Some problems like unwelcome guests never go away. They lie just lie dormant and at certain times of the year erupt spill their lava of irritation over everyone. Take the phenomenon of "Top Manta" which peaks from Easter onwards to October as far as Barcelona is concerned. Not that fleecing the tourist is a singularly Barcelona problem. I've been offered homemade jewellery halfway up a steep mountain slab in Marrocco's Atlas mountains and, like thousands of others, been pestered aggressively to buy anything from silk shirts to extensive 'massage' on the beaches of Goa, Bali and Phuket.
According to Friday's El Pais, residents of the Parc Guell area (which draws thousands of tourists to see Gaudi's crazy ceramic creations in the wild) enough is enough is enough. They're fed up of complaining about the park being overun - literally - by these itinerant sellers of trash who dash off at the faintest whiff of a police uniform. Locals feel that they cannot enjoy their park anymore and that the Town Hall has done little to alleviate things in finding a solution.
The gardeners complain too when they are planting out trees and plants. When the manteros scarper they take an as-the-crow-flies route, which usually means tramping across the newly planted or weeded gardens. When they return a few minutes - after the police have gone of course - they take the same route.Work of the devil the gardeners call it! Of Sysiphus more like.
Even the most consumer-minded tourist doesn't want to have to toil up a bloody great hill only to see Gaudi's masterful dragons draped with fake Calvin Kline sunglasses and Gucci handbags? It's hardly what they came to Barcelona for so what's the solution if no one wants the manteros there?.
Well it was not so long ago rumoured that the Town Hall were going to charge people to enter the park but the cost of closing up entrances and fitting extra security fencing was deemed 'probibitive in a time of financial crisis'. Plus the local residents didn't want to have to pay to go in a park which they feel belongs to Barcelona residents, so no pleasing them either.
No obvious 100% effective solution comes to mind but clearly several things need to be done, though I doubt the 'Top Manta syndrome' will ever be eradicated. In Naples I saw the highly organsied Mafia collectors coming round to collect rent from the pavement sellers at the end of the day, and on a beach in Tunisia I remember one seller asking me if I had 'seen a Fiat' - he thought I was German and the police patrolled on horseback (on a 'Pferd' !) There's no doubt the problem really is world-wide.
At the least, the police need to be more determined and go for the suppliers too. All the stuff sold is fake and therefore illegal. The sellers are only trying to scratch a living. Despite what they have said, residents of the area could pay annual sum, a token, to use the park. Tourist vistors will have to be charged an entrance fee like they do for all the Gaudi sites, despite what the Town Hall says about the cost of setting this up. This would both limit the numbers using the park and keep the salesme out. If not, soon there soon won't be any Gaudi ceramis visible.They'll all be worn away.
Or maybe we should just ban all tourism in Barcelona! Then the manteros would have no one to sell handbags to. Or would they ? Have you seen all those Gucci accessories in Corte Ingles? Come to think of it, not having tourists in the city would have lots of advantages for residents. I think I'll make a list.
Friday, 8 April 2011
Tuesday, 5 April 2011
The last last train to Sabadell?
In fact travelling on a last train to anywhere seems dangerous around BCN these days (or more precisely these nights). So much so that railway company RENFE has decided to up its security after a guard was killed in Casteldefels stopping some youths leaping over the station exit gates after a fun night out.
Young men (?) who go out for the night (especially at weekends) clearly would rather spend their money on alcohol and drugs than RENFE and FGC tickets. Fair enough. They are on the expensive side. Plus at the end of the night there's always the chance of fun with the train driver or a security guard. You can even have a game of football with his head like they did in Casteldefels. In fact last year there were 242 reported attacks on RENFE staff and 132 on the BCN Metro which runs all night at the weekend.
To prevent more such incidents RENFE are going to cordinate with the Mossos and create a Transport Force to cover trains and late-night buses. They will install more cameras on stations and in trains and close some blackspot stations early. The hotlines (?) seem to be the R1, the R3 and the R4 which serve out-of-town cowboy areas such as Mataro and Sabadell.
