any information about the Royal Family. 

She is also technically the head of the state of Australia and therefore has the right to fire their government but hasn't done this since 1975. Lastly, she has the right to take the power of the UK in a 'grave constitutional crisis'. 

While she doesn't have any legislative power, the Queen still has many duties and responsibilities, and at 93 years-old she has had this responsibility for longer than any other British monarch in history. She has been in power for 67 years.

What do you guys think of the role of the monarch in the UK? Would you want this role? How many of you knew who she was before this post?

Castles!

Hey guys! I realized I'll have to do a bit more research on a post about the royals so stay tuned! But this week I want to talk about some things that are all over the UK: castles. Since I've been here I've seen quite a few and here are some of my favorites.

Bodiam Castle

Dating back to the 14th century, Bodiam Castle is one of the oldest remains of a castle that remains intact. Starting in the possession of Edward III's knights Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, the castle passed hands many times through the Hundred Years of War, The War of the Roses, and the English Civil War eventually leaving it to decay for nearly two centuries from the 1640's-1820's and has been in a restoration process ever since. This castle is also one of the few that still has a moat.

Palace of Versailles

Originally built by Louis XIV, the Palace of Versailles was actually built as a retreat from the city of Paris because Louis didn't like it. The lavishly decorated palace includes a gallery, an opera house, and an extensive garden, making it Paris' second most visited monument, just behind the Louvre.

Kilchurn Castle

Built in the 15th century Kilchurn Castle belonged to Clan Campbell in Scotland. Over the next 150 years or so, the clan extended across the country and eventually abandoned the castle in 1770 leaving it to ruin until it was taken under the care of Historic Environment Scotland. 

Palace of Holyroodhouse

Located in Edinburgh, the Holyrood Palace is still operational and acts as the official residence of the King or Queen of Scots. At the beginning of each summer Queen Elizabeth stays here to conduct business and ceremonies in Scotland. It is opposite Edinburgh Castle.

Doune Castle

Anyone who has seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail will know why I saved this castle for the last one. Being built in the 13th century and being rebuilt about 100 years later, the castle was mainly used as a hunting lodge or widows house until it saw its first military action in mid-17th century. However, the most important thing ever done here was the filming of the movie I mentioned. Every castle scene in Monty Python except for the last one was filmed at this castle in Doune.

Thanks for reading this week's post! I'm still open to suggestions for future post ideas so feel free to comment if you have any.

Cheers!

Have you guys been to any castles or are there any that you'd like to visit? 

Where's your favorite place you have visited?

Photo of the Week

This week's photo features the next most well-known attraction: the Pier. With exciting rides, arcade games, and countless food vendors, there is always some fun to be had at the Pier.

An Important Landmark

In preparation for moving to Brighton, I was surprised and confused that a large palace kept popping up in photos, and realized that it is one of the first things that you notice once you enter the town center. 

The Royal (or Brighton) Pavilion was built at the order of George IV as a retreat for when he retreated to the seaside town to indulge in his vices away from the expectations of royalty in London. 

Although it was built with an important purpose for its time, I soon began to wonder why it was still important today, and why even Brighton residents have come to associate it with the city. In a British Culture module I took in the Fall, I got to tour the Pavilion and find some answers to these questions. 

One reason seems so out of place in its setting is because George was incredibly fascinated with Indian architecture and East Asian decoration. 

The outside of the palace is modeled after many domelike structures that were being used in India at the time and George got to add other influences behind the walls.

Although George IV never visited Asia, he really liked the idea of East Asian design, which told his interior decorator when having the palace decorated. Using many reds and golds, the Palace implements many iconic pieces used in East Asian designs of the time. 

The most noticeable piece is perhaps the massive chandelier in the middle of the dining hall. Weighing more than a ton and spanning over 30ft the chandelier features a large dragon surrounded by large banana tree-like leaves and holding the rest of the chandelier.

The Pavilion has also been home to three of England's monarchs (George IV, William IV, and Victoria-- I'm thinking of doing a future post on the royals; what are your thoughts?)  

