San Francisco, CA -- Castro and 19th

Having recently seen the film 'Milk', I decided to explore the Castro district of San Francisco, CA. The Castro district is believed to be the best known gay neighborhood since the 1960s and 1970s, and today still supports many LGBT activities and events. What I saw in Streetview helped support this claim; the street posts were draped with rainbow colored flags from North to South, maintain the historical heritage of the community.
One of the most interesting parts of it all was the small business'. There were still many locally owned shops maintaining business in the area, with several "chain" stores open along the way. the 'Castro' theater still looked new, and stands as an historical landmark. It was playing "Planet of the Apes" that day (not the Mark Wahlberg version). If the technology wasn't so new, you could mistake the area for something out of the 70s, because its barely been touched by corporate America. It was a pleasant site to see such a famous district remain true to its roots.
I've always wanted to go to San Francisco! The city itself is beautiful and its always portrayed in film as being such a peaceful place to settle.


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Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, Barcelona, CT, España

My blog post this week focuses on Barcelona, Spain. Spain's a country I've recently wanted to visit, and a trip interested me even more because of Street View. The first thing I noticed while panning around several streets was the automobiles. It seems they are more environmentally friendly, compact, and not quite as flashy as their American counterparts. There were also many Mopeds patrolling the streets, even more than cars at times. The argest sized vehicles were vans, but they were stockpiled with several commuters.
I had also noticed that the area had a clean and historical look to it. There were few ads and modern shops, despite the fact that it was a busy intersection. It's more of a rare sight to see areas like that in many countries, but it's been able to successfully maintain it's local heritage.
Many of the streets signs remained the same. Red means Stop, Yellow meas Slow Down, you get the idea. Although one sign referred to a public bus as a "Taxi Bus".
Those were just some of the sights I noticed.


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Sweden

During the Powerpoint on Culture, I read that in Sweden men and women are viewed equally and the role of masculinity is of secondary importance to care and nurture.  I was interested in reading more about Sweden's cultural views after reading this.  I Google searched and found the website Kwintessentials.com (http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/sweden.html) and read up on etiquette and culture in the country.  For one, family is extremely important to the Swedes, especially the role children play.  The care for children is considered some of the best in the world, and many laws have been established in order for the best possible upbringing.  Parents are allowed up to 60 days off per year to care for a sick child and father or mother must take an absence from work until the child is 18 months old.  Aside from family value, hospitality is also of the utmost importance.  Although Sweden is considered an egalitarian country, hospitality and eating arrangements are formal.  Punctuality and proper attire are important signs of respect.  

With business etiquette, it is awfully similar to American standards.  You must be a sharp dresser, have a firm handshake, and be able to look at your fellow business person straight in the eye.  However, business cards are not a necessity.  

I unfortunately found very little about the role role of men and women, but my findings were interesting nonetheless.  

IBN Live

With this assignment, I wanted to research an English speaking news station, and luckily I came across the IBN. The IBN is the actually Britain’s CNN targeted towards English speaking Indians. I found the station on Tuesday morning, towards noon, and it seems I tuned in when most of the air time was sold to advertisers. The majority of the broadcast was a block of ads for numerous car companies, Orbitz gum, and the most interesting of them all: a Bring an End to Domestic Violence ad. The Domestic Violence ad was interesting because it was far different from what American social marketing is. It featured a group of street cricket players (tough looking guys, no v-neck sweaters) overhearing the cries of a woman from an nearby apartment building. The group run towards the building, bang on the door, and a pissed-off man answers. The commercial ends with a stare down between the men, and the announcer saying “Put an end to domestic violence”. Very effective social marketing!
The broadcast continued with a heated debate concerning a the split of Indian Election Committee. The details are a bit fuzzy because the speakers were loud, and the streaming content wasn’t the best quality, but everyone involved was angry, including the reporter. It that sort of unbridled enthusiasm you rarely see on American broadcast television.