A Brief Walking Tour of Burgos

Mom and I just got back from a quick walk around the old part of Burgos. We went to the pharmacy to see if we could find Dad some tape for his feet, then, the bank, then we bought train tickets, and went in search (unsuccessfully) for gummy bears - the box I bought at Costco before I left has been exhausted.

We also walked by the cathedral, and along the river, but did not climb the hill up to the castle. I will save that for another trip, perhaps when Bryan Scott and I pick up cars in the summer of 2013. An M5? A 640CiC? A 740I? A 535i? Who knows.

At any rate there were lots of folks about, it is a fiesta after all, the patron saint of Burgos, Saint Somebody (probably a Pablo, Pedro, or Juan, but NOT Santiago). This reminded me of a conversation We'd had with Roberto and Sofia on the Camino a couple of days back: the last few conferences I've been to, there have been sessions the Generation Y, or the Millenials, and how to deal with them as they enter the workplace, for they are very different. I've dealt with them more in the classroom than the office, and they have some unique characteristics. While recognizing that I am generalizing grossly, and that's always dangerous, the Milennials often seem to have a sense of entitlement, and they were raised by parents who told them they were special, and could do anything. This often leads to friction with older generations, who still believe in "earning your stripes". Again, I am grossly generalizing, and this is only one facet of the Millenials.

I wondered if these characteristics were unique to this age group in the United States; it appears it is not. In Spain, they are called the "Generación NiNi" which means "Ni queren trabajar Ni quieren estudiar." in English, this translates a bit awkwardly: "They neither want to work nor study." They are only interested in their friends, their cars, their phones, their video games, their spending allowances, and going out. I wonder how much of that is the older generations' perception of all younger generations. Isn't there a song by The Who about that?