I tried posting this last night (Wed) but the video wouldn't upload. Finally worked this morning. Maybe it was that April Fool's worm ;)

I had class yesterday and today - nothing unusual. In light of the opening of the G-20 Summit, I'll use today's blog to muse about protests. This picture is of a protest that took place in front of Parliament on Monday. I have no idea why.

I know that protests are a lot more common here for lots of reasons. We're in a capital city. The economy is in the tank. People are frustrated. Sometimes the protests are organized and peaceful, and other times they get out of control and there are confrontations between the police and the protesters.

This is a picture of a protest outside the Ministry of Finance. It's gone on for a couple of days. It's protesting the loss of so many jobs as a result of the economy and the government's lack of action to help. The tents are set up on a major thoroughfare to block traffic, but only at specified hours. The rest of the time they're on the sidewalk not obstructing traffic. They have loudspeakers set up on utility poles, sometimes piping music, other times speeches.

Tomorrow I'm supposed to meet a professor from the law college for lunch. Unfortunately, there is a transportation strike tomorrow. The tram will be shut down for 24 hours. The Metro (subway) will run 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., but my nearest metro stop is more than a half-hour walk from here.

This protest was going on outside a branch of Citibank - not even the main office. You may be able to read the banners complain of giant profits while people are being laid off.

• Up north at the university in Thessaloniki, there have been protests going on for two weeks, and they don't know what to do. Greece has an asylum law, so universities are usually off limits to law enforcement. The university can invite in police but they fear it may make the situation worse.


• Hospital workers are protesting, saying they are owed money.


• Farmers are protesting claiming food prices are too low.

As one of the professors said to me today, people have no hope, and there's no one on the horizon to bring them hope. In addition to organized, peaceful protests, there are some "protests" that are nothing more than mass acts of vandalism - running down a street with crowbars, smashing cars and shop windows. An editorial today lamented the fact that there is so much lawlessness and that the government has done nothing to stop it.



So, I guess I'll close on a happy note. As I walked to class Tuesday evening, I came across this band seated outside this 1,000-year-old Orthodox church, playing "Rock Around the Clock." I have no idea why. Seemed a little surreal.