Category: Photography

Caroline Bach6 Comments

Trains and Thoughts

I have been in Poland some days now and it has been truly exhausting and heart breaking. I won’t go into detail on the tragedy that my family has faced and I don’t know for how long I will be needed here and stay around. I am thanking my psychology studies for helping me to cope in balance and rationality and most importantly, to help those around me.

I am incredibly thankful and proud of my friends for giving me clear minded and patient support simply by listening to my talking about everything and nothing. Even when situations are horrifying, my conviction is that hysteria doesn’t help anybody, while I strongly support thorough thought, calmness and constructiveness. I am looking forward to, while being a bit anxious about, the hours of thinking, complete emptiness and opportunity to actually focus on myself that the train ride back to the airport will give me when it’s time to go.

I love going by train in Poland, hanging out the window while both landscapes and thoughts pass by is more than wonderful. So even if this time probably will be very different and difficult, it will be more necessary than ever before.

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Harmony

Listening to Brian Eno and looking at this beautiful woman while the city is asleep is a perfect contrast to what I’ve been living the past days. I found her on the Eco fair here in Barcelona last month, relaxing on a patch of grass, by herself, stroking her pregnant belly while seemingly being in some kind of vacuum of profound tranquility and peace.

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Calmness & Awareness

Some more pictures from yesterday, this time from the calm Plaza Catalunya just next to the Ramblas and the Champions League celebrations. I guess you can see the huge contrast. More of my photos from the #spanishrevolution can be found on flickr.

That’s it about yesterday’s events. Thank you all very much for the support and for spreading my blogs and photos through twitter and pressing the like on facebook button on my posts. By sharing information we get more confident, independent and aware of the situation around the world. Cheesy enough, I would like to tell people to please stop relying on the local newspaper as the only source of information.

Caroline Bach3 Comments

Campeones!

Photos from yesterday’s celebrations of Barcelonas victory over Manchester United in Champions League. The energy and amount of people that filled the streets was something I had never experienced before and it was very intriguing to see how very excited people could get over the victory of their favourite team.

I had fun taking pictures even if I had to be careful as firecrackers were being randomly thrown into the masses and people were being very drunk, thus acting the way very drunk and excited people tend to do..

28th-29th of May, 2011 – “Canaletas” – Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain

Please read yesterday’s impressions, click the photos for more pictures, and well.. congratulations! :)

Caroline Bach6 Comments

When non-violence wins.

Today I witnessed two completely distinct and separated worlds within just metres from each other.

The loud and very violent football supporters celebrating the victory of Barcelona in Champions League: explosions, fire, jumping around, singing and drinking on the Ramblas.

Then, just some metres away, Plaza Catalunya: surrounded by a wall of people standing quietly with signs saying: NO TO VIOLENCE.

Passing them calmly, anyone was allowed to enter. And when inside, one discovered tranquility, peace and a completely relaxed and harmless atmosphere, where people were simply sitting on the ground talking. The difference between these two places, the sensation they were giving and the people that were participating – was completely overwhelming.

I moved from fear and the adrenaline caused by firecrackers and people running away in panic – straight into an oasis of calmness – in a matter of minutes.

However, around 3 o’clock in the morning the sirens of the Special Forces started to sound and the situation got a lot more tense. We were informed that the football supporters were being dispersed from the Ramblas and that they were moving fast, followed by the police, towards the square.

The people were urged to strengthen the “human wall” and everybody chanted “NO TO VIOLENCE! NO TO VIOLENCE!”. Nobody was allowed to pass and I happened to find myself on the outside part of the “wall” as I had been shooting pictures which felt both uneasy and threatening. There was this wall of people, standing with their signs, there was me, and then there were huge amounts of panicking supporters aggressively trying to push their way through.. and behind them – violent police shooting rubber bullets.

The police tried various times to enter from the different sides of the square, but all of them had been closed in the same way by the people. I got through eventually, and the feeling of how powerful and peaceful the protection had been was just amazing.

The police left at 4.30am, applause sounded in the square and people were hugging.

I’m completely touched by how beautiful this movement is. Barcelona won today – twice. All my love goes to Plaza Catalunya!

Click the pictures for flickr.

Goodnight and see you tomorrow!

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White hands and flowers

Today evening there were more people than I have ever seen at Plaza Catalunya. The masses were clearly upset about what had happened earlier today and there were many that loudly wanted to express their disapproval.

With colourful flowers and with their hands painted white, people of all ages showed the world that the movement would insist to keep the resistance non-violent no matter what, and that what they had witnessed today wasn’t going to be accepted by the society.

I’m very curious about where this is going.

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#bcnsinmiedo

I woke up this morning reading tweets from @acampadabcn urging people to come to Plaza Catalunya as the police had arrived and was acting violent towards the non-violent protesters. I got there an hour later, along with hundreds of other people.

I don’t scream but I take pictures, because police brutality is not okay, and the world needs to see this. Barcelona sin miedo is trending worldwide on Twitter. So is Plaza Cataluña, Felip Puig and now #confloresalas7 – the power of internet is incredible.

The people have taken over the square again. And at 7 they urge everybody to join the protest, with flowers. I’ll do my best to be there.

Here’s some photos from earlier today, the helicopter is still around.

27 de Mayo 2011, Plaza Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain

Caroline Bach2 Comments

#AcampadaBCN 20 de Mayo 2011

Following are some impressions from today’s protest at Plaza de Catalunya. It’s been a wonderful experience and I chose to head back home while a lot of people stayed at the square to spend the night.

The protests were declared illegal at midnight because of the upcoming elections, despite that, the police chose not to interfere and the people got to stay on the squares around Spain. The ambience surrounding this movement is amazing and once again, the organisation is exemplary. The discussions continued until just an hour ago and some interesting ideas were brought through. More about that tomorrow.

I don’t have much to add tonight except from the fact that I don’t think International Press is giving this event enough attention, there’s something big happening in Spain right now and the world is missing out. Even if this might not change the world, something has already changed in the minds of the people participating, and in terms of Social Psychology, this is one of the most interesting events I have witnessed.

Here are some pictures from today and I want to send a big thank you to Barcelona, and thank you to Plaza Catalunya! Manos arriba!