Hello out there, ether space interwebs! My name is Marisa and I'm here to tell you a thing or two about Puerto Rico.
I'm a grad student at the University of Oklahoma in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. I'm working on a Masters of Professional Writing, with grand plans (delusions?) of graduating in May. Gaylord College offers a class in travel writing that takes place in Puerto Rico. When I heard about it, I knew I had to take it. I mean, learning on a beach or in a tropical rain forest...not the hardest decision I've ever made. I will be sharing my experiences on the road through Puerto Rico here on this very blog!
This first post is the entrance essay I used to apply for the class. It details why I'm interested in travel writing, though, I feel that I should tell you that the only reason I want to be a travel writer is so that I could potentially get a show on the Travel Channel and then marry Adam Richman of Man Vs. Food. But that'll all come in time.
Ever since I was eight years old, I’ve wanted to be a writer. But what good is a writer with no experience outside of their own little bubble?
It would appear that I’ve made it to graduate school without ever traveling east of Kansas City. I am by no means proud of this. In fact, I wonder if I can truly call myself educated if all I know about the world came from books and TV.
It’s safe to say, I’m more than a little interested in going to Puerto Rico. As an undergrad, I minored in Spanish, and immediately fell in love with both the language and many Spanish-speaking cultures as viewed from the scope of textbooks and stories told to me by friends who traveled abroad. I knew I wanted to travel too.
For me, this course would not only be about travel writing. It would be the first glimpse of a world outside the suburban culture of the U.S. It would be tangible evidence that there is something other than shopping malls and Sooner football. In short, it would most likely be the most educating of all courses I will ever take.
There is no way I can ever genuinely write about another culture or location without going there myself. I want to go to Puerto Rico to become a better writer. I want to experience something first hand and write about it.
And, as if the introduction to this little blog o' mine isn't proof enough of my superior nerd powers, I also wrote this essay in Spanish. I was just trying to secure my place in the class, man. Sometimes you just gotta show off your cranial capabilities and make everyone else around you look lame by comparison. This is also the reason why the first years of my public school experience were so painful and full of bullies. Clearly getting tripped in the hallways at good ol' Sequoyah Middle School and having rocks thrown at me and my friends as we got off the school bus wasn't enough to persuade me to behave like less of a dork. But that is neither here nor there, or any other location of consequence really. But I digress...so, here for your enjoyment is my entrance essay in la lengua de Díos.
Desde tenía ocho anos, quería ser una escritora. Y, ¿ que vale una escritora quien no tiene experiencia afuera de su vida diaria?
Pero, estoy en escuela graduada y nunca he viajado al este de Kansas City. No estoy orgullosa de esto. De hecho, me pregunto si puedo ser educada si todo que yo sé es de los libros de texto y los programas de televisión.
Una persona puede decir que yo estoy más que una poca interesada en viajar a Puerto Rico. Antes de la escuela graduada, estudiaba español y cayo en amor con la lengua y también muchas de las culturas hispano hablantes según lo visto con el alcance de los libros de texto y las historias mis amigos me contaron del viajar al extranjero. Supe que quería viajar también.
Para mi, este curso no va a ser solamente sobre la escritura de recorrido. Va a ser mi primer vista de un mundo afuera de la cultura suburbana de los Estados Unidos. Va a ser evidencia comprobable que hay más que ir de compras y el futbol americano de los Sooners. En fin, va a ser el mas importante de todos los cursos que va a tomar.
No puedo escribir sinceramente sobre una cultura o país si nunca viajo allí. Yo quiero ir a Puerto Rico para convertirme en una mejor escritora. Yo quiero tener la experiencia y escribir sobre la.
And now, mis amigos, for your listening and viewing pleasure, I will give you the first glimpse I ever had into the world that is Puerto Rico. However, unlike Anita, I am totally stoked on being in Puerto Rico!
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