Strike

March 29, 2012

With the strike being such big news, big enough for CEA to let us out of classes, I thought it was worthy to blog about. As an American student, I wasn't really sure what to expect out of the strike. I thought that everyone was going to simply not go to work and cause a little loss in money for the day, which for us would simply cause some inconvenience. I planned on staying in my house all day but decided to be a little risky and go out for a little to see what was going on around. I didn't take my camera, in fear that if things were bad, it might get broken or stolen so i don't have any pictures. In my area of Les Corts the only signs of the riot were the sounds of sirens, some graffiti on cash machines, and a few people handing out flyers. One woman handing out flyers tried to hand me one and said "do you care about the strike?" I kept walking and she screamed at me "I hope you have a horrible day!" Which I thought was very rude but a little funny at the same time. After that comment, I decided to go back home and keep tabs on the strike from the comfort of my own apartment. Throughout the day I was looking at news articles where I saw photos of dumpsters on fire, broken windows, and some very angry people. When I heard that a dumpster on fire was thrown down one of the metro's I was shocked. I didn't expect people to be destroying their own city. I didn't really understand it and it got me a little angry because i think barcelona is such a beautiful city and i would never do anything to destroy my hometown. I also read this article :http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/mar/29/eurozone-crisis-spanish-general-strike
which confirmed that the barcelona police used rubber bullets and teargas. Overall, i think that being here while the strike happened was very educational and interesting. I also think it didn't bother me as much as others because it didn't effect my flights at all for spring break. I am still surprised with how the strike turned out but i understand now that this is how a strike normally turns out.