Well. Where to start. We are back in Zagreb after our whirlwind tour of Bosnia and Herzegovina. After Sarajevo we went to Mostar, a town famous for its bridges (bridge=most) among other things. The fighting during the war was incredibly intense here, and driving through the town their is a very clear line of destroyed buildings that used to be the front lines. There is an incredibly famous bridge in the town, well more than one actually. What should have been a two hour bus ride took six because of a traffic accident. Our whole trip people talked about how the infrastructure in BiH really prevented people from moving around. I hadn't really thought much about it- they seemed like fine roads to me. But then when we were stuck and there literally was no other way to get to Mostar i began to realize. It actually isn't that different from some places in Maine, but the consequences are greater. It is a beautiful town, and had a (shortened) tour of the city. We also met with students from the United World College, a very interesting program that brings together students from all different backgrounds and ethnicities. It is living proof that people from all over can live and work happily together, be they Bosniak, Serb, Croat, Russian, American, Chinese- anything. It was a really nice thing to see. Their school is on the third floor of a high school. The first floor is for Croat students. The second is for Bosniak students. Division and unity within one school.

After our short stay (including a wonderful dinner in this great restaurant) we went on to our day in Dubrovnik. To say that ocean makes me happy is an understatement, but this ocean made me very happy. We had lunch ( I am still learning to like seafood, and had muscle rissoto) and walked along the castle walls, and then went for an afternoon dip. The water was about the temperature of the lakes in Maine in the summer, and the air was about the same. It was a wonderful experience and I am so glad I went in, even though everyone here thinks we are nuts for doing so.

We are back in Zagreb, and it was wonderful to see my host parents again. They are really great, and living with them makes this trip that much better. We are starting on our research projects now, so I am spending many hours researching. On that note, back to the databases...

Sarajevo Ljubavi Moja

I have made it to Sarajevo! Its amazing. But I should start at the beginning.

We left Belgrade- a very sad affair as I really loved that city, and the people in it. We had made friends with some Serbian students who had studied in the US under this program called Forecast. It was wonderful to know people our own age, and to get to hang out with a larger group. Hopefully when I go back for my Independent Project we can see them again. I also made friends with the waiters at my cafe. Around the corner from my apartment was a cafe with free wireless, so I went a couple of times a week. The cafe itself is open all night long, and its actually pretty trendy, in an area of bars and cafes called Silicone Valley-aptly named for the plastic girls and the men who buy them/their drinks. This is one of the quieter ones though, and the number of Barbie/rich men sightings was pretty small. Regardless, the waiters were all really nice. They remembered me each time, and what I usually ordered (tea) and that I sat at the table near an outlet. They spoke to me in english/serbian, and were very helpful with my attempts at returning in Serbian, and one even helped me with my homework one night. By the end of my time there, they would wave from the door when I walked by on my way to town. It was so nice, I had the hardest time saying goodbye to them. I told them I was moving on, and the most outgoing of the waiters looked a little sad and concerned- "Have a good time, Sarajevo is a beautiful city. But be careful and stay safe!" It was so cute, but a perfect example of the Machismo culture around here. Women are always protected. This has a very nice upside. For example- it is very safe for a woman to walk home alone in all hours of the night through the dark park. Of course the crazy's exist just like anywhere else, but the culture says that women are to be protected and cared for. I am very grateful for the side benefits, even if it drives me nuts, is unfair, and affects a lot more of women's rights. Women are still expected to stay home, have children, raise and care for their families/husbands, look gorgeous while doing so, and have a career first. Its starting to change, but its been a tough road so far.

That was a bit of a tangent, so why don't I return to my travels. We left Belgrade for Bosnia. This meant driving back through Croatia and then south because of the roads. We spent two nights in a town called Banja Luka. Bosnia and Herzegovina is split into three entities. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the south-western part of the state. It is populated by Bosniak (muslim bosnians) and Croat Bosnians. The North eastern section is called the Republika Srpska. It is populated by Bosnian Serbs. Croat Bosnians are Bosnians who are ethically croat. Serb Bosnians are Bosnians who are ethically serb. The distinction between Serb and Serbian is huge here. So- the war here, from 1992-1995/6 was fought mostly over Ethnic Cleansing. Each side rid their territory of the other ethnicity. They did this by killing, burning homes, mass deportations, mass killing, rape, rape camps, and generally scaring the other population into leaving. The war ended in 95 with the Dayton accords. It created a government that was intentionally weak and relied heavily on the international community. Now the international community wants to bail, and people here can't decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing. The government is structured so that there is a Presidency. It is made up of three members, one from each of the constituent peoples (Bosniak, Croat, Serb) this however leaves all minorities without representation. Its a long and complicated story, but in part due to this system, nothing has developed or changed for 15 years here.

