So I just realized that I wrote this two weeks ago and never posted it. I still want to share it with everyone.
The Better Tomorrow center has had many visitors in the past week. On Friday, a traveling circus of children stopped by the center. There were from Paris and all very young, less than 28 probably. Before arriving in Tuzla, they had spent several days in Kladanj and after their time in BiH they will be heading to Kosovo for two weeks.
All of them wore clown like make up, which was weird for the children. The children didn’t know what to do with the person on stilts or the “old man” clown who hid behind things, peak out, and then tumble around. Some of the performers were very talented at gymnastics while others were good at juggling.
After performing their acts for 20 or 30 minutes, the members of the circus invited the children to join in. Soon it was truely a three ring circus. There was a group learning juggling, another learning dance with ribbons, more balancing on a large ball, some giving a try to the unicycle, while others balanced spinning plates. Even parents and the animators were joining in on the action. It was a wonderful activity for the whole neighborhood. When the traveling band of performers left, they gave the center many of the props needed to juggle, balance plates, and ribbon dance. It was a wonderful experience that then children won’t forget anytime soon. They have been drawing pictures already this week of their experience at the circus.
On Saturday a couple from Central France arrived to provide some much needed information on dental hygiene. They distributed tooth brushes, children’s tooth paste, and sun screen. Fabrice and Delphine also explained why to brush, when to brush, and how to brush your teeth. The children were a little timid to brush their teeth. I think that it isn’t something that they are used to doing very often, but in the end they enjoyed brushing their teeth with their friends and showing off their pearly whites after they were finished. In addition to the oral hygiene, they explained the importance of putting sun screen on birth marks and instructed the children on ways to identify changes in their birth marks that could be dangerous.
Fabrice and Delphine were very interesting and wonderful people. They have been traveling for the past 6 months in Morocco, Italy, Greece, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia and BiH. They are a dentist and a technical dentist by training. All their supplies had been donated to them by various companies to be distributed to children in need. http://culturetube.top-depart.com/
Their little mobile home with suicide doors was great. With the vintage 1970’s convey, they said they attracted attention everywhere they travelled. Apparently groups of people just stop and watch as they travel through neighborhoods. They enjoy the freedom such a way of traveling provides, and I agree. Anywhere they are able to find a place to park, they have a place to sleep. That could be in a city center, on the beach, in the mountains, or in their friend’s drive way.
Fabrice and I had a great deal in common. We were able to share many of our experiences over the course of the afternoon since we went to Binasa’s home for a “Rošti”- Bosnian for BBQ. Both of us enjoyed meeting new people and learning about their way of life. He wanted to use his skills as a serviceable way to meet others and see the world. One thing I really liked about this couple was that they were trying to get their own sense of the history in the Balkans region based on conversations with people throughout the region, not just by reading a few authors’ accounts or basing it off of conversations in one city or country. From talking with them, it seems like they had a very broad concept of the conflict and knew details that are not talked about in other places. They were very sad to hear about the events of July 11, 1995. They knew of the tragedy in Srebrenica but didn’t know that it fell on Delphine’s birthday.
They were also surprised to learn that I was working for free. Apparently volunteers do not work for long periods of time without compensation in France. The concept of volunteerism which we have in the US is very different and foriegn to those in other parts of the world. Further, he was stunned when I told him about the Peace Corps program and the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have served around the globe for the past 40 years. I’m glad to have had the opportunity to meet Fabrice and Delphine and learn about their service as well.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Friday, August 3, 2007
Mostar and Herzegovina
Alison and I arrived in Mostar around 10pm on Friday after 6+ hours of bus travel from Tuzla. They really don't have any straight roads in this country to make traveling easy. Miran, the hostel owner, was waiting for us at the bus station upon our arrival. After a short ride to the hostel, we were settled in our room. Miran's girlfriend mentioned to us that the beginning of the Bridge Jumping Festival started that night at 11 or 12. Alison and I quickly made our way to the Stari Most to a glimpse of the festivities.
There was definitely a street party going on in Mostar. There were a group of drummers playing Latin dance beats. Further down the street there was a brass band playing in the street. After watching the people dancing in the street for a bit we headed down to the river where there was a large stage set up. We arrived just in time.
Above, on the bridge, were many men holding torches and flares. At the pinnacle was one man in his speedo preparing for his decent into the water below. Soon before he was to jump, someone gave him a pair of flares. The large crowd below anxiously anticipated his next action.
In one smooth movement, the diver brought the flares together above his head from the swan position and jumped from the reconstructed stone bridge. During his 80ft decent the crowd cheered rowdily. As he splashed into the waters of the Neretva River, the fire raged above on the bridge. Then the fireworks began. During the 10 minute firwork show, the house beats began pumping, much to the delight of the young revelers. For the rest of the night, a dance party raged on on the bank of the river directly below the Stari Most.
I'm not sure the Ottoman Turks, who began this festival 441 years prior, would have ever expected the changes that have transpired. Alison and I left while the party was still alive and well sometime after 3am.
