Homeless Culture Conclusion!!!

To start I would like to restate the questions that I proposed at the beginning of this great adventure:
1) Why do the homeless people in Barcelona chose certain places to sit and beg for money with which to live?
2) Why does it seem like there is a specific nationality to those people, i.e., Middle Eastern?
3) How do people react to them asking for money or just sitting there waiting for a handout?
4) Why do some react as though it's more of a scam then a honest and true asking for money?
5) Where they chose to sleep and how the weather might affect there sleeping location?
6) What do they get out of the trash when they are digging through it?

I have started to answer most of these as I go along, but for the sake of quick understanding I have decided to create this final blog on the culture. I finally feel like I understand it well enough to give an adequate summary.

I found that people choose specific locations around Barcelona for the same reason that they do anywhere else in the world, which is because certain places give a higher amount of money then others. Next, there is more homeless culture that is Middle East because they have seem to move across all of Europe working together as a large group and they seem to be doing well. Third people respond more generously to those that sit there and put on a sad, hopeless face because it makes you feel pity for them and want to offer them more money.

You will find that the true homeless people will be with their stuff at all time and those that you see repeatedly over time getting worse or dirtier. Those that do have all there stuff with them you will notice that they sleep down closer to the water front in doorways and under covered overhangs of buildings away from people that might bother them. I finally figured out that the people looking though the trash are actually not homeless people, but they are just common people that are looking to get anything useful out of it to use or to sell to make money. Finally, the things that I have noticed people taking out of the trash the most are furniture pieces and used clothing.

It has been an amazing time focusing my extra studies on this topic because I feel I have grown with understanding and love for those that are actually homeless and what they have to go through. It is something that most people can’t even imagine having to do to simply survive. I will always be praying for them. Love Life, Live Love!!!

So Much To Do, Yet So Little Time!!!!

My time in Barcelona is quickly coming to an end, but I still feel like I have so much to see and have been experiencing many new things.

The most recent and probably most exciting is our trip to the Sagrada Familia with a special tour by the architect behind its current progress. His father worked alongside the famous Antonio Gaudi and the continuous progress on the Sagrada Familia is in his blood. We learned about how his design for a majority of the building was based off of his study of a parabola. This understanding of a parabola came into the building through the need for light in the space, so the ceilings where designed with these different sized parabolas and were they create an awkward space between them is where he placed his twisted column. When it even comes to the children’s school right out front he implemented the design of the parabolic shape. As we entered the restricted area for workers only, we were presented with special visitor badges and hard hats, I felt very official and “V.I.P.” in the words of Hawra. We were able to go up on to the high catwalks and thanks to EJ we got nice souvenir of pieces of rebar and building tiles, which will be going into a trophy case and put up high in my room saying, “Tile form the Sagrada Familia…..the reason why it might fall”. It’s crazy to think that this building is only 60% done and the tallest part is yet to start its high climb into the sky. After an amazing tour and a quick goodbye we were off to tackle the rest of our days.

I am having an amazing time, but I find myself missing home more and more everyday; till I finally see my beautiful niece, Isabella, and see my family and good friends. I have loved Barcelona and will being coming back very soon, but I feel home is calling!

Secrets of the Homeless

Well a lot has changed since i first came to Barcelona. First there was culture shock, then sympathy for the homeless, then an interest in them and now I want to get deep into the understanding. Today i had a long talk with Hawra about how hard it is to tell if someone is homeless or not and it has been bothering me for a while now. I remember hearing a statistic from Washington DC, some people that pose as homeless culture are not and could be making as much as $80,000 a year.

There is a large arabic homeless culture in Europe that i have noticed while touring it on my free time. They all know each other and they have very set locations and signs that i have noticed are new almost every day or week. While in Fes someone said something very important..."if you are to give money to the homeless give it to the people that are not bothering you for it. It's the ones that are just sitting there." I realized that when you see these arabic homeless "women", which is interesting because they are all women, no men, they dont have anything with them. You would think that they would have there own personal things with them because they don't have anywhere to leave it. They also bring there children with them and try to play the sympathy card i feel. Well i have stopped giving money to them because im afraid im not helping the people that really need it.

I only have 3 weeks left in Barcelona, but im hoping that i will be able to finally answer all my questions that i proposed in one of the very first weeks here. Im finding it hard to communicated with the local homeless people but i will do my best to dig up the dirt.

Final thought for the night....I once thought that it was the homeless culture that were searching through the garbage looking for anything they could find, but it is very clear that people actually do this regularly to find things to sell or for themselves. Very interesting to see.

Taking Over Paris (Pictures)

Paris

Antonio Gaudi (Pictures)

Casa Batllo

Casa Mila

Casa Calvet

Casa Comalat

Casa Vincens

Parc Guell

Sagrada Familia