Additionally, the Palace has acted as Brighton's first library, a model for future gardens in the country, and even acted as a hospital for the Indian army of the British Empire during WWI.

Altogether, the Pavilion has played many parts in the town of Brighton, and perhaps this is why it remains a symbol for the city. It has become a representation of the eclectic and free energy that the town embodies as well as the blending of many cultures that come together to make Brighton such a unique place.

Up until now, I've just been writing about topics which I find interesting but as this blog is for you guys, I'd like to ask: what do you guys want to hear more about? I'm curious to hear what you'd like to learn about!

Cheers!

Photo of the Week

In the spirit of food that is unique to the UK, here is a picture of an afternoon tea that I went to with my mom and grandma this week.

Food Across the Kingdom

Hey guys! Sorry for the mixup with the blog link but it was great hearing from you guys! It sounds like a lot of you are interested in sports, music, and animals so I'll definitely have to get those topics into some future posts.

This week I wanted to talk about something near and dear to everyone's hearts: food. Although most kinds of foods are popular throughout the UK there are some more unique foods that each place is known for, and that I have come to enjoy... and others not so much.

Because Brighton is on the southern coast of the UK, seafood is a bit more common than other places in the country. While it is a common dish throughout the country, fish and chips is often associated with the seaside town.

Usually made with cod, it's generally a full fried fish (sometimes two) served with wedge cut fries (they call French fries chips in the UK) and a side of either whole or mashed peas. While I'm pretty impartial to the peas, I absolutely love the fish and chips. Most people put ketchup, tartar sauce, brown sauce (a vinegary sauce) and/or ranch on the fish and either ketchup or mayonnaise on the fries. Together, the two make the perfect combination of savory goodness.

Once you jump up north to Scotland you'll find two dishes that people find the most questionable, the first of which is haggis.

To be honest, if I'd known what haggis was before trying it, I may not like it as much as I do, as it is ground up sheep intestines. The photo on the right shows a more traditional haggis, but I have only tried them in the form of nachos (perhaps another reason I enjoyed them so much).

The second dish is found in a Scottish breakfast. A traditional English and Scottish breakfast are fairly similar, including sausages, bacon, eggs, hash browns, and beans on toast. However, the latter will often include black pudding. 

Black pudding is a grilled patty of coagulated pig blood that, in my opinion, tastes about as good as it sounds. The texture reminded me of a dry baked potato and the flavor is vaguely like overcooked meat. Above is a picture of my friend Reid discovering what it was after his first bite.

Although it's not a meal, I think this dish deserves a place in this post as they are unique to the UK, and that is the pasty (with a short "a").

A pasty is essentially a croissant filled with stew. Traditionally it is filled with beef but can also have chicken, sausage, or most other kinds of meat. Here's a picture of me trying my first past in Windsor. Although I was a bit skeptical at first, I thoroughly enjoyed it and have had many more since.

The final dish is a personal favorite of mine, partially because for its flavor and partially for its price. Every Sunday, throughout the UK, most restaurants will serve a Sunday Roast for around £10.

This dish features baked potato slices, some kind of veggies (usually asparagus), Yorkshire pudding with gravy, and a steak. Altogether, the medley of flavors is good enough that you almost have to eat the whole thing, despite the large portion. 

These are some of my favorite dishes I've discovered since I've been here. What are some of your favorite meals? And what is the craziest/strangest thing you've tried?

Cheers!

Photo of the Week

During the last weekend of October, some friends and I went up to Edinburgh (in the southern half of Scotland) where we were offered a place to stay by a friend of a friend. When we got there, we were told that there was a single bedroom for us to split between 5 guys (and bedrooms here are much smaller than back home).

Although we groaned and grumbled a bit at first, it was actually a fairly comfortable arrangement once we got Tetrised in. In the spirit of being comfortable with being uncomfortable, this week's photo is of that room.

Sorry we couldn't get a photo of us all sleeping in the room but we couldn't fit a photographer.