The next morning we began looking for a rental car to visit some near by wineries. No cars were to be found. Instead, we boarded city bus #48 headed for Međugorje with the intention of getting off in the village of Čitluk. The wine route map showed many wineries with in walking distance of the town center. As we approached the village, our feelings soured somewhat. The sign for the village was many kilometers before the town center. When we did get to the town center, we were leary of not finding any nearby vineyards. As soon as the bus left the town bus stop, we passed 3 more vineyards. Oh well. We had then decided to explore the wine situation of Međugorje.
We found one tasting room a 15 minute walk from the central Church. The winery was called Stankela. The white wine was good but different from many American whites with mineral flavors rather than fruit and flower flavors. The "crno vino" (black wine) was the same, a lot of earthy and mineral notes. I really enjoy it a lot. The varietal was called "Blatina", which has been under cultivation in the area for over 2,000 years. This particular family has been opperating their vineyard for over 400 years.
I noticed that the region of Southern Herzegovina strongly identifies to their Croatian Heritage, with evidence of Croatian flags flying over the streets in the villages and fairly strong nationalistic over tones in conversations with those we encountered. This was a striking change from the interactions both Alison and I have had in areas of Muslim majority.
Following the wine tasting we wanted to visit the waterfall of Kravice. When asking people how to get there, people suggested flagging down a taxi rather than finding one at the taxi stand. There was a posted price of 40 euro for the round trip price to the falls. That was too much for our budget. We found a taxi driver who was next to his car at the end of the line of 15 cabs who had not moved all day. After trying to negotiate the price lower, the driver suggested that try the post office since some times they have lower prices. I was about to suggest that he continue to sit there all day an not earn any money when he said, "35 euro in 5 minutes" in Bosnian.
Understanding now that he wanted to drop the price but not wanting to upset the other drivers by cutting in line, I said "60 KM", which is a little less that 30 euro, and he agreed. When we arrived at the post office Jure, the taxi driver, was waiting for us.
The 20 minute drive to the falls was fairly barren, but then we began to descend into a canyon. There it was, Kravice Falls. The water fall was like a scene out of a fantasy movie. Falling over 100ft and more than 400 ft. wide, the falls were breath taking. The water temperature was a little cool, which made for a refreshing swim over to the base of the falls. Amongst the pools, where the water thunderously crashed, were grass and fig trees. This is absolutely paradise. The beauty and solitude of swimming in these small pools under the falls is un matched.
Alison didn't bring a bathing suit so we enjoyed a coffee and people watching from the cafe at the pools edge. Our taxi was waiting for us at our pre arranged time and we had a quick ride back to town. I spent a little time in the church, but it is difficult to visit a religious pilgrimage site without being mental prepared. And I certainly was not since I had wound up there by happenstance.
Later that evening, after dinner, we took the city bus back to Mostar. After retiring to the hostel early because of our event filled day, we were up early raring to go. Because the bridge jumping and swims were going on later in the day, we decided it was best to head back towards Sarajevo where I would begin the next leg of my adventure for the week.
Here is the link to my gallery of photos
More to come about my time in the mountains shortly.
There was definitely a street party going on in Mostar. There were a group of drummers playing Latin dance beats. Further down the street there was a brass band playing in the street. After watching the people dancing in the street for a bit we headed down to the river where there was a large stage set up. We arrived just in time.
Above, on the bridge, were many men holding torches and flares. At the pinnacle was one man in his speedo preparing for his decent into the water below. Soon before he was to jump, someone gave him a pair of flares. The large crowd below anxiously anticipated his next action.
In one smooth movement, the diver brought the flares together above his head from the swan position and jumped from the reconstructed stone bridge. During his 80ft decent the crowd cheered rowdily. As he splashed into the waters of the Neretva River, the fire raged above on the bridge. Then the fireworks began. During the 10 minute firwork show, the house beats began pumping, much to the delight of the young revelers. For the rest of the night, a dance party raged on on the bank of the river directly below the Stari Most.
I'm not sure the Ottoman Turks, who began this festival 441 years prior, would have ever expected the changes that have transpired. Alison and I left while the party was still alive and well sometime after 3am.
The next morning we began looking for a rental car to visit some near by wineries. No cars were to be found. Instead, we boarded city bus #48 headed for Međugorje with the intention of getting off in the village of Čitluk. The wine route map showed many wineries with in walking distance of the town center. As we approached the village, our feelings soured somewhat. The sign for the village was many kilometers before the town center. When we did get to the town center, we were leary of not finding any nearby vineyards. As soon as the bus left the town bus stop, we passed 3 more vineyards. Oh well. We had then decided to explore the wine situation of Međugorje.
We found one tasting room a 15 minute walk from the central Church. The winery was called Stankela. The white wine was good but different from many American whites with mineral flavors rather than fruit and flower flavors. The "crno vino" (black wine) was the same, a lot of earthy and mineral notes. I really enjoy it a lot. The varietal was called "Blatina", which has been under cultivation in the area for over 2,000 years. This particular family has been opperating their vineyard for over 400 years.
