Arriba Madrid!

Madrid is so much fun! One of our K excursions was to Madrid and I had a really great time there. We stayed at a hotel called “Hotel Coloso.” I think we were in the china town of Madrid because every small business was owned by chinese people lol, but we were really close to a lot of busy main streets.

What I love the most about Madrid are the people. There is so much diversity and so many people walking everywhere all the time. There are people from Germany, India, Brazil, the United States, France, Dominican Republic, Cuba, everywhere in the world. In Caceres, there is hardly any diversity besides Erasmus (European students) and us K students. There is a handful of Africans, but I only see them whenever I´m walking down the street. So in Madrid, I didn´t feel like all eyes were on me.

There were so many things to look at. I kept bumping into people because I wasn´t watching where I was going. There were clothing stores like H&M, which I love, a McDonald´s in every corner, and about five movie theatres in one street. I felt like I was in downtown Manhattan back home in New York. It felt so  liberating to walk around and get to know the city.

After doing some shopping and eating lunch, all the K kids had to meet at the hotel lobby for a mandatory scavenger hunt around Madrid. At first I thought it was going to be the most childish thing to do, but it ended up being really fun. We had to run from here to there, stop every two seconds to ask people for directions and freak them out with our ridiculous questions like, “Que es una chulapa?” and “Que es la diferencia entre botellin y botellon?” “Chulapa” is a typical outfit for women in Madrid that they wear for dancing at parties. And “botellin” is a drink of beer from a small bottle at a bar and “botellon” is a beer in a big bottle that everyone drinks from outside in the “campo.” We ran and walked so much for the scavenger hunt that we were too tired to even go out at night. We really did try to go out that night, but we didn’t know where to go and we were too tired to walk around and find a place to be.

But on saturday night… ;-)

Saturday night was the best night I have had so far in Spain. We went to a seven floor club where they play different kind of music in each one. It was the first night I stayed out until six in the morning! I was so glad I hadn’t worn heels, because I did not sit down for not one song. I spent most of my time in the hip-hop and r&b floor, because in the bars in Caceres, they only play merengue and flamenco. The only people who come close to the “hip-hop” they play in bars is Lady Gaga’s “Alejandro” and Akon’s “Sexy Chick.” But when the songs come on, all the Spaniards sing every word without an accent. It’s crazy, I shake my head every time. But it’s still pretty fun.

The seven floor club is called “Kapital,” and it’s the best club that could ever exist. I got to dance to merengue, reggeton, hip-hop, and my favorite Spanish techno ”Papa-americano,” which is so fun to dance to. There is no way anyone can possibly get bored in that club.

And the diversity! It was so cool seeing how all the different cultures danced to the different types of music. The Indians, Africans, and Latinos, were the ones who knew how to dance the best. Everyone else just did the same step no matter what song was on lol. But it was so much fun. My friend Mayra and I were like, “We HAVE to come back to Madrid!” So we plan on going back for a weekend or for winter break.

The only bad news about Madrid was that we didn’t get to meet up with the other K students whose study abroad is in Madrid :-( I didn’t get to see Brit or Obi, and my friend Dion, whose study abroad is in Hungary, but was visiting Madrid that weekend we were there. Unfortunately, they lived a little too far from where our hotel was located. But there’s always next time. We still have about four months to go :-)

There’s a First for Everything

I love my ICRP!

Tell me how they gave me my first interview on my first day!

On my first day, Sergio, the editor, gave me a document of TheCoffeeBreak, one of the many companies Avuela Pluma works with. I had to translate the document in english. It was an easy first task so I got it done in less than an hour. There were some words I didn´t know the meaning of in spanish so I had to Google them, which is pretty sad, but just because I´m bilingual doesn´t mean I´m suppose to know every smart word out there in both languages :-/

After I translated the document, Sergio and Conrado, pulled me aside and sat me at Conrado´s desk. They asked me what were my interests. I told them, I’m interested in learning anything that has to do with the culture of Caceres and doing work that makes me get involved into that culture. They said, “vale,” their typical saying. Ours´is “okay.” Sergio then asked me how would I feel about doing my first interview. My face automatically lit up :-) I had the cheesiest smile and they could tell right away that I was super happy with the idea.

