Photographs

I signed up for Photography as an arts elective (Photographie Avancé, bitch pleaaase). It's great. At the beginning I felt extremely intimidated because the class is completely in French, so the only time I opened my mouth was when we had to introduce ourselves. I had been freaking out about that moment for my 4 hour break and practiced what I was going to say 40 times in my mind. Then when it was my turn I just said it very casually with my best accent on, trying to pass unnoticed ("pasar desapercibida", I just realized I don't know the equivalent of that awesome little phrase in English... Sweet, the fact that I went for this phrase means I'm still thinking in Spanish).

Bad thing about doing that is that then people will think you actually speak French and then talk to you and all you hear is KSADHFJDKBGGGGHHHHHGHHHHHERFSRGFJJJJ and then I just stand there with my eyes about to pop out and smile and say, "Pardon?". Then they go for it again, I smile again, and then my mask is out, I just have to go for Enlgish again. But honestly, I'm trying, I even called this girl who put up an ad on a notice board saying she needed help with Spanish. Now we're meeting twice a week and we talk in Spanish and then she helps me with French. How proactive of me!

Ok so, aside from the language barriers, the class is great. I'm glad I signed up for advanced and not "debutants" because begginners is extremely technical, stuff I did with Barry (again, Iri and Chris, BARRY LOVE!). And this "avancé" is more analytical, we have a presentation of a different contemporary photographer each class, done by a student, and then the prof who is also a photographer talks about this person's work and how it is relevant to the discipline nowadays. I stopped feeling intimidated with the class when I realized I was familiar with lots of the artists we would study, and plus the first class was on Jeff Wall, a very well known Vancouver photographer! I raised my hand and proudly said he was a Vancouverite, did his Bachelor's in UBC and was a friend of none other than our beloved Barry (once more, BARRY LOVE!). The prof was impressed, now I am the teacher's pet, hellzyea.

The prof is really cool too. I went and talked to him after class and explained that if I wasn't participating enough in the discussions it wasn't because I was not interest, but because I had difficulty expressing myself in French. He was very nice and understanding, and let me choose the date I wanted for my presentation so I could have enough time to prepare it in French. He also told me had grew up in Guatemala! So we talked in Spanish and now we're BFF's basically. i decided to do my presentation on Cindy Sherman (click me), I'll write some more about her later, I'm on my research period right now, on the few spare time I have between freaking out about readings I haven't done for classes and looking for an apartment.

So the point being, photography is not intimidating anymore, it's awesome! Classes are keeping me sane in this city. I've only had two classes of each subject (= two weeks of school) but there are a couple which are just amazing: Photo, The Age of the Avant Garde in Paris and the one on the Chilean Dictatorship (we're gonna have a major Chilean singer, Angel Parra, in class next week). The others, IR Theory and International Development are a little meh.

Now wrapping this thing up and going back to what I ended to write here in the first place (got a little carried on, as usual), I have to bring some pictures I've taken to the class next week. I spent hours checking all the pictures I had on my computer, selecting a few, editing others, etc. and I realized I had such beautiful memories in my pictures. I also browsed through lots of black and white prints I had developed last year and chose a few I'm going to take to the class. I think my choices reflect a little bias towards the content of the photos rather than the actual quality of the prints, because I chose mostly portraits of my friends. Oh how I miss you! I'm os happy this pictures exist, and that I brought them here with me. Just wantd to share a few of my favorite portraits:


COLOR DIGITALS

Chris Angel Mindfreak

Clarita

Miss K

Ma <3>

y la Monguis

BLACK&WHITE FILMS

Dan the Blind Man

Favorite Project Model!

...and who else than my muse! haha

I have so many more, it's hard to make a selection of my favorite photos, but these are definitely on the list!

Big kiss to you all, good night.

Homeless

Very homeless, in 5 days I have to move out and I don't have an apartment. It's making me so very anxious this thing I think I already hate Paris a little bit.. oh yeah, and the girl I was going to share a flat with just got a studio this morning, fml! I can't write anything else because for to days I've existed just being a house-hunter zombie, and those French landlords are so andry and rude, it's awful! I'll make a happy post once I know I won't have to move into someone's couch (everyone's studios by the way, are the size of my Fairview room, bathroom and mini kitchen included... most depressing thing ever!)

No need to comment on this, I just feel like bitching about life right now.

NEON INDIAN

Oh, hey there.


Went to my first concert (and skipped my first class... the first day of classes) on Monday, rebel.

The chosen one: Neon Indian.
Place: Small bar in the 19th arrondisement in the middle of nowhere.
Mission: Get there early to have some drinks by a canal nearby and then head to the venue ~9pm

And so we did.. Sam and I got there really early, went to a corner store and got two 500ml bacons (http://www.baconorbeercan.com/) each plus a pack of cheap cookies.

Honestly that "dinner" is like a microcosm of what my food universe is right now: nothing nutritious, nothing fresh, it's awful.. And still I've lost so much weight in an unhealthy way just cause I don't eat! I'm either doing other stuff and always say "I'll have lunch when I finish this" or I'm trying to find someplace nice and affordable but all I think is "no sista you ain't gettin 6 euros from me for that piece of old baguette with butter". Then I give up, come back home and have a yogurt or something.