So back to my story- we spent two days in Banja Luka, which is the capital of the Republika Srpska. We met with representatives of the Presidency, who told us that the other side did terrible things to his side, and the international community is punishing his half (might be fair, they are seen as the aggressors) and lots of long winded answers that didn't answer anything. The town however, was very nice. Its beautiful, if a bit sterile (it was ethnically cleansed after all) and was really nice to visit. We also met with a couple of independent journalists who spend their very unpopular lives calling the government out on their lies, and wanting people to really acknowledge what happened. We also met with students from the English Language and Literature department. That was really fascinating. We went to an 80's dance party fundraiser for this center that helps women refugees, which was so much fun. While eating our first night at the only mexican restaurant in town, we ran into a group of 20 students from American University. I knew of a couple, and they actually were at the meeting with the president as well. They are here (the same places we are) for three weeks, on this Washington Semester program AU runs. It is mostly students from across the US and a couple of international students as well. It was very cool to see them.

So we left Banja Luka, and spent the next day at this Center for Peace in Sanski Most. It is a gorgeous small town, and this amazing guy runs a center that promotes dialogue and non-violent communication and really tries to get people to accept the past and move on. It was an incredible place. He is fascinating. The website is old, but here is a link: http://unvocim.awardspace.com/HTML/ENG/about_us.html

After a late lunch, we continued on the beautiful drive to Sarajevo. Its a gorgeous trip. The Bosnian countryside is really incredibly gorgeous. We spent yesterday exploring the city, with a language class, and listening to a guest lecture about Islam in here in BiH. We also watched an incredibly powerful movie about life after the war here. Sarajevo was surrounded and under seige for three years during the war. We walked over bullet holes in the sidewalk yesterday.

On that note, I have to leave, but more to come I am sure. Hope all are well!

Leaving the white city...

This is likely my last post from Beograd aka београд aka the white city. (so named because the first people to 'discover' the city came from the west on the Danube, and the sun was shining off the limestone walls, making the city look white). On tuesday we continue on to Bosnia. I can not wait! It looks so interesting. We had a great chat about the politics ( a mess. Due in part to the US created Dayton accords.) But more about that later i suppose...

I am sad to be leaving Belgrade. This was a wonderful month of my life. I have learned so much, and even though we were insanely busy, it was all really fun. This city feels alive, and friendly, and functional. And it is only mildly overwhelming. I feel like i know most of the city now, even though i really just know the downtown area where i live and have class. Its very beautiful, but particularly unphotogenic. I will be walking on this gorgeous street, stop to take a picture and in the end it looks bleak, socialist, and grey. I don't know how it happens.

The other day i was walking home from class, and everyday i have been walking by this ruins- brick, covered in thick flora and fauna, and beautiful. For some reason they draw me in, and i have been wondering about them this whole time. Well- it turns out that it is the old library. They put up a giant sign the other day, and it starts with: Hey you! You wandering by wondering about this place...It is the library that was intentionally bombed and burned by the Nazi's when the Serbs didn't join up. So- for a month now the ruins of the Serbian national library- home of all historical archival Serbian documents have been calling to me. Anyone surprised?( Those are the pics up above.)

I have lots more to write, and tell you all about but I also have a paper and a research project proposal to write, so I have to get going. More to come I promise. xoxo!

