Your experience learning English at university

When I started the University I knew that I have to put all my energies into this because the University it’s not the same that school. I mean that University it’s more difficult that school because you have to think about things more than remember stuff. My first problem was that I have to read in English some texts. In the school I read in English but not this kind of books, so I needed much effort. I did it and I read the book but I thought that if I practice the English reading, with the time it could be easier. Then I knew the English classes and I liked it because I think that English is a very important language but the classes were some slow and without a lot of practice exercises. I think that English is necessary at the University and the classes are important but we have to make more practice classes.
The English is needed because the entire world is talking English. If we want to be professionals that travel and meet a lot of people we have to know how to communicate with them. In my case I am studying Anthropology and my future job is to know people from different cultures and the English is a great tool to talk with them. To know English today is to have the information. In my case it could mean information from people, talking with them in English, or more access to books from other countries because not all the good books are written for Spanish talkers.
The classes that we have taken are a good start for learning English. The classes are appropriate because we have remembered the things that we learn at the school and that is a great form to practice. The English that we have learning is focused in the writing. In the school it was the same so I think that the classes have to be more focused in other skills like talking or reading books. I believe that the writing maybe is the skill most developed and the talking is a big failure in the Chilean people. If we practice more talking we can talk more fluid and with better accent. Also we could read some books because a thing that the students of Social Sciences made is to read in English so it could make better our understanding in career classes.
As a conclusion I have to say that the classes at the university need to be more practice because the students require this element or tool to learn better the topics of their own career. Also if we practice English more we could use it for the future and to talk with different people and cultures around the world. The English is an amazing tool of communication and we have to know use it in the real life more that write it perfectly at class.

How green are you?

The present times need that people focus on environmentally practices. The people can learn about this from their parents or even in our town council. Town council offers a lot of courses to learn different ways to recycle. Also you can learn in your school to care about your environment, the teachers make us think about our actions in the world. I would like to incorporate recycling into my habits but I can`t. I try to make it but it is very difficult because you have to have a big backyard to collect garbage to recycle it. Besides that I would need more time to do this and I don`t have that time. You have to classify and put in order all the things that you have. I haven`t joined or supported any eco-organizations because I had a bad experience with one of them. I called to the people of Greenpeace to know if I could help them with something and they told me that I have to pay to be a member and also collaborated with some money every month. They didn`t need my help, so I felt that nobody could help because they only want our money. Actually I didn`t do anything to help the environment. Maybe the only help that I do is that I don`t through the garbage on the floor. I have never got dirty my town because that is a very little gesture that we all can do. To reduce my carbon footprint I started not to buy things in spray because they through a lot of free radicals to the sky that destroy the ozone layer. I think that our society, in the same way that I think, have no time or forces to recycle. But that thing that they don`t know is that we can do a little thing to help like being a clean person and do not buy contaminating things like sprays or detergents.

My age of High school

I lived my high school between 2005 and 2008. I went to Santa Cecilia high school in La Florida. It was a little place with 200 people and about 15 teachers. During the high school I discovered my love for the humanities and specific subjects like History and Philosophy. I loved History because I had a great teacher that made us think about the experiences that the people lived in other times. About philosophy I like it, but not in the way of History. The philosphy teacher was an unstable person so I didn`t learn in a constant way. In that time I understood that you couldn`t focus in one area of kwnoledge so I started to feel interest in Maths. I really love Maths because you don`t have to think, it is all very mechanic. That is what I love because it is like a form to relax myself. My school wasn`t very good in technology , we had only 3 computers and one big screen for all the school. Also the overhead projectorwas always in bad conditions, we could never use it. My theachers in a general way were very good professionals but like every place there are people that are not very kind. I had a teacher that was very lazy, he never wanted to do class and he only liked football. My school didn`t affect my dessicions in life later on because they never taught me about Anthropology or never mentioned it. I think that my dessicions depended on other persons that I met during that time. I met an anthropologist that showed me everything that we could do for the people.
To make better our education system I would propose structural changes like improving the training of teachers and finding a way to ensure that the person who is going to be a teacher really likes it. Also we have to change the way of teaching the present subjects, we have to make students think, not only repeat thing by heart. They have to find solutions, to make things and use his or her imagination. Also about this topic we have to think in the responsability of every person in her or his own education because if we don`t want to study any person can make us change. But it is true that we can learn tol ove studying from a very young age.

