Something You Did Last Weekend

 Hi Fau Bloggers,

Today I'd like you write about something you did last weekend. I actually had a real busy weekend catching up with friends and making music. However, the thing I'm going to talk about is walking up San Cristobal. I did this on Sunday afternoon at about 5pm. I went with my wife and a Chilean friend called Pedro. This is the 2nd consecutive Sunday we've done this walk. I enjoyed this activity for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's good exercise. Secondly, I enjoy being in the natural environment (although the air quality was extremely bad in Santiago over the weekend). Also, I have an interest in birds and I like to see how many different species I can spot. My wife and Pedro have known each other for years and they are both good talkers so I just drift in and out of their conversations. It gives me time to think without having anything around to distract me. There were lots of other people doing the same walk plus some runners, cyclists and skateboarders. The walk down was quicker than the ascent because we took a short cut. When we reached the bottom of the hill we went straight home because most places were closed because of the elections. Including the walk to and from home to the hill, we took about 2 hours.

ps. Not my photo:)

Write about something you did last weekend.

Say:

What it was,

Who you did it with,

What it involved,

How long you did it for,

Why you enjoyed it.

Mention anything interesting or important. Try to write at least 200 words. Leave a comment on my blog and on the blogs of 3 classmates.

A Page on Social Media

Hi FAU Bloggers,

Today I'm going to write about a social media page I visit frequently. I could write about a number of music-related sites that I visit regularly but I thought it would be good to write about something different. The site I’m going to tell you about is an Instagram site in Spanish on the topic of healthy living called healthychoicebienestar (https://www.instagram.com/healthychoicebienestar/). It's a site that publishes healthy, plant-based recipes but with the added bonus of often providing information on the nutritional value of the ingredients and other beneficial properties they may have. I guess I visit this site 2 or 3 times per week. The meals are often quick-cook recipes that are easy to follow, and, as the name of the site suggests, are very healthy. I actually know about this site because it’s written by my wife ☺. She only began it at the beginning of this year, in January. She resumed it to coincide with Veganuary, an annual challenge for people to go vegan for a month. She put up a post every day for 31 consecutive days, and has carried on posting frequently since then. One of the best thing about the site is that I get to eat all the delicious food that you can see in the pictures on the Instagram page.

Write about a social media site you visit frequently.

Say:

What it's called,

What it's about,

How you discovered it,

Why you like it,

How often you visit it.

Mention anything interesting or important. Try to write at least 200 words. Leave a comment on my blog and on the blogs of 3 classmates.

A Holiday as a Child

I think the first time my family went on holiday I was about 9 or 10 years old. We went to a little village on the coast of the Irish Sea in North Wales called Criccieth. My family at that time consisted of 5 sisters and 2 brothers as my youngest brother, Ged, hadn’t been born yet. The cottage my parents rented was actually in the countryside about 5 miles from the coast. I remember seeing different landscapes and we did something different each day. My family loves walking and I remember us walking through fields and forests. On our walks, my father would tell us all about the different vegetation and wildlife (he knew a lot about trees, plants and birds). We also spent time on the beach. 

The great thing about the beach at Criccieth is that it has sandy parts that are great for paddling (or swimming if you are very brave - the water is freezing!) and other parts with rock pools. I remember playing in the rock pools and catching small crabs and shrimps. Criccieth also has a castle. For me as an 8-year old it was really fascinating and us visiting it was one of the highlights of the trip. I guess we stayed in Criccieth for about a week and it was in either July or August. Luckily, we had great weather and I remember having a great time. Here are the only 2 photos I have of that trip. I think this first photo is the only one of me and my brothers and sisters from that period.

Write about a holiday or special occasion you remember as a child.
Say:
Where and when it was,
Who was there,
What you did,
Why you remember this occasion.
Mention anything interesting or important. Try to write at least 200 words. Leave a comment on my blog and on the blogs of 3 classmates.

A Photograph

 Hi Fau Bloggers,

Today I'd like to write about 2 photographs I like. One is a photo of me, the 2nd a photo I took. 

The first photo is a photo of me from 1980 when I was 20 years old. It was taken in a photo booth in Leeds (a city in the North of England). I was at a Punk/New Wave music festival with a couple of friends. I like this photo because it reminds of when I was young & innocent (ha!ha!). I was quite fashion conscious at that age. I was a big fan of David Bowie and I often wore make-up and quite outlandish clothes (often with styles copied from Bowie). My hair was dyed red. It used to be curlier but the dye make if frizz out. Nowadays, I look around FAU and see lots of interesting fashion statements and, in my experience, it's always good to remind yourself of what you were like when you were younger.   

