Posted by Chris Showers on May 6th, 2009.
 Apparently somebody doesn't want this building knocked down... and they made a big sign to prove it. I was walking down the street near my house today and I saw the building pictured above with a sign reading ”No al Derribo” (“No to the Demolition”). I’m not really sure what the whole story is behind this building, but I’m guessing that the city (or whoever owns the place) wants to knock it down because it’s old and in poor repair. Of course, the people who have shops in the bottom floor of the building and those living inside (if anyone still lives there) probably don’t want to see it go.
Now, I’m no structural engineer, but the roof and right wall of this building seem a little unsafe to me. Take a look at the picture below for a close-up. Continue reading this post…
Posted by Chris Showers on May 4th, 2009.
I was just reading an article in El País the other day that said that Spain, just the country alone, accounts for two-thirds of the current “Euro Zone” unemployment rate. In other words, unemployment is crazy high in Spain in comparison with other countries that use the Euro due to the current financial crisis, construction speculation, and other factors.
I am starting to see some of the effects of the crisis here in Spain. For instance, I’ve noticed when I’ve been out on Friday and Saturday nights that less people seem to be frequenting the bars and those who do still go seem to buy less (at least that’s what’s happening here in Burgos). Also, I waked past the local unemployment office the other day and there was a HUGE LINE of people waiting out front… you never used to see that in a city the size of Burgos. Continue reading this post…
Posted by Chris Showers on May 3rd, 2009.
 Traditional dances from around Burgos. Ok, maybe the style of dance pictured above isn’t exactly what C & C Music Factory had in mind when they came out with the song “Everybody Dance Now” in the 1990′s; but, it’s still pretty cool. The above picture is actually of a traditional dance group from one of the small “pueblos” near Burgos. You see, since this weekend was a festival weekend (Labor Day), there were some special events in the city of Burgos — and one of those events consisted of this dance group performing traditional dances around the city streets.
I have seen this type of dance before in Burgos during various festivals, yet I never tire of it. It’s really interesting to me to see how well-choreographed the movements are, how meticulously detailed the dresses are, and how well-timed the music is (for those of you who don’t already know, the music usually consists of drums, a flute or two, and the dancers’ castanets). It’s obvious that these people spend a lot of time rehearsing and preparing for their shows and that they are proud of what they are doing – after all, for them this is a part of their heritage (each town/city/village has its own set of dances that are “passed down” through the generations). Continue reading this post…
Posted by Chris Showers on May 1st, 2009.
That’s right, today was Labor Day in Spain and, oddly, they celebrated it by not laboring. In fact, everything was closed today in observance of the holiday: local bakeries, banks, convenience stores, and even large chain stores.
Personally, I’m still trying to get used to the concept of “festivals” in Spain. You see, here there is always some type of celebration/holiday and all of them are observed by the country essentially “shutting down” for the day: the shops close, the busses run on “holiday” schedules which means they have worse frequency, and you generally can’t even buy a loaf of bread. In a way, I guess it’s good that people here use the holidays as a time to be at home resting with their families; however, I can’t help but think that maybe there are some times that the whole “holiday rest” thing is taken a little overboard. Continue reading this post…
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