I noticed that the region of Southern Herzegovina strongly identifies to their Croatian Heritage, with evidence of Croatian flags flying over the streets in the villages and fairly strong nationalistic over tones in conversations with those we encountered. This was a striking change from the interactions both Alison and I have had in areas of Muslim majority.
Following the wine tasting we wanted to visit the waterfall of Kravice. When asking people how to get there, people suggested flagging down a taxi rather than finding one at the taxi stand. There was a posted price of 40 euro for the round trip price to the falls. That was too much for our budget. We found a taxi driver who was next to his car at the end of the line of 15 cabs who had not moved all day. After trying to negotiate the price lower, the driver suggested that try the post office since some times they have lower prices. I was about to suggest that he continue to sit there all day an not earn any money when he said, "35 euro in 5 minutes" in Bosnian.
Understanding now that he wanted to drop the price but not wanting to upset the other drivers by cutting in line, I said "60 KM", which is a little less that 30 euro, and he agreed. When we arrived at the post office Jure, the taxi driver, was waiting for us.
The 20 minute drive to the falls was fairly barren, but then we began to descend into a canyon. There it was, Kravice Falls. The water fall was like a scene out of a fantasy movie. Falling over 100ft and more than 400 ft. wide, the falls were breath taking. The water temperature was a little cool, which made for a refreshing swim over to the base of the falls. Amongst the pools, where the water thunderously crashed, were grass and fig trees. This is absolutely paradise. The beauty and solitude of swimming in these small pools under the falls is un matched.
Alison didn't bring a bathing suit so we enjoyed a coffee and people watching from the cafe at the pools edge. Our taxi was waiting for us at our pre arranged time and we had a quick ride back to town. I spent a little time in the church, but it is difficult to visit a religious pilgrimage site without being mental prepared. And I certainly was not since I had wound up there by happenstance.
Later that evening, after dinner, we took the city bus back to Mostar. After retiring to the hostel early because of our event filled day, we were up early raring to go. Because the bridge jumping and swims were going on later in the day, we decided it was best to head back towards Sarajevo where I would begin the next leg of my adventure for the week.
Here is the link to my gallery of photos
More to come about my time in the mountains shortly.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
A busy week
7/15/2007
Past week has been very busy for me. I’m in full swing of all my activities here in Tuzla. Classes are going very well here. This past week I have taught the students parts of the body along with “Simon Says.” The kids love that game. It is fun to watch them play. The first few days, they were not very confident giving commands to the other students in English, but in the past couple of days they have become excited when they win the game and get to be Simon.
I have been trying to get a feel for the roles of NGO’s here in Bosnia so I have been asking a lot of questions from people I meet about their organizations. I had been in contact with people at World Vision before I came to Tuzla, so I was finally able to meet up with them and learn more about their programs in the community. Like many organizations, World Vision came to BiH in 1995, the year the war ended. They have worked on my projects with refugee communities and now returnees. In addition to building houses for people, they have worked to encourage economic development through the creation of EKI Micro credit institution. Currently they are working on an area development project where they focus on the development of the entire community in one specific area. They work on everything from youth organizations, schools, improving employment opportunities, health programs, and other activities that help all members of the community become economically and educationally sound.
-*- Warning-*- The following two paragraphs may be viewed as graphic in nature. Please skip this paragraph if details about scientific tests on human remains found throughout Bosnia may be sensitive in nature.
Last Thursday I had a very unique experience. I went to drop something off for my friend Stephanie at her work, the Missing Persons Institute (MPI), and while I was there I was given a tour of the facility. The MPI does work to identify thousands of missing persons from the war in 1992-95. They do this by taking DNA samples from human remains that were found in mass graves. Some of the remains were found in “primary graves” but others were found in “secondary graves”. The fact that remains have been moved to secondary graves with front-end loaders and other heavy machinery makes the task of identification very difficult. Remains from the same person have been found in 3 different burial sites.
The MPI center takes the remains found and sorts them based on which bones provide a sample for DNA tests. The MPI does so many DNA tests they have developed a way to perform the test cheaper than any other place in the world running about $125 a sample. The fact that the remains are so mangled together means that the MPI must take samples from every bone large enough to collect a DNA sample from- in most cases this is 5 to insure that all individuals are accurately and appropriately accounted for. Once test results come back from the lab, they are uploaded into the database and compared with DNA samples collected from survivors’ family members both in BiH and other places where Bosnians live around the world. Often times this is just female family members because large numbers of men in many communities are those who are missing. Once a match is made, the families are contacted, and they can come to collect their family member and their belongings and have a proper burial. This is fascinating work when you think about it from a scientific standpoint, but then when you think about the real nature of the daunting task ahead ofo identifying thousands more cases you become sick. There are certain jobs in this world that people shouldn’t need to do, and I’m a firm believer that this is one of them.
