I went in to a book store the other day with the intention of maybe finding some nice venezuelan female authors, or just feministic literature in spanish. So to get some assitance with this I went to the counter. The following scenario took place:
Another woman had just bought a book and was getting it wrapped in paper by the girl working in the store. As the girl is about to finish the whole wrapping project she turns to the customer and asks with a bored (this is clearly routine) voice:
- ¿Es para una hembra o un marrón? (Is it for a female or a male)
- Un marrón, the woman answers and the girl bends down and with a resolute gesture she takes out a green bow to decorate the present with.
A marvallous feeling of extreme predectability comes over me, it is like I am crying with frustration inside but with a smile on my face, because of course, of course the man should have a green bow. I can only imagine what colour it would have been if the present was for a woman... The world felt so incredibly safe in the most awful way.
Thank you and good bye. My turn.
- Hello, I am searching for any kind of feministic litterature.
A confused but still proffessional look meets my eyes, and then a short discussion with her male colleague follows. Satisfied they both turn to me and say:
- Aha, sí, literatura sobre lo feminino, sí eso tenemos. The girl showed me to one of the bookshelves further away.
- Aqui! This is what you mean, right?!
Well, what to say, except for:
- Eh...hrm, yeees, thank you!
I didn't buy no book that day.
After this I went to check out the main university in Caracas, Universidad Central, which is public (the other public university is the one I'm at). It was a huge campus and very beautiful. It had a good atmosphere and felt a whole lot more relaxed than up at Simón Bolívar (my uni). The students were older, the variation of people much greater and they have a Centro de estudios de la Mujer (women studies)!
I guess they just have a more alive and engaged activist culture, and nice wastepaper baskets like this one!On my way home, I live in an area called Baruta, I go through Baruta center which looks like this ---->
And a little further up the road, I have to pass this:
It is a little animal shop, selling animal food, animal toys and... chickens and rabbits, living in tiny cages.
Once back at home I had a private moment with C-man, he held a speach, it lasted 2 hours.
Well, that was all for now.
3 comments:
Well, those animals I can't find here but hey, no activist signs, C-men or feminist litterture either. Well, the Venezuelian kind maybe but apart from that your country seems much much more vivid than this IIT campus in India. Nice pics darling!/Lindnis
Tja! Har inget vettigt att skriva förutom att jag hittat hit och gillar det. Kul med Venezuelaraportering i det göteborska höstmörkret.
finis, du är för rolig..jag lovar att det snart kommer en rapport om livet här borta i malmö och på nobel.
vad fint att du mötte upp med christina. Pussar så länge!!!
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