Sandzak

So I should probably post about Sandzak!
Novi Pazar is a city in the south of Serbia that is pretty ethnically split between Serbian (orthodox) and Serbian Muslims. It is about a five hour drive, through beautiful mountains and along a river and some crazy winding towns. Just gorgeous. Absolutely.
We stayed in a great hotel (for rather dark reasons it turns out. This area is home to a lot of organized crime and trafficking, and this hotel was (at least temporarily) the most honest. The Balkans in general are a crossroads between Turkey and the east and Europe and the west. This brings good and bad (money from trade- but also a black market and a history of violence) to the region without a doubt. The area is interesting because it had a major industry that has died out (major producers of textiles- jeans- and shoes previously) and has some interesting political things going on. The heavily Muslim area has two religious leaders who are dividing the community, and two political leaders who are doing so as well. One of the religious leaders has opened an (unaccredited) school for Islamic Studies. The division is huge though, and its interesting because the tension here is not between Serb and Bosniak (Bosnian Muslims, as the people here are. The whole region during Yugoslavia was ignored and the people relate their identity with the Bosniak group mostly). The division is entirely among the Muslim population. And its really about which leader you follow- the one linked to Belgrade, or the one linked to Sarajevo. But both leaders have HUGE control of everyday life. They own the media, the influence the politics with a degree of control I think Chenney would be jealous of, they influence education on all levels, and they are both very successful businessmen.
Rasa came with us. He is a friend of Orli's, and was working until about last month with OCSE (organization for cooperation and security in Europe) in Sandzak. Guide isn't really the right word but neither is host. He definitely arranged introductions and meetings for us and showed us around though. His (former) organization ran programs for the public- like counseling and support for trail witnesses and abuse victims. It also runs programs for the government- like training cops to be fair and honest, and pretty much better organized.
We also met with students from the new (several years old) Islamic Studied Faculty. We had this very interesting group discussion where they asked us what Americans thought of Islam. We said that people know it is misunderstood, but we don't really know what it is all about as a general population. A great unkown. They insisted it is a peaceful religion (which we all told them we already knew) and that media was misrepresenting them. One girl in particular was very outspoken and passionate about it. "Osama Bin Laden is not a Muslim," she said. "What he believes goes against everything our religion tells us. " It was interesting because these students so obviously wanted us to understand that they were not fanatics (although they did not sell that point to me very well) but were just human beings. The passion they had for their religion and their lifestyle was intense and overwhelming. I don't think I have ever felt that passionately about anything in my life- and i am a fairly passionate person about some things. This was an (intimidatingly) new level of dedication.
We asked if they felt like an ostracized minority in Serbia, and they said yes. Until recently by law they had to remove their head scarves for ID photos- which was humiliating and insulting and against their religion. They feel like second class citizens here for sure.
We also asked what they thought of Americans. They said that they had negative views, until they met some. This is such a universal truth it blows my mind. Everywhere I see prejudice it is gone once people actually meet and interact with someone of said category. They said their friends in America feel confident and free to practice and express their religion in public, and they are so happy to have heard this. They also said that they thought Americans were really good people, but corrupted and manipulated by the government and Hollywood. They don't hold the ordinary citizens responsible for the perceived war against Islam. Which when you look at it from their point of view is an understandable notion. After the attack by extremists who have been kicked out of every country in the middle east except Afghanistan, the US invades first Afghanistan and then Iraq. The media at home shows Islam to be the source of danger and conflict, and within the United States conditions for Muslim people decline. I would probably feel threatened by the United States too.
Some of the statements made though really made me wonder. One guy- who converted from orthodoxy after giving up his pro-soccer career and apparent bad boy ways here in Belgrade- said that people who read the books and religious texts converted. and it was a FACT. It was also a fact that all civilization sprung from Muhammad.
We went to lunch with these students, and they were so nice. So sweet, so interesting and interested. It was hard for me to reconcile this political conservativeness and religious fervor (I think all things in extreme are bad) with people being so generous, and taking the time on a saturday to wait around for us. They so wanted us to see them as peaceful (so true) and loving (so true) regular people. It was a very interesting experience.
We also spoke to two of the only journalists who try to present fair and factual news in the region. It is hard when 4 of the 5 media outlets are owned by the religious leader who also runs the faculty (college) and pretty much the rest of life as well. One is the founder of Radio 100+ and the other is a journalist. This whole country suffers from a lack of journalistic integrity. The propoganda and misinformation that spreads is unbelievable. A left over from the socialist and Milosevic days of totalitarian control.

In less serious manner- i had the best cevapi so far in Novi Pazar. It is this ground beef dish served with onions and this fantastic bread. Its amazing. We also had terrible pear rakja (local brandy that is very popular and can be very good) and saw one of the oldest Orthodox monasteries. It was beautiful on this huge hill and just gorgeous.
Unfortunately, everything on this trip was tainted by some form of political scandal. The orthodox monastery was partially funded by the government (it was just rebuilt) in an effort to keep people quiet and satisfy political demands. Because Belgrade didn't want the region to claim for independence like the rest of the regions here (kosovo, montenegro etc.) they have just ignored it for twenty years. This allows huge crime to take place, and tax free sales. and no infrastructure or public works.

It was all very interesting and a very pretty place...pictures to come don't worry. But i am really returning to bed now.