They set me up with an interview right down the street at a bar! I had to interview a photographer whom´s exposicion was called “Memento.” It sounded really interesting even though I didn´t know how I could possibly do an interview at a loud bar where everyone is drinking and trying to talk over the music.

The interview was set up for a Thursday night at 9:00 p.m. I was to come up with seven to eight questions of anything I wanted to ask him, and make sure to come by the office to show them the questions, pick up the camera, and the tape recorder.

Since it was my first real interview and it was so sudden, I didn’t know the best way to be prepared.  To come up with the questions, I did some background check on Eugenio Martinena, the photographer, through Google. His exposition was online along with a description of why he called it “Memento.” 

Since the interview had to do with art, I used my art history critiquing skills from K and came up with typical questions one would have about art. I critiqued the photos by their size, color, the position of the figures depicted, and so on. Then I based my questions on why he chose those positions, the color, the significance of the size, what he wanted to capture in the photo, and so on.

When I got to the bar, La Traviata, there was a section at the back where the music wasn’t so loud and the bar not too far. There were long seats against the wall and small, long rectangular tables with lit candles. The walls were covered in four sections with Martinena’s photographs. Martinena himself was standing by the photo I saw in the internet. Monica, a close friend of Sergio and Conrado introduced me to Martinena. The first thing he told me was how nervous he was because he had never been interviewed before and it was his first time doing an exposition by himself.

I was like, “No Way! It’s my first time interviewing!” Immediately I felt a little more relaxed to know that he is not used to having professional reporters on him. And the fact that he was nervous too made me feel somewhat more comfortable. After the third question, things got a little easier and we were both loosening up. He got more talkative rather than just answering the question flatly, and I stopped saying “umm” after every word. We even had a few things in common. We both felt that if we go on a trip and we don’t come back with great pictures, then the trip wouldn’t be considered as a good trip, because whoever sees the picture won’t see what we lived while we were there.

In general, it was really interesting to hear how a photographer works and what they look for in their scenes before they capture it.

After about an hour and a half, we finished the interview and I stayed a little longer to take as many pictures as I could. I even used some of his techniques of capturing strange moments people wouldn’t really notice. I captured a good photo of him with his hands in praying position while he talked to one of his friends. Right before leaving, I showed him the picture and told him how much I’ve learned during the interview. He laughed and said it was a really good one. We said our goodbyes and I went out the bar feeling very accomplished.

When it came down to writing the interview, I found it hard to put everything together and have it make sense. So I arranged the questions in the order they should be mentioned in a typical interviewing article. Then I used my journalism skills I learned from my professor Marin and structured my paragraphs in the correct format and grammar. I figured it would be the same in spanish as in english.

When I showed it to Sergio on my computer screen when I went to the office the following week, he was surprised by the way I wrote it. He said I wrote it as a news-story report instead of question and answer after question and answer!

I didn’t know I was supposed to write an interview in that format. I felt so stupid. I thought I had done a good job on it, because I began my lede with a close scene on Martinena being all nervous and shaking his legs. It was attention grabbing and I thought they would appreciate that :-(

But then afterwards, Sergio said not to worry about it, because it’s only my first interview and that he should have told me how I should have written it. I still felt pretty bad, but later I got over it and told myself I would do better next time.

Before I left that day, Sergio told me the paper will be out in the newspaper by the following Monday with my name under the article and one of the pictures I took of Martinena. He repeated that it’s not my fault and that they are really glad and fortunate to have me, because the interview was written so well and almost professional-like if it were a news-story, and that soon they’re going to have me do news-story kind of work :-)

That really lightened me up. All I kept thinking was “Oh my God. Thank you Marin for your teachings.”

Even though I made that small error,  I still felt happy that they recognized my potential. I left the office feeling anxious to see my article on the culture page with my name on top :D

Awesome News!

I am so excited yet so nervous about this great opportunity I am fortunate to have!

So all K students have to do their ICRP project, which is to choose a place of interest where you can do volunteer work, gain experience, have fun, and get to know more about the people of Caceres and Caceres itself. We need to put in 40-45 hours during our time here, keep a journal of everything we do and go through, and then use it to write a 10-15 page essay about how the project helped us and so on.

Well, the first thing that came to mind was working at a newspaper place. I told Denise, a professor in charge of the ICRP projects, and she said some students have tried working with the local newspaper but were denied because they didn’t know enough spanish to write all the time. But, since I am a native, they could make an exception. She gave me the name of the place and where I can find it.

