View from the balcony...

First of all, I want to say that I should have been a journalist. I'm a little late on the realization so there will not be yet another career change. Still, when I heard the protest going by my hotel balcony, I felt compelled to check it out. I know, everyone reacts that way. But I wanted to take photos, make notes, record my reactions, those of the people, etc. You get the idea. In any case, here I am to write about it.

What seemed like thousands (and definitely hundreds) of people came out to demonstrate their support for Palestine in response to the most recent violence in Gaza. They were chanting, carrying banners and signs and marching through the street peacefully, albeit with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm. Some seemed like they could be easily provoked to become more violent but that didn't really occur. The emotion of it all was overwhelming. These people were passionate and the cause was most definitely personal. Most of the crowd looked Muslim, and I suppose many of them came from Palestine originally. The end of the parade consisted of some Catalan groups who evoked the memory of the Civil War and even the Transition to democracy here in Spain through symbolism and chanting. To say that this was a rally for peace would not be totally accurate. Many of the protesters were yelling "Israel asesinos" (Israel murderers) or were carrying signs with a similar message. The United States was often included as being a pro-Israel nation and therefore also a murderous country. Many signs called the violence perpetrated by the Israelis genocide. Some even went so far as to equate the Star of David with the Nazi swastika. A step too far, in my opinion, because the Star of David also represents Judaism and I would guess that most Jews want peace (on both sides) more than anything. I'm not here to get into a debate about this conflict, though. I just want to record what I saw. Check out the photos here.

I've never witnessed a protest of this magnitude. Of course, we've all seen images of a mass of people protesting, peacefully or otherwise. In Chicago a couple of years ago there was a fairly large march for immigration, but I didn't see it. Although, from the images on television it seemed like a meticulously organized event. The emotion of this demonstration made it seem like at any moment it could erupt into something more. Or perhaps that's what the media have conditioned us to think in response to just about any situation that refers to the Middle East. I felt myself thinking about how this might be reported in the U.S. How would Spain be perceived based on this act? Why do I feel the need to warn my students to be careful? If this was the Chicago immigration march, I would simply tell them to stay away because of the traffic. Perhaps because of 9/11 (which was not perpetrated by Palestinians), the images we are shown and the way the news of the Israel/Palestine conflict is reported in the U.S., we expect violence when we see demonstrations in support of Arab and/or Muslim countries. I don't think this is right. Intellectually, I see that both sides of this conflict need some serious adjustment. I can see Palestine's problem and I can see Israel's problem. However, I think the U.S. government and the media tend to be more blind to the Palestinian complaint and support Israel without much thought. I suppose there is a great deal of self-interest (if it's not completely self-interested) in the U.S. government's position, but from a civilian's point of view our action is completely lop-sided and maybe it shouldn't be. I guess inciting debate is inevitable.

Hotel tunes

Here at the Hotel Atlantis you don't even need to bring your ipod. They pipe music right into the room for you. It's like permanently being on an elevator, except you have the option of turning the music off, thankfully. This music is some of the most random music I've heard collected on one station. And it is a real radio station. One that checked out of reality in the mid-1980s. Ordinarily a good 80s station can be fun, appreciated even, but this is something altogether different. I turned it on the other day when I arrived because it's rare to see a radio console built into the headboard of your bed these days, at least in my experience, let alone one that works. I turned it on, static, then out came Purple Rain. Not objectionable, I must say. I am a fan of the Purple One. However, Purple Rain isn't really a radio song. It's something like 8 minutes long, much of that a long guitar solo. Anyway, this morning I thought I would give it another try since I'm used to listening to the radio in the morning and streaming NPR doesn't work well for several reasons. I find the station and it's none other than the theme song from the Never Ending Story. On the radio. Remember that movie? The big flying dog? I remember really loving that movie when I was a kid. Oh, so the Never Ending Story theme was followed by Whitney Houston, pre-Bobby Brown, singing Don't You Wanna Dance. I am now completely intrigued by my 70s style room radio. I think it will be my new morning companion.

We Three Kings...

Today is El Dia de los Reyes (three kings day aka Epiphany). The Spaniards like to stretch out holidays as much as possible so they celebrate Christmas, then the New Year, and then they hang on until the 6th of January for Epiphany. Last night was the parade where the three wise men enter the city at the port and parade through the city, bringing gifts and candy for all the good children. The bad children get coal. Lucky for me, I had the perfect view of the parade from my balcony. Photos are posted here.

