The Best Concert I've ever had

Arcturus (one of my favorite bands) at The Metal Fest 2013.

I think the best concert I've ever went was The Metal Fest. It was in 2013 at the movistar arena, and it lasted almost all day starting at 10:00 in the morning to 23:00 at night, and this timetable was for Saturday and Sunday. Of course it was a very expensive festival, considering that was a multi-concert with like twenty bands in total. I went both days with a group of friends and we enjoyed almost every band in the main stage (mostly for take advantage of the money we spent in the tickets). The main reason for me to go was that two of my favorite bands were part of the line in different days, so I didn't think it for too long and I just bought the ticket a few weeks later from the announcement. 

 Even though I didn't know all the bands in the festival, I enjoy every concert and sang (and by sang I mean yelled out of tune) all the songs. The two bands that I waited the most were amazing in stage, and I was very surprised that I wasn't the only person who knew them. There were few moments when I got bored or tired (yelling and jumping are pretty much like sports in metal concerts), so when this happened we went outside the stage to rest and eat some of the very expensive desserts offered by the producers.

The next Monday I couldn't even get up from my bed. I was so tired that I missed a test and few classes at the university, but I regret nothing. 

My favorite movie

McDowell and Kubrick chatting and being awesome. 

This is a very hard question. I can't say I have an absolute favorite movie, but I think the movie that changed my perception of cinematography is A Clockwork Orange. This movie absolutely blows my mind the first time I saw it, because I was used to more "mainstream" action movies with immortal protagonists saving the world from terrorism. This movie shows precisely the opposite part of the story: 

The main character is called Alex DeLarge, a fourteen years old teeneger played by (the always awesome) Malcolm McDowell. Alex lives in a disthopian future where London (and presumably other cities in the world) are infested by numerous gangs. Of course, our main character is the leader of one of those gangs, and the movie focuses in the "misadventures" of this gang in the first act. 

The breakpoint of the story comes when Alex is sentenced to 14 years in prison after murdering an old woman. After two years in prison, Alex offers himself as a guinea pig for a new aversion therapy recently developed named "Ludovico technique", whose researchers claim it can rehab a criminal in two weeks. 

My favorite part of this film is the third act, when the viewers can see the complete "rehab" process of Alex with the Ludovico Technique and its effects. Here the film also shows the consequences of Alex previous crimes, and how this events change the life of his victims. 

 The reason why I like this movie is primarily the setup and art direction. The music and aesthetics of the film are masterfully put together in almost every scene, and also works as a metaphor of how Alex sees his criminal life, more like a "piece of art" than mindless destruction. I also like the acting (specially McDowell), but with a script done by Stanley Kubrick is really unlikely  that the cast could fail in their portrayal. 

Since A clockwork orange is a movie based on a novel, I think this is one of the few times that the film surpasses the original source. The only aspect I kind of miss from the novel is the ending, mostly because I think it is more realistic and do a better job showing that humans aren't inherently evil. This is one of the reasons why Anthony Burgess (the author of the original novel) despises the Kubrick adaptation.

As I said earlier I can't say this is my favorite movie at the time, but the influence in my perception of cinema as a form of art is immense, and I watch this movie almost every time I catch it on cable tv....

(I just realise that I did a post in 2010 about the same movie! OMG! Well, that shows how important is this movie for me ;D.)

Which country would you like to go to?

I don’t have a particular place or country of preference. Maybe I would like to go to China or another Far East place, mostly because my mom's great-grandmother and great-grandfather came from China. Because of that I have a little percentage of Chinese blood in my veins (like 0,00000001%). When I was in primary school I did several dissertations about mythology, typical food and another cultural aspects of China, but to be honest I don't remember anything about them. If I go to China some time in the future, I think I would visit some temples or other important buildings. I love Chinese painting and pottery, so it would be interesting to visit a museum too. Anyway, I don't like the idea of studying or working in China, mostly because the Chinese language is so difficult that not even the native Chinese people could talk it properly. Also, for what I know, the working conditions aren't the best and the salary is really low. China seems to be a very interesting place culturally, but not the kind of country where I would like to live.

Semester 2; Level 4. WELLCOME!

I'M BACK!!! :D Now that I'm finally doing the level 4 in the English class (after a long hiatus), I have to introduce myself: My name is Constanza Pino Leon. I'm 22 years old and I’m studying physical anthropology at Universidad de Chile. At the moment I’m in the 5th year of my career, which means that I should be doing my Thesis, but I have some courses to finish first before I could begin my thesis and start my internship. Since I’m still studying I still live with my parents and my older sister. My mom is a doctor who works in public service (in SML and in an office In Peñalolen), while my dad works at General Electric as an Industrial designer. My sister also works in public service in a district attorney. My favorite hobby is drawing. I draw since I was a little girl, mostly learning by myself anything about proportions, modeling, coloring, etc…I like drawing so much that I always carry a sketchbook in my backpack, so I can practice in the recesses. I think my main weakness in English is that I’m not very good at oral interactions, mostly because I can’t enunciate very well (not even in Spanish).I can understand papers in English easily or even movies without subtitles, but when I try to talk I stutter and can’t finish the sentence. I wish I could speak more naturally at the end of the semester.