On a lighter note, Friday I was interviewed by a journalist from “Tuzlanski List”, one of the daily papers in Tuzla. The interview view was long and drawn out, as most things are in Bosnia, lasting about 2 hours. We talked about many things from what was my educational background, to the work I was doing with the children, to what I thought of Bosnian coffee, to what I had learned in Bosnia. I was flattered that the journalist was interested in the work that I was doing and she said, “Bosnia needs many more people doing what you are doing.” When the paper came out today, my neighbor came to me and showed me my picture and tried to tell me that now she knows what I’m working on here. Don’t worry Mom, I’ve saved a copy for you.
Saturday was a great day for me. I received the box of books that I sent to myself via USPS Media Mail. In case you are wondering how long it takes to send a package via media mail to Bosnia, the answer is 3 months. I had written this box off as gone and it finally arrives with plenty of English reading material. As a side note, it only takes 7 days for a letter to get here; I don’t know what took the box so long. In addition to the joy of receiving a package, I also went to the lake so find refugee from the heat with my two friends from Bolivia, Stephanie, and Luis from Spain. Who would have thought that I would have met so many people from South America in my work in Bosnia?
Past week has been very busy for me. I’m in full swing of all my activities here in Tuzla. Classes are going very well here. This past week I have taught the students parts of the body along with “Simon Says.” The kids love that game. It is fun to watch them play. The first few days, they were not very confident giving commands to the other students in English, but in the past couple of days they have become excited when they win the game and get to be Simon.
I have been trying to get a feel for the roles of NGO’s here in Bosnia so I have been asking a lot of questions from people I meet about their organizations. I had been in contact with people at World Vision before I came to Tuzla, so I was finally able to meet up with them and learn more about their programs in the community. Like many organizations, World Vision came to BiH in 1995, the year the war ended. They have worked on my projects with refugee communities and now returnees. In addition to building houses for people, they have worked to encourage economic development through the creation of EKI Micro credit institution. Currently they are working on an area development project where they focus on the development of the entire community in one specific area. They work on everything from youth organizations, schools, improving employment opportunities, health programs, and other activities that help all members of the community become economically and educationally sound.
-*- Warning-*- The following two paragraphs may be viewed as graphic in nature. Please skip this paragraph if details about scientific tests on human remains found throughout Bosnia may be sensitive in nature.
Last Thursday I had a very unique experience. I went to drop something off for my friend Stephanie at her work, the Missing Persons Institute (MPI), and while I was there I was given a tour of the facility. The MPI does work to identify thousands of missing persons from the war in 1992-95. They do this by taking DNA samples from human remains that were found in mass graves. Some of the remains were found in “primary graves” but others were found in “secondary graves”. The fact that remains have been moved to secondary graves with front-end loaders and other heavy machinery makes the task of identification very difficult. Remains from the same person have been found in 3 different burial sites.
The MPI center takes the remains found and sorts them based on which bones provide a sample for DNA tests. The MPI does so many DNA tests they have developed a way to perform the test cheaper than any other place in the world running about $125 a sample. The fact that the remains are so mangled together means that the MPI must take samples from every bone large enough to collect a DNA sample from- in most cases this is 5 to insure that all individuals are accurately and appropriately accounted for. Once test results come back from the lab, they are uploaded into the database and compared with DNA samples collected from survivors’ family members both in BiH and other places where Bosnians live around the world. Often times this is just female family members because large numbers of men in many communities are those who are missing. Once a match is made, the families are contacted, and they can come to collect their family member and their belongings and have a proper burial. This is fascinating work when you think about it from a scientific standpoint, but then when you think about the real nature of the daunting task ahead ofo identifying thousands more cases you become sick. There are certain jobs in this world that people shouldn’t need to do, and I’m a firm believer that this is one of them.
On a lighter note, Friday I was interviewed by a journalist from “Tuzlanski List”, one of the daily papers in Tuzla. The interview view was long and drawn out, as most things are in Bosnia, lasting about 2 hours. We talked about many things from what was my educational background, to the work I was doing with the children, to what I thought of Bosnian coffee, to what I had learned in Bosnia. I was flattered that the journalist was interested in the work that I was doing and she said, “Bosnia needs many more people doing what you are doing.” When the paper came out today, my neighbor came to me and showed me my picture and tried to tell me that now she knows what I’m working on here. Don’t worry Mom, I’ve saved a copy for you.
Saturday was a great day for me. I received the box of books that I sent to myself via USPS Media Mail. In case you are wondering how long it takes to send a package via media mail to Bosnia, the answer is 3 months. I had written this box off as gone and it finally arrives with plenty of English reading material. As a side note, it only takes 7 days for a letter to get here; I don’t know what took the box so long. In addition to the joy of receiving a package, I also went to the lake so find refugee from the heat with my two friends from Bolivia, Stephanie, and Luis from Spain. Who would have thought that I would have met so many people from South America in my work in Bosnia?
