Refugio 307

Today we visited a bomb shelter in Barcelona that was built during the Spanish Civil War. The majority of bomb shelters built during this time were built by the people of the communities in which they were found. The city government built 25 of the approximately 1000 bomb shelters in Barcelona during the war. The shelter we visited was built into the side of the mountain (Montjuic) with pickaxes and other hand tools. It was built to hold about 2,000 people and had three entrances. The three entrances served to allow multiple access points and also to provide alternative exits if one of the exits should be blocked by rubble from a bomb. The shelter was more complete than I thought it would be with its spare amenities. They had electricity (that sometimes was cut), toilets, running water, and even an area that served as an infirmary for any injured people who were found on the way into the shelter. Visiting this place really brought this part of the story of the Civil War to life. I can't even imagine how awful it must have been to live through that.

Our guide explained that when bomber planes were sighted from Montjuic, they rang a bell (or siren, perhaps?) to let people know to take cover. Because they had to use this method (no radar available then) the people had only 1-3 minutes to take cover, which means they had almost no time at all to get from their house to the bomb shelter. The goal of the mostly German and Italian bombers (Franco's fascist friends who had better equipment) was to hit civilians. The guide told us two stories that made me feel beyond lucky for not having (not yet and hopefully not ever) witnessed a war on the land where I live.

The first one was about the bombers. She said that they would purposely target civilian areas and that one story goes that they bombed a school and when the children tried to run to safety, they shot them down. Unfortunately, they had a photograph to prove that this is not a legend. Many tiny bodies lined up in a row, the life shot out of them. What monsters! But I guess that's what war is, isn't it?

The second one was about three days of intense bombing in Barcelona in 1938 (I believe). The people who took cover in this shelter that we were standing in went to the shelter thinking they would be there for a couple of hours, which was the usual amount of time they would spend during each bombing. Instead, they were there for three days, two of which were spent in complete darkness because the electricity was cut. Imagine being in what is essentially a cave about as wide as a mid-size car (maybe slightly wider) sitting on benches in complete darkness while your city is being bombed, not knowing when it will end and if you'll be able to get out. Insane. Just to be clear, the people left in the city were, for the most part, those people who could not afford to evacuate to another country.

So far, this has been my favorite excursion on the program. Barcelona is such a beautiful, thriving city now that I can't even imagine that people were killing each other on the Ramblas. What a devastating scene that must have been. This visit really affected me, and it made the suffering that the Spanish people have experienced very real, especially given that the long dictatorship following the war did nothing to help people recover. It reminded me how very lucky we are as American civilians to never have seen this kind of horror in our own towns and cities, on this grand scale. It also reminded me of how arrogant and cruel our government and military can be when they go into other countries and civilians get caught in the crossfire, and we just sit by talking about how the war in Iraq is just wrong, or maybe we don't even talk about it. It's amazing to me that we aren't protesting in the streets everyday. We just go about our little lives, not worrying about all those civilians and children being killed daily, and not necessarily in Iraq. I guess you can't carry the weight of the world on your shoulders every minute of everyday.

If you want to see more about Refugio 307, the website is here. I couldn't find it in English, but I also didn't look that hard.

Critical Mass: 4 Wheels Not 2

Every so often, probably about once a week, I hear what sounds like skateboarders going down the street in front of the hotel. By the time I care enough to get up and look, I see nothing but a taxi or two passing by. Tonight, around 23:30, I heard the same noise. This time I was already standing up so there was no excuse not to go to the window. I was right, there was a big group of skateboarders skating down the middle of the street, a la Critical Mass except with far fewer participants. Perhaps they are making some noise to protest the plans to take away some prime skateboarding real estate in front of Barcelona's Museum of Contemporary Art. That plaza, with it's long and low-slung stone (not really sure of the material) bench in front of the museum with nothing but an expanse of uncluttered concrete in front of it, is a skateboarder's paradise. Or perhaps they just like irritating the people in cars by skateboarding down a main thoroughfare.