Myth, Manners and Memory: Photographers of the American South

The American south has been seen in an unrealistic way in literature, film, popular music and photography. This images and representations have colonized our collective imagination and given us a different image of the reality of the American south.
In photography, there are two viewes. The first is from the inside of American south with native photographers like Eggleston, William Christenberry and Eudora Welty. The second one is an outsider group. The photographers here are Walker Evans, Carrie Mae Weems, Alec Soth and Susan Lipper. All of these artists, except Welty, are involved in the project Myth, Manners and Memory. This group shows their art in De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill.
Walkers Evans’ photographs are taken between 1935 and 1938 during the Depression and it shows the poorness and struggle that the people suffered in that time. It changes the image of South America in the world and in the American south itself.
Christenberry and Evans went to Hale County, Alabama and took photographs of that place because it was their muse for them.
Eudora Welty, other photographer, shows a different way of seeing American south. She cares about the artistic and mythical resonance that it is in landscapes, cityscapes, street scene and roadside scenes. She saw this place like a mystic world but this is accepted with familiarity.
Weems is the most political photographer because he portraits the racist history in the American south. He contrasts all the negative ways of racism with the refined social etiquette of the rich plantation families.
As we can see there are many ways to discover the real American South that is full of old and new stories that make this place mysterious and magical but with a social point of view.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/oct/03/myth-manners-and-memory-review

Amost Famous

My favourite movie is Almos Famous, a movie from Cameron Crowe. The movie starts in a small town and ends in New york when the tour of a rock band finishes. It is about an adolescent who likes to write about rock. He writes for an important magazine and one day the editor of Rolling Stone calls him and tells him that he wants him to write an article about a rock band. He knows a band called Steelwater and makes the tour that the band is doing. During the trip he meets groupie called Penny Lane and falls in love with her; also he really knows how the rock band is because he sees all the egos, the infidelities and the drugs. The principal characters are William performed by Patrick Fuggt who is a very shy boy but a good writer. Russel is the guitar player who William admires represented by Billy Crudup, he is a good person but is unfaithfull to his girlfriend with a groupie called Penny Lane. Penny Lane is stared by Kate Hudson. I have a lot of favorite parts but the one that I love is when William introduces Penny Lane to Russel. The scene is very funny but romantic because they have met before a long time ago, they were lovers. In that scene Penny Lane tells him her name and act like if she doesn`t know him. The scene is very beautiful and the images is amazing. I love this movie for the story and over all, for the music. In the movie there are songs from Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, Led Zeppelin, Elton John and a lot of other rock bands of the 60`s. The other thing that I like is the character of Penny Lane. I like how is she and her lifestyle, she is a free soul. I wouldn`t change anything to this movie because every time that I see it I discover something new.

That horrible image...

The last piece of news that I heard and surprised me was that “Café Torres” gave to the president Sebastián Piñera the "honor" to have a sandwich with his name. The name of the sandwich is “el sandwich Piñera”. It happened yesterday in a ceremony for the Bicentenary at the “Café Torres”. The people there were the diplomatic corps of Chile; they were there to make a toast for the bicentenary with the president. The shocking part for me is that Piñera is not a good person and he doesn`t deserve all the popularity that he is having. Also I think that it is like giving him more reasons increase his ego, he thinks that he is an important person and I don`t agree. I think that this piece of news is not so important but for the people who know “Café Torres” it would be terrible because it is known as a place where the intellectual people go, so to have a sandwich with that name could make a reflection of the change that the intellectuals are living in Chile. Besides I think that Piñera is becoming a cultural referent very important and it is not very good because he reflects values that are not the right ones. He is not a sincere person. I would like to hear some news about more cultural projects because I think that the Chilean people have to do more things for their own and not to depend on the state. We can create a great city with a cultural population movement, not with public figure like mister Piñera who wants to impose his way of being.

