9.05.2000

The are pros and cons to Rutgers' layout. Having completely separated campuses throughout two neighboring towns has its downfalls, the obvious being travel time between classes. But each campus has a unique feel to it. Each time I walk across George Street - Douglass campus, from the New Gibbons parking lot to Hickman Hall, I feel like I'm at camp, in a woodsy, quiet area that's cut off from the rest of the world. In a sense it is, because every class I've had in Hickman (except one) has been Spanish. So, my way of thinking changes. Despite my early morning nerves, I am normally very comfortable in my Spanish skills, so I almost strut to class. I'm sure that sounds ridiculous, but I do tend to walk with my back straighter and my chin higher up as I head into the building.

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Despues de leer el Targum fuera del edificio, camine por los pasillos hacia el cuarto 118. Me sente y busque a Leslie, pero ella nunca vino a la clase. Creo que cambio su horario, que me frustra mucho. Pero he tomado una clase de espanol con algunos de los estudiantes en esta clase. Por ejemplo, tome 333, literatura de Latino America, con Nilo, un latino (creo que es cubano) muy inteligente y es un encantador. Es uno de las personas que he conocido con quien quiero hablar y ser amigo - Melissa fue otra persona asi. Bueno, el profesor entro y inmediatamente yo empece sonriendo. El es un caracter. Es un viejo muy feliz, con mejillas rojas, que siempre esta riendo. Pero es espanol, y todos mis otros profesores han sido latinoamericanos. Por eso, el acento es muy distinto y es un poquito dificil entender (porque el pronuncia una "c" como si fuera "th" - Valenthia en vez de Valencia), pero voy a Salamanca, Espana durante el verano que viene y tendre que oir este acento todos los dias durante el programa. Bueno, me gusta el profesor, pero no me gusta el silabus. Dios mio, es que tenemos que leer tantos libros en espanol: "Las mocedades Del Cid," por Guillen de Castro; "Lazarillo de Tormes," por Francisco Rico; "Novelas ejemplares," por Miguel de Cervantes; y "El garrote mas bien dado," por Calderon de la Barca. Tambien hay bastantes handouts que tienen cuentos, poesia y articulos. Tendre mucha tarea, y no me gustaba leer literatura de la epoca medieval ni reacentista durante la clase AP en la escuela secundaria, pero espero que estas lecturas, y mis companeros de clase, sean interesantes.

After reading the Targum outside the building, I walked through the hallways toward room 118. I sat down and looked around for Leslie, but she never came to the class. I'm guessing she changed her schedule, which totally frustrates me. But I've taken a Spanish class with some of the students in this class. I took 333, literature of Latin America with Nilo, a super smart latino (I think he's Cuban) who is a charmer. He's one of theose people que I've met who I want to be friends with a talk to - Melissa was another one. Anyway, the professor came and I immediately started smiling. He is a character. He's a really happy old guy, con red cheeks, who is always smiling. But he's Spanish, and all of my other professors have been Latin American. His accent is really distinct and a bit difficult to understand (because he pronounces "c" as if it were "th" - Valenthia instead of Valencia), bought I'm going to Salamanca, Spain, during the summer and I'll have to hear this accent every day, so... Anyway, I like the professor, but I don't like this syllabus. Christ, we have to read so many freaking books in Spanish. "Las mocedades Del Cid," by Guillen de Castro; "Lazarillo de Tormes," by Francisco Rico; "Novelas ejemplares," by Miguel de Cervantes; y "El garrote mas bien dado," by Calderon de la Barca. Also, there are tons of handouts with stories, poetry and other articles. I'll have a lot of homework, and I didn't really like reading literature from the Medieval period and the Renaissance during AP Spanish, but I hope these readings, and my classmates, are interesting.

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After Spanish I met up with my Aunt Laura, who's taking master's classes at SCILS. Very bizarre - but in a good way. Tomorrow: no class until 6:10. Ha! So, who's gonna stay up with me on AIM tonight?

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