An update of sorts

I haven't been blogging much lately due to the fact that my life over the last few days has consisted of:

1) Wake up
2) Work
3) Buy food
4) Work
5) Eat Food
6) Work
7) Sleep
8) Rinse, Repeat.

And in between all these steps there's been a lot of procrastinating thrown in.

However, I have set myself a new goal. I have a 3,000 word essay to complete by May 4th. I have set myself the target of finishing it before next Thursday when I return home to Plymouth for my brother's birthday party. I will do it. This new target has given me some va-va-voom, some drive to complete the essay, tending to make me less vulnerable to distraction. It feels like an age since I've been out in Cardiff for a proper night out. Further incentive to finish this damn essay.

I feel like I've forgotten all my Spanish. Since my week in Italy, my Italian has improved and I am always speaking it in lessons. However we hardly get any opportunity to speak Spanish, except for in our conversation lessons but even in those classes you are in a room with about ten other people so with a group discussion between ten people in 50 minutes we get very little time each to make our voices heard. Luckily we are assigned a Spanish ERASMUS student with which to speak. I haven't met up with mine at all this semester due to my ridiculous amount of work making me lose track of time so I am going to have a day with her this Friday in the sun and hopefully have my Spanish speaking powers rejuvenated.

As there haven't been any real blog-worthy developments on the Cardiff end of the scale, I'll divulge into a little of my family life. My parents have been house hunting for a while now and have made an offer today which was accepted.

I'm yet to see it in person but my parents and brother assure me it's wonderful. Either way, from the pictures I've seen it looks like an improvement on our current house. Plus anything is better than my cell up here in Cardiff and my modest house I'll have here next year. So friends who know me in real life, you could (and most probably will) end up partying and sleeping with me (not in a gay way, unless you're a girl, but still not gay) in this house. It has quite a sizeable drive if I say so myself. Hopefully there's a permanent home in there for my drum kit. Not the drive, the house.

I can't wait to see it properly. I hope my brother hasn't shotgunned the best bedroom.

Now I bid thee farewell with a parting gift for those of you with spotify which is probably a very small minority, if anybody. It is my super-awesome summer playlist, packed with tunes for grilling slabs of beef on a griddle heated by pure fire in the great outdoors, for driving down long dusty country lanes, shades on, wind in your hair; songs for looking out at the infinity of the ocean, or at the stars sat by a fire and just feeling a general sense of contentment. Yeah you get the idea. Spotify is really useful for making playlists to easily show to others. I find it really gratifying bringing music into people's lives. So if you have spotify, give this a listen while getting ready for a lovely day in the sun.

My Super Awesome Summer 2010 Playlist


Saludos,

Sam

España, nos veremos pronto

As you may or may not be aware, I am a languages student. I have been studying my primary foreign language, Spanish, for seven years yet I still haven't graced its shores.

This summer that must change. My course mates are always shocked to hear I haven't been there. They say the passion I display for the country when I speak about it leads them to assume that I must have at least been to the country once to garner such a love for it.

I have been saving as much as possible over the last few months to go travelling around Spain this summer with my friend Chris who's currently in Mexico. However his financial situation has taken a turn for the worst and he is unable to come. Looks like I could be going it alone. Mission statement: find somebody to come with me.

Recently I have had many people, be it friends or flatmates, telling me that my taste in music is very weird and eclectic. I prefer the term 'good' but who am I to change the words of others? My friend Chris, upon me moaning to him about British nightclubs in a fashion similar to that in my previous post, told me that I should start my own nightclub. If only I could. It would quite possibly be the best place ever.



The Easter break is nearly over. I have a 3000 word essay to write over the next month and lots of work and exams that lie between me and summer.

I long for Spanish shores to save me from this monotony.

Sam.

The Shadow of the Wind

I finally finished reading La sombra del viento by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, although I did end up reading the second half in my English version of the book, The shadow of the wind.

At first I felt a bit crestfallen, as if I had given up. It wasn't that I had given up however. It's just that when you have to read a 250 page book of 1912-17 Spanish poetry for your course, it's hard to have a Spanish novel on the go as well, especially because reading in a foreign language drains me and is far from the relaxing and effortless experience of reading in English. Another reason for my switch to the English version was that the plot had me gripped to the point where I just had to get to the end and fast. Besides, I did read 300 pages in Spanish and the remaining 200 in English. Not bad for a first attempt at reading a Spanish novel.

It's a brilliant and enchanting book and I would recommend it to anybody. Globally, it is the second highest selling novel to ever come out of Spain; second only to Don Quijote de La Mancha, the cornerstone of Spanish culture and literature. The plot deals heavily with the joys of reading, reinforcing these joys for the reader themselves and it is set in Barcelona, Zafón's own home town which he describes with such fluid accuracy that it feels as if he is holding your hand as you float through the city on the wings of his words. If you click the cover below it will take you to Amazon so you can read about it, if you're interested.

Lang-8

I have just found a new online obsession via a facebook advertisement that caught my eye (turns out those ads do have some use after all.