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Water Polo
Water polo is a big deal hear in Bosnia as it is in all of the former Yugoslavia. The other day, I was at my friends house flipping channels and came across an afternoon of water polo games. This was like ESPN classic for water-polo. I was absolutely amazed. I wish we had something like this in the states.
I suppose I'm just lusting for the water polo goal that I saw in the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro a few weeks ago. When I saw this, I was blown away. I had to pull the car over immediately. What could be better than playing water polo? 
After playing two years of competitive water-polo in my life (senior year of high school and senior year of college), I really wanted to play on a team while I was here. Since both of my previous teams were in their infant stages of their development, I've never played very structured polo. I was really eager for the opportunity here. I asked a few friends if they knew of any leagues for adults. They said that they did, but none in Tuzla. We may be the 2nd largest 
city in the country, but without a swimming pool in town a water polo team is not possible. There is a pool similar to the one in Howard Hall on the University of Portland campus, but the water polo aficionados of the region have deemed this pool un acceptable to play the sport in.
city in the country, but without a swimming pool in town a water polo team is not possible. There is a pool similar to the one in Howard Hall on the University of Portland campus, but the water polo aficionados of the region have deemed this pool un acceptable to play the sport in.So I have resigned myself to playing catch with some of the kids in the small, salt water lake in
town. It is also very shallow, but you can tread water in it. The problem here is the huge numbers of people here. I guess it isn't a problem that everyone is trying to stay cool, it just makes it difficult to play water polo. I'm affraid that I'll hit one of the old ladies who is cooling themselves near the shore.
town. It is also very shallow, but you can tread water in it. The problem here is the huge numbers of people here. I guess it isn't a problem that everyone is trying to stay cool, it just makes it difficult to play water polo. I'm affraid that I'll hit one of the old ladies who is cooling themselves near the shore.
I suppose I'm just lusting for the water polo goal that I saw in the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro a few weeks ago. When I saw this, I was blown away. I had to pull the car over immediately. What could be better than playing water polo? 
Try playing water polo in the Adriatic Sea where 3,000 ft. high fjords drive into the bay in a 1,000 year old walled city. Why am I not volunteering in this town? When become rich and a donor to the University of Portland Water Polo Team, we will come here for pre-season training. Gibbs, you can be the coach for the training camp. Riley, Clay and Peter, we can play a little "Fatties vs. Skinnys" basketball too.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Finally, last week it cooled down and the kids have been allowed to leave their homes. The heat wave of two weeks ago kept many children inside and their parents would not let them go out. Not even to come to the center. Come to think of it, there weren’t many people outside at all during the day. The highs we certainly into the upper 90’s which made it difficult to function during the heat of the day. Now I know why someone invented air conditioning. I also may have an idea of why people in Europe take month long vacations during the summer. It is too hot to actually get any work done.
Last weekend, as I was beginning to prepare lesson plans for last week, I decided I wanted to work in a little bit of Independence Day flare into the class. Originally my plan was to have the first paragraph of the Declaration of Independence translated into Bosnian so the children would know why I wanted to celebrate on the 4th of July. I certainly didn’t want to be seen as an Imperialistic instructor who wants to shove U.S. History and culture down their throats, but the more I read the document, the more I realize that the Declaration of Independence was an important document for human rights inspired by the English Humanist writers.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
These are certainly words that people all around the world can understand and appreciate.
Then I began looking at the timeline from when the Declaration of Independence was passed to when the Constitution of the United States was ratified. It took 12 years for the Constitution to be ratified. During that time there were significant victories and failures for the new government. We fought and won the War of Independence, signed the treaty of Paris, wrote and implemented the Articles of Confederacy, made the 3/5th’s compromise, decided the governing laws of the Articles of Confederacy were too weak so convened to write the Constitution of the United States. There could be some parallels drawn between this period of American history and the past 12 years in Bosnian history.
I guess what I’m tried to convey to the students, and I suppose all my Bosnian friends, is that it took a long time for United States government to begin functioning effectively. 12 years. It did not happen over night. It took many people, long hours of debating and compromise to establish a framework of government which would be representative to all people. I’m certainly thankful that those men, so long ago, took the their time and due diligence to work through conflicts and be precise enough to create a durable legal document giving it’s citizens rights based on their “unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
So with this in mind the past week was very busy for me here in Tuzla. In addition to my normal activities of teaching a few English classes, I was preparing for a few Independence Day parties. At the center, I decided that we would play games that many families and communities have as part of the barbecues and other celebrations. We played tag, had a water balloon toss which inevitably became a water fight. One thing is always true- there are never enough water balloons. I had made a little timeline about some of the events in early US history and shared them with the students and the animators. 
They were surprised to hear that it took so long for the US to become settled. I figured it would also be fun to have a water melon seed spitting contest.
The kids loved all the games. Arnell and I were the wettest ones after the water fight. We had put the watermelon in the refrigerator on Tuesday, so it was very cold. The kids were so excited to have the cold treat, but many had spit out a majority of their seeds before I could explain to them what we were going to be doing with the water melon and the seeds. Soon enough the kids found out what we were up to and were practicing the spitting for distance. Some of the parents who were there, watched on in disbelief as I taught their children how to spit the seeds. But sometimes kids have to be kids.
