Ahhh, Manchester... where the men are men, and so are the women.. seriously.

Manchester has gone through some tough economic times over the last 10 years, and isn't exactly a luxurious English city. In fact, if you ever think to yourself, "Hey! I want to go to Manchester!", save your money by going to inner-city Detroit and pay a bum to speak to you in an English accent.. it'll pretty much be the same experience.

Neither of us have have ever really enjoyed Indian food, but thanks to Alumni Band members, Patrick and Diana Herak, we visited the "Curry Mile" and had great food, and a great time. Beer of choice there was "Cobra", a crisper beer brewed in Bangalore, India. Not our favorite beer of the trip, but it was a nice change.


Liverpool was one of the stops we were looking forward to the most. There was a lot of unique history there. In this picture you can see the Royal Liver Building. It is near the docks and has the largest clockface in the UK (2.5 feet larger than Big Ben. On the top are the Liver Birds, which stand 18 feet tall. They are the guardians and protectors of Liverpool. The one on the left is the female, who watches over the water and waits for the men to come back from time at sea. The one on the right is the male and he watches over the city, and finds out which pubs are open for the sailors.


Anyone who knows and follows The Beatles is probably aware of Mathew Street. It is a back-alley street with several pubs that feature bands and local music. We visited the Cavern Club, where the Beatles got their start, and The Grapes, a pub that was known to be the Beatles' favorite watering hole. Here we are on Mathew's Street in front of Lennon's Bar.














This is one of the "duck boats" that are a popular tourist attraction in Liverpool. They are amphibious and give a tour of the city on land and water.
















Liverpool's Fab Four.










We both agree that the most moving experience of the trip so far was having the chance to perform with the St. Helen's Youth Brass Band. The band is composed of brass and percussionists ranging in age from 9 to 19. They were very talented and everyone in the band was happy that we performed first and did have to follow them. They performed many classics, but their most impressive piece was "Rule Britannia" featuring a euphonium soloist. After both bands performed, we came together to play "Hang on Sloopy", and "Le Regiment de Sambre et Meuse" (Script Ohio March).









We made a stop in Stratford-On -Avon for 2 hours to tour before we went on to London. We went through the streets which were littered with souvenir shops and street performers. One man was painted completely white and performed as a statue of Shakespeare's Ghost. Points of interest were Shakespeare's Birthplace, Holy Trinity Church and the Royal Shakespeare Theater. His birthplace is pictured on the left and has been converted into a museum.





The Holy Trinity Church is home to Shakespeare's grave. The courtyard of the church is filled with old grave stones that have lettering that's been worn off by the elements. The pillars of the church that support the spire were built in 1210. Apparently they know how to build things that last over here.









After Stratford, we arrived in London for the remainder of our stay in the UK. We have a lot of items on our "to do" list while we are here. If any of you readers have a suggestion for us, please comment on our blog. Also, we have only had time to update you on a small part of our trip - if you want to know anything we may be leaving out, please ask questions on the comment page and we will get more discussions going. Stay tuned!! Cheers!

The First Concert! The Mining Village of Bowburn.

We had a great first concert in Bowburn. The band of course played well, and hundreds of the locals came to see the band of yanks. They really got into our performance. We met a woman who is an OSU graduate and has been living in Bowburn for 10 years. She was really excited when she found out we were coming and made chocolate Buckeyes for everyone who came. When I asked her what she did there, she said she was a speech therapist... she has her work cut out for her...

Of course, any OSU band trip would not be complete without a few tankards of ale! Pubs are very popular in the English cities and provide a much different scene from the crowded bars you might find on a Buckeye football Saturday. Here is Jesse buying a round of "Brewer's Droop" Lager. Most of the pubs we frequented in Durham were small 'hole in the wall' establishments. The majority of the pubs here close at 11pm but a few stay open until 2:30 for the younger crowd (drinking age is 18). The first night out we had to experience English karaoke which was more like drunk people screaming. Pubs offer a lot of lagers, hard ciders and wine. The food is also very different. There is the more popular fish and chips but the most common foods we have seen are meat pies. The English seem to love meat pies and small meat sandwiches. Wherever you find these small meat sandwiches, you will most likely find cheese and onion sandwiches and corned beef sandwiches. We like to call them gamble pies because we don't know what is really in them. We have also noticed that all of the tomatoes that we have had no matter where we get them are fantastic.



This is the Miner's Gala and festival in Durham. It is a lot like a county fair... with more beer and less livestock. The parade ended here after stopping to perform for the local dignitaries. Over 80 bands from Northeastern performed. Most were brass bands that typically play in concert settings, so they were intrigued and impressed to see a band marching in files and rows.







After the first parade, we joined many members of the other bands for a few pints at a pub. We were the only American band and they were excited and happy to have us join them. The owners also said they would give us free beer if Stew performed for everyone. Luckily he was already a few pints in, so he was at the peak of his performing abilities...

We met a member of the Royal Army's 101st Artillery Pipe Band from Scotland. He was pretty cool for a "cat squeezer"...


Every small mining village in the Northeastern territory was represented in the parade with large banners, members of their community, and their bands. Because Bowburn did not have a band of their own, we were adopted as their official band and we were happy to join them in the parade.

This is Stew with Dennis, the Chairman (Mayor) of Bowburn. He was our official escort in the parade, and was a great host!







We had the honor of opening the football season and inter-village tournament in Bowburn. We played a concert, and had a great time sharing the Buckeye spirit! They finally let Jesse put down the bass drum and flip the cymbals for a while! Here he is with Jeff and Paul at the soccer game.








