Ya termina la primera semana de clases.

Wow, the first week of classes is over. The literature classes have been interesting. I actually had read the first short story de Borges that we explored in class. Sometimes it's frustrating because I can't communicate everything that I want to say as concisely and effectively as native speakers but after discussions in class, I definitely understand these short stories and the different styles the authors use.

In my first class, we started with Borges' "La Intrusa" that talks about two outcast brothers and their mistreatment of a Juliana Borgos, their servant. We followed up with la re-escritura (new rendition) of the classic by Mercedes Mercader, called "Los Intrusos," this version tells the story from Juliana's point of view. My first written homework (trabajo) was a comparison in how she uses Borges story and the method of intertextualidad (citing, alluding and placing other works in your own to make a point) to highlight this mistreatment of women.

In my second class we've been discussing the "Boom" of Latin American literature in the past 40 years. How it stems from a rich tradition of journalism, and the need to inform that masses. We started with a work of magic-realism by Gabriel Garcia-Marquez. This stories about an old man who has wings, and how different people in the neighborhood receive him. We discussed how the author incorporates lo real (reality) with lo insolito (the unlikely).

I've done my homework on the beach, and relaxed in the local spots, like Plaza del Agua and a cafe near Guermes this week. Plaza del Agua was pretty cool, actually, there was a band playing called Mandala that covered all sorts of latin songs. I went with Michelle, Leo, Susannah and Alex because for their group project their covering all the Plazas. Their assistant knew the band, so it was a cool experience.

Tonight, I have a mandatory play to attend with my class. It's based off of the poetry of Alexandra Pizarnik, a very tragic poet from the 1940s in Buenos Aires. I read some of her stuff in Spanish 276 at Hunter, and am interested to see how it is adapted for stage.