The website is called Lang-8 and is an international social network for those learning languages. You simply create a profile, giving details of your native languages and languages you study and then the website recommends people to befriend who have similar criteria, meaning that they are either learning your native language, you are learning their native language or both.

The site works by users writing journal entries which are kind of like mini blog posts. You write these journal entries in one of your foreign languages and then native speakers can make corrections and leave comments.

Users are also able to communicate via messages and skype. This site looks like it could be very beneficial.

Any language learners (that means you Chris) should try it out.

It can be accessed at http://www.lang-8.com

There's a first time for everything

Today I put a deposit on a house for the first time in my life. We have been viewing many student houses over the last few days and today we saw the perfect one. It is wonderful compared to these halls of residence and now that we know that it's ours we all want to move in straight away.
The lease starts on 1st July so I can go up whenever I want in my car with a couple friends who can sleep on the couch in summer.

I haven't been blogging much lately due to the fact that I've been occupied with all these house viewings and the only topic I would have been able to blog about would have been the sheer amount of work I have to do.
I have had to put my reading of the Spanish novel, La sombra del viento, on the back-burner because we have now started a new Spanish literature module in which I have been set the task of reading a whole book by Wednesday.
So I'm currently juggling reading with the preparation of my presentation on climate change which I will give for my Spanish oral exam. It's weird how fast this first year is going.

Back in Caerdydd

So once again I bade farewell to home on Saturday, shaking off the cobwebs from my messy farewell party from the night before.
I spent the weekend with my parents in a hotel up here, showed them round and, most importantly, ate out at some lovely restaurants; an occurrence which will become pretty scarce in the months that are to follow.

Today I got stuck into my lessons again with surprising enthusiasm. After such a long Christmas break, it is nice to have a worthwhile outlet to put my mind at work.

I'm still plodding away at my Spanish novel, La sombra del viento. I put a good two hours into it tonight.
I found a quote in it that resonated with me somewhat, which I will leave you with:

- Los libros son aburridos.
- Los libros son espejos: sólo se ve en ellos lo que uno ya lleva dentro - replicó Julián.


"Books are boring"
"Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you," answered Julián.

Write me a story

I've just noticed that for my first Spanish grammar assignment this year I need to write a short story of 300 words ending with the phrase Se miraron el uno al otro y sonrieron, meaning They looked at one another and smiled. 

I'm going to start coming up with ideas soon but I thought it would be amusing to see what you guys come up with for story ideas. So if you're reading this and thinking 'I could write 300 words ending in that phrase', feel free to do it (in English) as a comment to this post. 

You never know; I may end up using it.

The Finish Line

The exams are done; banished from my head and leaving my mind clearer. And I sit here back in Plymouth once again, typing this. My proper return to Cardiff will be this Saturday. Until then I can relax.
The exams all went really well, and I found out today that I got a B in my Spanish assessed grammar test which I did before Christmas. This was one of the best marks out of everyone on the course so I'm pretty happy and have nothing to complain about right now.
I read the whole of Pasta per Due, a little Italian book we had to read over Christmas, on the train today. Even though it's a laughably simple and short book, it's still satisfying to say you have read three books in Italian when you have barely been studying the language for three months.
Right now my head is filled with dreams of travelling to Spain in the summer. I have never been so I am planning on going for at least a month and making it a brilliant trip.
I'm thinking of possibly setting up a travel blog when I go, which I may use for all posting while travelling; especially on my year abroad.
Also my trip to Italy is at the end of the March.
I think this year should be a good one.

A Sunday Smile

There's nothing like a decent cup of tea. Heralded mascot of Britain, the humble cup of tea never fails to boost morale during these cold winter months. Its fellow cupboard-dwelling cousin, coffee, looks on jealously every time I reach for the tea bags, wishing it was in America where it would truly be appreciated.

I retract my statement from my previous post about the snow being shit down here. It was a classic case of saying something too soon, as over the last few days Britain has been blanketed in beautiful white powdery layers of snow. A few days ago, I woke up and looked outside my bedroom window to behold the results of a night where mother nature had been working hard painting me a beautiful picture.

The novelty soon wore off.
Snow seems to make Britain come to a stand still. Transport became erratic with delays and cancellations everywhere. And what better than to have this than at a time where I need to be travelling up to Cardiff in a couple of days for exams?

But the cup of tea tells me in its warm reassuring voice, "Relax, it'll all be fine." And I believe it.

I got a haircut yesterday and it no longer resembles a bush. On the way down from the salon, I stopped off at University Bookshop, a small and cosy little book store where as many books as possible have been crammed in. It's like an Alladin's cave of literature and knowledge.

Naturally, I headed straight for the foreign language section. On perusing the dusty little wooden shelves, I selected my first victim, Crónica de una muerte anunciada. Another piece of glorious Spanish fiction for my linguistic quest for self-improvement. I also purchased a copy of Marcovaldo, an Italian fiction book which looks to be at my level of reading. I will tackle it in the summer when I have more time on my hands.

