A View into Puerto Rican Winds

      

     Throughout the different posts contained in this blog we've been able to explore different themes and different ideas about concepts such as: self, tourists, identity, and about myself. Puerto Rican Winds is about discussing these ideas while adding a touch of Puerto Rico. I've always have been Puerto Rican first and, I believe, this blog reflects on this concept. Starting with the self concept, the blogs that speak a little about myself and how we see ourselves as Puerto Ricans helped me analyze what, essentially, defines one's identity. It is very important to know yourself and your peers since they influence on your identity. Language, location and our relations influence on our identity. One post, particularly, was a good way to make a retrospection and auto-evaluate: My Journal Reflection. Since this posts was about the Journey Journal it was a good way to construct Puerto Rican Winds since my Journal's external and internal covers have photos that reflect on my identity and the journeys that I've experienced, and have yet to experience. These journeys have some sort of relation to Puerto Rico.


We've discussed about tourism and how different authors have distinct opinions about what it means to be a tourists. Kincaid tells us that a tourists is a privileged person because he, or she, is oblivious to the socio-political and economical realities of the place they visit. I share the same opinion because of the little social experiment we had in class: being a tourist for a day. Being an Argentinian in the mall of San Juan made me realize how tourists can become oblivious: we create the conditions so that this phenomena occurs. We tend to exclude these details when we meet a foreigner so that they feel more welcomed in our country. Judith Fein was different from the other authors because she was a traveler in Guatemala and not a tourist. She immersed herself in the Guatemalan culture and religion when she met Maximon.

     I believe that in this blog I've used some of the techniques that Naipaul uses in his autobiography. I wanted to give character to this blog so that the reader could experience the different themes discussed through a Puerto Rican perspective. As a Brutanese public policy: a country's development is measured in general happiness. Puerto Rico's festive spirit is captivating and will seduce you. Below is a video from the festivities at la Calle San Sebastian.

Tourist Privileges

Jamaica Kincaid, in her book: "A small place", portrays the typical tourist experience in Antigua and then reflects upon her childhood experiences in the island. There is a quote that depicts how she feels regarding what a tourist is and how he views the country which he is visiting: “But some natives--most natives in the world--cannot go anywhere. They are too poor. They are too poor to go anywhere. They are too poor to escape the reality of their lives; and they are too poor to live properly in the place where they live, which is the very place you, the tourist, want to go--so when the natives see you, the tourist, they envy you, they envy your ability to leave your own banality and boredom, they enjoy your ability to turn their own banality and boredom into a source of pleasure for yourself(18-19).” This quote portrays how the tourists is a priviledged person in a foreign country.

Becoming a tourist makes you unaware of the realities that each country faces. You're visiting just for fun. You arrie at the hotel, eat dinner at the local restaurants within the area you are staying, do some of the popular tourist attractions; nothing more. In a sense, you are like an escape artist which evades troubling situations as you distance yourself from the realities of the place you visit. As said so in "Constructing a nation: Jamaica Kincaid's A Small Place", written by McLeod, "the tourist is more determined to remain oblivious to local social ills; after all, the tourist has paid good money for this fantasy, while the colonizer is either born in the colonized space or immigrates there for personal and financial opportunity (McLeod,89)." Tourists visit countries in order to escape their own realities; they are ignorant of the political and social realities of the places they visit.

Although being a tourist is fun, if you really want to experience a country, you must become a traveler and learn from the different aspects of the country: its culture, economic reality, political status, social norms, etc. all of these elements will give a more compelling picture of what a country truly has to offer. Then accepting these realities will bring you closer with the locals, thus eliminating the feeling of being an outsider who does not understand the lifestyle of the locals.

Tourist for a Day

For our class we did a little social experiment in which we were to dress up (optional) and act as tourists for a day. I decided to compare how tourists are treated vs how locals are treated at the Mall of San Juan. Choosing which type of tourist I wanted to be was a relatively easy task since I'm particularly adept at imitating different accents. I tend to do that in my house with my family members and it always cheers them up. I chose my best accent which is Argentinian and proceeded to pose as an Argentinian tourist which visited the Mall.

My first stop was a store called Nordstrom. I quickly noticed how well everybody treated me at the store. Since I love suits I went to the men's department and was greeted by one of the salesmen. He offered me a Giorgio Armani suit which was way over my budget. He though I could actually afford it. It was a very funny scene but I did not break character and politely declined the offer. Later on I felt hungry and asked for directions to Kona Grill (even though I knew where it was). I ordered a skirt steak ( I could not be any more stereotypical) and proceeded to thank the waiter for such an amazing dish which reminded me of my hometown in Rosario, Argentina.