Let`s go to China!

I would like to go to China because I love all the culture over there. There are a lot of different food and condiments; I would like to know about how to cook it. Also I would like to learn a little of Chinese and about all the ceremonies that they do, like the tea ceremony. I know that China is a difficult country because the people are very shy and it is a communist country so they are worried about what kind of people travel there. I also know that they are very worried about the manners because they are people who respect each other with a respectfull attitude. If I were in China I would like to visit all the monuments and the historical places like palaces and beautiful gardens. And how I say at the beginning I would try all the food because I really love the things that they do, like use different ingredients from us and weird condiments. I am not scared about trying new food because I learn that we have to try everything we can in this life. I would like to live there for a while, not for a long time; just the enough time to learn some of the culture. I would like to live there and have long walks for all the places of China, even the unknown little villages.

The last semester

This year, during the first term of 2010, I made my third semester in the University of Chile in the carrer of Anthropology. I liked this semester because I had a lot of theoretical courses and I loved it. I learned about Materialism and Linguistics. The importance of these courses is that when I work I will put into practice all this theories on the reality. So I will help the people but with knowledge. I didn`t do any sport because I didn`t have time and also because I wanted to do sports this semester to prepare myself for the summer. The challenges that I had to face were to learn things that I didn`t like, for example I hate Prehistoric because the professor wasn`t a clear person. Besides, I didn`t like “Etnohistoria” because we had to read and comment all the time, we didn`t do anything else so it was very boring and monotonous. With my family the year was a little difficult because we had a few problems but now we are working as a team and we share all our problems and find a solution. My family was the most important support for the last semester because they always helped me when I was stressed or sad. The last semester was very hard but I feel that it shows me that I can beat a lot of difficulties with a little help from my friends (and family).

second semester 2010!

During this semester we wrote on this blog for our English class, we wrote about a lot of topics and now I’m going to talk about our experience writting. I really didn’t enjoy it because I don’t like to write a lot, I prefer to read. I am not used to write so it is difficult to me because you must have imagination and I am not a creative person. I think that it helped me to improve my english but not in an important way because I wrote a lot in the school so I used all the things that I learned there. Maybe it helps me to remember and practice, but not to learn new things. Besides this, the blogging have advantages and disadvantages. Among the advantages we have that the people of other parts of the world can read what you write and comment about a topic. Another advantage is that you can read about differents topics, and in our case we can read differents views of one topic because all the people of the class wrote about one subjet. On the side of the disadvantages you lose some of your privacy because all the world can read about you or what you think, also they can get personal information from you or your friends. Besides, some topics could get anger some people because they don’t like what you said, there are people that not use the argumentation and only fight. Concluding I think that blogs are a good way to put on the world your ideas because a lot of people read it, but you have to be careful of bad people. The blog is an opportunity for discussion but with real arguments, not only because you don’t like what I write.

Cheer up!

The last Friday started the World Cup. I like the World Cup because it is a great time to see matches of soccer with your friends or your family and celebrate doing a tasty food. So the World Cup is the perfect excuse to celebrate and do a party. Also I like the soccer because you want with all your heart that your team win, so you exited for it. Tomorrow plays Chile and I’m going to see the game with my friends, we are going to have a little party all the night and wait for the match of tomorrow. We are going to make a mexican night with tequila and tacos. The problem is that we have a short test tomorrow so we have to go to class without sleep, it would be a real challenge. I am expecting that Chile wins this game and at least the game with Switzerland, because I know that it’s very possible that we lost the game with Spain. I would like that Chile pass to the next round, that would be perfect because I think that Chile needs something that cheer up their spirit. I think that the people had passed for many problems this year and if Chile wins some games the people will have a hope to overcome their problems. I think that the World Cup it’s no so important because Chile has a lot of problems that are forgotten for this, but also I think that it is a very good way of relax yourself and have a good time with the people you care. Also how I said it is a opportunity to give a hope to the people and show them that if you want you can do better things.