Union officials, however, are sceptical of the measures which fall far short of what they want in terms of numbers. Perhaps increasing the number of dog-handlers might help. There's nothing better than an enormous Alsatian sniffing round your nether regions to keep you passive and responsive. All the way home!
Young men (?) who go out for the night (especially at weekends) clearly would rather spend their money on alcohol and drugs than RENFE and FGC tickets. Fair enough. They are on the expensive side. Plus at the end of the night there's always the chance of fun with the train driver or a security guard. You can even have a game of football with his head like they did in Casteldefels. In fact last year there were 242 reported attacks on RENFE staff and 132 on the BCN Metro which runs all night at the weekend.
To prevent more such incidents RENFE are going to cordinate with the Mossos and create a Transport Force to cover trains and late-night buses. They will install more cameras on stations and in trains and close some blackspot stations early. The hotlines (?) seem to be the R1, the R3 and the R4 which serve out-of-town cowboy areas such as Mataro and Sabadell.
Union officials, however, are sceptical of the measures which fall far short of what they want in terms of numbers. Perhaps increasing the number of dog-handlers might help. There's nothing better than an enormous Alsatian sniffing round your nether regions to keep you passive and responsive. All the way home!
Friday, 25 March 2011
Cull the cars:Barcelona considers ban on10 year-old vehicles
LaVanguardia this week reported that the Catalan government's environment councillor was considering taking all cars over 10 years old off the streets in order to reduce the amount of pollution in the city. This follows close on the heels of the pan-Spain blanket reduction of the maximum speed limit from 120 to 110 kph (against the wishes of the Catlalan government by the way) . As always with improve-the world political announcements I'm tempted to see who stands to gain. In this case-as usual- it's the politicians.
Pollution of any kind is an always an emotive issue and easy to win sympathy from. List a few statistics, post a couple of bar graphs, use phrases like 'increase in... mention sickness or death, and, walaahi, your political party (the one in power and making the decisions) gets praise and votes. Forcibly remove old cars and newer model sales rocket and stimulate both the second-hand and new car markets. Again politically good with increased votes and party funding from business concerns selling cars. Alternative energy cars will also get a boost too at a time when the government needs to be seen doing their bit for Europe and the world. Publish a few more figures showing how things are improving environment-wise and those lost votes from owners who had to dump their old cars will return.
The main reason why the idea will never bear fruit - and was never meant to - is that there are too many imponderables. Too many oh-we-never-thought-about-thats. For starters who is going to do the culling? Will it be the police who will pull motorists over and then tow away the old cars? Or will it be the itv car- testing centres who will make the decision about a car's road-worthiness? But they do this anyway! And what about commercial vehicles, the less cared-for, high mileage vehicles? Isn't that where most of the pollution on city roads comes from?
Basically what we have here is a carefully leaked bit of emotive propaganda which will never be put into practice let alone take off. The leak was made to show the public that the goverment cares about environmental things and is thinking about taking radical steps. Maybe. But wouldn't it be far better to prune everyone off using cars at all in the city. Charge cars to enter the city like London and Singapore do. Create more bike paths and improve public transport. Park and Ride schemes. Multi-occupancy vehicles rewarded. These would be the ways to go for a really forward-thinking, citizen-considering political party. Show role-models from the Barca team on TV riding their bikes to Camp Nou. Now there would be an example to follow. Ojala!
Pollution of any kind is an always an emotive issue and easy to win sympathy from. List a few statistics, post a couple of bar graphs, use phrases like 'increase in... mention sickness or death, and, walaahi, your political party (the one in power and making the decisions) gets praise and votes. Forcibly remove old cars and newer model sales rocket and stimulate both the second-hand and new car markets. Again politically good with increased votes and party funding from business concerns selling cars. Alternative energy cars will also get a boost too at a time when the government needs to be seen doing their bit for Europe and the world. Publish a few more figures showing how things are improving environment-wise and those lost votes from owners who had to dump their old cars will return.