Around Town

I neglected posting here during the first half of February so I'm playing catch up. This is a bit of a potpourri post.

During an early evening walk I came across this bar. I couldn't resist taking a photo. It's a clever marketing tool, or maybe there is some other reason they named the bar Obama. I didn't go in and ask, although that would make for a more interesting post. Maybe next time.*

A couple of days later I was on my way to pilates and I saw this guy waiting for the bus. I thought, pimpin' grandpa, and I had to take a photo. His coat, if you can't tell from the photo, looked like a matted, wet, Irish Wolfhound had jumped on his back. The hat, sunglasses, and cane completed the look. He played it totally cool. I'll bet he didn't even need that cane.

Finally, on Saturday, I went with a group of students to a guitar concert featuring two excellent guitarists playing some classics of Spanish guitar as well as some pieces from Carmen. Their second encore, and final work of the night, was Mozart's Rondo alla Turca (from his Piano Sonata no. 11). They played it together on one guitar, as you can see in the photo (the photo is courtesy of one of the students since I forgot my camera). The concert was incredible, and the guitarrists played with great passion. It took place in the crypt of the Santa Maria del Pi church making for an intimate setting. I can say with confidence that it was the best Valentine's Day I've spent in a long time.

*Addendum: Ok, so I googled the British Obama bar. A blog on Psychology Today calls it a celebration of British colonial rule in Africa, based on the decor. My limited knowledge of the history of any country that is not on the Spanish literature reading list (i.e. any non-Spanish speaking country) prevented me from putting two and two together on my own. This is what happens when you specialize, and don't pay close enough attention in World History class. As you probably know, Kenya was a British colony and Obama's father was from Kenya, and apparently was imprisoned and tortured for resisting colonial rule. My cynical and hyper-critical side says that this bar could only exist in Spain, where the mass public seems blissfully ignorant of the unhappy irony of this kind of thing. Or perhaps I just take life too seriously and shouldn't care if some bar owner wants to pay tribute to British colonial rule in Africa using the name of our new president. Americans do take political correctness a bit far, after all. Even I agree with that. Still, I think I'll skip having a drink there.

SNL a la española

Warning: This is a bit of a rant.

Did you know that there is a Spanish version of Saturday Night Live? Guess what it's called? No, not La Noche del Sábado En Vivo. It's called Saturday Night Live. The opening music is almost exactly the same and the opening credits are formatted almost exactly like the New York version. The format of the show is the same. It is a copy, in Spanish. Now, I know the American SNL has lost its luster over the years, but I am an SNL fan. I have seen that show through the good years and the very bad years. Judge me if you wish. Call me proteccionist, patriotic, whatever. It bugs me that the Spaniards have re-made the show. Don't they have their own ideas for a sketch comedy show? A little creativity please! Plus, the innovation of SNL is old news. Now we have the more entertaining 30 Rock, a meta-version of SNL. Spaniards, please, get with the program. Do something original. What is it that people often say? Oh yeah, imitation is the highest form of flattery. In this case, lo dudo.

P.S. As I am watching the show, the first two skits have un-funny farting as their central theme. Seriously?

Montserrat

On Friday we went to Montserrat to see the church there and to learn about the monastery. Although the trip seemed less relevant to what the students are studying right now, it was really fun and relaxing. Montserrat is located on this mountain that has a serrated look, thus the name - Mont (catalan for mountain) and serrat (again in Catalan, meaning serrated). To get there you take a winding train ride from Barcelona and then you must take a cable car from the base of the mountain to the top, or almost the top, where the monastery and church are located. In addition to the church, and a monastery that houses about 80 benedictine monks, there is also a school for boys. To be more precise, it is a music school where the students also learn the usual subjects. The Montserrat Boys Choir is well-known and travels throughout the world performing. In the afternoons, the boys sing in the church for all the tourists. According to our guide, it is one of the most prestigious music schools in Spain.