Winter is coming...Nope arrived

Temperatures dropped on Tuesday from the balmy, warm, beautiful 28 C from last week to roughly 4 degrees before windchil. I feel like that doesnt do justice to the wind- which was blowing umbrella's inside out and water off the street and into my legs. In the POURING rain I went in search of rainboots (thinking so enviously of the ones I turned down in Hannahs apartment mere hours before flying over here) and was unsuccessful- managing to only spend an extra half hour in the miserable weather conditions. Arriving at class fully drenched and freezing I did my best to dry off with the electric hand blowers, but our classroom was in this giant unheated window filled top floor and everyone was in their winter coats and other accessories and still freezing cold. Needless to say I now feel like utter junk and look and sound like a hormonal daffy duck. Big red nose, all stuffed up (stuvd ub), runny eyes, and a tissue always in hand. Excellent.
In other news- we went to this city about an hour and a half (cultural note-Americans give distance in time. The rest of the world does so in kilometers. 150 Kilometers vs. An hour and a half) north of Belgrade- Novi Sad. It was a very beautiful city, despite more inclement weather. We met with this NGO/Activist group that puts on Film Festivals about Human Rights (always a capitol word around here) Our second lecture was with Vladan Beara- who runs the War Trauma Center. WTC provides counseling and resources to vets of the Yugoslav 'wars' with stress and problems stemming from their traumatic experiences. Wars was in quotation marks because the government doesn't recognize that there was a war in Bosnia, but a Military exercise. It adds to the trauma because society and the government don't really recognize these guys. It was a fascinating presentation, and I may end up doing my independent project (the last 6 weeks of the program- starting REALLY REALLY soon!) working with them. Next week is the halfway point of the semester! I can't believe it.
The independent project is an interesting component of my program. The program is 15 weeks, and we spend 9 or 10 together, taking classes and traveling around. Then for the last 5 weeks, we go off wherever we want and study whatever we want. (within reason) Our final project is a 30-50 page research paper. During that time though we are really on our own-we have to find our own housing and our own food, and figure out our research as well. I am very excited.
I am going back to bed now- but thought I would update. Hope things are well for all of you- xoxo

Bright lights. Big City .Loud Noises. and a Castle!!

I am now one week into my stay here in Belgrade. This endless summer is fanastic, although that whole global warming thing is a bit of a bummer. I left all my summer clothes in Zagreb and now have worn my only two warm weather articles of clothing in this 30 degree Celsius heat. Its toasty. And magnificent. Yesterday morning i spent sitting in the park inside of the castle wall and doing my readings on the region of Sandzak (Sandjak) where we are heading in a few short hours. Sandzak is a region full of textile industry, and importantly, Muslim Bosniak serbs. So- the muslims who are closely related to the Muslims of Bosnia but are actually Serbian nationality. When everyone else was bailing out of Yugoslavia, Belgrade was sincerely interested in not giving reason for this region to decide it wanted to be bosnian/kosovar/montenegrin. As a result twenty years later the government has invested nothing in the region (the poorest in the country) but allows them this sort of autonomy in that a very blind eye is turned to financial activity. It is definitely the middle child of this country.
But the castle is still my favorite part of this city. It is huge, and a lot of it is still intact despite this city being destroyed 40 times and changing power some 65 times. If i take a bit of a detour on my way to school i walk past the Zoo- a great collection of animals in the smallest and most unnatural cages ever. its very depressing- and through the castle gates. and then the inner castle gates, and then through a park with an amazing overview of the river confluence, and then out the other sides of the gates. It is wonderful.
Classes are interesting too- we are learning a lot about the region, and recently about the ubernationalist youth groups. They are incredibly disturbing. The members are so young- the leader of Obpraz could not have been more than 19. Yet they have an agenda of Serbia for Serbs. which they violently support. There was supposed to be a Pride parade here, and it was canceled because the government said they could not protect those marching from the groups like this. The whole city is covered in grafiti and posters saying things like : There will be no parade. There will be blood. Mostly, they think that the Muslim population should be expelled, the Jews are planning on taking over the world- starting with the west, the Roma should be sent back to wherever it is they originally came from, and that no Serb is a homosexual. These groups, are very neonazi.This is obviously a sub culture here- and by no means representative of the whole. But it exists and makes itself heard.
People here are very open and willing to share there opinions. I really appreciate this because you can ask anything and you often recieve more than you thought you possibly could on the subject. Everything is opinion (presented as fact) of course, but its refreshing to be so honest.
My host family is again wonderful. Buba and Rade are my host parents. Buba is again a magnificent cook. She made these peppers the other day that were just incredible. Also living here is Buba's cousin (in some form) Yavonna who is also 20 and studying Micro-biology at the university here. She comes from an outer city, so lives here during the year. She is great fun. And has class all the time! Yesterday she had class from 8 am until 9 pm with one one-hour break. Yikes.
But- off to read/pack travel to Sandzak! more later to be sure...

A few pictures from Croatia...