The main reason why the idea will never bear fruit - and was never meant to - is that there are too many imponderables. Too many oh-we-never-thought-about-thats. For starters who is going to do the culling? Will it be the police who will pull motorists over and then tow away the old cars? Or will it be the itv car- testing centres who will make the decision about a car's road-worthiness? But they do this anyway! And what about commercial vehicles, the less cared-for, high mileage vehicles? Isn't that where most of the pollution on city roads comes from?
Basically what we have here is a carefully leaked bit of emotive propaganda which will never be put into practice let alone take off. The leak was made to show the public that the goverment cares about environmental things and is thinking about taking radical steps. Maybe. But wouldn't it be far better to prune everyone off using cars at all in the city. Charge cars to enter the city like London and Singapore do. Create more bike paths and improve public transport. Park and Ride schemes. Multi-occupancy vehicles rewarded. These would be the ways to go for a really forward-thinking, citizen-considering political party. Show role-models from the Barca team on TV riding their bikes to Camp Nou. Now there would be an example to follow. Ojala!
Thursday, 24 March 2011
Gaudi Centre Reus: the man and his method
Took the chance of a free day off to visit Reus' excellent Gaudi Centre near Tarragona.
http://www.gaudicentre.cat/ This prosperous-looking large city (one of Catalunya's most interesting with an extensive central area to wander round) is the birthplace of one of Spain's most imaginative architects - no, wait, wrong word for this genius: try 'construction artist'? This quality centre puts the architect into perspective, for me anyway, for the first time with, its clear-cut explanations and quality presentations. I liked the 3D type introductory film, the superb models (some interactive), the dual-TV screen area where pieces of his work were positioned next to natural objects such as trees, rocks, flowers, shorelines and waves to show visitors what inspired him.
In conjuction with this exhibition, the city has laid out a Modernist Route of buildings (and there are a lot) for visitors to walk round and see. The route is shown in floor-plan, Google-map mode so you can do an architectural walk in minature and read a profile of each part while still in the Centre.
I can also recommend a restaurant very close (100m ) to the centre: Cafe Reus - not the one in the square but up the side street past it on the right. Lunch was quality food served by friendly waiters. Good local red house wine included in the reasonably priced menu del dia- unlike another behind the cathedral where they served a rip-off tourist menu of salad and paella for 18 euros (wine NOT included!) Hey, do we all look like we've arrived into Tarragona port on a banana boat!
Reus surprised me and I felt it had lot going for it: it's larger than I'd envisaged, it has lots of new buildings round the inner ring area and new industry further out, it's only just over an hour south of Barcelona on the AP7, it's close to the Costa Dorada and major Roman city of Tarragona. And it has an airport with many cheapish flights (especially in the summer) to northern Europe.
Monday, 21 March 2011
All's well that ends well in Nou Barris:
Some good news dug up by La Vanguardia the other day. They discovered that two Arabs were working as police officers in Nou Barris one of the areas where many immigrants live (17.6 of all the city's immigrants) and they had been particularly effective in policing Cuidad Meridiana which has a 35% immigrant population.
It seems Zuhair and Soraya ( not sure if they were real names) inspire confindence in that they prevent the communication breakdown which often takes place when an Arab person is arrested - or even just questioned. They also have a good nose as to what's going on out there anda re able to ferret out information that Catalan officers would have difficulty in finding. So why don't we have more? OK, maybe we do as they were not reported as being the first ones in the force, but it's very difficult to find out. It's like asking how many people from Sabadell eat fish on Fridays or how many people in Cornella under 13 have had sex.
What was interesting is that local Arabs were surprised that an Arab woman had become a police officer since she would be moving in a predominantly male environment but seemingly the uniform was the important thing in giving her the respect (DareI say it?) that she all too often does not have not only in the Muslim world but in Spain too. For that matter in the UK as well where gender violence is one of the highest in Europe.
As a footnote to this in Dubai where I worked for many years, a local paper ( The Gulf News) reports that the nunber of complaints to the police about wives beating up husbands has increased enormously in the last five years. The culprits are it seems drugs, alcohol - and western television programmes. Now if they got Spanish TVout there I'd certainly agree with that!