Next thing I know, I’m making my way towards la Plaza Mayor, across the street from “El Gran Teatro.” I got lost for a few minutes, but eventually I saw that the place I was looking for had a sign on a second floor balcony, which I wouldn’t have noticed unless I looked up. The sign read “Avuela Pluma” in black letters with the letter “a” in lime green and a bigger font than the rest of the letters in “avuela.” I thought it was an interesting name for a local newspaper. At first I didn’t get it, because when Denise told me about it, I thought it was “Abuela Pluma,” or grandma feather, but “avuela pluma,” fly feather, makes more sense.

I went up the stairs until I saw a glass door and another sign with the local newspaper’s name. At first, I thought no one was there, because everything was so quiet. The heels of my shoes clicked so loudly, but not even the sound of my shoes could cover up the sound of my heart almost beating out of my chest. I was super nervous about how I was going to explain myself and whether they were going to let me do volunteer work.

I walked into a room with four computers and three people, two men and a woman in their thirty’s. I asked if I could speak to the person in charge, and the guy closest to me got up and said we can sit at his desk. He introduced himself as Sergio, the editor. He was pretty cute: he had green eyes and flippy, brown, soft hair, like a typical Fabio looking guy, but older. His looks made me even more nervous.

I slowly explained to him who I was, where I was from, and my purpose of being there. He noticed my trouble talking through my nerves and I began to feel embarrassed. He told me it was okay and that he was glad I had come to do volunteer work. He explained that Avuela Pluma is a nonprofit newspaper. All the writers contribute to the newspaper so it’s the same as volunteering. He told me he would be glad to have me working in Avuela Pluma and all he has to do is take a look at my schedule and talk to his “socio”, Conrado. Then he added that there was no way he would have a problem with anything and I could start as soon as I possible.

I was so happy and relieved to hear him say that! I couldn’t believe I was going to start my first experience as a journalist at a local newspaper! In Spain!

We concluded I could come Tuesdays and Thursdays at 17:30h and he would start teaching me everything they do in Avuela Pluma. I thanked him for all his help and cheerfully went out the glass door, down the stairs, and out into the Caceres I would soon be interviewing :-)

No School :-), Yes School :-)

Classes started on Wednesday :- )

Well, not really. There was a “huelga” or strike going on in Spain. I don’t know the exact details of what the “huelga” is about, but like always, of course, it has to do with the government and the economy. The president of Spain, Zapatero, has changed his economic views throughout the years. 

When Zapatero first became president, he sent troops home from Iraq, he gave away unemployment checks, made gay marriages legal, and other really good things. The regime of president Franco and his “franquismo” was so bad, that these things were a huge deal back then.

During “franquismo” everyone was forced to be Catholic, political opinions, and freedom of writing were against the law. The people of Spain were trapped in bird cages with no way out. President Franco was like Hitler to Germany, and like Trujillo to Dominican Republic.

Unfortunately, the economy of Spain was decreasing and Zapatero raised prices, took away unemployment checks, and allowed for employers to fire their workers for the smallest things. Now the unemployment rate in Spain is 20 percent! Hence, the “huelga” happened and I had no class on Wednesday :-)

Honestly, I think it’s Zapatero’s fault because he satiated the people of Spain with his goodness. He should have given his goods at a fixated rate throughout the years. But at the same time I don’t blame him, because after president Franco, or Hitler, or Trujillo, who wouldn’t want to go all out.

The “huelga” didn’t get intense here in Caceres. We were told that everything was going to be closed, the buses would not be working, and no one was going to go to work. But when I woke up on Wednesday, my parents asked me, “Quieres ir al mercado con vosotros?” I thought, what?, the market is open? Then they explained to me that the “huelga” didn’t occur in Caceres and everything is still normal. So I got dressed and went to the market which, by the  way is the best market ever! I got a cheetah scarf for two euros, three shirts for one euro each and a pair of black flats, for ten euros when at stores it’s 20! They sell everything you can think of for a really low price! It’s active only on Wednesdays, so if you want to go there, you have to be there by nine in the morning. My first class on Wednesdays doesn’t start until 10 a.m. so I give myself twenty minutes to look around :-) Yeay Wednesdays!

