“I’m an American”

Since coming abroad I have been contemplating the question, “Why do American residents classify themselves by their country of ancestry when within the United States of America, but as “An American” when they are anywhere else in the world.  America is thought of as a melting pot.  Aside from the Native Americans, no one is truly from what is today known as The United Sates of America. Therefore, everyone can trace their roots back to another country, even if their ancestors came to America many, many generations ago.  As a society of mixed races, cultures, and nationalities we have learned to separate ourselves from one another by which part of the world our ancestors originally came from.  As a resident of America answering the question, “Where are you from” with your heritage helps to tell others about your culture, past, family, and many other things that make you you.  Telling a fellow American you trace your roots to another country may also help to form or change their opinion of you.  This is both a positive and negative thing.

In today’s society answering the question “where are you from” with the answer America may seem like you are being closed off, sarcastic, or even rude.  These days it seems like common courtesy to divulge this personal information to almost anyone who asks.  I like this about America.  It allows for each individual to build an identity and to create both individuality and group relations.  For instance, I consider myself half Puerto Rican, a quarter Italian, and the rest a mix of European blood (possibly Swedish).  Having this background makes me different from everyone I know, but it also helps me to form a bond with people who share any part of my background.  To take another perspective on this question you could look at how people may answer with their state of residence, or even town of residence.  It is completely context dependent.  If I am in a Penn State classroom setting where everyone is sharing where they are from, I would say I’m from Maryland.  This is because I am making the assumption that everyone is from America.  If I were in the state of Maryland, I would specify even further with my county or town.  However, if someone approached me in a one on one social setting and asked where I was from, I’d assume they were trying to say “you look like you may trace your heritage directly back to another country/are you mixed?”  To this I would typically just give them what they want and tell them my mother is Puerto Rican.

To answer the other side of the question, I think people say they are Americans when they are abroad because they connect their identity most closely with where they live.  In many cases, people were born in America so they feel more closely tied to American culture then the culture of their ancestors.  I think this may also be the case because people do not know enough about their ancestor’s culture to claim they are from their.  If I were in Puerto Rico I would never say I was Puerto Rican because I did not grow up there, I don’t speak the language well, and I don’t know enough about the culture.  Since being abroad in Spain, I always answer the question “where are you from” with the response “America.”  If people inquire further I say Baltimore.

The Swing by Fragonard

Throughout the course of history painters have used their paintings as a medium to transmit their thoughts, feelings, and ideas.  What may appear to some as just an image, quite frequently also serves as a window into the mind of the painter and even more importantly, society.  The Swing by Fragonard was painted in 1967-68 during the Rococo period.  This period was defined by aristocratic art associated particularly with Madame de Pompadour (mistress of the new King Louis XV) and the Parisian homes of the French aristocracy.  Rococo emerged as a reaction to the Baroque period and is characterized by a whimsical and elaborately decorative style and a lighthearted mood.  Rococo makes use of  pastel colors and atmospheric effects.  Most paintings are dynamic and assymetric in their composition style.  The paintings feature gracefully delicate curving forms and fanciful figures.  IT was also most common for them to depict genre scenes.  I choose to analyze this painting because it is one that caught my eye during one of my art classes this semester.  I like the picture because at first it just seems like an ornate masterpiece that is pleasing to the eye.  However, the meaning of the piece makes it mysterious and powerful.  I found the societal implications of this painting to be extremely progressive for the time period in which it was painting.  To visit The Swing, you can go to the  Wallace Collection in London England.

La Tagliatella

When I decided to come abroad I was dead set on studying in either Rome or Florence, Italy.  Not only was I intrigued by the culture, but Italian food is my all time favorite cuisine.  The lure of authentic Italian pizza and pasta everyday for an entire semester seemed to good to pass up. Even with my mind set on Italy, a friend of mine was relentlessly trying to persuade me to come to Barcelona with her.  Eventually, the promise of a city like New York, located on a beach, with an amazing night life pushed Italy out of the running.  Once abroad, I fell in love with the city of Barcelona.  It seemed to have everything to offer me except the one thing I longed for abroad- good Italian food.

Then, one fateful day, while walking home from class I noticed an ornate red and gold framed storefront spilling out golden light from behind stained glass windows.  The gleaming sign read “La Tagliatella.”  Could it be? An Italian restaurant just five minutes from my apartment?  With high hopes I decided to give the restaurant a try, and ever since that fateful day, I have found refuge in the authentic cuisine found at La Tagliatella.