A clockwork post

Sometimes I have doubts about movies based in novels. When I already read the original novel, I could be really demanding and perfectioninst when I am watching the movie, and I start to compare the characters and elements of the plot with the original story. But sometimes cases I like this kind of movies, even though the story have few diferences with the original. This is the case of clockwork orange, which is my favorite movie, because I still love the movie althoug it has a diferent final. In my oppinion, I think the Stanley Kubrick`s story ir more pessimist than the Anthony Burgues `s because this differences beetween both plots, but I really like the two versions in different ways.


Both versions have the same plot: Alex DeLarge, the main character, is a eighteen years old teenager that lead a gang. They commit many violent crimes, as violations and robbery, and in one of this crimes Alex is imprisioned. In the reformatory, Alex try to act like a reformed convict to get benefits from the authorities and try to be free as quick as possible. Because of his good maners and conduct que got acces to the “Ludwig treatment”, a method created to reformate criminals permanently using medicines and psicological techniques.After Alex was subjected in this treatment he refuse to do any criminal act, and suffered spasms any time he try to commit crimes. Finally, Alex was interned in a hospital once he tried to commit suicide, and he became the center of media attention because the cruel use of the "Ludwig treatment" in him.

The principal fact that change the perspective of the Burgues`s version is the main character. In both stories Alex is a violent, and also a pollite person. However , in the Burgues`s version Alex is even more charming, specially with womens. The Kubrick`s vision of Alex is more cruel, and this adds with the shocking aesthetic of the film. Ignoring others diferences in the plot, the most important divergence is the final. In the film, Alex lose all the effects of the tratment and return to his violent personallity. In the other hand, the novel finish with the permanent rehab of Alex, and he turn in a good person. This is the aspect that change completly the message of the story: Kubrick shows a pessimist vision of crime, while Burgues give a message of hope.

A clockwork orange is my favorite movie of my favorite movie director. I really like esthetic, the acting (Malcom McDowel did a brilliant job as Alex) and the music. As I said before, I like both versions of the story, but for the reassons that I stated before, I prefer the movie. I let pass a lot of differences between the film and the novel...because is Kubrick...and he is just awesome.

My blogging experience

Nowadays, people use internet specially to interact with other persons. Many web pages like facebook, blogger and tweeter are really popular in this way, receiving millions of visits any day. This kind of web sites offers the possibility of chare experiences and opinions, even with persons in other countries and with other languages. However, blogs are different to facebook and tweeter because allow writers to express their opinion in a more extensive way. Also, comments in blogs create an instance of arguing between the writer of the post and the readers around the word. In this English class, the students had the opportunity to use this kind of sites to practice writing and use of vocabulary. Every week, we must create a post about a certain topic given by the teacher with a specific quantity of words. Now I´ll write about my blogging experience in this semester of classes.

I really enjoy this matter of blogs. I already have a blog in Spanish, and I write in it every time. I love writing in Spanish, so the idea of write in English was really interesting to my since the beginning. Now with this blog in English I could experiment with another language, and get rid about my ability in English grammar. Although I had some mistakes in conjugation and vocabulary, it really helps me to improve my English and to express myself in ways that I had never imagined. The English blog also helps me in my speaking, because now I can keep a fluid and natural dialog in this language. I know that I`m better in English now and I could talk in English without fears. Someday, a foreign person left a comment in one of my posts. I think this is proves my improvement in this topic.

Of course, blogging has pros and contras. The advantages of blogs are, as I said before, that you can practice your vocabulary and grammar. Other advantage is that teachers and class mates could help you leaving comments in your posts, so you can figurate the mistakes immediately. In the other way, the principal disadvantage is the time limit. In some cases, the students couldn`t write the idea because we have 90 minutes to write all the post. The time limit makes people to think quickly about the topic of the post, forcing you to synthesize your ideas.
Personally, I think the advantages of blogging are more important than the disadvantages. I really promote the blogs as a way of practice. As a recommendation, I suggest review all the post after you write it. Also, dictionaries are really useful when you have doubts. Finally, try to write your ideas in a simple way. This will help the readers to understand your ideas correctly.

My future

I want to be successful in everything I will do in the future. Now I will study really hard to get an assistantship the next year. That will be really good for my curriculum.
I want to take two specialties when I finish the first two years of career. At first, I want to be a social anthropologist and get a good job. Later, I will take the physic specialty of my career. I wish I could study linguistic anthropology, but that specialty is exclusively for this country. Perhaps I could take some years in USA to study this subject.
I`m not fan of the idea of getting married. I hate little children (I`m not a patient woman) and I`m not so good at domestic homework. Provably I`ll get marry someday within the future, but I don`t want to be the “traditional housewife”. I can`t be like that.
I really want to live alone some years in my own apartment. I want to buy a big apartment in Lastarria, which is my favorite neighborhood at the moment. It`s fun because I can imagine myself in the future doing the same thing that I`m doing now. Probably I will spend hours playing the guitar and drawing sketches in my notebook, with the difference that I will need money to pay my bills.
At the moment, I`m doing my best in all my tests not to fail any subject. I think the only way to get my dreaming future is by studying. It could be difficult, but it is the only way if I want to be a good professional. My vision of my future could change in the next days, but I`m sure that I`ll need to study.