Belgrade / Beograd

So I have made it to Belgrade. So far it is cold, and dirty, and gray, and there are no environmental emission standards so I may be coming home with a black lung or two, but i can't say i dislike it yet. We left Zagreb at 8 yesterday morning and arrived here (by bus) at 2. After lunch- chinese food of all things- we got our new cell phones, well sim cards. We met our families, and I am again with an older couple, Buba and her husband whose name i have not heard. She is very funny, a pretty tough chimney smoking woman in her early sixties. I have a great room with a piano and computer (internet access from home!) and it is right on one of the main streets. Around the corner is the bar where i am supposed to meet my millionaire Serbian husband, or so i am told. We met at the cafe near our classroom, we are borrowing from some fakultet here, that situation is still a bit fuzzy for me, but it will probably work out. Buba and her husband (he seems very nice, but doesn't speak any english) have a son, Andrje. He lives with his own family (a wife and 13 year old son) not too far away and he is very interested in politics. Its still a bit vague as well, but he is very political and one thing that seems to be true about Serbia and it's Serbs is that they are very open and love talking politics. You can ask them anything. Very refreshing and while taken with a grain of salt very interesting. More to come later, i am off to breakfast. Also, everyone should feel free to post/respond/comment however that works. It feels incredibly egotistical to be writing about myself seemingly to myself, so if you have any questions/comments etc. etc. please do share. much love to all!

Vukovar

So last Thursday and Friday we went to Vukovar. Vukovar is a town in Slovonia (eastern Croatia). During the 80's and early 90's it was a booming factory town. Its eastern edge is created by the Danube River. Across the river is Serbia. The city was almost exactly split between ethnic Serbs and ethnic Croats. This wasn't really an issue until the war started. Really long story short- Slovenia and Croatia bailed out of the federation of Yugoslavia because it was no longer benefiting them, economically or socially. Slovenia was allowed to leave because it was tiny, far away (by Yugoslav standards) and had an almost entirely ethnically Sloven population. After they declared independence the Yugoslav Army (controlled by Belgrade and Slobodon Milosevic) made a half- hearted effort to keep "Yugoslav Integrity" but after ten days the troops came home. Croatia was a different matter. The Belgrade government pretty much told Croatia they were free to leave if they really wanted to but the areas that were predominantly Serb were staying in Yugoslavia. And thus we have war. The contested areas- eastern Croatia and along the border with Serbia felt rising ethnic tensions, and government supported fear. The Media started showing old footage from the WWI when Croat nationalists (Ustasha) and Serb nationalists (Chetniks) equally pillaged and murdered and committed heinous crimes. So in August of 1991, the general scene was this: Croats were being told to be afraid of their Serb neighbors who were actually suppressed Chetniks. Serbs were being told of the atrocity of Ustasha Croats. Now in a large city that had the highest (or second highest) number of mixed marriages and ethnicity had not been an issue people were choosing ethnic sides.

Then the Yugoslav Peoples Army (JNA)- which consisted of mostly Serbs since the other republics were bailing out left and right- circled the city of Vukovar to liberate their people from Croat occupation. For three months the city was under siege and people lived in basements and shelters to survive the daily bombings and avoid the tanks roaming the streets. The local Vukovar militia grew out of those trapped in the city. For three months they fought off the Serb army and Paramilitaries.

On November 18th the Defenders of Vukovar surrendered because they were out of ammunition. Some things to point out: both Serbs and Croats were being bombed by the army, Croatia had no military force, and President Tudjman did not too much to help out the defenders. The defenders also killed between 6000-8000 JNA and paramilitaries. The Serbs never reported numbers. Roughly 500 defenders were killed.

On November 18th though- the city population was sorted into ethnic groups: the Serbs were 'liberated' the Croatian women and children were sent back to Croatia but after some time in Serbia. The Croatian men and fighters were sent to concentration camps. The worst part though- is that Para-militaries went to the hospital, and took the hospital staff, the wounded, and the elderly and drove them out to a hanger in a farm. They were all 261 killed in a mass grave, although some of the bodies are missing. The youngest was 16 and there was one 6 month pregnant woman. Her husband was a politician.

Vukovar is considered an international success, because it was arranged and agreed that the city would be repopulated along ethnic lines. It is once again perfectly split along ethnic lines, same percentages as before. But the town is missing thousands and thousands of people. In '91 there were roughly 84,000 residents. In 2001 when the reconstruction and repopulation efforts were started the population was 31,000. With 57% Croat and 43% Serbs living in the same city everyone was clapping each other on the backs for a job well done. But the city is still really divided. Children do not go to school with the other ethnicity, there are seperate graveyards, stores, health care, everything. They physically live in the same place but no one interacts.

Driving into the town was shocking. Every other building is riddled with bullets, and every third or fourth is a bombed out ruin. It took my breath away. This is what war does to a town, physically at least. It was so hard to see why anyone would want to go back to this- beautiful though the river is, this is the most Ghost like town I have ever seen. It was so weird. Obviously this was something before hand, but now it is filled with old pensioners, young uneducated youth, and no economic prospects. Not to mention the daily surroundings of war ruins. There are so many memorials in this town- everything is a memorial. It is this huge sign of Croatian pride and independence, and yet the people who live there are never allowed to forget the sacrifices they made- be they Serb or Croat. The sense of guilt and responsibility is also heavy. Its a very intense place, and this post hardly does it justice. Its hard to even articulate what i felt about it.

