What is a journey? ( journey as a metaphor )

A journey in literature for me it’s just not traveling to see a place. Literature helps people visit a place even if it doesn’t exist. I’ve always like the idea of knowing how the world was before I got here. The literature that I have read has helped me visit places in a certain different way. For example, I visited St. Augustine in Florida and it gave me the feeling of being in a different era, but by reading a book that takes place in a year were the fort was use, I was able to interact more with the place. Other example is the forts in San Juan. When I visited ‘’ El Morro”. I saw where they kept the prisoners and for a moment I felt I was actually living in that Era. Other place I would like to relieve would be the renaissance era. I believe that a journey ends where the persons will to continue and imagination ends.

What has become of Antigua ( A Small Place Chap. 3 & 4)

How is it possible that there is no money to repair the library but there is money for the government to steal?  In chapter 3 of ‘’A Small Place’’, Jamaica Kincaid explains how the library was when she was a child and compares it to the current library. When she was a child, the library was in good condition and the librarian was proud of the king of library that Antigua had. When Kincaid returned, she saw that the library was in terrible conditions, had burned and was not repaired. She even mentions that the librarian was ashamed of what the library had become. I personally believe this is a big fail of the education system in Antigua. How can the government provide a good education to the people if they don’t even repaired the library?

                Now I understand why Kincaid mentions that the government is for sale. They answer to the highest bidder. They have a man who was wanted as a developer. They have a stamp system that does not benefit the people. They have a monopoly with Japanese cars, drugs and buildings all own by foreigners. The government has allowed Antigua to be ruled by other people. Things that really need attention like the education and the health care are left unsupervised. Kincaid mentions that ‘’ The hospital in Antigua is so dirty, so run-down, that even if the best doctors and nurses in the world were employed, a person from  another part of the world would not feel confident leaving a domestic animal there.’’(page 65). Sure since all of the rich government people go to other countries to get healthcare, they do not care like for example the minister that had some type of blood disease.

                The government justice system also is failing since they’ve had generals murdered and corrupt ministers steal all the money and make deal with drug dealers. Personally I believe that is the country is not fixed soon, it could lead to a revolution.

                At the end Kincaid tries to save the beauty of Antigua by describing its landscape. She also critics the Antiguan people who she thinks that went from slaves to human being kind of stuck in a small island. I found this book amazing since it showed Antigua like I have never seen it before and it exposes they beauty and horror of the island of Antigua.

48 hours as Journey in Puerto rico

Monday

-          2:20 pm -I am currently in AJBR and I need to get to a building which is name DMN. I believe it is the building in the front.

-          2:30 pm – I arrived successfully at the building for my social science. The classroom is very different from my last classroom.  I noticed that its structure seem older and it’s under construction.

-          3:50 pm - My class is finished and I need to get back to the train. I a going to use the same route which was through the food court, passing by the Lazarro library and arriving at the train. I have to check which train goes to Bayamon.

-          5:00 pm – I arrived at Bayamon. Turns out there is only one train that uses the same route back and forward.

-          6:00 pm- The bus took me home. I will now check the alarms and the schedule for tomorrow.

Tuesday

-          8:00 am - I arrived at the train which goes to the university

-          9:30 am – I noticed my class says LPM. I don’t know where that is. I asked a student and he explained to me that LPM stands for Luis Pales Matos which is a building near the theater.

-          10:00 am – I successfully arrived at my Spanish class. I don’t know why but I am the only men in this classroom. Maybe it has something to do with the culture here in Puerto Rico.

-          11:20 am – I exit the building and went to the JGD which is where biologist make their investigations. I was looking for my TA but the building was close because of unknown reasons. I went to have lunch at a place called pizzamobile.  

-          1:00 pm- I went to the natural science faculty. I had to find a physics lab. I was told it was on the third floor. The building was not what I expected.

-          3:50 pm- I finished my laboratory assignment and went to my math class which was in a room with computers.

-          4:50 pm – I am currently at the train on my way to Bayamon. Beside me is a man who works for St. James security and its crying a bicycle. At first I thought that he used it for work but he only uses it for fun. The bicycle was very strange, it had very vivid colors like light green on the wheels and yellow in the body. Must be a type of bicycle used in Puerto Rico. I also notice that the train does not have a single graffiti but a bunch of building do. Must be that the train is no so old or the make a good job keeping them safe. The train is also a sort of scenic route since it offers a great view from a place which can only be seen from the train because of the height.

-          5:50 pm – I arrived at Bayamon. The bus leaves at 6:00 pm. I went ahead and sat. After the bus left, I realized it has its own lane through the freeway.

-          6:33 – pm I arrived home. I ate some food which tastes funny. It is called alcapurria and I am told it is from Puerto Rico.

-          9:00pm – I finished my homework. I am going to watch some of the local channels to see how they are.

-          10 : 30 pm – Turns out that what they had at the local channel was a documentary of Pablo Escobar. I turned off the television and went to sleep.

Wednesday

-          11:00 pm – I woke up late, had some breakfast and went to the University.

-          12:50 pm – I arrived at my English literature class at the AJBR building.

A Room With a View

A room with a view was a great movie where we see the protagonist, Lucy; goes through both internal and external conflicts. In my opinion, Lucy wanted to be more of a tourist at first, because she went to explore Florence by herself and wanted the room with a view. She represents the very feeling of wanting to explore the world which is the feeling that tourist have. George was more of a traveler since he travel to Florence and then to England to live and wasn’t that interested in exploring.