I have seen many Thanksgiving Day parades in my time with all the giant, balloon characters and the jolly Santa Claus waving at the end with his reindeer and big, fancy sleigh, but they don't really compare to the Reyes parade. Lights and dancing seemed to be the general theme, and candy. I've never seen so much candy at a parade. They make those of us who have given out candy at political parades look like pathetic amateurs. And, of course, since it's not Wheaton, they actually throw the candy into the crowd rather than putting each piece into every child's hand. Spaniards are not afraid of their children being pelted with candy. They see it as a joyful thing, as do most normal human beings who aren't afraid of someone suing their town for assault with a sticky weapon. Anyhow, the parade was really excellent. The kings paraded down the street in all their oriental splendor, with music to match the Middle Eastern mood. It was a reminder of the Arabic roots of Spanish culture, despite the fact that it is a Christian celebration. I mean, the Moors were here for 700 years, even if those darn Catholic Kings did manage to reconquer the country eventually. If there is one thing that Spain does well, it is holiday celebrations. I have never been disappointed by a parade or fiesta in Spain.

I think the pictures can probably tell the rest of the story better than I can so I'll leave it at that. Happy Epiphany!

A two-hour tour

We had our first bus trip today. I guess you couldn't really call it a trip, it was a two-hour tour around Barcelona hitting a couple of sites and driving by others. We stopped at Montjuic, the former fort of Barcelona situated on a small mountain (more of a hill, really) next to the sea. Many of the 1992 Olympic venues are on Montjuic as well as the Miro museum, a cemetery, and an old amusement park. The view of the city from there is amazing. You can see almost the entire city, with an especially excellent view of the port and the water. See photos here. The amazed reactions of the students inspired me to fall in love with Barcelona again. I remember feeling the way they were all looking when I was here for the first time in college. Barcelona really is a beautiful city, even with all its flaws.

To continue the love affair, I went out for a short walk tonight to take some photos of the holiday lights. Alas, successfully photographing colored lights at night is a bit beyond my abilities right now, but you can check them out here to get an idea. My favorite is the one of the bar with lights on all the balconies and windows. It's in the Raval neighborhood, just a block or so from the hotel.

Sleepless

Sleep is an elusive thing, it seems. You think, I'm tired and I can go to sleep, no problem. Then you get in bed and your eyes fly open. No sleep for you. That is the situation here in Barcelona. Being awake in the middle of the night is strange. You know you shouldn't be, it feels like you're the only one, and it inspires some panic if you don't embrace it and do something with yourself, such as writing in your blog or hanging out on Facebook. Being sleepless induces loneliness, which is why I am glad that my friend from Valencia was also on Facebook. I actually feel like I might be able to close my eyes for a few hours now, since we chatted.

While I hope for this blog to reflect all the light and sunny experiences I have here, tonight feels a bit darker. Still, to keep things more upbeat, I did manage to take a few photos of my surroundings. I was hoping for photos of the festive lights that brighten the streets but they were only on for a couple of hours and I missed my window to take photos. It will have to wait until tomorrow, I suppose. For now, here is some evidence that I've unpacked and thoroughly inhabited my hotel room.

Feliç Any Nou!

Well, I made it. I'm here in Barcelona. It's humid and about 50 degrees. The perfect winter weather. I've only gone out of the hotel once since I arrived around 8:30 p.m. but already I have hotel envy. Our street is hotel central so as I walk I look into the lobbies and think, that hotel looks nice and why aren't we staying there? Ten weeks in a hotel is going to be a long time. I already miss my comfortable couch and my spacious desk. The silver lining is that in Barcelona people do most of their living outside of the home so hopefully I won't be looking at my four walls too much. Plus, I'm not here for the experience of living in a hotel, right? So I'll try to limit the complaints and sassy observations about hotel living. Off to bed now to try and get a full night's sleep. Bona nit!

In Preparation

Well, it's that time again. Observed is headed to Barcelona for a couple of months. This time I'm going with a group of students and will be serving as their den mother (I think my official title is "graduate assistant") as well as teaching a couple of classes. It will be interesting to experience a city I know so well through the eyes of students who are seeing it for the first time. Plus, there will be far fewer tourists than in August so the locals will be on display for all to observe. So much more interesting than pink British tourists. Look for more updates here once I arrive in Barcelona in a couple of days. Happy New Year!