So I am still absolutely LOVING it here. I have this terrible sense that the Balkans are going to keep pulling me back for the rest of my life. At least if the rest is anything like Zagreb. Classes are going alright. Hopefully this clears up when we get into more tangible topics like the events that led to the fall of Yugoslavia and peace and reconstruction efforts since. We watched a 4 hour BBC documentary that was pretty good on the Fall of YU, and then this WONDERFUL movie called Tito i Ja- or tito and I. I heavily suggest everyone rents it. It is so funny.

I am going to watch a nagomet (soccer) game tonight. Dinamo- the Zagreb team (also called the Bad Blue Boys) are playing in the national league. It should be fun, all over the city is Dinamo graffiti. Graffiti is a national art here, yet somehow it manages to not look awful. My favorite is that on the corner of a building near me is Dinamo written in blue spray paint, but they made the D a lower case a. ainamo. Croatians get pretty intense about their soccer- Radno (host father) and I were watching Manchester United and Manchester City play. I asked him who he was cheering for. Anybody but Manchester United he said.

Yesterday afternoon Ankice and Radno took me to Samobor, this neighboring town that is a weekend retreat for Zagreb-ites. It was AMAZING. its this nicely preserved old town with a big church, and lots of walking paths and parks and happy families and running dogs. Idyllic is an understatement. People apparently go there all the time to get married and to eat this traditional cake. Its like a custard cake with a flaky crust. Everyone loves it. I think it looks terrifying. Food should not jiggle like that. Then again things with dairy are not my favorite, so my opinions may be tainted.

On a sad note- this weekend was a pride parade in Belgrade. Gay rights is a huge isssue here- apparently 50% of openly gay people in Zagreb have been attacked either verbally (the lucky few) or more tragically physically. And Zagreb is progressive! This parade in Belgrade was last attempted 3 years ago and only 15 people went. This time they were expecting more, but the police (who as a collective whole are generally homophobic) couldn't guarantee the safety of those marching. There were tons of rumors of violent plots, and even people pretending to be in the parade to get access to those who really are marching. A couple of people from the group were going to go (Goga and Orli highly highly highly suggested not going but obviously cannot tell us NOT to do something, just suggested that we don't and we would have to sign out of the program to leave the country) but decided it wasn't safe enough- especially since they don't speak the language and Serbia uses Cyrillic unlike Croatia, which uses latin letters. Its still a shock sometimes that something i take so for granted at home is still such a danger to people here. There are youtube videos of people at the last attempted pride parade being beaten by mobs. I haven't heard anything, so I hope this one was more successful and peaceful.

But that was a very negative note to end on- sorry folks! And don't worry- Zagreb is an incredibly safe city. It feels a billion times safer (and is as well) than Washington DC, it rivals MDI I think in safety. It is also beyond beautiful, and Ankice is feeding me so much I may have to be rolled home. She says i don't eat enough, but its really not true. She works at night- taking care of this little girl, Katje (who made me a drawing in her first grade class i might add- i am working on a thank you note) so when I get home from class- usually around 6 or 7 with the tram ride, i am often the only one here. Radno plays ping pong and i think as a part time job/hobby (depending on who you ask) is a rented car. Ankice has always made dinner, and leaves me the best notes ever. One said" Boiled, vegetables cabbage and beans and meat (next line) warm ap then the croatian translations, and at the very bottom: Greeting, Ankice" with a flower drawing. They are adorable and so sweet. i have a whole notebook full of them- Plum Noodles (knedle od sljiva) bon aperit Ankica (with a heart). Everynight I eat past full. These plum dumpling were just AMAZING. I lay on the floor for half an hour to digest, but they were well worth it. And stuffed peppers with mushrooms and rice and suasage filling, and pastas and weinerschnitzle and apple struddel. She makes this sauce called Ajvar (j's sound like ye in croatian- ayvar) that is a pepper and tomatoe paste. Its incredible. And since the lactose problem is hard to describe she thinks i can't eat ANY dairy- so is making me dairy free cakes, and uses only margarine and oil. Its very accomodating of her.

I think that is enough for now- More later and love to all!!!

Fun Fact

Turns out Zrdavo- which i had been informed means hello by my Serbo-Croatian language book (silly me for being proactive) is only used as an ironic greeting in jokes as it is actually reminiscent of the Partisans from WWII and after. And now that i have learned that- which is incredibly similar to the russian hello, i can't seam to remember anything else. Hello Comrade.

And a few days later...

