Another Day, Another Tire on Fire

SUCRE -- So I´m sitting in Spanish class yesterday, trying to get a handle on the subjunctive, when the explosions started again; loud this time, like they were right outside the window. And that´s exactly where they were: A small crowd of protesters, mostly women, had gathered outside the district attorney´s office next door. My teacher as usual didn´t even flinch (such is life in Sucre these days) and eventually got up to close the window. Then the chanting started: ¨¿Dónde esta Roberto? ¿Dónde esta Roberto?¨ The crowd grew larger, large enough that even our jaded teachers and journalists at the newspaper office on the other side of the school gathered to watch. It turns out Roberto is an official with the campaign of a candidate for governor, in opposition to the current government. He was thrown into a car early yesterday morning while walking down the street and hasn´t been seen since. People suspect the government did it, so that´s why they were protesting outside the government building. Despite the explosions and raging bonfire, the protest stayed peaceful, and the police left quickly after checking things out. It was just another day in Sucre, with an abnormal occurence that´s becoming all too common for the people who live here.