My First Demonstration

Merkel comes to town!

It's certainly no secret that Greece is in a bad way.

People as me all the time why of all places to study, I chose Greece, with everything that is going on.

To be honest, it's economical situation was not what I was thinking about at the time.

Either way, its been very interesting, witnessing Athens in this state. The people want change. They're unifying over one struggle. I think its an important time in Greece's history, and as Americans seeing the world in a different light, it's going to be valuable in how we associate with the world in the future. Its tough for these people now, but we get to go home and put it behind us. For them, this is affecting them every day, and will for years to come. 

I went to the demonstrations in Syntagma Square on October 8th.

The Greek people were very offended with Chancellor Merkel's visit to Greece. They felt mocked and disrespected. Despite these feelings, the 10/08 Demonstrations were NOT violent or even scary. It was intimidating to see so many people in one play, feeling so passionately. It was organized and peaceful and it was incredible to witness.

I did not attend the 10/09 riots. Although I wish I had. The friend that I was planning on going with decided to back out, feeling as though it would not be safe. Other people shared their experiences. People apparently dressed up as Nazi's to represent German Occupation in the 1940's, and their rage for it. They burned a nazi flag at the Parliament building. The beginning of the riot was not that bad. However, the ending got out of hand. Troops moved in and ended up tear gassing the place. Even CYA students got some tear gas. There were also people throwing marble. 

The Greeks REALLY didn't want Merkel in their country.

The entire day, Athens was a ghost town, aside from demonstration areas. There was a ban on all public outings, meaning on-site classes were cancelled. Many streets were completely shut down, according to Merkel's routes. There was even an Occupational/Air Raid warning siren testing that was scheduled for the same day. This had "nothing to do with Chancellor Merkel's visit" or so we were told. The sirens were not tested that day, after all. But the last time they had, was again, during German occupation in Greece. Very interesting. 

I hope to see more demonstrations during my time here, practicing safety all the while, of course. But I can't sit out and watch history happen in my front years and NOT be apart of it.