So my host family doesn't have internet, and occasionally I can get some wireless from someone else near by, but it looks like the next few weeks will be spent online at the Hotel Antunovic across the street. I am still loving it here- the people are so nice, the food is fantastic- well i was given hot dogs (or the croatia equivalent) for breakfast but otherwise it is great, and the city is just beautiful. Friday night after a long day of class i was taking the tram home and this drunken homeless man would not leave me alone. He kept (gently) grabbing my shoulder and asking me questions, winking at me, and asking "ok?" with the thumbs up sign. One minor attempt to grab at my chest, and a woman told him to back off. Finally he got off and I was feeling thoroughly disheartened- alone, tired, unhappy and a bit shaken, when this young girl who had been watching what was happening (as the whole tram had been doing) asked me if i was going to be alright, if i knew where i was going and just generally checking on me. Then another young guy who had been there was walking my direction so we chatted and walked the two blocks to my apartment. It totally made my night to have strangers reach out to me. But i think that is a very Croatian thing here. I don't really have the contact information for the other girls in the trip, so I went to the Opera alone last night- a bit awkward and lame but well worth it. The theater was amazing. Again I was feeling lonely and a bit disheartened when i couldnt find the theater, but the ushers (who were outside smoking) let me sneak in for free since i was late and a bit pathetic i think. I spent the first act sitting on a riser/aisle, and found a seat for the second. This couple had done the same thing, and we ended up next to each other. The woman next to me was this really really sweet older woman- Ana. She is Croatian but has lived in the United States- mainly southern california- for 35 years. She was really nice, and it was great to have some company that spoke english. Again, when I was feeling a bit out of place strangers were there and helpful and sweet and it made me infinitely happier. The theater is AMAZING. Full of gold leif and gorgeous designs and chandeliers and box seats. I was blown away. The opera was pretty good too- something by Verdi very religious. The mezzo soprano was a bit much for me but otherwise great.

My family is very sweet. Radno took me to the police station to register as a tourist, and while he speaks no english he pointed things out alone the way and we made do. He is really so nice- like the deaf grandfather figure. Ankice, my host mother is also wonderful. She speaks a bit more english and some russian, and is so caring. We make do with our language gap, but I think they like me so far, and they are really terrific. I feel so comfortable in their home- they aren't overbearing but also not cold. Her older son lives with his girlfriend and comes for lunch every sunday. They are also very nice- and speak english! Also- interesting cultural note: people here say Bok or Bog as a greeting. But real Zagrebites will laugh at you for saying Bog because it means god. It turns out that Bog Di ti was the original greeting- or something similar that meant god give you health (what i wrote is wrong. its not ti but something else). It was shortened to Bog ti for conversational purposes, and then during the communist unreligious times became Bok. interesting huh?

Classes start tomorrow and I have lots of reading to do! Best wishes to all!

Sljeme and my host Family

It has been a pretty eventful two days. Yesterday was amazing. We had language class in the morning: je sam Lila, dolazim iz Maine, Je volim pse, Ne volim mliejko. Pretty basic stuff- my name is lila, i am from maine, i like dogs and i don't like milk. Our language teacher is Marija. She is really funny, always color coordinated, coffee in hand, and all around great. This was the first two hours of the day, then we were sent on a 'drop-off.' Goga and Orli paired us up and sent us about the city to different places. Another girl and i were sent to Sljeme- which is the ski slope at the top of the mountain overlooking the town. It was BEAUTIFUL. We took a tram to the end of the line, in a part of town called Mihalovic and then waited for a bus that would take us to Sljeme. We figured the little ski icon on the bus display was a good sign and climbed on board. The view the whole way up was just unbelievable. For the first 15 minutes we drove through the valley and a bit of an incline through houses and residential areas that were really nice- a bit like embassy row in dc i think in some palaces, but croatian style. Then came the ascent and the switchbacks. Our driver was on his phone the entire time- always nerve racking. and the Australian runner next to us was telling this other australian couple his whole running life history, but nothing could take away from this view. It was so beautiful. We went through woods with hiking trails that were really tall forests with plenty of open space on the ground to see everything, and we climbed and climbed and climbed. When we arrived at what appeared to be the top the driver just pulled over and put his feet up so we figured this was it and disembarked. We went and checked out the hiking trails, the slightly snobby four star hotel, the shortest ski runs i have ever seen, and had the most awkward lunch ever. We were sent to find the TV tower- easy to spot, the ski runs- easy to find, and have lunch at this restaurant. It is quite the alpine ski lodge, and it was just the woman who runs it there, with her daughter and grandkids. not knowing how to ask for lunch, we just sort of awkwardly stood there, asked in english and then pantomimed. We had our drinks (coke is still in glass bottles here- i love it! and schweps makes lemonade in glass bottles too) on the porch but got too cold so went back inside even more awkwardly. We were told to have grah- which turns out to be a bean soup. It was so fantastic. Then the trip down took an interesting turn when we screached to a halt halfway down the mountain. Turns out a tree had fallen across the road and traffic was blocked. and this was the only way down. half an hour later and the police arrive, without any tools, and awkwardly stand on the far side of the tree and look at those of us who are blocked in. We borrowed some guys cell phone to alert the school to our delay, and when the ranger service did eventually show up it was to great applause. I can't help but wonder with every man i encounter between the ages of 30 and 60 what they were doing 15 years ago. There is no real sign of a war having been fought here- at least not yet- and i think i am more stuck on the past than the croatians.