La Tagliatella has more than 135 restaurants in 50 Spanish towns, as well as in France and Andorra.  Over 20 of these locations are in the city of Barcelona itself. Even though La Tagliatella is a chain, the restaurant’s close quarters, authentic decoration, and delicious cuisine make it feel like a small family owned restaurant nestled in the back streets of a quaint Italian village.  Ornate chandeliers cast golden hues of warm light against deeply colored cherry wood paneling.  Italian inspired decorations adorn the walls while rod iron accents add a rustic element to the decor.  The ambiance is enhanced  even further by an open brick oven kitchen where patrons can look on as their  pizzas are being hand made and fired to perfection.  Reservations are not necessary, but because of the limited space there is sometimes a short wait.

Once seated the friendly staff greats you with a dish of olives.  They also provide you with menus which are available in english upon request.  The menu itself offers a list of appetizers, salads, pastas, pizzas, and of course an assorted list of Italian wines.  What it most delighting about the menu, however, is that it allows for what seems like limitless opportunities to create your perfect pasta dish.  A list of different pastas as basic as spaghetti and as complex as gorgonzola and pear ravioli can be paired with an equally extensive list of sauces.  La tagliatella boasts 400 combinations of pasta and sauce, antipasti, salads,lasagna, cannelloni, and more than 20 different pizzas made in the restaurant oven.  Another awesome aspect of La Tagliatella is that they serve their dishes family style.  This means that the generous portions of pasta and pizza are placed in the middle of the table with serving spoons so that everyone can sample each other’s selections.  In all my visits to La Tagliatella I have yet to find a combination of pasta and sauce that has disappointed me.  During my last visit, my table ordered linguine with bolognese sauce as well as triangoli di gorgonzola e pera(Gorgonzola cheese and pear ravioli) with pesto rosso panna (a sauce made of cream, sun dried tomato, pine nuts and cheese).  This has been my favorite pasta and sauce combination to date!

[A view of the brick oven pizza kitchen]

Aside from the pastas, the pizza looks and tastes just like the pizza I had when I visited Rome just a few weeks ago. The pizza that I most highly recommend is the melanzana which incorporates tomato, mozzarella, caramelized aubergine, parmigiano reggiano, honey and balsamic aceto.  After a large meal of pizza and pasta I usually feel stuffed, but I urge you to save some room for one of the restaurants tantalizing desserts.  These rich sweets are the perfect way to top off your meal!  My favorites include the crepe with vanilla ice cream and coppa fior di latte al cioccolato fuso which combines hot chocolate cream with mascarpone ice cream.

After what seems like a meal fit for a king you would expect a bill of equal magnitude.  Surprisingly, the meals are extremely affordable- especially when you consider that the large dishes almost always ensure you leftovers to be enjoyed at home on a later date!  Although La Tagliatella is great for dining in, they also allow you to call in and get take out.  Especially with such affordable prices, their is nothing better then enjoying some great Italian cuisine in the comfort of your own home.  La Tagliatella has become one of my favorite restaurants in all of Barcelona.  Even my friends studying in Italy agree that it stacks up against their best Italian food!  In 2009 La Tagliatella was awarded the European Foodservice Summit Concept Award, which is awarded to the best catering restaurants in Europe.  They attribute their success to twenty years’ experience specializing in traditional cuisine from the Italian regions of Piamonte, Liguria, and Reggio Emilia.

[An interview of a friendly waitress at La Tagliatella]

Park Güell

The picture at the heading of my blog represents one of my favorite sights to see in all of Barcelona, Park Güell.  Built by the famous Catalan architect in the years 1900-1914, the garden sits on the hill of El Carmel in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.  Many tourists refer to it as the “Dr. Suess” park because the modern architectural aspects and colorful tile mosaics.  The entire park makes you feel as if you are in a dream world.  When you enter the park there are two small buildings that remind me of gingerbread houses.  Although they were built before Gaudi created the park, they still add charm and flow nicely with the design of the rest of the park.  Then ahead of you are large curved stair cases the bow out and meet at the top.  In between them sits one of the most famous parts of the part, an oversized mosaic lizard.  On my last visit there, people were all crowded around the lizard snapping pictures.  However, anytime that someone got too close to the lizard an older man with a whistle would begin to blow it wildly and yell.  My friends and I jokingly called him the protector of the lizard.  Once up the stairs there is a roofed section with whimsical columns to walk through before you get to another set of stairs.  Once up these stairs you are led to a large open dirt area encircled by a colorful, mosaic tile bench that curves vastly across the entire area.  All along the bench people sit, take pictures, and marvel at the view of the city.  This park´s light an airy atmosphere is perfect for a picnic on a beautiful spring day, but one of my favorite times to go it at sunset!  When my mother come to visit this weekend this is the first stop on our list of things to see!

