And for a little added drama…

On my last two nights in Madrid, there were large protests in the square just steps from my front door. On the first night, I heard the helicopters circling and police sirens flooding into the area, but I was snug in my room so I didn’t see anything. Good thing, because the protest turned un poco violent. I’ve included an excerpt from an AP article below.

The next night, Saturday, I was en route home from Toledo at about 9pm, and saw the protesters as I emerged from the subway at Tirso de Molina square. I could tell something was brewing from the energy in the square and the presence of scores of policemen in full garb. I had barely reached my room before I heard shouting. I saw that the landlady and her daughter were watching from her balcony window, so I asked if I could enter to watch as well, and she welcomed me in. (My window overlooked the interior courtyard). At right is a photo of the protest that night, and some of the accompanying police.

It looked pretty tame to me, so once they passed I asked the landlady if she thought it would be fine for me to venture out to get something to eat. She said as long as I avoided Puerta del Sol, where the protesters were headed, I’d be fine.

But see…that wasn’t gonna work. This was my last night in Madrid, and I just had to get take-away from my favorite little vegetarian restaurant—located off Puerta del Sol—one more time. I had to take one more whack at figuring out how it’s possible that cauliflower could taste so good. (Oh, and also…Spanish policemen are really good looking.)

Clearly, as you can see, I had no choice but to venture into the heat of battle. (He he). No, actually, it was fine and I made it home safely, veggie takeout in hand. I don’t think there were more clashes on Saturday night, but I’m not sure because I left for Seville on Sunday without checking the news.

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Spanish police break up clash between rival demonstrators in Madrid
from the International Herald Tribune, The Associated Press, March 1, 2008

Spanish police broke up a clash between far-right demonstrators and counter-protesters in downtown Madrid on Friday, firing tear gas and clearing burning cars and trash containers.

Two far-right wing groups — Nacion y Revolucion and Combat Espana — which had been given permission by city authorities to demonstrate in Madrid's central Tirso de Molina square began to congregate at around 8:30 p.m. (1930 GMT) among heavy police presence.

Groups carrying anti-Nazi banners attempted to disrupt the demonstration when police charged, scattering clusters of demonstrators in different directions, including toward the largely immigrant Lavapies district.

Alex Sand, a British tourist caught up in the action, said some right wing groups began running into Lavapies district and residents tried to stop them. "People started pulling dustbins into the street and setting fire to them, there were cars set on fire," said Sand.

"The police started charging down the street and it seemed the fascist groups were behind them and people got really scared," said Sand. Local resident Isabel Sotomayor said she saw men dressed in black, their faces covered, throwing cobblestones at the police…”