 People looked at me in a weird way as if I was some sort of outsider. I felt othered by my accent. People were very polite, but not as when you are a local. When I returned as a local people treated me as I've always been accustomed to. However, I was treated differently by the salesmen of Nordstrom. I did not receive the friendly treatment they gave to Argentinian me. I guess this happened because that mall is tourist oriented instead of being oriented to the people of Puerto Rico.

This experience was an interesting one because it let me observe the difference in treatment that a tourist experiences when coming to this island. It also served me as an opportunity to feel as they feel when they come, to feel othered, and to be a stranger among Puerto Ricans. Below, I included a video which portrays how a group of tourists spend their time on Puerto Rico.

  

Happiness in Bhutan

Eric Weiner, in his book: "Geography of Bliss", wrote about how happiness was a policy in Bhutan, the city which he explores and compares it to Shangri-La. The latter was a " place of eternal peace wher poets muse... a remote place, cut off from the horrors of the outside world, though not from its tactile comforts (Weiner 50)." As he arrived to Bhutan he was received with the upmost in hospitality, as Weiner says: " the Bhutanese were never colonized, never conquered, so their hospitality is served straight up, devoid of the gratuitous deference and outright ass-kissing so common in this part of the world (51)."

Weiner speaks of the Gross National Happiness. This is Bhutan's national policy which seeks to measure progress by how happy–or unhappy– the bhutanese are in general. This is related also to the idea that the bhutanese believe in reencarnation (the belief that when you die you become reborn as someone, or something else). Since you are coming back as another being you would like to be treated well.


We can see in this narration that the bhutanese are, overall, happy: their life expectancy increased from 42-64 years of age, free health care, free education, and its the world's first nation to become a non smoking nation. Gross National Product is a measure of a nation's progress. Bhutan challenges this notion as it clearly demonstrates that it has progressed considerably.

V.S. Naipaul's Writing Techniques

     In his review book: Reading & Writing, Naipaul writes about his process of becoming a writer, since his childhood, in his autobiography. He uses various techniques in order to create more vivid pictures of the persons mentioned in this autobiography. He's transforming them into characters. They are, essentially, what gives this work such value and makes it all the more entertaining. For example: Mr. Worm was one of Naipaul's teachers. There is a great description of him in the autobiography. "Elderly mulatto, short and stout, correct in glasses and a suit." He describes later that it was Mr. Worm which introduced him to one of his favorite books : Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. We can clearly see that Naipaul makes the connection between one of the few books he ever enjoyed as a child to Mr. Worm. Another character introduced is his father. He was a journalist and a reader who sought the special traits of each character he read about and taught Naipaul about what he read, and, ultimately, inspired him to become a writer.

     V.S Naipaul makes use of different techniques in his autobiography in order to make it more interesting for the reader. For example: characterization is a staple in this autobiography. He gives attractive qualities to the characters he portrays in order to make them interesting and relatable. another example of a technique is relatability. He tells us that, initially, he did not enjoy reading many books, and he did not enjoy writing. This is something that most scholars could relate to. This relatability is what makes the reader want to continue with the reading since he has made an identification with one of the characters.

     Lastly, Naipaul makes us of belittlement on himself in order to make himself appear grander. Nobody expects that a person who: does not enjoy writing nor reading, to become a full fledged writer, and a great autobiographer, but he does. Suddenly this, underdog, came and became what nobody expected from him: a writer. Al of these techniques, when put together, can make something as boring as an autobiography seem more interesting; maybe even a great read. Similar to writers such as Carl Jung, Naipaul makes use of various techniques in order to give his autobiography more excitement.

Journal Reflection

     During the course of the semester there was a project which involved creating a Journey Journal. In this Journal we used the anti-rules as a writing style. These rules are supposed to help you write your thoughts and ideas more clearly. They channel all the writing energy into the ideas themselves without having to worry about the coherence, an aesthetics of the writing. Each time an entry was made I was supposed to write for ten minutes without stopping, thus forcing myself to let my ideas flow as I wrote. Some of the rules to follow were: to not worry about spelling, punctuation, and grammar, always keep your writing hand moving and to go for the jugular. This last one represents that as you write some key ideas are bound to show up in your writing. If you stick with them and elaborate them you are hitting the jugular.As I dove into this writing experience I learned about the great impact it had on my writing. The first few entries were hard because of the anti-rules. I'm accustomed to write coherently while being on the lookout for any possible errors I could commit, however, these new set of rules changed the game. I could now focus solely on the ideas and nothing more. I caught myself dashing out or fixing some of the words I miswrote. Even stopping to think because of the sudden "writer's block". Still I learned and pretty much dominated these rules. This style of writing has helped me in other classes to get my ideas flowing in order to write killer essays. Forty Journal entries and twelve Life Compasses were made.

