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...