A Catholic in Little India

A Catholic in Little India
My experiences in a Sikh gurdwara

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI 

Southall reminded me of Belfast. A layer of grime seemed to have descended over the London suburb. A gray train station met gray damp streets that met gray buildings under a hazy gray sky. Home to the largest Sikh community outside India, Southall had earned the nickname Little India.

The people looked tired and subdued. Shop owners silently watched as people walked by. The older members of the community cast their eyes upon us, skeptical of the 11 pale American students as we walked down the street with cameras and notepads in hand.

Soho: London’s Gay Community

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

I accompanied Sarah Whitmire to document with my camera London’s Soho community. We explored the neighborhood that is home to St. Gregory’s, a church that hosts gay Catholic masses the first and third Sunday evenings every month.

My slideshow provides a visual portrait of the community to the Indigo Twin’s song Power of Two.

Click here for Sarah Whitmire’s print story.

Reports from Home

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

Our final stories weren’t due until we returned stateside. Along with the much appreciated extended deadline came some difficulties. When I came home after being overseas for a month, all I really wanted to do was relax and catch up on life back home. I was tired, jet-lagged, and unfocused. Not to mention, the European inspiration had vanished. 

I was thankful all my drafts were done when I went back to post them. A few final edits were all everything needed. I cannot imagine how difficult it would have been to come back here and try to write about the Gurudwara or capture the colors of SOHO. International last minute calls to sources would have been near impossible for me. Something about being immersed in a culture and writing about it makes you much more successful at doing so.

But with all that said, I am glad to be home lying in my own bed-bug-less sheets in the warm (or should I say boiling?) Arizona sun.

Reevaluated Skepticism

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

To an American, the turban carries a bold yet subliminal message. Images of airplanes, tall towers, ash and debris are stark in my mind. CNN gave our country a new enemy the day Osama bin-Laden’s face appeared on TV sets. His recognizable turban, beard and tanned complexion became a rallying cry for American patriotism. So when I met Suhkpreet Singh, something within me was startled by his warm smile and overwhelmingly friendly demeanor.

Full Court Peace

Basketball brings Catholic and Protestant teens together in a city that was once a conflict zone of petrol bombs and bricks.

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

BELFAST, Northern Ireland—Teenage boys in red-and-black jerseys sprint down the basketball court, jostling each other for the ball. The swoosh of a two-point dunk generates an encouraging outcry from the coaches.

These teens are Catholic and Protestant high school students playing together in a city steeped in sectarian violence. A volunteer organization called Full Court Peace has brought them together.

Il était une fois…

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

Today, I played photojournalist. I met Michael Sawyer, a British photographer living in France and working for the Associated Press, and we journeyed out into Le Marais, the gay and Jewish neighborhood of Paris.

Au Revoir, Dublin! Bonjour, Paris!

BY ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

Completion.

As Derek explained in a previous post, nothing makes me more confident that I love journalism than stepping back and having a completed piece in front of me. The challenges with sources, word choice and harsh deadlines make the end product that much more rewarding.

Forgive me for being clichéd, but writing a news story is like piecing together a puzzle…scavenger hunt style. The pieces aren’t boxed together. You have to search them out and then begin to assemble the chunks.

Our Comedy of Errors

BY: ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

It doesn’t seem very funny right now. Although I’m sure I’ll laugh later.

Right now, Belfast is in the air. We didn’t book our train tickets earlier, and so all the cheap seats are full…unless we want to pay 71 euros. No thanks. We spent a long time tonight trying to get in contact with people and had no luck.

If we don’t get to Belfast tomorrow, I don’t have a story.

And We’re Off…

BY: ALEXANDRA FLAMINI

I never thought I would become an international reporter before my sophomore year of college, but here I am, in Dublin, Ireland, gearing up to write my first piece. Despite jet lag, an inadequate plug converter and horrible coffee, I am reveling in a beautiful red-brick city surrounded by the greenest of green foliage.