Hello readers! Last week I had a paper and an oral presentation, so I didn’t feel too inclined to hammer out a post, but I have a few things to discuss.
1) Our third and final excursion was to Zahara de las Sierras, a pueblo in the mountains. It’s one of a series of famous Andalusian villages called Los Pueblos Blancos, on account of their homogeneous paint job. Looking out over the buildings, I felt like I was in a children’s book. We took a brief trek up to the remains of a fairy-tale-worthy ancient castle perched on a hilltop, where we were treated to an incredible view and many a photo opportunity. Afterward, we went to an olive oil mill where we were supposedly going to have an olive oil tasting. I regretted having forced down the huge, bland baguette-and-ham sandwich in my lunch bag when, on top of bread and olive oil, they pulled out wine, jamon, embutidos, olives, tortilla de papas, and beer. We then had a brief tour of the mill, but it was a stifling 100+ degrees so none of us paid much attention. All filled to the brim with knowledge, liquid happiness, salt, and fat, we went to a small man-made lake to cool down, and thus ended our delightful day.
2) My history class has been nothing short of awesome. Never before had I felt the continuum between history and current events the way I do now. I think that part of that is because the US has been fairly static: we’ve been a democracy since our foundation, we have democrats and republicans, and we’ve generally been ok. We’re in some wars now, which are quite important, but we don’t feel the effects of our past wars. There’s now, and there’s history. Spain, on the other hand, is constantly changing. They’ve only been a democracy for 35 years now, before which they were under the dictatorship of Francisco Franco. Spanish citizens don’t have to be particularly old to remember a time when things were drastically different. Moreover, the professor tells the story of the country in such a riveting way that it makes me feel like I’m watching a suspenseful TV show. (“Awwww shiiit, Ferdinand II got SCREWED, what’s he going to do now?”)
Part of the professor’s passion stems from the fact that he is an active member in the 15-M movement. If you’ve heard anything about riots and protests in Madrid for the past few months, it’s this. It started on May 14th, when a group of about 50 people congregated in Madrid’s Plaza del Sol to protest the governmental policies that have led to the current economic crisis. They decided to camp in the plaza overnight, which was legal, but at 5 in the morning, police violently dragged them out. A video of the brutality went viral, and the next day, the 15th (hence, 15-M), 20,000 protesters congregated in the square. The protests went on for a while in big cities all over Spain, but slowly, they lost their momentum. (Just the other day, there was a huge resurgence. It’s not over yet, folks.) However, what’s cool about the 15-M isn’t their protesting. Here in Cadiz, for example, a group of them took over an abandoned, dilapidated building that was destined to be a tourist hotel, spent tons of energy cleaning it, remodeling it, and installing electricity, and began to use it as a community space. They now offer a series of free classes, from elementary education to music to exercise. They’re starting a book collection for a community library. As I explained all of this excitedly to Joel the day we learned about it, he noted that offering community classes isn’t going to create more jobs and/or fix the economy. Yes, but:
1) It accomplishes more than yelling and holding up a sign, and it gives the protesters credibility by showing that they are more than chants and signs.
2) It directly works to create positive change within the community, which would be the end goal of large-scale political reform anyway.
3) It’s symbolic of the fact that if the government doesn’t help the people, the people will help themselves.
So it may not create jobs or fix the economy, but it still strikes me as very powerful.
3) Ending with a little meta and a confession. Stop here if you’ll feel awkward about me spilling my soul to you or think that feelings are boring.
Other than the last post, I've focused this blog on what we’ve done, without a lot on my feelings or reactions, which is not like me. This is mainly because my feelings haven’t been nearly as great as they should have been considering that I’ve lived in a dream world for the past month, not only being abroad but also having the chance to settle into Spain in the paradise of this beach town. I felt a little guilty for my withdrawn attitude and for having spent too many afternoons/evenings on the Internet when I should have been out. I’m far more resistant to change than I’d like (high school to college, letting go of breakups, etc) and being happy with a long-distance relationship after spending every night and many days together during an amazing 6 months has been hard. (For the record, not on account of the decision to do an LDR. Zero doubts.) In two days, it’s 7 months, and I’ve finally started to accept the situation, feel better, and immerse myself in life here.
Anyway, we only have four more days of class left, then it’s time for TRAVELXTRAVAGANZA! Stay tuned for my solo-badass-adventures through exotic, mysterious Eastern Europe, including Prague, Vienna, and Budapest.
No comments:
Post a Comment