Some of the kids were really good in both accuracy and in distance.
Later that evening I had some of my co-workers over for a BBQ along with some American girls who are doing internships in Tuzla for the summer. We had potato salad, cole-slaw, chips, tomato and cheese salad, ice cream sundaes and of course, hot dogs. Bosnia doesn’t have any hot dog buns, or if they do, I couldn’t find any. So I went to 4 different bakeries in order to buy 40
kifle. Kifle are pieces of bread, like a bun that has a little bit of curvature in them. One thing I am thankful of this 4th of July is pre-sliced hot dog buns.
We had a great time at the BBQ. At the beginning we listened to some American rock and hip hop
music but as the night progressed, we put in the Bosnian music. One of the guests was also nice enough to share his home made Rakija (40% plum brandy) with the guests. This just added to the merry making and soon people were singing along with all the songs. It was quite a festive evening.
I have also been conducting surveys with staff members and talking with Binasa regarding opportunities to improve services that Better Tomorrow offers the children. It is nice to work on the organizational development side of the program since I’m very interested in ways to improve service, evaluate programs, and identify best practices. I have been amazed at some of the insight the staff members have about the children.
I hope you all stay cool until next time,
Patrick
Last weekend, as I was beginning to prepare lesson plans for last week, I decided I wanted to work in a little bit of Independence Day flare into the class. Originally my plan was to have the first paragraph of the Declaration of Independence translated into Bosnian so the children would know why I wanted to celebrate on the 4th of July. I certainly didn’t want to be seen as an Imperialistic instructor who wants to shove U.S. History and culture down their throats, but the more I read the document, the more I realize that the Declaration of Independence was an important document for human rights inspired by the English Humanist writers.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
These are certainly words that people all around the world can understand and appreciate.
Then I began looking at the timeline from when the Declaration of Independence was passed to when the Constitution of the United States was ratified. It took 12 years for the Constitution to be ratified. During that time there were significant victories and failures for the new government. We fought and won the War of Independence, signed the treaty of Paris, wrote and implemented the Articles of Confederacy, made the 3/5th’s compromise, decided the governing laws of the Articles of Confederacy were too weak so convened to write the Constitution of the United States. There could be some parallels drawn between this period of American history and the past 12 years in Bosnian history.
I guess what I’m tried to convey to the students, and I suppose all my Bosnian friends, is that it took a long time for United States government to begin functioning effectively. 12 years. It did not happen over night. It took many people, long hours of debating and compromise to establish a framework of government which would be representative to all people. I’m certainly thankful that those men, so long ago, took the their time and due diligence to work through conflicts and be precise enough to create a durable legal document giving it’s citizens rights based on their “unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
So with this in mind the past week was very busy for me here in Tuzla. In addition to my normal activities of teaching a few English classes, I was preparing for a few Independence Day parties. At the center, I decided that we would play games that many families and communities have as part of the barbecues and other celebrations. We played tag, had a water balloon toss which inevitably became a water fight. One thing is always true- there are never enough water balloons. I had made a little timeline about some of the events in early US history and shared them with the students and the animators. 
They were surprised to hear that it took so long for the US to become settled. I figured it would also be fun to have a water melon seed spitting contest.The kids loved all the games. Arnell and I were the wettest ones after the water fight. We had put the watermelon in the refrigerator on Tuesday, so it was very cold. The kids were so excited to have the cold treat, but many had spit out a majority of their seeds before I could explain to them what we were going to be doing with the water melon and the seeds. Soon enough the kids found out what we were up to and were practicing the spitting for distance. Some of the parents who were there, watched on in disbelief as I taught their children how to spit the seeds. But sometimes kids have to be kids.
Some of the kids were really good in both accuracy and in distance.
Later that evening I had some of my co-workers over for a BBQ along with some American girls who are doing internships in Tuzla for the summer. We had potato salad, cole-slaw, chips, tomato and cheese salad, ice cream sundaes and of course, hot dogs. Bosnia doesn’t have any hot dog buns, or if they do, I couldn’t find any. So I went to 4 different bakeries in order to buy 40
kifle. Kifle are pieces of bread, like a bun that has a little bit of curvature in them. One thing I am thankful of this 4th of July is pre-sliced hot dog buns.We had a great time at the BBQ. At the beginning we listened to some American rock and hip hop
music but as the night progressed, we put in the Bosnian music. One of the guests was also nice enough to share his home made Rakija (40% plum brandy) with the guests. This just added to the merry making and soon people were singing along with all the songs. It was quite a festive evening. I have also been conducting surveys with staff members and talking with Binasa regarding opportunities to improve services that Better Tomorrow offers the children. It is nice to work on the organizational development side of the program since I’m very interested in ways to improve service, evaluate programs, and identify best practices. I have been amazed at some of the insight the staff members have about the children.
