CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN

Now we began an exciting part of the year where all the streets are starting to hung up the Christmas lights, and shops are selling advent calendars and doing promotions for gifts. Also every child (in Catalonia) is starting to do the "carta als reis mags".

I think that I'm going to buy an advent calendar. Not just to count the days until it's Christmas, but it will be useful to count the days until we finish school! Although it might not be the greatest idea. It's alawys a good fact to know that we're going to have hollidays, but we always have lots and lots of homework to do. Despite all of our homework, Christmas is my favourite hollidays because everyone seems to be more happy, maybe even more than in summer!

I love to be with all my family. When I'm with all my little cousins I feel like I'm a child again! They show and share happiness in everywhere and for everyone! Well, they are happy and excited until they have to recite the poems. When I was a child I hated the fact of having to be up in a chair and recite a verse while everyone was looking at me.

The saddest part is that Christmas is going to pass as quickly as Santa Claus! 

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FANDOMS

We are now on the stage of being a tennager. Learning how to be, with ourselves and with the world in general. We have to fall for raising up again and try to fit in our society. We need someone to look up at. And in general, we look up to celebrities. 

The boys usually are influenced by athletes from football and basketball. Of course there are girls who love football! But I think that the most common celebrities that influence us are singers, actors and actresses and clothing designers.

The problem is that we might overwhelme that feeling of "who I want to look up to" until it is transformed  in a "they are my life". It may sound childish for some adults, but sometimes if we aren't in our best moments and we feel that nobody is going to understand us, we have to rely on somebody (platonic or not).

I think that it's in that point when you start to feel identified into some fandoms. You find other girls like you that might have the same problems ( or maybe not) but you have the same solution: you know that he, she or they are going to make you feel more relaxed. I can understand this, because I'm a tennager too!

But what I will never understand it's the urge that some people have for wanting to know everything of their idols. Why do you need to know the shoe size of your idol?  Why is so important knowing what are they doing every minute of their single lifes? It's not necessary. It souldn't be like that. We are overreacting. We can show our love for our idols in such a different ways. We souldn't do this kind of meetings where one hundred of fans start to scream walking  through the streets. What are we trying to show there? 

Being in a fandom it's such a great experience, but there should be limits. We have internet to use! And (if we are speaking of singer celebrities) we can shout out lout in concerts! In my case I considere myself a directioner (from the famous boyband One Direcction) , but I take it like a personal thing. No one needs to know it, because it's not necessary, for me it's a way for disconnecting, at least, from highschool!

A group of fans crying because they saw their idol: Justin Bieber.
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ARE FILMS GOOD ENOUGH?

If one of your hobbies is reading, you might probably have experienced the situation that I'm going to talk about.

I can't describe how it feels when you're finishing a book that you really love and knowing that there isn't a second part of it. Perhaps after one (or maybe two) years the book will become famous and some people would have the greatest idea of making a film of your lovely book to earn more money. 

I don't know why I get excited when I find out that a book that I read it will become a movie. Everyone knows (or has heard) that books are better than the film version of them. I think that the directors change scenes for making the film more commercial. And I suppouse that if you didn't know that there was a book, you'll find the film very interesting.

It's very difficult to show every moment that the book has in only two hours and it's also difficult to project what you read and what you have in your mind into real persons. But what I hate the most it's when the film doesn't show the things that happens to secondary characters,  and sometimes they just delete them! I know that it's not essential for the film's main theme but these little details are what make it special. 

In conclussion, if you have a book in your hands but you know that there's a film version... Take off your laziness! Catch a cosy blanket, find a comfortable place in your sofa, start reading and let your imagination free! I admit that I love to watch films and even more if I'm with friends, but if I'm alone and I don't have anything to do, I'll read!

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ABOUT FASHION: A NEW AGE IN CATWALKS?

Would you like to be a model? Who doesn't! Being a beautiful woman whith long legs and a radiant body. But if you start to think about it, about how they live, about if they have an attractive body (they're extremely thin) you're going to realize that you aren't that perhaps this isn't what you really want. In conclussion, if we said that we want to be a model I think it's because of their fame, about the fact of being admired by everybody.

Nowadays, the rules in fashion are starting to change. You will mostly find out people who are against models' lifestyle, from people who you would think would admire it. And that had a little repercussion to catwalks managers. Thay are starting to find the same skiny models as always, but they realized that models that are popular now aren't like the rest. They're not perfect, cute and full of make up. They're natural, without trying to hide their natural beauty or imperfect features: they don't try to fit in, trying to be accepted just being how they are.

The saddest part of this movement is that it's just starting and there're just a few models who arrived to worldwide fame, like Cara Delevigne.  A model who's not affraid of doing silly things in front of the camera whithout make up on. The most interesting thing about her is her big brown euebrows. She might not be as pretty as the other models, but that's what make her enchance and the reason why she's famous now.

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Cara Delevinge

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Although there're things that are changing, it may not be a step, maybe it's just going to be a temporary trend. I'm not against skiny models, but I think that this isn't fair. It shouldn't have to exist a definition of what's beautiful and what's not made by human decisions. That's why I think that not all the models have to be skiny with "perfect" faces.

Variety should have to be the definition of beautiful.

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DIFFERENT RITES OF PASSAGE

During this term we saw a lot of different cultures and traditions. It made me think about how big is our world and about if our customs are similar to other ones.

If we compare the rites of passage we celebtare with the rest of Europe there's not a big change, but with other places, like Mexico or some parts of Africa their traditions are totally different!

It always depends on the religion that they have. 

When we were searching information about other cultures we found out that the majority of them, the most important rite of passage it's when we jump the step of beign an adolescent to a young adult. In Catalonia we don't celebrate it as much as other cultures do. Like "la Quinzeañera" a big celebration for the Mexican girls with a lot of glamour, pink and sparkles. Or like some tribes in Africa: they have to hunt lions, or tatooing their faces to be respected. I'm not saying that we should do that, of course not! But in my opinion it's unfair, because now that we are changing and starting to be who we want to be, some adults are treating us like if we were kids. Or in reverse: like if we were very mature. I think that other people has to understand that we're adapting to how it's going to be our live (for almost forever). Now we're starting to know how the world really works, so they can pretend that we don't know anything or that we know everything.

In my opinion, it might be a good thing to have in mind this procces of being new to the adult's world. We don't need a celebration or a rite. We just need some understandment that make us feel safe knowing that we're doing it right. Who knows. Perhaps this feeling is never going to leave, the better judge that you can have is yourself.

"La Quinceanera"
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¨Hunting lions
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SUMMER REVIEW!

We always say that the bast summer is the one that we've just had. However, I can assure that this summer was the best. Not because it was a lot funnier that the other ones, it was the best because the next ones are not going to be that nice. We will have to do the "Treball de recerca" and I'll have to find a job. It will be interesting, too but I don't think that I'm going to have fun with that...

By now, all I can do is remember how I enjoyed my summer. At the begining I wasn't doing that much. Just enjoying my free time going out with friends, swimming, etc. My favourite part was when I went to Bournemouth. Going to somewhere alone whith your friends it's a little frightening, but it was a great experience. While you're learning new things about England and the languajes you're meeting new people and I think it's awsome.

I will also remember this summer because it was very emotional for me. My grandfather passed away and it was so sad. But for the other hand, my cousin got married and we're very happy for them.

 I think that all the good things come when the bad things have passed.

Having fun in front of the Buckingham Palace!

Some of us in Bournemouth.

Arriving home! :(