It seems Zuhair and Soraya ( not sure if they were real names) inspire confindence in that they prevent the communication breakdown which often takes place when an Arab person is arrested - or even just questioned. They also have a good nose as to what's going on out there anda re able to ferret out information that Catalan officers would have difficulty in finding. So why don't we have more? OK, maybe we do as they were not reported as being the first ones in the force, but it's very difficult to find out. It's like asking how many people from Sabadell eat fish on Fridays or how many people in Cornella under 13 have had sex.
What was interesting is that local Arabs were surprised that an Arab woman had become a police officer since she would be moving in a predominantly male environment but seemingly the uniform was the important thing in giving her the respect (DareI say it?) that she all too often does not have not only in the Muslim world but in Spain too. For that matter in the UK as well where gender violence is one of the highest in Europe.
As a footnote to this in Dubai where I worked for many years, a local paper ( The Gulf News) reports that the nunber of complaints to the police about wives beating up husbands has increased enormously in the last five years. The culprits are it seems drugs, alcohol - and western television programmes. Now if they got Spanish TVout there I'd certainly agree with that!
Racism: CEO report suggests 25 % of Catalans could be racist
A recent Government CEO survey showed that one in four Catalans could be termed racist depending on which newspaper you buy for your news. Different papers looked at the stats in a half-empty- glass way but others in a half-full way. Immigration is emotive in Catalunya since many residents believe that much of the street crime is the work of immigrants - and not much is done about it.
According to the results of the survey, people felt positive about immigrants in some respects: they felt that if they had been laid off work they should get unemployment benefit, they should be allowed to keep their customs and traditions (as long as they didn't wear the burka!); they also felt they should be allowed to vote. However certain issues were red-rag status to residents - particularly health and education; many felt immigrants overused the public health service and filled the schools; that the authorities bent over backwards to help them, even depriving native parents' preferences in some areas, in terms of work, people strongly felt that immigrants kept wages low as they were prepared to work for peanuts - some even went as far as saying that immigrants were taking Catalans' jobs.
Sometimes public opinion surveys do more harm than good, especially when newspapers get hold of them and distort the findings for political ends. Clearly however, all is not well on the immigrant front (in a previous blog I mentioned one flagrantly racist politician from Vic who was putting up for election in the government) and there is a lot of rancour out there, clearly expressed in the high percentage of respondents who felt that the city has too many immigrants. It might be interesting to compare Barcelona's with other cities' attitudes though. And to look at things from the immigrants' side too. Will they get the chance to express their feelings publically about living here in surveys like this? Can we also come up with a definition of 'immigrant' too. To some Catalans I've spoken to if you come from Marbella or Cadiz you're classed as one!
According to the results of the survey, people felt positive about immigrants in some respects: they felt that if they had been laid off work they should get unemployment benefit, they should be allowed to keep their customs and traditions (as long as they didn't wear the burka!); they also felt they should be allowed to vote. However certain issues were red-rag status to residents - particularly health and education; many felt immigrants overused the public health service and filled the schools; that the authorities bent over backwards to help them, even depriving native parents' preferences in some areas, in terms of work, people strongly felt that immigrants kept wages low as they were prepared to work for peanuts - some even went as far as saying that immigrants were taking Catalans' jobs.
Sometimes public opinion surveys do more harm than good, especially when newspapers get hold of them and distort the findings for political ends. Clearly however, all is not well on the immigrant front (in a previous blog I mentioned one flagrantly racist politician from Vic who was putting up for election in the government) and there is a lot of rancour out there, clearly expressed in the high percentage of respondents who felt that the city has too many immigrants. It might be interesting to compare Barcelona's with other cities' attitudes though. And to look at things from the immigrants' side too. Will they get the chance to express their feelings publically about living here in surveys like this? Can we also come up with a definition of 'immigrant' too. To some Catalans I've spoken to if you come from Marbella or Cadiz you're classed as one!
Thursday, 10 March 2011
Grounded; Spanish airport strikes again?
