At the age of eight, he made his first trip to Spain. In Madrid, he sang for the first time in public with the Hotel Aveneda orchestra, interpreting the song "Las hojas muertas" ("The Dead Leaves"). At age 9 he watched "On the Waterfront", a movie that had a powerful influence on him and inspired him to write his first poems in English. Another cinematic influence at that age was the movie "Niagara", where he discovered the eroticism and sensuality of Marilyn Monroe.