Ok well I was talking about the concert, the beer and the cookies. We followed the plan and went on with our mission. The place got full in a second and the environment was awesome.. both Sam and I felt a little like we were in Vancouver minus the fact that people were speaking French. Everyone was so into the concert, that the tiny venue soon turned into a hot box and we all got high. Ha no, I'm kidding, it turned into a sauna and we all got wet. Like veeeeery grossly wet, but who cares it was so much fun! Then we got sick the next and it wasn't that fun anymore. But hey, again, look how fun it was (before I knew I would get wet and sick) in inverse order to make it more trippy:




On our way back to Cite U (Chatelet, huge metro station that looks like an airport and is very annoying!)




Getting it ON!


This is the kind of pictures you get when they're playing songs that only say "should've taken acid with you", etc.
The hot girl

This is for Cem <3 style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqzddwCug6myO81SotDqM-BacJ6DA-t7RQklUwEVmahUGOw0pnDOYVMMMUXFeBZogSRPdtWSkRuBjqKUpGv7JsRbIU1SqvkHZRG-qhX1EPxMgRd96IjRyzmwiThYYBRKQcCWQ8bcLcZow/s200/DSC_0867.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517655095470923890" border="0">
This is for me



I still have a little obsession with bathrooms, I found the urinal pictures I had taken for my series today!



Pre-drinking at the canal




By the way I officially invite you all to my wedding with the drummer, we're engaged and we're very much in love. Sam is marrying the hot girl on the keyboard. The band was extremely nice, they were so thrilled we had seen them in Sasquatch and Vancouver.

Good night!

Tomorrow: First Day of School

I couldn't find a picture of me on my first day of school, just of little Ms. Princess of Spain but I did find this: I think I beat the crap out of that blondie.




I finally start school tomorrow, after being here for almost a month! Insane, I arrived on the 20th, doesn't feel that long and it makes me feeling kind of like a failure in the language department.

But I'm not too worried about that cause I'm more concerned right now about the apartment department. I'm being kicked out of Cite U in... 19 days! Ok that's not so bad, I'm sure I'll be able to find a place but it's just that everyone here is so obsessed with apartment hunting that I almost feel like I have to as well.

I arranged some visits, and also helped some friends from the Welcome Program look at flats this weekend. Basically we looked at ridiculous 650 Euro, 10 square meter rooms (again, freaking center for ants), then a place right next to a creepy cemetery and finally a place in front of a smelly fish market. Yup, not so glamorous!

This city is so dense, that in the city center people are just piled up like sardines in apartment buildings, renting 10 square meter rooms with a kitchenette and toilet in that same area which just makes me claustrophobic to even think about it! But I know I'm a lucky girl and I know I'll find something (applying The Secret right there).... so it's ALLLLL GOOOOOD.

Now back to the real thing, class start. Tomorrow, 12pm: Violence, Memory and Amnesia in 20th Century Chile. Wait, what?! Yeah, I didn't even know I had registered for this class until yesterday! Haha, because registration was a mess. Maybe its not the smartest thing to come to Paris to take a class on Latin American politics but whatever, I'm still interested in the issue, plus... there's nothing I can do (no add/drop policy in this school, they don't know nothin').

Then I have something more predictable: French Politics and Society of the Twentieth Century. Nice, reasonable, safe class. But tomorrow, oh yeah, tomorrow I have the best one: The Age of the Avant-Garde in Paris. Art History elective that I'm extremely excited about. It's just that in here I can almost only take boring comparative politics classes that I'm not too excited about, but the electives are amazing. For example, I'm taking Photography and YOGA for credit.... Hahaha!

*Don't worry Mom&Dad I'll graduate, eventually.

Yes, YOGA for credit, that's quite something. So I'm gonna go to bed early like the good old days and have nice dreams about getting on the school bus and making cute little friends...

Please Sciences Po don't crash my spirit or you're going down betch.

Lazy night

I'm having a lazy night tonight, and it's awesome.

I''m not doing anything. I mean, I'm doing lots of things, but none of the ones I should do so I feel like I'm being a rebel against myself, and again, it's awesome.

I finally have time tonight to just sit on my bed, listening to music (Vancouver bands because I'm missing it a little now), eat yogurt, and start a book that I've wanted to for so long but I was always doing something else. Well, actually I'm not starting the book write now because I'm writing this (duh) but, I have this feeling, I know it... I WILL START IT TONIGHT!

The book's called "The Idea of the University" and it's a photography study and essays by Vancouver photographer Ian Wallace. He was a prof at UBC in the 90s I think (Barry generation, Barry love! *wink to* Iri and Chris) but anyways, here's why I haven't been able to start. The first lines read:

"The concept of 'the idea of the university' is an abstraction. Its Hegelian/Platonic tone implies a universality of the university; that it is a value in itself and for all time."

Umm, yeah, I always find something else to do.