The Life Compasses had four areas in which you scored yourself from 1-3, three being the highest. Physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual were the four areas of the Life Compasses. After you had the four numbers you added them and the total reflects on how you feel on those aspects as a whole. Overall, I typically scored between 10-12 on these. My weakest areas were: spiritual and mental. Spiritual because I really miss going to church on Sundays and having family brunch. Mental because of the constant stream of stress my mayor gives me, in addition to the med-school application process. I'm finishing now so I feel a lot better.

     This Journal has been a great experience and I recommend it to anyone who has trouble expressing his/her ideas clearly. As you write many entries you are bound to notice the difference in the writing process and start to notice how fluidly the ideas just pour out of the command center (Brain).

Judith Fein In Guatemala

     Judith Fein, in Life is a Trip, writes about her trips to: Spain, Vietnam, and Guatemala. In this book she narrates her experiences and the particularities about each country. Regarding to Guatemala, she tells the tale of how she met with Maximon (a Mayan sort of saint) in the western side of the country. People described him as a god who enjoyed to smoke and drink like the majority of the people who worshiped him. Maximon's followers made pilgrimages to Lake Atitlán in order to pay him a small tribute. Among the items people gifted to this deity were: cash, alcohol, cigars, burned candles in different colors (these represented the type of favor they wanted to ask).

People describe him as a "saint, devil, doctor, trickster, and the grandfather of the village who protected the inhabitants from evil and witches" (Life is a Trip, Judith Fein). A man from the city of Guatemala came and explained Judith that he is a divinity which understands human nature, its vices and sins. People worshiped him because he offers forgiveness to everyone because he is a sinner also. He accepts people as they are and does not look at their imperfections. Here is a video in which you can see Maximon and the people who worship him.

I guess, in the end, its not about your errors, your sins, your wrongdoings, its how you handle the situation, how you make amends which differentiates us from other people. Similar to the activity done in class. If you take a piece of paper and crumble it up you may try to eliminate the wrinkles but it is nearly impossible. We must learn to live with our imperfections and strive to do good always, but remembering that our human nature is ever present.

How we see ourselves as Puerto Ricans

There seems to be different ideas within our island as to what is, inherently, being a Puerto Rican. This is due to the fact of the many influences our culture has received and is currently receiving. Spanish, African, Indian, and (most recently) American cultures have shaped the image of what the typical Puerto Rican is. We cannot deny, however, that the Caribbean has had a great influence on our identity also. So to me being a Puerto Rican is very similar to a traditional Puerto Rican dish: "Arroz con Pollo (Rice with chicken)." Aside from being a dish with a great array of complex flavors and textures, it is also a saying in Puerto Rico which suggests that something is very complex and confusing.

One thing that most Puerto Ricans would agree is that we love to party. There is always an excuse to celebrate something in our island. Our Christmases extend way beyond what a typical Christmas should because we celebrate: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years celebration, Three Kings Day, " Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastian", "Octavitas and Octavonas". Right about mid-January we finish our festivities. Family gatherings during these periods have a list of some large requirements: Typical Food, Music (salsa "de la gorda", merengue), dominoes, and alcohol. Alcohol is very central of the Puerto Rican culture. our favorite drink is "Ron Caña" which would be more or less the equivalent to moonshine in the US, however, ours is made with fruit and it is left to cure for at least six months (this develops the flavor and overall texture)

The "Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastian" is a traditional festival in which the Puerto Rican culture is exposed and taken to its maximum expression. There are various cultural activities, artisan sculptures and art works, plena, bomba and reggaeton (nighttime mostly). The Old San Juan transforms into a cultural mecca during the weekend. You may find a Puerto Rican from every town this island has. We love them so much that we even make reservations in local hotels in anticipation to next year's festivities. In the picture below you can appreciate the typical " Cabezudos". These exaggerated masks depict different cultural personas from our island. They are seen walking up and down in the streets of Old San Juan; dancing.

Politics is a very big issue in Puerto Rico. There are three primordial parties: PNP, PPD, PIP; these parties have been around for most of our political history. Most recently new parties have formed because of the political bipartidism that occurs in every election for governor. The political rallies look like a music concert or a very large festival. It is sad to see many fanatical voters in this island, but, like it or not, they are a part of our culture and we must accept them. In order to progress as a nation we must assume the full responsibility of voting because it is a serious matter.

Puerto Rico is a potpourri of different cultures mixed with our own. This is the main reason people tend to fall in love with our island and our culture. We have something to offer to everyone. I have to say this has been one of my favorite posts. Aside from the fact that my blog is called Puerto Rican Winds, this post has served as a way to reflect upon what is means to be Puerto Rican.

I'll just leave below a picture of my favorite dish that I'm sure will leave most wanting to try it.

Journey Notebook

  

In my Journey Notebook there are various elements which can represent my inner and outer journey. On the frontal part of my notebook there are pictures which represent my outer journey. These are places that I hope to one day visit or I have already visited like Steps beach in Rincón, P.R. or Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain. This is a place I have always wanted to visit because I'm a Barça fan. For me, reaching this stadium would be the pinnacle of my journey through sports all together.