So that day I went to the market with my host parents, I bumped into other K students who were also shocked about the “huelga” not happening in Caceres. But we didn’t mind too much, because we only had class for one day on Thursday and then our weekend started since we don’t have classes on Fridays.

So really classes started on Thursday :-)

At first I was nervous about how I would be treated by the Spanish students, but as the days closed in, I became more excited. The classes I chose from the Universidad de Extremadura are interesting. I’m taking “Literatura hispanoamericana” (Hispanic American Literature) for my English/Writing major and “Arte Barroco” (Baroque Art) for my Art History minor. Hopefully these count as K credits towards my major and minor. The other four classes are K classes. Three are mandatory, and the other one, Images, was the only one that could fit into my schedule.

I didn’t have all my classes on Thursday though. Only hispanic american literature and images, which I liked. The only annoying thing about hispanic american literature is that the professor whispers his lecture as if someone will shoot him for teaching us what he knows about hispanic americans! I even sat in the front row and every time he turned his head in the opposite direction, I heard absolutely nothing. I don’t know how the other students further up the rows can hear him.

My images class was good. The professor talks really loud, is energetic, and really nice. The funny thing is he kept saying “De acuerdo” at the end of every other sentence, but in a cartoon-ish voice. He sounded a little bit like the guy from Family Guy with the really huge, long chin and buck tooth from Britain. He’s one of Louis’s dad’s rich friends. He has a really funny voice. I think it’s because of the professor’s heavy accent. He says he does not know any English, but he was going to talk really slow so that everyone would understand him. Overall, I think he’s a really nice professor.

Baroque art was supposed to be my first class of the day, at 10:00 a.m., but there was a sign outside the door saying the professor was at a meeting outside of town. My friend, Megan Garn, who’s also taking the class, and I were pretty pissed, because we could’ve slept for another hour, and we didn’t have anything to do for that hour we were suppose to have class. But then we decided to walk all around campus until we got really tired and then take the bus back in time for our images class. We kept saying, “Well, this is a bad start for it being the first day of school.”

Not many Spanish students came to class on Thursday because they don’t take school seriously, so I didn’t really get to meet the Spanish students in my class. I would have to wait until Monday.

The Pop Language

Spain language is pretty different from my Dominican language. Common language like the word “bus” is “autobus” for them, but for me it’s “guagua,” and potatoes is “patatas” for them and “papas” for me. And everyday sayings and expressions of the young pop culture is hardly understandable.  They are fun sayings that make sense when they are explained, but a lot of them mean something completely different. For example, “por la patilla” means “algo que es gratis,” something that is free. But “por la patilla” really means “by the pill!” Another one is “estar empanado/empanao.” To me it makes no sense because empanado/a is a dumpling, a food. ”Estar empanado” means ”to be dumpling?!”  But in their language, it means “estar confuso” or to be confused.

My Dominican culture uses different words from the Spain culture that mean the same thing. For example, “ir maqueado” for them means ”ir bien vestido,” which is go well dressed. In my language, we say “ir con un cache” which also means to go well dressed. Another example is “entrarle a un tio/una tia,” which is ask an uncle or aunt out! But saying uncle/aunt in their language is the same as saying that guy or girl. I know, it’s crazy. In my language, we say “meter mano con ese tigere/esa tigera.” This actual saying in english means “stick a hand with that tiger” lol. Our way of saying boy or girl is “tigere” or “tigera.” But the expression “meter mano con ese tigere/esa tigera” also means ask a guy or girl out.

Imagine talking to a group of people at the university and they start talking to you in their pop language. I would have a “cacao” or “estar empanao!” lol. I think it will be fun once I get used to it.

Oh My God!

I do not know what I was worrying about so much. I am in love with Caceres! It’s such a pretty and small place. One can get anywhere by walking, the weather is still warm, and the food is soo good.

My host parents are really nice people. They have been with the K international program for more than fifteen years! They made my entire room pink, my favorite color! And guess what my Madre made me for lunch???? Pasta and chicken!!! It’s everything I love, chicken, meat and cheese. It’s like she read my mind! The food is really great here. I think I might even gain a few pounds if they keep feeding me so much.