The second photo is of a waterfall in Zhejiang Province in China. I visited the waterfall in July 2022 with my wife and a Chinese friend called Vera. It's actually the highest waterfall in Asia and their are 2 other beautiful and impressive waterfalls nearby on the same stretch of river. My wife and I were living in Wenzhou which is in the same province but a couple of hours away by car. We went for the weekend and stayed in a really nice, rustic hotel which has a cave cellar underneath where the owner makes traditional Chinese alcohol called Bai-jiu, the Chinese equivalent of Pisco. We walked from the hotel to the entrance of the park with the waterfall, which was about 10 kilometres, which took us a while because it was really hot. The park was beautiful and unspoilt except for the carved steps. It seems there are carved steps everywhere in China. I like this photo because it reminds me of a fairytale image or something from Lord of the Rings. 

Write about a photograph (or 2!) you like.

Say:

When the photograph is from,

What it shows,

Why you like it,

What it reminds you of.

Mention anything else you think is important or interesting.

Try to write at least 175 words. Leave a comment on your teacher's blog and on the blogs of at least 3 classmates. 

A Hobby

 Hi Blogheads,

Today I'm going to tell you about my hobby - making music.

I began making music for the first time aged 12 when I started to learn to play guitar. I'd been writing poetry for a couple of years and I tried to turn my poems into songs. By the time I could play 2 chords I wrote my first song (the chords were C and Em7). I started playing in a rock band aged 16 and a Punk band aged 17. I played in bands for the 15 years and also starting making some house music until I decided to go to university as a mature student. 

Nowadays, my hobby mainly involves making music using a programme called Ableton Live. But sometimes I use guitar and keyboard. Very occasionally I sing:) I spend much of my free time making music. During the semester I don't always get a chance to make music every day but I will spend up to 10 hours doing my hobby on an average weekend.

I current have 2 musical projects. I still release songs as Experiment SH1310 (I have a new single out on Thursday) and I recently started releasing music with a Columbian designer who I met in China last year (we are making music at a distance!). The name of our band is Amateur Beauty.

On January 22nd later we released our first album and launched our website. On March 28th,  our 2nd album ABDB, a homage to pop singer David Bowie, came out. 

I enjoy this hobby because I lose myself in the music when I'm creating. It is almost like meditating and I love the sensation it creates. Also, now that my music is on Spotify and I-tunes its easier to share.

Write about a hobby you enjoy.

Say:

How long you have been doing your hobby,

What equipment you use,

What your hobby involves,

How often you do it,

Why you enjoy doing it.

Mention anything else you think is important or interesting. Try to write at least 150 words.

Leave a comment on my blog and on the blogs of at least 3 classmates.

A song you like at the moment

 Hi Blog heads,

Today I'm going to write about a song I enjoy listening to at the moment. The song I'm going to choose is a Chinese pop song from 2021. It's called Dangerous Party and it's performed by Wang Yi Tai & Choco. 

I think the first time we heard the song was sometime early 2022 in Decathlon in Guangzhou. We were buying some spot's goods and this song came on over the loud speaker system. As we were paying for our goods my wife decided to ask the shop assistant if he knew who sang the song. We tried to describe the song but our Chinese was poor and he didn't speak any English. Finally, my wife managed to communicate her idea and although the assistant didn't know the song, he gave us a print out of all the songs the shop had played in the previous hour. Later in the day I searched through them all on YouTube and we managed to find it.

I think I like it because it reminds me of our time in China. Its a total pop song but it has soul (which allows me to categories it as good pop). I like the mix, the singers have good voices and the song has a good groove that's easy to dance to. I guess this song has a fairly retro feel. We listen to once or twice a week and any time we feel like dancing around together:)

I have a wide taste in music but recently I haven't come across anything new that has really moved me. I have really enjoyed Kendrick Lamar's new work but as he is attempting to push and expand the boundaries Hip-Hop his songs are not always easy listening. However, as an extra bonus, I'll leave this amazing track from De La Soul ft. Estelle 

Write about a song you are listening to at the moment.

Say:

What the song is called,

When you heard it for the first time,

Why you like it,

How often you listen to it.

Mention anything else you think is important or interesting. Leave a comment on your teacher's post and a comment on the blogs of at least 3 classmates.

A short introduction

 Hi

So, my name is Simon and I'm your English teacher this semester. I'm from Britain, I was born in Wales and grew up in England. Apart from Chile, I've also lived in Spain & China.

My main hobby is making music, which is something I've done since I was about 14-years old (yeah, I've been doing this hobby for about a 100 years 😂). Nowadays, I make mostly instrumental music but every now & then I sing. 

This summer I stayed in Santiago working on a new album. I only arrived back from spending 3 years in China in September so there was no need to go on holiday.

I live with my wife (Beatriz) and 2 cats (Goku & Aiko). We are vegan and try to lead relatively healthy lives. My favourite sport is football (my second hobby!!) but, in my free time, I also enjoy walking in natural environments, reading, cooking, and travelling.

That's all for now.

See you soon.