I found it in a really amazing store in Vancouver called McLeod's which, as a read somewhere, is the definition of an organized chaos. It's so amazing a full of interesting stuff, but sadly I heard from a friend that it closed? (Anyone in Vancouver knows?) That's very sad, and we still have McDonald's everywhere.

I'm just writing stuff about Vancouver because I've been seeing Vancouver everywhere today. Walk into a store and they're playing Tegan and Sara, overheard some people in the street saying "it's so nice out, aye?", and then while looking at a notice board at school I started talking to this girl which ended up being from UBC.

She's super cool, she's 25 and we have some classes together. I don't know why I feel like I should write her age but it's just funny how I have ended up befriending 25 year olds (Sofie, the girl from Sweden I'm always with is also 25). We talked just for a little bit and then Sofie and I had to go to the bank, so we said good-bye... but she made such a good impression on me I gave her a call later and asked if she wanted to get dinner or something. We ended up talking a lot about Vancouver, and Paris and life and it was great. It's been hard finding people I truly like and not just people who are nice and you can hang out with. She's so cool, I'm really glad I met her. Sofie as well, but I am the grown up in our relationship haha she's gonna kill me if she reads this.

Sofie, if you ever read this, I just have two words for you: FO SHAZZLE.

So back to the lazy night, the possibilities are endless! I can just continue writing this thing until I fall asleep, read the Ian Wallace book OR a magazine in French to practice (not happening), or read the Costa Rican newspaper just cause I haven't checked it since I got here, or not unpacking (which has been a favorite activity of mine), or Skyping, or checking out apartment listings... no that's too boring but the pont is, I COULD do it, there are so many things I could do tonight. What I'm not gonna do is go to the club under the bridge some friends are going tonight because I'm an old lady and having a lazy night is the most awesomenest thing ever.

Ok I'm inspired ciao, I have to go start that book or I KNOW I'll never get past the pictures.

Oh wait, here's a photo of McLeod's:




And I'll post a picture of me eating a Falafel when Sofie sends it to me. Hahaha it was so good honestly I can't believe I never had one before. Falafel = <3

Good night.

Con la mentalidad Edgar Silva

Woo!

What a great day, it's not even 9am and going to the Poice Station is my plan for the day... but nothing can ruin my mood.

Since I had my mini-passport breakdown I talked to or heard from so many people that I miss so much: Skypee con Dani, Claris me escribio un TLC, le llore en el telefono a Luci, Cokis es el mejor promedio de Arqui en la Veritas (!!), Mari vive en un reality show, Pupi se va a cortar el pelo como MUGATU, Della me ayudo a tranquilizarme, etcetc.

Me hace tan feliz hablar con todos ustedes no tienen idea. A veces uno esta tan enredado en la rutina que no entiendo poerque se siente mal hasta que habla con la familia/amigos y se da cuenta que es que le hacen dm falta! Pero de una manera buena, no triste!!

Ok este es un post dm sentimental asi que aqui lo termino.

Tengo que aprender a meterle musiquita a los posts para poner efectos especiales. Digamos, musicalizaria estas fotos con algo bien cheesy y poloncho como la cancion de los anuncios: "I'm walking on sunshine... WHOAAA OOOHH.... I'm walking on sun-shine.... WHOAAAA OHHH"

La Belle Vie

This video must be watched to understand this post: CLICK ME.


Ok so a wise man called Christopher Klassen recently reminded me again of the phrase "pictures speak for themselves" and that they might save up some writing time; so what better moment than now (that my head is very tired) to limit my word content and give you a photo tour through my current situation.

Actually, I ended up getting down and jiggy (yes, people still say that) and had some fun practicing facial expressions.

Today:


Cherry on top of a sucky half-week: I lost my passport.


I looked everywhere... seriously, why would it be in my blankets? great now my bed's a mess and I don't want to do it again.




I've been oversaturated with information, but there's a strange force in my body that just forces me to keep collecting pamphlets.



And maps, I have so many I converted it into, hmm, art (?). The walls are too white.


Everytime I take a shower the room floods: "What is this, a center for ants?!?!?!" (For the Zoolander fans)


I haven't unpacked!!! Agh my rooms a mess



I have a freaking schedule of errands for each day... and the list is so long I don't even feel that beautiful satisfaction when I cross something out!! I'm starting to choke, to drown....


ITS TOO MUCH! THE PASSPORT, THE SHOWER, THE INFORMATION, I HAVE TO GO TO THE POLICE TOMORROW, SOMEBODY'S STEALING MY IDENTITY IN THIS MOMENT, I LOST MY CANADIAN VISA, IM SICK OF EATING QUICHE BUT I DONT WANT TO COOK...


I ALSO LOST MY STUDENT CARD THE DAY I GOT IT, AFTER LINIG UP FOR TWO HOURS!! I GOT LOST IN THE METRO AND I HATE MY RINGTONE AND DONT KNOW HOW TO CHANGE IT!!!!!

La belle vie................ NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That felt good, it honestly feels so good to bitch about life doesn't it?