Navy museum receives 111 year old pudding from the Boer War

by Jessica Festa on

One hundred and eleven years ago, a batch of Christmas pudding was made to cheer up a soldier fighting in the Boer War. While most would assume it would have been eaten long ago, it has actually turned up in a kitchen cupboard. The batch is thought to be one made by Victorian philanthropist Agnes Weston, often known as “the mother of the Navy” for her goodwill work writing to soldiers and sailors, visiting hospitals and prisons, and starting rest homes for sailors.

The pudding tin even contains the original instructions: “This pudding is ready for use but may be boiled for an hour if required hot”. Of course, being that the treat is way past its expiration date, it will not be served cold or hot but has been donated to the Royal Navy Museum in Portsmouth, Hampshire, United Kingdom.

The story of how the pudding was donated to the museum begins with a phone call from a woman who had found the tin in her kitchen cupboard. She knew that it had been in her deceased husband’s family for years, but did not know how much history it held, having actually been sent overseas from South Africa.

If you would like to check out the 111 year old pudding yourself, you can attend the Historic Dockyard’s Victorian Christmas Festival from November 25-27, 2011, where the exhibit will be on temporary display.

Remembering the fallen

by Sean McLachlan on


Today is Veterans Day, also known as Remembrance Day and Armistice Day because in 1918, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, World War One ended.

For four years the nations of the world had torn each other apart. The Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed, the Ottoman Empire was mortally wounded, Germany’s Kaiser’s fell and so did Russia’s Czar. The world changed forever and 20 million people were dead.

There are countless monuments honoring those killed. The most powerful, I think, is this one. It’s called The Grieving Parents and was erected in 1932 by Käthe Kollwitz, a German artist. Kollwitz’s youngest son Peter was killed while serving in the German army. The monument is in the cemetery at Vladslo, Belgium, where he’s buried. The faces of the parents are those of Käthe and her husband. Her husband looks at Peter’s grave while Käthe bends over in grief. So many young men are buried in this cemetery that Peter’s name shares a tombstone with nineteen others.

Whether you’re on the road or staying at home today, there’s probably a war memorial near you where people are remembering the fallen. Take a moment to visit it, even if it’s for the “other side.” After all this time that doesn’t really matter.

Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

Super Mario flashmob takes over the Chicago, Illinois, Magnificent Mile

by Jessica Festa on

On Wednesday, more than 90 costumed Super Marios took over the streets of the Chicago, Illinois, Magnificent Mile. Around lunchtime, the flash mob broke out into dance in front of the John Hanock Center in an effort to promote Ninetendo’s new video game, Super Mario 3D Land.

As you can see in the video, one man really enjoyed Nintendo’s marketing efforts (although he had some trouble getting the moves down). The mobsters in the video are part of “Attack!”, a company that organizes promotional flash mobs around the country.

Check it out for yourself:

View more videos at: http://nbcchicago.com.

Photo of the day – Under the Glow dome

by Meg Nesterov on

Today’s Photo of the Day is from the Dutch city of Eindhoven, where the GLOW festival of light is going on now through Saturday. Eindhoven is the hometown of electronics company Philips, made a multinational brand by Anton Philips who is the subject of the sculpture here. Each year, the town hosts a forum of light-based art and architecture installations, performances and events; in 2011, the theme is illusion and reality. Mr. Philips is standing under a dome of 30,000 lights, over 80 feet high, illuminating the entire square outside the main train station. Flickr user toffiloff captured a great perspective, making the sculpture and light installation even more impressive.

Send us your favorite festival photos for a future Photo of the Day by adding them to the Gadling Flickr pool.

Tickets for the Nomading Film Festival in New York go on sale Friday

by Jessica Festa on

After a successful run this past June, the Nomading Film Festival is returning to New York this summer, June 23, 2012. Nomading Film Festival is an event that showcases stories caught on film during peoples’ travels, giving new talent a chance to share their stories and viewers a chance to travel all over the world without leaving Brooklyn.

The really early bird tickets will be sold at a very discounted price this Friday, November 11, 2011. Not only that, but travelers of all ages from all over the world can begin submitting their travel videos (must be under 15 minutes). Until April 30, 2012, submissions are only $10, and selected filmmakers will be notified by May 15, 2012. Prizes, such as trips, flights, and gear, are awarded in three categories:

  • The nomad I want to travel with
  • The most enlightening trip
  • Simply put, that trip makes me want to travel, now!

Guest speakers, workshops, games, and music will also be part of the fun. For more information, visit their official website. To get a better idea of what to expect, check out one of Nomading’s travel-inspired films: