Post ten

English Language Challenges

My experience learning English at university this semester has been very good, and I think it has been a great experience, because this class of English was different from the others I've had, and i’ve liked the dinamic of the class, I've had a great time because it made me forget about the university for a moment.

Also it helped me to realize all the things I've forgotten about speaking in English, because a few years ago I had a very good level of english. Although I can understand everything they say to me, today I find it very difficult to communicate well, especially speaking, and also I need to improve my pronunciation.

I liked writing on the blog because I needed to use words I didn’t know before so I learned a lot. And I liked the topics.

I read a lot and in my free time and I like to watch some series and I usually do it in english but I think I need to start talking in english to improve my level. This is very important to my because some day I want to go on an Exchange.

Past, present and future

Past

Well, at the beginning of this year, everything was very good. I fulfilled all the goals I set myself and I had a very good semester in college.

Present

Now, even though I've done well in college, I am extremely tired, to the point where it has sickened me a little :(

Future

At the end of this semester I hope to be in peace haha. I want to replay my hobbies because I really miss the music. I'm thinking in coming back to the orchestra

Post 9

The first thing I would change in this program would be the time that “the most important subject in the career” demands, and yes, I’m talking about workshop. Sometimes I this I’ts overrated, and I know, designing is the main thing that an architect should do, but not always is like this. Personally I don’t like thinking all day in workshop and I really like the another subjects, sincerely, more than workshop but I don’t have enough time for it.

Another consequence about this is that we are almost all day here in the faculty. And sometimes we have to work here all the night or pass all the weekend working here and it’s very difficult to us to learn to be without our families, even if we live with them.

Another thing I really don’t like about FAU is the infrastructure that it has, and I’m not talking about air conditioned or the lack of toilet paper, I’m talking about an infrastructure that everyone can use, especially the old and the disabled people. Because here we don’t have any elevator and it doesn’t have any sense for me because all the workshop classrooms are in the second floor, and everybody here (obviously in architecture and design) has workshop, so it would be very difficult for someone that is in wheelchair or using crutches.

I really like FAU but it has many things to improve.

A person I admire

Thom Yorke is a famous English singer, and the leader of my second-favorite band: Radiohead, he is known for his particular falsetto vocals. Also he is a multi-instrumentalist (he plays the guitar, piano, bass and also drums) and he writes his own songs. He is very talented.

He started at the age of seven in the musical word, whe he had his first guitar. And in school he met the members of his first band, which was called “On a Friday”, because they only could practice these day.  After that he studied fine arts in Exeter University but he continued with his band. In 1992 they changed the band name to “Radiohead”, and they started to get noticed whit their song “Creep”

Apart from Radiohead, Thom has many of solo works and a second band, called Atoms for Peace with members of another recognized bands.

Another thing I like about him is that he is vegetarian and he practices yoga.

As you see, Thom Yorke is a very versatile person because, apart of his musical career, he is an activist on behalf of human rights, environmentalist and anti-war causes. He is constantly criticizing the global warming, politics, economic problems and also the musical industry. Many of his songs are inspired on these topics.

Here is a video of him

Summer Holidays

Well, this time we’re only going to have one moth of vacations, and sincerely I will prefer to stay in my home resting all day haha but I’m going to think in a full vacation month with a lot of energy:

For some reasons I have family in many countries, like Mexico, Spain, USA and Autralia, but I’ve never gone to these countries (except of Spain) and I really like to travel, so I have this facility to have where to stay but sadly the tickets are very expensive.

This time I would like to visit my uncles and cousins in Mexico, because they used to come to Chile frequently but now they haven’t come and I miss them. They live in Mexico City near the downtown, so the first thing I would do there is going to see the mariachis.

After that I would walk around the historical center of the town, maybe I would eat a ‘taco’ (without meat) or I would try some typical food. And I really like spicy food, so I want to try the real chili peppers

I’ve always felt curious about the history of Mexico, and the Aztecs pyramids. I think there is a unique place in the world, so that would be the next stop:

And finally I have a cousin who lives in Cancun, so that would be the final stop in Mexico to rest:

dreaming is free haha

Special talents

Well, I think there are two types of people: the talented ones, those who are born with natural abilities in some area and second, the people who get a high level in something only with a lot of constant effort.
In my case I think I don't have any special talent, but I became "good" at some musical things only with a lot of daily study and practice: I play violin and I sang in a chorus.
When I joined the 'musical world' I was 13 and I didn't have any approximation to this area. And at that time, in the theorical classes, I couldn't walk and clap at the same time (a really basical thing in music), and also I coudn't note the difference between two notes, and many of my classmates could do it, but I didn't feel bad about that. it was like a motivation for me: to be as good as the others where. So I started to study very hard to my therical classes and to practice violin between two or three hours every day. My musical teachers noted my motivation, so they helped me a lot to improve my level.
At the end of these year I became one of the "best" of my class and at the final presentation I had to play alone! (it was something like twinkie twinkle little star, but It's really difficult haha) I was to nevous because there was my family and friends, but it was an succes for me.

With the time I continued improving and I became a "second chair" in my orchestra (it's something like the second leader of all the orchestra and in music is very important where you seat, it says a lot of your skills and abilities) and I had to assist the "first chair" and take many important decisions in the orchestra.

It's very difficult tuning the orchestra, because everyone depends on you

Actually I left the orchestra because of the university but I'm thinking in comig back, I miss it a lot.

Postgraduate studies

Well, I'm not really sure of what else I could study in future so I have two possible options:

The first one is related with my taste for history (and architecture, obviously), and I really like ancient buildings and historical monuments, like churches (but not in a religious way), old palaces and castles. So an option could be study heritage restoriation, because I think it's really important to preserve our heritages that are very damaged and undervalued nowadays, specially here in Chile. I'd really like to study this in Spain, because in general, there is a good place to learn this, there they are very well instructed about how to maintain these ancient buildings. And personally I would prefer presential classes because I'd really like to live there for a period of time and maybe work there if it's possible.

And about my second option I'm less sure, but music is very important in my life, and I regret a little to hadn't spend the time it needed in this period of time here in the university, so I'd really like to study something related to it. Maybe in relation with architecture could be to specialize in concert halls design or to deep in the relation that both have. Another different option could be to study music theory or to continue playing the violin in an amateur way.