strike strike strike

Strikes in Peru are not an uncommon phenomenon, I think there has been a strike everytime I´ve been here, but this was the first time it really affected my plans. The transit workers, ie combis and taxis striked for two days to show their solidarity with the people who live in the country who are having troubles getting enough water. So thusly there was no transit since people don´t always have cars and there were a lot of roadblocks making it nearly impossible for those that do, for two days there was no school since nobody could get there, no trips into town, and a lot of free time. Since the last week was vacation it´s been pretty free for the majority of the last 2 weeks. I went down to the streets both days to see what was going on, a first there was some chanting, but after establishing all the road blocks, of which there were many, it seemed to settle down to lots of pickup soccer and volleyball games in the streets and people picnicing while watching the roadblocks. People were hanging around to make sure nobody tried to move their blocades, including some school kids playing volleyball. I think the most violent thing I saw was a taxi trying to enter Av. de la Cultura and some people broke glass bottle to try and deter it. That was the main hinderace, people were making road blocks out of everything, construction materials, the gutter covers, even parts of the barbed wired fences were tore down to cross the road. And there were lots, about every 100 meters, and one they lit on fire near the police station. This is a road block about an mile from the house, its actually a rather lame road block compared to some of the others, but they dragged a trashed car out into the streets, so I took a foto.I walked to enaco, where pukllasunchis is, about an hour, then went back to get a bike and go a bit further, but fairly soon after enaco there was a lot of traffic, i guess that section takes their strikes less seriously. This is at enaco, this was one of the bigger groups I saw minding the road blocks, there must have been about 50 people all sitting on the rocks they had brought into the streets. Mily says that they are more politically active in that area which is why they are more dedicated to the strike and not letting motorbikes pass like most of the other roadblocks. Most of the motorbikes can make it through the blocks and some make money by carrying people which the strikers dont appreciate and I hear can thusly be a little dangerous. I was worried they wouldnt let me pass on my bike since at time people throw rocks at bikes during strikes, but I had no problems, people seemed amused at the gringa crusing around. Yeah, thats the police in the background, it was the only real showing of police I saw during the strike as well.
So while it was quite interesting and I got to ride a bike for the first time in a while, I´m a little bummed, I stayed in Cusco for another week to teach another group, but now that I would only have one day, it´s impossible and I´m just going to help with a mini film showing. I leave cusco on saturday, sad...