The history of Montserrat dates back to the 9th century A.D., but the buildings that are there now only date back to the late 19th century since the whole place was destroyed during the War of Independence in 1811 when the French attacked Barcelona. So you can blame Napoleon for the fact that almost none of the original, probably romanesque, buildings remain. Montserrat is a very important holy site in Catalonia and was a keeper of Catalan culture during the Franco dictatorship when all things Catalan were officially prohibited. Montserrat seems to have a sort of mystical quality as it is nestled among amazing scenery, beautiful walking paths and incredible views of the surrounding valley. Since we got there early, I spent the morning soaking up the brilliant sun and meditating. It was a wonderful way to start the day. Although the church is fine and you can visit the Black Madonna (made of wood that was darkened over the years by all the incense and smoke from the candles), which is one of the well-known shrines of Montserrat, the best reason to go to Montserrat is for the hiking and the views. And the museum is nice too. If you go, I recommend that you bring provisions for a picnic or buy a sandwich at the cafeteria to eat on your hike because the restaurant leaves a lot to be desired, even if the setting is pretty.

The Influencers at the MACBA

Last Friday I went with a few of the students to a presentation that was part of The Influencers, a cultural/art festival/conference at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona (or MACBA). We saw a demonstration and talk about the Image Fulgurator. An invention by Julius Von Bismarck, a German artist. The Image Fulgurator is a machine that projects images on to other images when a flash from another camera is detected. So, if I'm taking a photo of say the Eiffel Tower and Mr. Von Bismarck is hanging out with his Image Fulgurator, which looks like a camera, when my flash goes off it sets off the Fulgurator, which is loaded with an image, perhaps the Google logo. I don't see the image being projected, but when I look at my photo of the Eiffel Tower, I see the Google logo plastered across the French landmark. The best "mission" that he carried out was at Tiananman Square in China. He went there with his Fulgurator, loaded with the image of a dove, and projected his image on the famous portrait of Mao that hangs in the Square. It seemed like a very tense mission since the portrait is heavily guarded and is not allowed to be photographed for any reason, other than by tourists. The tourists snapping photos looked totally confused and a bit stunned, and Mr. Von Bismarck managed to not get arrested. The mission was a success! I kept thinking that this guy needs more publicity so people will know about the work he's doing, but then he wouldn't be able to continue his work because everyone would know his game. Overall it was a really cool presentation, and got everyone thinking about the power of this sort of machine, particularly in the area of advertising. The artist does not want it to be used for this purpose, for obvious reasons, so he is working on obtaining an international patent. The Mad Men would be crazy for this machine!

He also talked about a program that can read people's emotions just by scanning their face. He did an experiment in Berlin where he posted a camera that recorded everyone who walked by during a certain time period. Then the emotions of this section of the city were reflected on a smiley face projected on a building (or maybe a screen on the side of a building, I'm not sure). So, big brother really is watching and registering who is anxious, who is sad, and the sliver of the population who is happy. So, check out this guy's website. And support interesting, relevant art!

Electric Kettle Cooking Test: the Sequel

Determined not to be defeated by my first unsuccessful attempt at cooking a healthy meal using my electric kettle, about a week ago I made a second attempt. This time with success! I found a mix of fresh greens, carrots, and onion in the grocery store (they call it sopa juliana) and it got me to thinking about the electric kettle. I thought, blanching this mix in my kettle and then putting it over some rice might just work. They sell the rice ready to be "steamed" in the microwave. Just one minute and it's ready - very convenient! Too bad it doesn't have that soy sauce flavor like some microwave rice treats I had from Japan once. In any case, the vegetables were perfect and with a little salt, pepper and some freshly sliced garlic added for flavor I was in business. The before (well, really it was during the cooking process) and after photos complete the story. Since this experiment, I have remembered how quickly and easily couscous cooks. Boil the water, pour over the couscous in a bowl and wait 10 minutes. Easy peasy as a certain Naked Chef always says. I add a bit of butter, salt, pepper, some raisins, carrots, walnuts and yum!