                Besides having journeys to different places, the movie also has internal journey. Lucy at first didn’t even want to speak to George and was trying to avoid him like (for example when she tried to walk away after he save her from hitting the ground because she fainted when a guy started bleeding from a fight) and during the movie she had this journey where she explore her feelings and began to realized that she actually loved George but had been trying to avoid it. This is a good example of problems that women faced in the repressed culture of Edwardian era England.  Normally in that era, if a young man kissed a young lady, an engagement should be announced to preserve her reputation. This is why Lucy never told anyone about what happen between her and George at Italy. It is because of Lucy’s internal journey that rejects Cecil’s engagement and also to admit that she loved George which in the end led her to live a happy live. George valued Lucy while Cecil saw her more like a painting and didn’t really love her.

                In conclusion, I really like this movie and I think it has a positive meaning about the freedom to be how you want to be, about growing up and about true love.

Margarita, Journey I had

Sometimes people go on a trip to another country and are marked by the culture simply because it is different. There are also vacations in which people see things they never thought existed, or at least in their country. In 2007, I went with my family on a vacation cruise. The third island that we visited on the cruise was Isla Margarita. This island is a part of Venezuela but it is not exactly in their main territory. Just like Vieques is part of Puerto Rico. On the island we took a cab and notice that the driver was always avoiding the freeway. We first went to a place where it was like a church but of a religion that I didn’t recognize. Outside of the church there was a river and it the river there were a group of women that were washing their clothes in the river. It was the first time I had seen something like that in real life. We left the church and went to a mall. In the mall, there were two kids selling socks. My father bought from one of them and gave a dollar to the other. Then the kid who didn’t sold the socks started following us all over the mall and each time he catch us, offer the socks for a lower price. We entered a souvenir shop and the kid started crying because he couldn’t sell the socks. My mother didn’t know what to do but my father called the kid and bought him the socks.

 

 Afterward, we left the mall and went back to where the taxi was. We realized that we were late and we needed to get back to the cruise in the fastest way possible. The taxi driver took the freeway. In the freeway we were stopped by a police. It was then in that moment that I understand why he had been avoiding the freeway. He quickly explained to us that the cops in there make taxis with tourist pulled over on purpose so that the passenger had to bribe the police or else he would stall them for a very long time, causing them to be left by the cruise. We had to put money between our passports, so that when he asked for the passport, he would obtain the money and let us go, we were able to leave successfully and return to the ship on time. This trip made me realized how different the world is and how ungrateful people are. The difference in their culture and society was bigger than what I would have ever imagined.

A small place, Chapter 2

In the second chapter, Jamaica Kincaid explains her anger towards the British people because they were the ones that colonized Antigua and according to Kincaid, damaged Antigua. This anger is normal since the British came and took the land which was not theirs and used it for their own wellbeing. Kincaid mentions that in Antigua there are streets named after British people whom I believe should be changed because people in Antigua do not see them as good people. It is clear that Jamaica Kincaid has suffered racism and blames the British which I agree because they were the ones that brought slavery to Antigua and America. Antigua lost many of her culture when it was replaced with the culture from England. It is clear now why they hate tourist so much. They see them all as equal to the British and the hate they have toward England is understandable because they have suffered lot because of England.

Jamaica Kincaid explains that they even lost their language and now speak English which is why the book is in English. She mentions that she met the world through England, and if the world wanted to meet me it would have to do so through England, I believe that what she means is that she learned from the British English but she also learn to hate and suffer and this is why she criticizes England in the book, To hate is what she earned from the British people.

Her situation is similar to the current situation in Puerto Rico since we are a colony of U.S.A., the only difference is that the majority of puertoricans do not want to be an independent country. There has been hate by some people towards United States but most people like being a part of the United States while in Antigua they hated England. Also Puerto Rico didn’t lost his culture, Puerto Rico is more like a mixture of different culture which also makes it hard to blame someone in particular since for example, the native language is Spanish and that native language in United States is English. In conclusion, the situation is similar but there is very little hate toward United States because the lost we had was very small compared to Antigua.

A small place, chapter 1

I am actually amazed how Jamaica Kincaid describes Antigua because I have goned to Antigua and had almost the same thoughts that she had about the vegetation and about getting charged extremely high by a taxi driver. I also notice the diference in cars like she mentions when I went to Antigua. When I went to Antigua, it was on a cruise so I was only there for 8 hours so I didn't worry so much about the part the hospital and the library but I am sure if I were to stayed for a longer time, I would worry about the medical care in the island. I believe that it is also made clear by the author that in Antigua there are two kinds of society: the rich and the poor. I believe it is unfair that only a few  people get to live on mansions while the rest are poor.

The way she describes the tourist is as an ugly human being, which I personally do not agree. Just because a person does not have the means to become a tourist does not mean he can hate the tourist that come do their home. Especially in a place like Antigua where the economy depends on the tourism. Sure some tourist believe themselves superior to other people but not every tourist is like that, besides who doesn't want to be a tourist at some point of their lives and just escape reality. I think that she should not describe tourist like this because she would have to include herself in that description if she ever is was or becomes a tourist at some point of her life.

Opinion about chapter 8

I think that letting people cheat on the test was wrong and was not helpfull. The students could get use to cheating and they didn't actually learn anything. On the other hand, the education was not working and this was the only way they could pass the class. I believe that what students did not understand was that by letting other people copy in the exams, they were not actually helping them. Puertorricans got used to passing classes without learning anything. Like the author explained, if a teacher failed a student, the parents would think that it was because the teacher didn't like the student. The lowest grade that the teachers were used to give was C. This was very wrong because although they passed the class, the students didn't learn english which was the objective of taking the course. The helping was not really helpfull.