What I love the most is the views. I should get paid for taking landscape pictures. They come out as perfect as a professional postcards! I’ve taken many walks around the city and have taken pictures of everything I saw. There are statues and fountains and stores everywhere. Every store I look into I go, “I need everything!” There’s so many boots and bags and accessories in so many different styles and colors. And I’ve been looking around at the Espanol style. Girls like to wear heels all the time, shorts with boots, and messenger bags. The really young girls in high school wear boyfriend jeans, which are really baggy and low-rise with sneakers and make the look classy with a nice top, long pearl necklaces, and a cute hair style.

The teenage boys dress really skater-like, tight skinny jeans, t-shirts, and big sneakers. They like to wear their hair in spiked mohawks and some have their ears pierced. They are pretty “Americanized” in their sense of style.

The great part about living in Caceres is the “parque central,” which is a really long, narrow park with benches, a bar in the middle, and plenty of space where people take a walk at any time of day with their family, dates, or by themselves. 

The only uncomfortable thing is the weather. It changes like crazy. It’s a little chilly in the morning. By noon, the sun is really strong, and by five o’ clock it goes away and it’s almost perfect. Then by 9:30 p.m. the wind starts blowing and we put on our sweaters again. I say it’s uncomfortable, because it’s not stable during the whole day, so you never really know what is the best clothing you can wear that won’t be too hot or too cold. Denise, one of the professors at Universidad de Extremadura and one of the program leaders, said in the winter it gets super cold and there is no heat in the school. Everyone here believes in layers and layers and that’s about it. No heaters! But  I honestly can’t wait for the cold weather to start kicking in, because I only packed fall and winter clothing :-/

I’m not going to lie. I’ve been having a hard time falling asleep. I just lay in bed thinking about my day and thinking about the next day. My days are not routine-like, like my life at K, which is great because I like living life without knowing everything that’s going to happen. It’s more exciting. But I like that everyday there is something different to look at or another place we haven’t heard about.

When we K students are together as a group during orientation or visiting places, we talk about how our host families are, especially when it comes to food. They look at us like we’re crazy when we say, “I really don’t eat a lot,” and pile more and more food onto our plates as if we had said, “please help me stuff myself until I pass out.” Breakfast is not a big thing in Spain. Some eat a toast or a fruit and most eat nothing. But lunchtime is the biggest meal of the day. At three in the afternoon, you get an appetizer that ends up being like a plate of dinner: pasta or bread with five different hams and cheeses which they make you try each one. Then comes the main course, which is some sort of meat with rice or “patatas” a.k.a potatoes, and more bread. And dessert is another whole three course meal! First you get some type of cake, then some flan or some sweet treat, and then comes ice cream!

After lunch, I literally can’t even walk three feet to my room. But the best, yet worst part after lunch is “siesta.” We get to nap for about two hours, which is sooo good. But going to sleep right after eating gets you fat! The way to beat the fatness from getting to you though is to walk everywhere! Anytime of day, walk your butt everywhere. Accept for when school starts, it’s too far to walk. I’ll just have to take up the “siesta” time to get homework done :-/

I’m kind of excited for school to start so I can finally interact with “estudientes Espanoles.” But I’m nervous about looking weird, standing out too much, showing how nervous I am, embarrassing myself, and finally getting rejected for the rest of the school year :-( Yes, I know, I’m exaggerating or overreacting, but I can’t help it!

You know what’s so sad? I have not spoken to my family back home!  I haven’t heard not one of their voices. I’ve been trying to keep in touch with my dad on Facebook (yes, the Crazy Old Man has Facebook), but the time difference and the military time is driving me crazy. I’ve got to find a better way to keep in touch.

It is 2:00 a.m., I think, and I have to go to bed. Tomorrow morning we’re going to ”el mercadillo” Supposedly they sell clothes, shoes and everything really cheap. That’s something you wake up early for, shopping! Until next time!

A Couple of Hours

It is 3:00 a.m. I am listening to music, texting my goodbyes to my friends and waiting for my alarm to go off at 5:30 a.m. to “wake up” and start getting ready for a day long trip to Caceres, Spain.

Yeayy I’m so excited :-\

Seriously, I am excited about being in Caceres, but not in the process of getting there. It’s going to be pretty exhausting, especially because I could never fall asleep in public places. Unfortunately, I don’t look like an angel sleeping, so I act fair to the people who might see me.