Corporate Blogs

The phrase “the client is always right” is a terse saying that seems a bit extreme.  How could it be possible that any client is always incorrect, and the company is always wrong?  Of course, this is an exaggeration, but it does stem from a seed of truth.  When trying to build a successful company it is key to make sure that you are pleasing your client.  If the client is not happy they will not continue to buy your product.  And what is even worse that that is that the client may deter others from your services as well.  So how can you make sure your clients are pleased and that their voices are being heard?  One really important way is to create a corporate blog.  On this blog you can give updates, information, and deals regarding your product.  This information can be in addition to your main website.  Another important feature about corporate blogs is that they allow you to get feedback from your clients.  Positive feedback can show people doing research that your product is a safe and reliable choice.  On the other hand, negative feedback can be helpful too.  First, it can help to show your clients where your product is flawed.  Constructive feedback then allows you to create a better more sustainable product.  Also, when people doing research on your product and they see that you are responsive and helpful to clients in need, they will know you are in touch with your clients.  Having this sort of direct customer client interaction is key in making happy customers who will promote your product and become lifelong customers.  Check out this website to see a list of 10 of the internet´s most effective corporate blogs.

La Flauta

Since being in Barcelona I have tried tapas all over the city- but there is one restaurant that I just cannot get enough of!  La flauta restaurant is located on Carrer d’Aribau, 23.  From the outside it appears to be nothing special- just a small restaurant like any other.  If you go around 8 o’clock seating is no problem.  However, as the night goes on, the wait can be up to over an hour.  Even being as impatient as I am I can assure you that this hour is well worth the wait.  The restaurants environment has a modern asian sort of feel, but the food served is all Spanish tapas.  To begin, Sangria is a must.  They have both red and white sangria which I find to be equally delicious as one another.  Then, in tapas fashion one guest orders for the table.  The must gets are as follows; patatas bravas, fried camenbert, calamari, chicken croquettes, mini cheeseburgers, patatas con huevos, fried artichoke, bread with tomato, and mushrooms and asparagus.  This may sound like a lot but I have never been to La flauta and had any food left over.  Besides these favorites of mine the menu is filled with tons of others.  Although they do offer an english translated menu, the specials are always listed in catalan.  This can be frustrating because as I look around at other tables I always see other tapas that I am dying to try, but just don’t know the name of.  Besides the food, the staff is incredible.  One time I went with a group of about 12 people on a very crowded Thursday night.  Despite the long line an close quarter the man squeezed us in- rearranging tables and guests just so that my friends and I would be comfortable.  Also, the food comes out within minute of ordering it- even on a crowded night.  My favorite thing about getting tapas is that they tend to come in waves.  Just as I am finishing one amazing dish- two more arrive for me to sample.  La Flauta is also very reasonably priced.  Even with Sangria and a table filled with tapas the bill usually come out to be under 20 euro.  At first, adapting to food in Spain was difficult for me, but La Flauta is something that I will definitely miss when I am back in the states.

Obama and Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is an important tool that is drastically changing the world we live in.  If used tactfully web 2.0 can be one of the most effective ways to transmit and share information.  This being said, web 2.0 has the power to make change, specifically in the political arena.  One of the most innovative political leaders in terms of web journalism is Barack Obama.  Prior to web 2.0, political campaigns were funded by donations given by people who had a vested interest in their candidate of choice winning a political election.  Although this did help to raise large sums of money, most Americans did not contribute to political campaigns.  It is estimated that only about 2% of the American population were involved in these “ large investments.”  However, after rules were established limiting the the amount for a single donation to $2,000, politicians were forced to find new and creative tactics to fund their pricey campaigns.  Obama not only used the internet to help him collect money, but also to transmit messages to the public and create a net of activists.  Obama’s used a wide variety of internet tools including mybarackobama.com, Twitter, YouTube (he uploaded over 2,000 videos), Facebook, Myspace, SMS/call centers, online advertisements, and a blog that was updated about 10 times per day.  These tools allowed him to advertise himself as a candidate and connect with people all throughout the United States.  Another clever move that Obama made using the internet was collecting people’s email addresses and postal codes.  With this information he sent out google maps to individuals with indicators where fellow Obama supporters in the area lived.  This encouraged people to connect and form even stronger pro-Obama feelings in their community.  This was another key concept of his campaign.  Not only was he reaching out to Americans, but he was giving Americans tools and motivation to reach out to each other.  Through the use of Facebook and other web tools people could share their support and organize events to further Obama’s campaign on their own.  Obama’s Campaign worked so effectively that he was able to raise 122 million dollars in the 2008 election.  This amount is staggering when compared with previous candidates who did not use the internet with as much skill as Obama.Fa