I hope you all stay cool until next time,
Patrick
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Bosnian Coffee
Congratulations Bosnia.
You win. I have successfully fought off coffee addiction for the past 23 years and 10 months of my life without much trouble. But after one month in this small nation known as “the heart of Europe”, I have an addiction to the dark warm beverage.
The early years were easy to avoid coffee. My parents aren’t coffee drinkers. I remember thinking it was weird when family members would come and visit our house and Mom would dig out the coffee pot from the garage. I recall a discussion about the quality of coffee my parents had. I didn’t understand why people were upset with the same coffee in the freezer they had had on their last visit to our home.
Then there was the early latte, mocha and frappe phase in Redmond, Oregon. Come to think of this, I don’t know how “early” this actually was since Redmond, as you may know is not on the cutting edge of trends. To this day their only Starbucks that I know of is in the Safeway. Anywho, in 8th grade and into high school, I remember going to the drive up coffee stand and ordering Snickers drinks and other fancy milkshakes and coffees. Even then I liked them more for the sweet factor than the actual coffee and I don’t even really crave sweets or desserts.
Then there was college in Portland. At this juncture in my life, my friends were definitely beginning to indulge their daily coffee craving. They said they needed it to get through the day and stay focused. I could see their point. College was draining. The late nights of studying and goofing around with your friends, the occasional long boring lecture, and short rainy days made Univ. of Portland a prime place for sipping coffee.
But I found my refresher during this portion in my life to be cat naps rather than the coffee drug. My favorite way to nap was to turn on PBS and listen to Bob Ross as he lulled me to a short little nap. Those were the days. I thought, Bob Ross is definitely better than coffee.
My junior year of college was the first time coffee was an expected part of culture. At the pensioni where I lived, coffee was served every morning. The staff didn’t like making hot chocolate for us non-coffee drinkers and there was always a little hesitation. Coffee seemed like it would be a useful substance since the weekend travels, studying, exploring the city and partying with friends left little time for sleep. I was still able to avoid drinking coffee on a basis of necessity. Every now and again I would have a cappuccino when meeting up with a friend. But I consider this coffee consumption casual rather than anything else.
Following college, I moved to Seattle- the US mecca of coffee. While Starbucks locations outnumbered fans in attendance to Mariners games during this period 2x1, I still did not find it difficult to function without coffee. I was able to get sufficient sleep and I didn’t feel the social pressure to have a coffee, espresso, or even a venti, non-fat, soy, peppermint mocha, room for cream during our bi-weekly team meetings at Starbucks.
Coffee is surely the national beverage of Bosnia. It is consumed morning, noon, and night by everyone 18 or and older. In the mornings you’ll see people sitting at café’s. At most offices people take coffee breaks just an hour or two into the work day to enjoy a cup of joe. They call these breaks staff meetings since everyone gathers together to talk, drink coffee and smoke. The same is true in the afternoons. Many people have a cup in the early evening before dinner with their friends, family, and neighbors back on their porch at home. On people’s after dinner
stroll through the center of the city many people can be seen sipping the dark beverage.
Bosnian coffee is fairly similar to Turkish coffee I’m told. This makes sense since Bosnia was a territory of the Ottoman Empire for several hundred years and many of the cultural traditions from that era are still preserved in this region. The coffee is roasted and then ground into a fine powder. Then the powder is added to boiling water, often times while it is still on the stove. The pot the water is boiling in, traditionally was made out of copper with a long handle, but now they are made of all sorts of materials. The coffee then churns several times with the boiling water and then the pot is removed from heat.
The coffee is consumed out of small cups somewhere between espresso and tea cups. Many people take sugar with their coffee, but they don’t add it to the drink- they dip it in the coffee,
take a little nibble off the sugar cube and then take a sip of coffee. The grounds have never been filtered out and their particles suspended in the rest the water for little while, so as you approach the bottom of the cup you’ll notice a thick layer of sludge that was once the grounds which flavored your drink. I avoid the last sip since it is a little bit too strong for me.
Drinking coffee is truly a social experience. It is for that reason alone that I began drinking the stuff. Wanting to adapt to the social situation here, I would accept a cup that was offered to me during one of our daily “staff meetings”, usually the afternoon one. I could get by with saying I had drank coffee at home in the morning before I came into work. After a week or two of enjoying a little Doncafe, the most popular brand of prepackaged coffee, in the afternoon I began noticing the benefits. Maybe it was because trying to keep up with so many children is challenging, maybe I was being mentally drained by trying to function in a language I don’t really know. But the fact is I enjoyed having the pick me up from the coffee in the afternoon to get me through the rest of the day.
So there you have it, I now need coffee to get myself through the day. I’m addicted. Congratulations Bosnia, you win. You’ve been able to convert me, something that Howard Schultz has never been able to accomplish.
You win. I have successfully fought off coffee addiction for the past 23 years and 10 months of my life without much trouble. But after one month in this small nation known as “the heart of Europe”, I have an addiction to the dark warm beverage.
