18 Oct 07 - The Grave Grève

It was 8 in the morning. From the tram stop, I walked towards my school building just like it was any other day. However, as I approached the entrance, I realised that there was a crowd of maybe a hundred or so students standing outside the front door - where the smokers usually have their cigarettes before class. Nope, didn't think that they were having an annual smoker's gathering at 8 am under the slight drizzle.

left: The perplexed group of students outside the building
right: 'POLITIKAR DE MERDE' (politics of shit. The degree of vulgarity in the word 'merde' is right up there with the english 'F***' )

Bewildered, I 'excusez-moi'-ed all the way through the pack and where the door was supposed to be, there were several shopping carts stacked high, blocking the whole entryway!

left: shopping carts acting as makeshift barricades
right: at another school where rubbish bins seemed the way to go =D

After speaking to a couple of my classmates, I found out that the school was being barred by the Student's Union (l'Assemblée Générale) in protest of a couple of Sarkozy's reforms like the proposal to privatise universities. They were also backing the labour union and transport workers who were on a very widely publicised nationwide strike (la grève, they call it). The workers were displeased with the decision to decrease the rather extravagant retirement benefits and privileges that the French workers traditionally enjoy and to take away their right to strike. Personally, I feel it's about time someone did something about the welfare state.

Anyway, we had the morning off! And what did we decide to do? Well, a swedish giant just moved into town and there was where we went! =D

En route to IKEA:

left: aux armes citoyens (to arms citizens) - rugby fever is running high
right: the colours of autumn


left: The store that seemed to have planted itself as the central topic of conversation of us Singaporeans these few days
right: the gorgeous backdrop of IKEA's carpark.

Anyway, since I was on the topic of the grève, here's a pamphlet handed out to us a few days ago informing us about the reasons behind a strike by the CROUS organisation (in charge of student affairs like lodging, school cafeterias and bursuries etc.) to be held on the 16th October.

That day, most of the school cafeteria were closed. The only one that remained opened served us a 'token' portion of food which was the worst meal I'd had in my 2 months here!