Razzmatazz

Barcelona night life has a lot to offer, but since being here I feel that I have not branched out to the many different types of venues the city has to offer.  This past week my friends and I decided that we would try the club Ramatazz.  My only regret was that I did not find this club earlier in the semester.  Most of what we have been seeing in Barcelona is House music being played in a room crowded with my fellow CEA students.  What we found at Ramatazz was a huge surprise.  Upon entry we had to pay a 15 euro cover, which I’ll admit was a little upsetting.  However, the cover included a free drink and a great experience.  The main room looked onto a large stage and was an enormous space filled with people.  There, a band with at least 10 members were playing upbeat alternative rock.  The music was funky and really great to dance to.  The members of the band helped to create a great visual experience by dancing around on stage, interacting with one another, throwing confetti, and passing around giant balloons to surf over the large crowd.  After their set my friends and I thought that the night was over, but by chance we stumbled upon another room playing our loved and familiar house music.  The night continued like this- exploring new rooms with different set ups and types of music.    The venue turned out to be a huge and diverse seen for Barcelona night life.  We were also very happy to find that we were amongst many more locals then we were used to.  in the future I look forward to revisiting Razzmatazz and experiencing a greater array of live bands and DJs [Razzmatazz’s website and list of upcoming events].

Fragmented Podcats

On our visit to Catalunya Radio we were introduced to the concept of fragmented podcasts.  Catalunya Radio´s use of these fragmented podcasts sets it apart from other radio stations both in Spain and in the United States.  Normally with radio podcasts, listeners would download entire shows.  This means that when they want to listen to radio shows from earlier in the day they have an entire show to weed through to get the material that they want.  At Catalunya Radio, each radio show is broken up into sections.  For example, the introduction, the sports updates, an interview etc.  These different sections are then uploaded to the Catalunya Radio website in the form of podcasts.  By breaking the show into parts, listeners are able to pick and choose what sections of the radio show they want to listen to.  This allows from people to create their own show comprised of the parts of the radio show that interest them.  For example, if they like the introduction to one show, the interview from another, and the sports information from another they can listen to only that information.  They no longer have to search through hours of radio to find the information that they want.  The hours of radio show are now condensed into a smaller, more manageable radio show with only the information that interests that particular listener.  Although it may be tedious for the people at the radio to label and separate the shows into these categories, it is extremely convenient for the podcast listeners.  I think that the concept of fragmented podcasts is very innovative.  I wish that radio stations in the United States would adopt this concept so that I could create my own show at home.  To download a podcast from catalunya radio click here!

Budapest

When my roommates insisted that I book Budapest with them I was skeptical of whether or not this would be a wasted weekend of travel.  Europe has so many amazing cities that I want to visit, and with limited weekends left in the semester I was unsure if this was a smart decision.  I knew nothing about Budapest, not about the food, not about the history, and not about the people.  Then I realized that this was not something to be hesitant about- instead this was an exciting opportunity to try something new and out of the box.  What I found in Budapest was well worth any risk I thought I was waging.  Our hotel reservations had fell through, but the hotel staff easily placed in the nearby Unio Hotel.  There, we were pleasantly surprised by spacious clean rooms and kind staff.  We then decided to venture into the city to eat our first meal.  However, instead of trying some Hungarian cuisine we verred off the main street into a resaurant called locos tacos.  I´ve included a link to the location so that you can avoid this restaurant at all costs.  Our hopes for the comfort of tex mex style food from home was destroyed by awful service, high prices, and food that left me wishing I had choosen any other spot.  The staff was innatentive and when they were around they treated us as if we were ruining their day by eating there.  Despite the awful meal we continued treking through the city. The city itself was divded into two sections; Buda and Pest.  After spending the day exploring the newer part of the city we ventured over the bridge to explore the castles and monuments.  Although it was a trek to get up the hilly parts of this side of the city, the view was fantastic.  We also were lucky enopugh to find a vendor selling delicious warm wine.  As the evening turned to night, we recieved a recommendation from a local to check oput a nearby club called Instant.  This club is what I will forever think of when I think of Budapest.  Their website describes the location as, 23 rooms, 6 bars, 2 open gardens, 3 dance floors, exhibitions, constant music, and a huge, breathtaking, absorbing installation that creates an otherworldly unity in a Babylonian forest.  The decoration was a fusion of a fairytale and a nightmare, complete with strange animal figures and dim mysterious lighting.  The basement offered a sort of underground dub step band while the upstairs dance room played more main stream house music.  The club itself seemed to wind and turn with endless rooms all decorated with modern abstrations.  The overall feel of the night life drastically contrasted with the flashy, mainstream night life that I have become accustomed to in Barcelona.  This difference was refreshing and I would advise everyone to visit Budapest during their time aborad.