Huelga?!

Buenos dias,

Today was relatively uneventful. I finally figured out my class schedule! I will be taking Roman Mythology, Prehistoric History of Andalucia, Roman Linguistics, and the regular Spanish class. On Fridays I have no classes and instead will be volunteering to help rehabilitate the salinas (salt marshes) in the area. I am looking forward to this the most as we will also be working with different species of birds. Mom, I'm sure you are very jealous!

After class Carmen took us to the Museum of Cadiz. It was interesting - there were a lot of historical artifacts. The first floor had many Phonetician artifacts including the coffins of 2 mummies made of Italian marble. The second floor had a number of artifacts that washed up on the beach in Cadiz. The final floor had a variety of paintings on display along with some creepy puppets. La Tia Norica is a marionette collection that is over 200 years old. The collection is unique to Cadiz and served as entertainment for people that could not read.

Creepy, right?

 Tomorrow there is a "huelga" or strike across the entire nation of Spain. Therefore, all public transportation will be shut down and stores will be closed. So, we are going to make the most of going out tonight! We are hoping there is no class tomorrow, but we won't know until we get there. The strike is being held by mainly lower class citizens who are in opposition of new government regulations. These include wage cuts, an increase in the retirement age, and reforms that make it easier to hire/fire workers. As you may know, Spain has been hit hard by the economic crisis and unemployment rates are still very high. However, the strike is incredibly unproductive. The new reforms have already been made legal and there is nothing a strike can do. In fact, had it not been for the World Cup, this strike would have happened months ago. So - fingers crossed for no class tomorrow! I could use a day of relaxation at the beach!!!!


Hasta luego. Besos!