The last three days have been really busy. I had to visit family members who wished me a safe flight, shopping for last-minute things, and doing the last step: packing. Packing is not fun at all. Especially when everything I had to pack were winter clothes and boots that took up a lot of space and  hygiene products took up all the pounds. I honestly think I only have about ten outfits I can mix and match for six months. That really sucks, especially since I love all of my clothes and being forced to leave two-thirds of it behind so that my luggage won’t be overweight is painful. I don’t know how I managed to do it, but I did it. I packed what I could and left about five pounds less for whatever I purchase in Spain.

Other than the torture I went through with my luggage, I had fun getting “beautified.” I got my hair done, a manicure and pedicure, shaped my eyebrows and treated myself to lunch at Olive Garden with my bff Sasha. This time I had the lasagna noodles wrapped with ricotta, romano, and mozzarella cheese, topped with meat and mozzarella sauce. I really love Italian food :-)

It’s 3:36 a.m. My computer decided to update itself without my consent and almost gave me a heart attack, because I thought this new post was gone. But hurray for the history of website pages.

I’m still listening to music and can’t come around to saying goodbye to my friends. But, life goes on, friends will always be there. So will home, my family, and my favorite foods. So, to life at home, until next year, February 2011. Goodbye and I will miss you.

Exactly One Week! :-)

Hi Guys,

Exactly one week from now, I will be on my way to Spain!

So I was talking to my best friend from high school, Sasha, to set a date for lunch at Olive Garden on 42nd and Broadway and to wish our farewells until next year, technically, when the thought of my last meals from home popped up. I sat down and wrote everything I wanted to eat for my last couple of days. I showed my mom a schedule of all my dinners for the next seven days, beginning today: Thursday: rice, beans, and chicken, Friday: lasagna (fried, sweet plantains in substitute of lasagna noodles, Dominican “pastelon”), Saturday: baked ziti with ground chicken, Sunday: potato salad with roasted chicken, and so on with all of my favorite Spanish dishes. She couldn’t say no, because I’m going to miss my first Thanksgiving, Christmas Holiday, and New Year’s. Plus, I’m the youngest :-)

I don’t know exactly how the food is going to be like in Spain. I heard it is not that bad. I think I will survive as long as I am not served any kind of seafood, including fish, no salad, and no organic anything. I basically just love anything that is fattening. I am not healthy at all and especially do not like to exercise. How am I living? Don’t know, but life’s short and I do whatever keeps me happy and good food makes me happy :-)  

Right now the only thing worrying me is my camera.  I was preparing my bag to go to the beach with my family while the weather was still good. I threw my camera, caseless, inside my bag along with all my other stuff, and when we got to the beach, there was a permanent, long black line inside of the screen. I have a one year warranty, so I sent it in to have it fixed or replaced with a new one. They told me I had to give them seven to fourteen business days. Today is the 10th business day and they said they will make sure my camera is sent back before my trip. But New York’s post office is pretty crazy and giving it an extra day or two means my camera will get here on the 16th, the day I leave, or 17th of September :-\ Hopefully, I get it on time.

Well, I’ve got to get ready to go to work. Catch up with my last couple of days coming up!

Nail Biting Time

I am so nervous about leaving!

I’ve never been on the other side of the world before. The furthest I’ve gone is to Dominican Republic to visit my family and to Hawaii to visit my brother while he was in the army :-|

I think I’m only worried because I don’t know what to expect when I’m other there. It’s a whole new place, new people, new everything. I had the same experience when I first came to K. I never paid a visit to the college or been a prospy. I didn’t know what the college looked like or anyhting. I wasn’t acquainted with a single soul other than my mom who accompanied me. But everything turned out to be pretty good. I made friends by my second day and quickly adjusted to the new environment.

Going to Caceres, Spain will be the same experience, only I am going to be with other K students, including one of my closest friends, Mayra.

I’m not going to lie. I am pretty excited for when we go touring all over Europe. It’s one of the reason’s why I decided to study abroad in Spain. I’ve never been to Europe and probably would never get the opportunity again. So I’m going to suck in all the great things awaiting for me in Spain. :-)

I still can’t deny. I am in a nail biting situation :-|

It’s two weeks before departure and I’ve yet to go shopping for what I need to pack! So shopping will be what I’ll be doing for the next few days! :-)

Hello world!

Hi Everyone! Stay tuned for my experience on study abroad to Caceres, Spain!

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