I am now with my host family- a very sweet couple in their fifties or sixties whose son has moved out (pretty rare) and speak no english. BUT she speaks some russian- so that is nice. My languages are all coming out in a torrent of mess- russian english french and spanish. its one big mess but hopefully i improve. I will write more about it later. It is raining today and the low pressure has brought another headache for me. More tomorrow! Hope things are all well on the homefront!

Day 2

So this is take two- I ran out of time on the internet and lost my post.
I have made it- luggage and all! We landed yesterday afternoon. Let me just say- swiss air is fantastic. I have never been so well fed and cared for on an airline by such friendly staff. They were fantastic, and the (dairy free meal option) food was great. I was seated next to this large Russian woman for the long flight- who was on her way to vacation in Bratislava. Which made my choosing the balkans look sane. She was very sweet and interesting. I was almost asleep when the meal tray came by, and when it didnt look like i would be waking up she asked worriedly of the stewerdess if i could get the meal later. "She is much to thin to be skipping a meal!" she said. I woke up to eat rather than have her harass the staff later on my behalf. Unfortunately my uncomfortable sleep was often disrupted by the several screaming children that were near by. Flying into Zurich was so beautiful i can not even describe. I was expecting The Von Trapp family, Heidi, and Indiana Jones to appear in the hills at any moment. It was amazing. until...i went to the exit for the second leg to Zagreb. I had to take a train (which was three floors down) over to this awkward back terminal that opened up onto a sidewalk. No plane or even airfeild in space. The waiting area was filled with hostil looking people, and when boarding was called we all filed through the doors onto a bus. Which thankfully took us out onto the runway and our plane. After even more amazing food i expected the gorgeous view to fade and the drab Balkans to appear. But they never did and by the time we started our descent i was pretty thrilled with the look of Croatia. lots of mountains and rivers and cute little towns in the hills. The airport was like a slightly larger and more militaristic (some apache or black hawk like helicopter was sitting on the runway as well, and a burnt out jeep) Customs was a breaze, and mz luggage was quickly sent around the belt. It was easy. By now the three of us on the plane for SIT had met up, and our teacher, Goga found us and we were off to the bus. With surprsingly sane driving we drove Northeast towards the city. It looked gorgeous from afar and i was not dissapointed. The bit by the airport loooked a bit like Costa Rica, then we drove through the residential Novizagreb full of run down communist era buildings, and thankfully continued on. The city is gorgeous. All brick and stone and yellow buildings (thanks to the hapsburg empire) and it is the cleanest city i have ever seen. We are staying in a hostel that is great and clean and friendly and located directly behind a chocolate factory. It smells great all the time.
We met up with all the students and had a large lunch at an italian place, and then were left to ourselves around five. I went to the grocery store with three other girls, and we bought a few things (towels mostly) and came back to the hotel. Around nine out of a bit of desperation we went to the bar down the street looking for food and instead found giant cheep beers and really nice croats who spoke no english. It was a great night and one girl (who is gay) was given this guys- who is 43- sons number for when the son moves to Miami. She is from California but goes to Colby. All in all a good night, and I was glad for the excuse to get out for the evening. After a night of bad sleep (jet lag) we went to class this morning for orientation stuff. Mostly though we went to this HUGE amazing market that takes place everydac across the square from the SIT office. The theme of the trip seems to be eating and drinking coffee.
Our office is right above the city center. We take the tram from the hostel and are there in 15 minutes. its so easy. If you google image the city centar our office is in the yellow building with the wrought iron grate on the second floor.
Goga and Orli are our teachers. Both seem wonderful- smart, enthusiastic, and so sensible. It looks like it will be a very interesting semester. We meet our host families on thursday, and i am a bit nervous though i am sure for no reason. Well i am off in search of dinner- i think Marissa and i are making gnocci. More later....

Off to Croatia

So it is the night before I leave, and so far the packing has been a disaster. who knew the swiss airlines only allowed 17 lbs. in their carry on? What is a girl to do without her books, and computer, and mukaluk slippers? After being perfectly arranged in a few short hours i have since repacked endless times- including once when i tipped everything over and dropped all contents on the floor. My backpack sticks a good five inches above my head, which i suppose is a good pillow/head guard but other than that majorly inconvenient. I suppose more once i make it to the far side of the pond...