This is a sample of the banners the villages carried in the parade. They are all hand painted, and blessed by the Bishop at the Durham Cathedral during the festival. They are very proud of them, and keep them on display, but very protected all year long.










The parade had many stops, which gave us the opportunity to interact with the crowd. Here is Stew having fun with one of the "Bobbys", a local police officer... he even performed with the hat on for a while, but it wasn't exactly built for backbends...








After the performance at the soccer field, we went on a tour of the lake district. The English countryside is indescribable! There were very few wooden or wire fences, as the thousands of sheep we saw were divided by stone walls that extended for many miles and have been around for hundreds of years.










HAHAHA... oh, England.. you make it too easy...



















This is the Belsfield Hotel and Resort overlooking Lake Windermere in Ambleside.












Ending our day at Lake Wendermere right before we left for Manchester. Ambleside was a great little town with many shops and pubs. The best way to describe it is to compare it to Put-In-Bay. Secluded, small, but a lot of fun to find.

Day 2

Well, after an 8 hour flight across the pond, we have a few thoughts on extended air travel:
1. Plane food: not terrible.. but served in portions for babies, "little people", and perhaps a gastric bypass patient.
2. Sleeping isn't exactly comfortable - tried the "lay your face on the tray-table" method for a few hours, until we found out just a little bit of turbulence turns your head into a ping pong ball..

Shortly after our arrival in Manchester, the band loaded the buses and departed for the National Coal Mining Museum.





As we were driving out of the city, our tour guide gave a very detailed history of the city... which was obviously entertaining to Dr. Woods..









Don't get us wrong, visiting a mining museum seemed interesting, but when we stumbled on a nature trail that winded through the English countryside we couldn't pass it up!
Lots of great nature to observe in England. For example, on your left you will see the Long Tailed Tit. Apparently Tits are a very common bird in the UK and there are all kinds, and most commonly are found in pairs. However we are yet to see a vibrant pair of Tits worth mentioning... we will keep you posted..






We came across a beef cattle farm on the trail and jumped the fence for Stew's photo opportunity. Which brings us to our next point. We have eaten steak pie, pork chops, and lamb so far. I was told before I arrived that the grass-fed meat in the UK would be a big change from the corn-fed meat in the US and they were right. It isn't bad, but has a softer flavor, texture, and can be a little bland - which we assume is why they put gravy on EVERYTHING - but overall, the food is good!





This is Finn - Jesse's new best friend. Finn is a Clydesdale who works at the Mining Museum. They also had several Shetland ponies. Prior to the industrial revolution, over 70,000 ponies and horses were "employed" by England's mining industry. Most of these horses spent their entire lives below ground, pulling sleds of coal, opening ventilation shafts, and even generating electricity. Shafts were as deep as 75 meters in the earth, and the horses were lowered with a pulley system.


After enjoying our time at the mining museum, we departed for our stay in Durham. We arrived at the Marriot around 4, and the instrumentalists prepared for their practice at 4:30.


Following dinner with the band, and a quick shower, we had free time to explore Durham. We found out Durham is a "college town" - not exactly what we are used to for a college town though. The best way to describe this the city is quaint. It is interesting to see modern stores, restaurants, and pubs filling the spaces of buildings that have been standing for hundreds of years and still show the architecture of their era.





Of course, we finally discovered the pub scene! Lucky for us, it was karaoke night at the Market Tavern. When we walked in, we heard the locals sing (shout) Cotton-Eyed Joe, The Gambler, and countless other American country songs, and American classic rock. However, they did tell us that they "Really Really Want", when a group of girls sang Spice Girls... The beer was smooth, the company was great, and the locals were friendly. We met many locals who were more than helpful (when we could understand them - stay tuned for our next post on "Jordys"). They all seemed very happy to have Americans in their town, and had as many questions for us as we did for them.

After a few pints of ale, we decided to ask directions from a local homeless man. As he was giving directions, he dropped his cane and when Stew went to pick it up, he decided to give it a few twirls before giving it back. This turned into an impromptu street performance after some prodding (video coming soon)... we thought about coming back the next day to do some street performing and maybe put a few more pounds in our pockets. Unfortunately we found out we need a license...

Thanks for reading!

Day One: Part One

Hello friends and family! Thanks for viewing our blog. Over the next 10 days, Jesse and I will be updating this to keep you all posted on our experiences in the UK with the OSU Alumni Band. First, a few disclaimers...

To Our Mothers: No matter what we post, whether walking (crawling) home from a pub, I promise you we will be the upstanding gentlemen you raised us to be...

To Our Fathers: We will be accurate in our descriptions of both the beer, and the women....

...Moving on. So far, we have met with most former members of The Best Damn Band In The Land and have arrived in Philadelphia, awaiting our 8 hour flight to Manchester, where, supposedly, if "you're not a Manc, you're a wank"... So far, we have decided we are the youngest members of this expedition by at least 600 years... We were the last 2 to board our first flight because the airport made an architectural design flaw and placed a bar right next to our gate...

As of now (4:37PM) our flight is on time, and will be departing at 8:40PM (Eastern Standard Time) and will hopefully be arriving safely in Manchester at 8:40AM (Bloody Tosser Time). This leaves us roughly 4 hours to explore the airport drinking establishments.... which means we are wasting time. We will keep you updated daily on our experiences! GO BUCKS!!!