Photos: Traveling II

It's mid-afternoon here, early morning on the US East Coast. Our panel, at 9 am today, went well, each of the papers harmonizing with each other in fruitful ways. I realized last night as I was making changes that I had written two papers instead of one. Separating and then developing and polishing both will be something to look forward to. Now, after a bit of Skyping with C, I hope to catch a few panels, and walk a bit more around the city.  One energizing mental exercise involves trying to make out as much Catalan as I can, and I can. Mash French and Spanish together it really makes sense; fortunately it doesn't impede my Spanish, which now arrives at my lips without even the slightest tinge of Portuguese. I cannot help but speak it slowly, though, and with a Caribbean accent. Eso sí que es. In a Catalan bookstore today I saw sections for every type of book except "literature." I didn't ask where they'd hidden it. On the other I think I did read on Twitter that Andrew Zawacki posted on Harriet that "grafitti" is the "secret language" of Paris. Not just Paris: there is so much inventive street literature and art here that it's clear it's one chief response, as it was once upon a time in the US, to the misrule of the overlords. Maybe that's where all the most vibrant poets and fiction writers here are publishing. On walls. ¡Siempre la lucha, pa'lante, arriba! (¿Escriba?)

Update: I did find some work by very interesting Spanish and Hispanophone English--in a bookstore that featured both the US and British English-language versions of Jonathan Franzen's new volume of essays. Why?

Facultat de Comunicació Blanquerna
Universitat Ramon Llull (HQ for the conference)



Where our panel was held this AM