The fact there's a financial crisis hasn't made much difference to Spain's trade unions who have just posted their intention to mount a series of airport strikes starting Easter weekend and finishing on the last weekend in August. Well done guys! You've just shrunk our vacations. Not just for those of us who live in the UK but those in the whole of Europe. But then you don't care cos you work for AENA.
This comes hard on the heels of the air traffic controllers' strike which closed Spanish airports and forced the government to arrest the strikers and bring in the military. This strike has been called because AENA which operate all the airports may be partly (49%) sold off to private contractors - whose shareholders will - naturally - insist on airports being run efficiently. The implication is that they are not at the moment? It seems that currently AENAworkers enjoy priveleges (like the air traffic group do) so the fear is probably that some of these will be lost if they have to be more competitive.
Here then is the crux of the matter. In a time of economic crisis people have to compromise like the Civil Service (functionarios) have had to do over pensions, but everytime a different sector is made to do this there are protests and demonstrations. True workers get deserved sympathy as they have bills to pay, like mortgages, based on their current salary. True Spain has 20% unemployment and it desperately doesn't want to increase that figure. But there is a difference between losing your job and losing certain priveleges. On the other hand Spanish workers for long have had better work contracts than many European countries - in some sectors it is virtually impossible to fire workers.
Businesses however have to make a profit (though perhaps not quite so much!) otherwise they go under - and a lot have. Even the flagship of successful enterprises, RyanAir sounded worried. Its director O'Leary this week stated that he'd had to cancel 300 flights during the last strike and the company had lost revenue paid out in compensation to 57 K passengers. Yesterday in Madrid he provocatively called for a clause to be inserted in all European airport worker contracts which made it illegal to strike. Presumeably so that RyanAir planes would not be grounded.
The strike is supported by three unions and today's meeting with government minister Blanco will be a difficult one given recent public statements by both sides. Proposed Easter dates are only 5 weeks away so the meeting will be a muscle-flexing exercise for both sides.The test will be if the government can come up with some kind of compromise without giving in to union pressure using the strikes to hit Spain's already rocky economy.
Footnote: After two meetings of unions with government it seems that the strikes won't after all take place. There is a god after all though it's not sure whose side he was on.
This comes hard on the heels of the air traffic controllers' strike which closed Spanish airports and forced the government to arrest the strikers and bring in the military. This strike has been called because AENA which operate all the airports may be partly (49%) sold off to private contractors - whose shareholders will - naturally - insist on airports being run efficiently. The implication is that they are not at the moment? It seems that currently AENAworkers enjoy priveleges (like the air traffic group do) so the fear is probably that some of these will be lost if they have to be more competitive.
Here then is the crux of the matter. In a time of economic crisis people have to compromise like the Civil Service (functionarios) have had to do over pensions, but everytime a different sector is made to do this there are protests and demonstrations. True workers get deserved sympathy as they have bills to pay, like mortgages, based on their current salary. True Spain has 20% unemployment and it desperately doesn't want to increase that figure. But there is a difference between losing your job and losing certain priveleges. On the other hand Spanish workers for long have had better work contracts than many European countries - in some sectors it is virtually impossible to fire workers.
Businesses however have to make a profit (though perhaps not quite so much!) otherwise they go under - and a lot have. Even the flagship of successful enterprises, RyanAir sounded worried. Its director O'Leary this week stated that he'd had to cancel 300 flights during the last strike and the company had lost revenue paid out in compensation to 57 K passengers. Yesterday in Madrid he provocatively called for a clause to be inserted in all European airport worker contracts which made it illegal to strike. Presumeably so that RyanAir planes would not be grounded.
The strike is supported by three unions and today's meeting with government minister Blanco will be a difficult one given recent public statements by both sides. Proposed Easter dates are only 5 weeks away so the meeting will be a muscle-flexing exercise for both sides.The test will be if the government can come up with some kind of compromise without giving in to union pressure using the strikes to hit Spain's already rocky economy.
Footnote: After two meetings of unions with government it seems that the strikes won't after all take place. There is a god after all though it's not sure whose side he was on.
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