Religion.

I have a friend who doesn't hesitate one bit in telling me when he thinks I'm wrong. A part of me admires that about him, another part just wants to explain things. He, as myself, is an atheist. But he believes that I live by a radical atheism, that I take things too far, that my "hate" towards religion is limitless.

Maybe he's right. Maybe he isn't. The thing is: my atheism and his are completely different and that is what I think he fails to understand.
I don't know the reasons that led him to be a non-believer. Maybe his family are sceptics as well, maybe he didn't have to put up a fight.

I did.

Being raised in a catholic family and having your own doubts towards religion is not easy. The time comes when you have to decide what you choose to believe. That time came for me at the age of thirteen.
Since then I have had countless fights and debates with my father regarding the existence of God. He believes. I don't.

You see my friend, my atheism comes from fighting. It comes from rebellion. It comes from a feeling of oppression that keeps you on your feet for years and years of unanswered questions.

That is why, I believe, my atheism is as strong and defiant as it is.
Because it is a response against something.
It is a cry for freedom.
It is a part of me. I can't change it.
And most importantly: I don't want to.

Paula.

Hi guys! I need your help!

Hi guys!

I'm writing this blog post to introduce you to one of my favourite music bands.

Same Old Fears is an emerging spanish band formed by three friends who last year decided to give their music a go. Their style varies between rock, indie and punk and they're really really good. (here are some pics so you can see them in action):

All pictures are by Javier Cortina (he also has a photography blog: http://javiercortinafotos.blogspot.com.es/ 

So! They need your help in a contest that's organized by Rolling Stone Magazine and by the brand Diesel. I'm going to leave the link below where you can go and vote (please do so). The button is a the end of the page, you have to scroll down :)

If you have twitter, facebook or google + you can vote, if not, you can always share through other social media platforms, it'll be helpful as well!

THANK YOU GUYS :)

LINK:

http://www.rollingstone.es/dieselnrs/semifinalistas/index.php?i=11333&i=11333

Here are Same Old Fears links to social media and their videos and music so you can check them out if you want to :) (they just released a new song)

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SameOldFears_

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sameoldfearsrock?fref=ts

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/SameOldFearsRock

Instagram: http://instagram.com/sameoldfears_

SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/same-old-fears

LOVE YOU ALL!! :)

Best Pictures II

Hey guys!

Today I'm bringing you 'Best pictures' PART TWO! You seemed to love the last set of pictures I showed you so I hope you enjoy this as much as the last one.

Marne, Germany. 'Life'

The Pyrenees, Spain.

'Feline look'

Madrid, Spain. 'Home'

'Colourful' Marrakech, Morocco.

'Breaking the ice' The Pyrenees, Spain.

'Northern sun' Germany.

'Flying' (Somewhere in Europe)

'Intelligence' The Pyrenees, Spain.

'Symmetry' Granada, Spain.

Well, that is it for today's post! I hope you liked it, don't forget to leave a comment telling me what you think about it, follow me on twitter, instagram and bloglovin if you feel like it!

Love,

Paula.

Summer books!

Hey guys!

As you know one of my favourite things to do in the whole wide world is reading. Books have been my best friends ever since I learned how to read. As I've read so many books and so different, I thought I would make a post about some of the books that I've really enjoyed.

I have decided to write about books that are really different so there's a bigger chance that you find one you like!

1. Mad about the boy, Helen Fielding.

This book is the last one of the Bridget Jones series and, personally, the best one. You discover what happens to Bridget once she's a grown woman and the changes that have happened in her life in the past few years. I both cried and laugh with this book as it is a comedy but also has a little pinch of drama.

“You see, things being good has nothing to do with how you feel outside, it is all to do with how you are inside.”




.



2. The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair, Joël Dicker

I loved this. I'm not black novel's number 1 fan... but this is a masterpiece that I really enjoyed. AND the main character is a writer, which just makes everything even better. I really recommend it, it was one of the most acclaimed books by the critic last year and it has you holding your breath at every page.                                                               

3. The Perks of being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky

 Yes, yes, I know. You all seen the movie. Well, the book is even better. You get to really know Charlie's world and the story and the way of telling the story is just wonderful. Please, do check it out because it's worth a read.                                                                    I leave you with the most beautiful quote: "We accept the love we think we deserve." 

4. The Thirteenth Tale, Diane Setterfield

This is a gothic suspense novel very well written and a bit dark and morbid but still, really good. You can never guess the final mystery. The chapters switch from the present to the past, mixing two stories and both main character's ins and outs. I don't recommend reading it before going to bed, though ;) The storyline also talks and praises books, which is something I love. I leave you here a bit of the plot:                                                    "Vida Winter, a famous novelist in England, has evaded journalists' questions about her past, from simply refusing to answer their inquiries to spinning elaborate tales that they later discover to be false. Her entire life is a secret, and for over fifty years reporters and biographers have tried innumerable methods in an attempt to extract the truth from Winter. With her health quickly fading, Winter enlists Margaret Lea, a bookish amateur biographer, to hear her story and write her biography. With her own family secrets, Lea finds the process of unraveling the past for Winter bringing her to confront her own ghosts."