I then went to Drake Circus in Waterstones. I still am yet to finish La Sombra del Viento however I am almost half way through and have fallen in love with it so much that I chose to buy the English version, The Shadow of the Wind, which will serve two functions. Firstly, rather than having a dictionary by my side as I read the Spanish version, I will merely cement my understanding of the Spanish version by taking a glance at difficult passages in the English version. Secondly, I plan on one day reading the English version all the way through because it is such a wonderful book.

This blog came in a moment of procrastination from my Italian history revision. I better get back to it.

That's all folks.

Goodbye old friend

We took down the Christmas tree yesterday, and with its departure came a feeling of disillusionment as I shook off the last remnants of glittery tinsel and magic I had been submerged in for the last couple of weeks.

Life is back to normal. It's got to that stage when the cold weather (and what little snow we get down here on the coast) isn't welcome any more and I just want it to be summer again. I've finally finished my essay for my Education & Society module which is a huge weight off my shoulders but with the disenchantment that came after we lovingly boxed up the Christmas tree and put it in the loft, where it will wait patiently until next year, I realised that I will be returning to Cardiff soon. And that means there are exams to prepare for; something which I plan on doing from now until I go back up there.

In other news, I'm still reading La Sombra del Viento. I'm almost two fifths of the way through now. It's a slow but satisfying achievement and I'm trying to work on my foreign reading technique to make me read faster yet still understand the plot.

Home

 So, yesterday I returned to my motherland of Plymouth. It's brilliant to be back. I feel a sense of familiarity paired with an odd sense of unfamiliarity simultaneously.

Exiting the A38 and entering Plympton, I gazed upon those old paths and streets in which I grew up with a smile and a feeling of returning to see an old friend after a long time apart.

I invited my friends Sherwin and Luke to my house for a few beers. I picked them up in my car, having not driven for 3 months, which was, to say the least, interesting! When we got to mine, I instantly slipped back into our old ways, catching up, laughing and joking. I feel like, with all my friends down here, no matter how long I go away for, our friendship will always remain strong. Within minutes I was brought up to speed with what I had missed and it was as if I had never left.

I would have liked more friends to have come over but, what with them being broke and due to me inviting everyone on such short notice, it was only the three of us.

We went to the end of the street to catch a bus into town at about 11PM. As the bus came to a stop for us, the engine went off which made me think 'I swear they usually leave the bus running to let people on'. We boarded and, sure enough,the driver was fiddling with the controls attempting in futility to restart the bus, spurred on by a flashing battery light on the dashboard. Are they called dashboards in buses or is that just cars? Alas, I digress.

So, there we were stood, faced with a smattering of puzzled looking passengers, very aware that if the bus hadn't stopped for us it would probably still be functioning.

We abandoned the broken bus and called a taxi to town. It was a good night, not too crazy; which gave us time to have a good old catch up.

Since studying at Cardiff and being around lots of international students, my confidence socially in other languages has really improved. I was in a club called Firefly and a Spanish word popped up on my radar, at which time my ears pricked up and tuned in. Upon discerning that it was indeed Spanish that they were speaking, I approached the group while Luke and Sherwin were at the bar and started chatting to them in Spanish. This is something I would rarely dare to attempt with English people as we live in such a reserved society where people are closed up in their little cliques with no thought of talking to others, unless they are hammered and want to grind against each other's sweaty bodies. The Spanish people were really nice and I even got one of their numbers so I can text them to meet up again when we're all out.

Due to the lack of numbers last night, we're doing it all again tonight.

It's good to be back!

Must. Finish. Essay.

Possibly in light of last night's dream (see previous post), I have been struck by a wave of inspiration to finish my Spanish history essay, entitled 'Why did the Franco regime last so long?', before we break up for Christmas on Friday.
So here I am slaving away at my laptop on the essay, my only motivation being the thought of a burden being lifted from my shoulders, enabling me to have an even merrier Christmas due to the fact that I would have had to do this essay over the Christmas holidays.
My plan alone is 500 words, and the essay only has to be 1000. These are good times my friends.
I wish I was in this constructive mindset more often. Then maybe I wouldn't procrastinate so much, like I am now.
Alas, back to the essay I must go.

Taking the plunge

I very nearly missed my Spanish translation class today. Like a fool I thought it was at 2 PM when it was in fact at 1. However thankfully I realized the error of my ways when I checked my timetable after coming out of the library and got into the class 20 minutes late.
Thankfully I had been engrossed in the Spanish literature section of the library earlier on today and so had decided to take out a Spanish novel called 'La Sombra del Viento' (The Shadow of the Wind) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

Now, my translation teacher is quite a genius, as all the Spanish teachers/professors are, about Spanish literature and so at the end of class I showed him the book and asked if he recommends it at which point he said he was impressed and glad that somebody is using their initiative to further their language skills in their own time and integrate their languages with their hobbies. Get on Sam. All lateness has been forgotten. He then told me it's a very entertaining read and wants to know how I get on.
So now my challenge I've set myself is to read and finish this novel.

Also, is it too early to be thinking about Christmas yet? I'm getting mighty excited!