sociology studies, and obtained his phd at the sorbonne university in 1993. his research on prostitution in cuba carried him to the island for seven months in 1996, resulting in the publication of the essay "prostitution à cuba. communisme, ruses and débrouilles" (foreword by the cuban writer eduardo manet). the discovery of mexican and colombian culture significantly influenced his literary choices. these places and the great writers who come from them offered him new horizons of writing.