Mi inner journey is located on the dorsal part of the notebook. this symbolizes that the inner self is not so clear and that one must go past the outer journey to reach the inner one. In here I've included various pictures because the inner workings of my mind are more complex. There are various pictures which depict human anatomy. These photos are included because of my passion: medicine. Since I want to become an excellent physician, I have included these photos to remind myself of what I want in the future (Caduceus, the left bottom image). Another photo shows a stairway which leads into light. This symbolizes two things: our spiritual realization and our quest for knowledge. Another picture shows eerie woods. These represent human mystery and  the fragile balance one must have in the mind.

 

Finally there is a picture which depicts a masonic stained glass with a lot of symbolism and various elements which have some meaning in our fraternity. This has been the best decision I have taken because through this fraternity I have grown personally, matured a lot and, overall, transformed into  a better self. These elements represent my mind; where ideas roam free and there is always a session in which there is a broad and open discussion between what I am thinking vs. what I'm doing. Of course I cannot talk and describe much of the imagery and symbolism of what you're about to see; I'm taking those to the grave.

 

As you can see there is a lot going on throughout my internal and external journeys. A very important aspect of each individual's journey is that it may change as you are treading through it. There are other pictures in my Journey Journal, but I just mentioned those that have the most meaning to me.

What Dreams May Come

     

     "Memories, Dreams and Reflections" is an autobiographical book written by Carl Jung in which he reflects upon many of his travels, the experiences he lived during said travels, and the dreams which hold a deeper meaning to him. In Chapter IX he travels to many places including: North Africa and India. During these trips he was not a tourist in these countries; he reflected upon what he saw and tried to assimilate their culture (although he believes he is somewhat superior to the culture he sees). It is curious to see that these cultures had such a great impact on himself, to the point he had very vivid dreams about the places he visited. These dreams had meaning to him. They revealed his true feelings towards the cultures he met as he traveled.

 During his visit to India he compared many of the things he considered "European" in a totally alien nation. Although he received many surprises because he learned that the Indians are not as different as he thought from the Europeans. In one scene there is a depiction in which a pandit or guide, took Jung to a great temple. This temple had obscene stone sculptures which were ways to achieve spiritualization. The pandit wanted to tell him a secret and it turned out to be that he wanted Jung to know about the man's private parts in the stone sculptures. Sexuality is very present in both cultures

      I believe that if one makes a visit to a foreign land one should be a traveler not a tourist. A traveler grabs a better piece of the culture from the place he is visiting. He mingles with the locals and an exchange of culture occurs; one learns about the many things that make a country unique. This is more or less how I felt after I visited Cuba. I had the wonderful opportunity of visiting this beautiful country and sharing in the culture of the locals. I was six years old, but I remember it very clearly. I went to the "tabacalera" where cigars were made, "La Plaza de la Revolución" is a city plaza in which the Cuban revolution is commemorated, "El Malecón," and many other places. To this day I have the Cuban culture very present in my life. I'm sure there has been a trip in your life that you've adopted the culture of the nation.

  

A Little About Myself

      My name is Rolando, I'm 21 years old and I'm currently studying at the University of Puerto Rico Río Piedras Campus as a Molecular Cellular Biology mayor and I plan to become a physician with a sub specialty in cardiology. I come all the way from Mayagüez, P.R. where I spent the majority of my life studying in my high school: the Academy of the Immaculate Conception. During this time I devoted myself to two things: schoolwork and sports. I knew that in order to be admitted into "Naturales"  my grades had to be top notch.

     I remember how great playing soccer was –I prefer the term "Fútbol", but that's a whole new post–
. Every time I stepped on the pitch, whether to train or to play, it was a place where my mind was free of care and responsibilities. I began when I was sixteen years old for the "Academia de Fútbol ALIANZA Indios Yagüez" (my soccer club's name). I played mostly defensive positions; we arrived 3rd place on the Metropolitan league as we lost that semi-final. Coming back from arriving last place on the league the season beforehand, I learned that perseverance, hard work, guts and discipline pay off; these lessons have stuck with me always and I use them everyday.

     After I graduated from high school I went to the UPR Río Piedras Campus. this was a whole new journey for me because it was similar to when you travel to foreign territory; you do not now anyone and you feel all alone. This was my reality for the first three months of my first semester, then had the chance to meet many friends and share in their stories, what they had to tell; their journeys sort of became woven into the fabrics of my journey.




As you may have noticed the title of this blog is Puerto Rican Winds. I chose this title because of my love for my country. Winds are a form of energy, they also are a symbol for hope and change. This is what I wish for my beautiful island.

     I will be sharing many things from my island and making parallelisms between them and the material discussed in class. All the best!