OVIEDO, Spain Local Stop
After the week-long training for Ambassadors in Warsaw, we separated from the Purple route team and the project team, and made our way to start the blue route!
We started our trip by heading to the airport early in the morning as the snow was still falling gently. At the boarding gate, Steve actually pulled a miracle by bringing a suitcase onboard without paying the penalty, by “talking to the manager” and during the flight, Stella made a 6-year Ukrainian friend. Travelling this much simultaneously to the huge forced mass migration of so many Ukrainians is making a significant contribution to us seeing this world, and life, from a different point of view.
We arrived at the airport in Madrid where we had some time to admire the amazing architecture of the newest terminal. From then, we were finally on our way to our first stop of EoT9, Oviedo! This part of the trip was exceptionally beautiful and Pipi has about 1000 photos to prove it to you (check our socials!).
In Oviedo, we received a warm welcome from Christina, Chris and Neus, while we also had the chance to get a mini-tour by Christina’s Dad! While we were tired from the long journey, we still managed to do some work on our workshops and that was it for our first day of Europe On Track 9!
Monica and Alvaro joined us the following day for a city tour and a short but historical hike in beautiful Oviedo, the perfect way to take a breather after the intense training in Warsaw and focus on our goals for this journey. After tasting some of the local delicacies, it was finally time for the Blue team’s first workshop!
The first workshop we did was about identifying, preventing and combating gender-based violence in the digital world. We managed to have a safe, comfy space with the participants in our group so sharing felt effortless and discussing sensitive topics wasn’t a problem. What seemed to be a recurring topic that was mentioned in this session was the lack of support from governments and the police when it comes to combatting cyber-violence but still, we think it’s important to report it whenever possible!
Our second workshop took place in the law faculty of the University of Oviedo and it was about violence against women in the context of the Istanbul convention. We had a long reflection with the participants about the situation in Spain, achievements but also room for improvement regarding laws, treatment of victims and perpetrators… Additionally together with the participants, we brainstormed on ways that people as individuals can support the Istanbul convention and make sure it’s as effective as possible.
Overall, we couldn’t ask for a better start for our EoT9 journey. The adventure begins!