huelga nf 1: strike 2 hacer huelga : to strike, to go on strike
today was the general strike across the entire nation of spain. workers are upset about the pay cuts and lack of jobs due to the economy, and there's no doubt about it! i had seen this red graffiti everywhere, and once i heard about the huelga on september 29...it all came together.
so today was the day. yesterday, esperanza told me that we weren't leaving the house at all today. then i said i had to because i had to go get some class scheduling problems figured out. the university was closed today, but not the ciee office where i have classes. it took a while to communicate this, but then she said i wasn't technically her niña and i should ask my parents but if i leave she'd pray the whole time i was gone. this morning i wake up and she's going for a walk around the block! it's really always a toss up what's going on in this place, haha. so i went on a run to 'el centro' where the demonstrations would be. i missed the heavy stuff, thank goodness. i saw some peaceful congregating and flags and a guy leading some chants through a microphone, but not much else. because i was on a run, i didn't have my camera with me...but i took some pictures from my friend, laura:
throwing darts at pictures of government officials.
here's what laura wrote about what went on this morning:
"The violence of the strike took place in the morning when the buses tried to go their normal routes and were met by angry mobs. There were burning cars, deflated tires on police vans, tear gas, and the police force had to detain people in front of the Universidad de Sevilla. Luckily, all this was over by the time I went to class, only to find police barricading the main entrance, all the lights turned off, and the classroom door locked. Class? I think not."
pretty interesting, right?
in news totally irrelevant, but totally necessary:
last night at midnight in haverford, 2 villanovans were driving in a car when they were hit by someone driving a stolen land rover. dan (a senior) passed away, and pat (a junior) is in critical condition in the upenn hospital. it takes my breath away, time and time again, how amazing the villanova family is (and how blessed i am to be a part of it). Tonight there is a prayer service in the villanova church, and i have no doubt that every seat will be occupied. the villanova campus has the ability to come together with such grace and zeal, no matter what the cause. tonight it's for the family and friends of these 2 boys, and dare i say, the driver of that stolen vehicle. i wish i was physically with the villanova family, but i know that it doesn't stop at campus' borders. prayers are coming to the main line from all over the world. that says quite a lot about the nova nation.
rest in peace dan giletta.
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