5. Boys, Girls and Other Hazardous Materials, Rosalind Wiseman

Hello! Any teenage girls out there? This is for you ;) If you're not familiar with Rosalind Wiseman's work...where have you been? Start googling her, because she can be a great help if you're struggling with "teenage issues" (boys, body changes, bullies, queen bees, etc)                                                        This is her first fiction book and I fairly enjoyed reading it. The story is fresh and Wiseman introduces us to the girl world and talks (through the characters) about the challenges that teenage girls and boys face in high school.

(I had this book shipped to me from England, so it had to be good)

And last but not least...

6. The solitude of Prime Numbers, Paolo Giordano

I love love love love this book. It's all about its characters and their lifes and thoughts and I just fell in love with it.

"The novel narrates the childhood and young adult life of a boy, Mattia, and a girl, Alice, both of whom had exposure to traumatic situations when they were both 8 years old.(...)Both lonely, they befriend each other, forming a special relationship — very close but never romantic. The relationship is compared to Prime Pairs: always together, but never touching."

It's just beautiful.

And that is it for today's post! I'll definitely be coming back with more books that you guys can enjoy! Now that summer has arrived (at least in my side of the planet) it's much easier to find time to enjoy some quality time with books :)

Love,

Paula.

You're so skinny!

Hey guys!

This is a topic that I've been wanted to write about for some time and as soon as I finish it I'm going to post it on my facebook, twitter and every other social media. Why? Because I think we have to raise awareness about it.

Before I start I just want to say that I have always been a very small, thin and boney person. My parents are this way, my genes are this way and I have a extremely high metabolism. I do not have an eating disorder, I have never had an eating disorder and right now I'm perfectly healthy.

"You're so skinny" "You need to eat more" "You have to gain weight" 

I hear this kind of stuff all the time and I just can't stand it anymore. When I was a kid I was fine with it and I assumed it was fine for people to say this things to me. But now that I'm older and I've given it a thought... it's not! You would never think of saying to an overweight person: "You're so fat, you need to get on a diet", would you? You wouldn't because it's disrespectful, rude and can hurt that person's feelings...then, why is it OK to do it the other way around?

A classmate once even told me: "You look like a skeleton".
...
Is that supposed to be a compliment?

When someone tells me I'm skinny, I don't take it as a compliment. How can I? It's OFFENSIVE. That's the same thing as calling someone fat. Why would anyone think they have the right to comment on other people's body size and walk away without being told off? You can't just ask people why their body is the way it is.

Besides, how the hell am I even supposed to respond to "why are you so skinny?" Erm, sorry, it's called METABOLISM, I cannot control it and you have no right to comment on it.

"Why is it okay for you to love your curves but it's not okay for the to love my bones?"

Moral of the story, if you mean to compliment someone and they're a bit under/overweight, just say something like "you look really nice today!" instead of going on and on about their body size.

THANKS.

Paula.

Best pictures I

Hey guys!
So as you may know, I'm a big fan of photography and I love taking pictures. 

This started about three years ago, when I bought my first DECENT camera, and since then I've been carrying it with me wherever I go.

Since I've been able to take some good shots, I thought I would show you some of them. Here they go:

ENJOY!

 Marne, Germany.

 Marne, Germany. 

 Madrid, Spain

Madrid, Spain

The Pyrenees, Spain

The Pyrenees, Spain

Granada, Spain.

Granada, Spain

Oporto, Portugal

Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona, Spain

Kyoto, Japan

Madrid, Spain

The Pyrenees, Spain

Well, that is all for todays post, I hope you liked the pictures! More will be coming up very soon :) If you have any questions on where the pictures where taken, what camera I used, etc, don't hesitate in asking!

Don't forget to join this site and share and leave me a comment down below telling me what you think, I promise to replay!

Love,

Paula.

Busy week & Rolling Stones Concert

Hey guys!
So it has been a pretty busy week...it took off at Tuesday when we got our National Exams results at seven a.m. Yup. I sleept 5 hours and was tired as hell, but still, I'm pretty happy with what I got (8/10 not too bad).

It's been two extremely stressful years (and still the best ones I've had so far) but it has finally paid off :)
So after we got our university results we had to do some paperwork (and also decide what degree and university we wanted to apply for) and I've been caught up in that these las few days.

On Wednesday we had a "small" treat here in Madrid... the ROLLING STONES concert! Yay!

The Real Madrid stadium was packed with people from all over the world (I even met a British girl who thought I was from England when I told her the time *proud face*)

The concert was incredible and we had a great time. I wasn't expecting so much dancing and swirling around from Mick Jagger but...god, the man just can't keep still! They interacted with the public and played some of their greatest hits like "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Honky Tonk Women", "Gimme Shelter", "Brown Sugar", "Angie"...and lots more!

Near the end they disappeared and waited for us to shout a bit for them to come back (rock stars are silly) and they came back with "You can't always get what you want" (and we DID get what we wanted...which was more from them!)

It was amazing and I took lots of pictures and filmed a lot so I never forget. Here are some of them: 

CLIPS!!