I have fear!

This photograph was taken by my friend Coté. We were returning from a trip from Pichidangui in 2008, a nice beach near to Los Vilos. In that moment we were waiting in the car because my mom was shopping in the supermarket. The picture shows me and my friends, the girl next to me is Pamela and the other girl is Coté. The first is very clever and talks a lot and the second is very shy but at the same time very friendly. We were bored so started to take funny photographs. The camera had an option to take photographs at the night, its name is night shot, so we invented horror stories and took photographs of this. In this photograph I was the evil and my friends showed a scared face. I like this photograph because I remember when I was in the school and we made a lot of funny things and we didn’t have shame. I rememeber that in that travel we took a lot of photos in the beach and running or wallowing in the sand or riding horses. Besides we cut our hair and walk across the beach. My friend Coté broght to the trip a game that called “Cranium” that was about doing mimic, draw things, etc; it was very comic because all my family played and everyone did funny faces. Also we talk about many things and ate a lot of food. I missed my school friends, I miss see them every day and teel all my problems or even fight for some stupid thing. I would liked to have more time to visit them but I am sure that in holidays I could do that.

Norway!

My favorite trip was when I visit Norway in 2007. I traveled with a group of other chilean students and an adult. The objective of the travel was to know new people of another countries because it was like a “meeting” of different young people. There I meet persons from Slovakia, Brazil, Uruguay and of course Norway. I stayed there for 2 weeks and we visit a lot of places like a big group. We stayed in a big house and visit the mountains, where we learned to ski. Also we visited the capital city where we lost for a little while, in that opportunity we found another chilean people that live there. We visited a fairy tale museum and a museum of old houses. A good moment was when some friends swam in a frozen lake, I didn´t venture to do that, it was very cold! The most important part of the trip was that I not only knew Norway, I also meet persons of other parts of the world so this experience was very enriching. This people had realities very differents of my life, the brazilian people didn´t have the opportunity to get to the University; they were from the country in Brazil so they were very kind people. The people of Slovakia traveled every year to other parts of Europe for exchange so they knew a lot of different languages. The people of Norway was a little bit cold firt but then they were like a friend of all the life. The better part of my trip was to know this amazing people and give to them a part of my heart.

RESPEKT: REgina SPEKTor

My favorite musician is Regina Spektor. She was born in Rusia but she emigrated to USA when she was six years old. She learned to play the piano when she was a little girl and in USA she continued doing it. When she was 20 years old recorded a disc in her home that one important person listen to so he help her to integrate a new music movement in New York: the anti-folk. This movement takes things of Folk but without the dogmatism and the solemnity. The antifolk have lyrics whit social sustenance, critic acidity and avoid the drama. Regina Spektor takes some of this characteristics and mix it whit jazz and pop rhythms; the result of it is a music that takes you heart but only using simple stories. In personal I loved Regina Spektor because her voice is undescribable. When I hear her music I feel that the time stop and the only thing that I can do is listen it. Another thing that I like about her are the lyrics of her music, it represent little stories that say a lot about life, whit it you can imagine and travel in the time or in the space. My favorite song is Samson. This is a love ballad that talks about a love story that never will be in the History but besides it they are enough for each other. Regina Spektor is my favorite musician because she makes me think and even "talk" whit her about some situations that she say in her songs.

The television

My favorite piece of technology is the television. I just love it. A television, like everyone know, is a screen where you can see all kind of images. The name of this images is programs of television. I have it since I was a little kid. I use it to inform and relax me. I see programs to learn different things like cultural information, how to cook some kinds of food or animal behavior. To have a time of fun I see programs of fashion or cartoons. I use it everyday because I need to inform me, I see the news or just to foget all my worries. I like it because is easy to use it, and in some times you don’t have to think so I use it to rest from all the thoughs of the University. Also I like it because you can learn about differents topics of the world, one day you can see how the people lives in South Africa or how the people make chocolate in a factory in USA. The life would be nothing without it because I am used to it, you can do everything whit television. You can listen music, see a TV series or a movie, watch a cultural program or a fasion program. For me the television is a world of information.

Lasagna for all the people!

My favorite dish is lasagna, it is origin from Italy and Greece. This dish consist in a type of pasta that goes on plates that are intercalated with a “boloñesa” sauce and “bechamel” sauce. I like this dish because my mother make it very well, I freak out when I eat it. I love the way that all the ingredients are mixed perfectly and the color that we can create. The flavor is incredible because the sauces mixed are great together. Now I am going to write how you can do a great lasagna in your home and have a funny time with friends and family.

For the “boloñesa” sauce you need: 400 gr of minced meat, 1 onion, 1carrot, a glass of white wine, 5 tomatos, 25 gr of butter, 70 gr of grated cheese, salt, pepper and olive oil. Then for the “bechamel” sauce you require: ¾ liter of milk, 40 gr of butter, 1 onion, flour and salt. And finaly you have to buy the most important thing: a box of lasagña pasta.

The preparation goes like this: first, in a skillet saute the onion and the carrot diced samllish in olive oil until this became golden brown. Then add the meat and cook it till it see golden, add the glass of wine and let it evaporate. After this add the small diced tomatoes, add salt and pepper and let it cook for 20 minutes. Later in a pot with boiling water and salt put the lasagna pasta for the time that shows the box, then separate them to prevent sticking. For the “bechamel” sauce saute the chopped onion in butter, then remove from the fire. Next add the flour and the milk, beat it until thick. Here goes the funny part, put in a bowl a base of pasta, then a layer of the “boloñesa” sauce and then one of “bechamel” sauce. Make it until the bowl is full. Finally sprinkle the grated cheese and put the bowl in the oven for 20 minutes at 200º. Now you have ready your lasagna!

Margaret Mead

Margaret Mead was an anthropologist, who was born in 1901 and died in 1978. She was a student of Francis Boaz who was the representative of a way of thinking called “Historical Particularism”. She was very influenced by his ideas, but when she made a travel to made an etnography, she started to change. She wanted to investigated the young people because in occidental culture all the people wanted to explain why the adolescents were rebels in that period. Margaret Mead traveled to Papua New Guinea,exactly to Samoa, to studied the culture there, the samoans. They were a culture that have not been studied in depth. She wanted to see if the young people there passed a difficult adolescence or not. She wanted to know if this hard moment were result of the same adolescence or for the influence of the civilization. She conclude that the adolescence in Samoa was soft and whitout concerns; they lived the adolescence in freedom. After this she became a recognized person, specially for the young people, she was a symbol of freedom.
I like Margaret Mead because she broke whit the stereotypes that the society put on us. She started to open the “antropology world” to the people than didn’t know it. Also she was very brave because she went to a place were she didn’t know anyone, and the samoans didn’t know her too. She is an example of love of knowledge.

My night whit the earthquake.

That night I went to a friend`s flat with my boyfriend. We were having a great time, just talking of diferent things. One of theme was about a myth about the production of free energy from USA to produce the earthquake in Haiti and suddenly the lights went out and the building started to shaking. In that momento I think that I was going to die because the building started to creak and I believe that it was going to fall over us. My boyfriend calm me and then we go down to the fisrt floor where the people was very scared. Then I tried to call my family but it was impossible, the line was dead. After that we wait out of the flat until the sun rises and we sleep one hour in the car. Then we return to our homes and the most impressive was the people on the street waiting for the bus to get to their jobs; even in a national catastrophe.

first class on blog

Hi blogger friends!
I am Maite, student of Anthropology in the University of Chile. I am 19 years old and I live in La Florida. I want to study Social Anthropology because I like to relation whit the people, specialy the people that anyonecares about. Now that I am in my second year I want to read all the books that exists in the Earth, because that is my dream since I was a little girl. Maybe I can try it, don`t you think?