The early years were easy to avoid coffee. My parents aren’t coffee drinkers. I remember thinking it was weird when family members would come and visit our house and Mom would dig out the coffee pot from the garage. I recall a discussion about the quality of coffee my parents had. I didn’t understand why people were upset with the same coffee in the freezer they had had on their last visit to our home.Then there was the early latte, mocha and frappe phase in Redmond, Oregon. Come to think of this, I don’t know how “early” this actually was since Redmond, as you may know is not on the cutting edge of trends. To this day their only Starbucks that I know of is in the Safeway. Anywho, in 8th grade and into high school, I remember going to the drive up coffee stand and ordering Snickers drinks and other fancy milkshakes and coffees. Even then I liked them more for the sweet factor than the actual coffee and I don’t even really crave sweets or desserts.
Then there was college in Portland. At this juncture in my life, my friends were definitely beginning to indulge their daily coffee craving. They said they needed it to get through the day and stay focused. I could see their point. College was draining. The late nights of studying and goofing around with your friends, the occasional long boring lecture, and short rainy days made Univ. of Portland a prime place for sipping coffee.
But I found my refresher during this portion in my life to be cat naps rather than the coffee drug. My favorite way to nap was to turn on PBS and listen to Bob Ross as he lulled me to a short little nap. Those were the days. I thought, Bob Ross is definitely better than coffee.
My junior year of college was the first time coffee was an expected part of culture. At the pensioni where I lived, coffee was served every morning. The staff didn’t like making hot chocolate for us non-coffee drinkers and there was always a little hesitation. Coffee seemed like it would be a useful substance since the weekend travels, studying, exploring the city and partying with friends left little time for sleep. I was still able to avoid drinking coffee on a basis of necessity. Every now and again I would have a cappuccino when meeting up with a friend. But I consider this coffee consumption casual rather than anything else.
Following college, I moved to Seattle- the US mecca of coffee. While Starbucks locations outnumbered fans in attendance to Mariners games during this period 2x1, I still did not find it difficult to function without coffee. I was able to get sufficient sleep and I didn’t feel the social pressure to have a coffee, espresso, or even a venti, non-fat, soy, peppermint mocha, room for cream during our bi-weekly team meetings at Starbucks.
Coffee is surely the national beverage of Bosnia. It is consumed morning, noon, and night by everyone 18 or and older. In the mornings you’ll see people sitting at café’s. At most offices people take coffee breaks just an hour or two into the work day to enjoy a cup of joe. They call these breaks staff meetings since everyone gathers together to talk, drink coffee and smoke. The same is true in the afternoons. Many people have a cup in the early evening before dinner with their friends, family, and neighbors back on their porch at home. On people’s after dinner
stroll through the center of the city many people can be seen sipping the dark beverage.Bosnian coffee is fairly similar to Turkish coffee I’m told. This makes sense since Bosnia was a territory of the Ottoman Empire for several hundred years and many of the cultural traditions from that era are still preserved in this region. The coffee is roasted and then ground into a fine powder. Then the powder is added to boiling water, often times while it is still on the stove. The pot the water is boiling in, traditionally was made out of copper with a long handle, but now they are made of all sorts of materials. The coffee then churns several times with the boiling water and then the pot is removed from heat.
The coffee is consumed out of small cups somewhere between espresso and tea cups. Many people take sugar with their coffee, but they don’t add it to the drink- they dip it in the coffee,
take a little nibble off the sugar cube and then take a sip of coffee. The grounds have never been filtered out and their particles suspended in the rest the water for little while, so as you approach the bottom of the cup you’ll notice a thick layer of sludge that was once the grounds which flavored your drink. I avoid the last sip since it is a little bit too strong for me.Drinking coffee is truly a social experience. It is for that reason alone that I began drinking the stuff. Wanting to adapt to the social situation here, I would accept a cup that was offered to me during one of our daily “staff meetings”, usually the afternoon one. I could get by with saying I had drank coffee at home in the morning before I came into work. After a week or two of enjoying a little Doncafe, the most popular brand of prepackaged coffee, in the afternoon I began noticing the benefits. Maybe it was because trying to keep up with so many children is challenging, maybe I was being mentally drained by trying to function in a language I don’t really know. But the fact is I enjoyed having the pick me up from the coffee in the afternoon to get me through the rest of the day.
So there you have it, I now need coffee to get myself through the day. I’m addicted. Congratulations Bosnia, you win. You’ve been able to convert me, something that Howard Schultz has never been able to accomplish.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
It's so hot.
The first few weeks of teaching has certainly a learning experience for both me and the students. As I have mentioned before, I am working with four different groups of students- 3 groups of children and one for parents. Each group presents its own set of difficulties for me. I am very happy that all of the students have been patient with me as I learn how to best help them learn.
Here is a description of each of my classes:
Group one is 1st-3rd grade students. They arrive each morning eager to get started. Some take diligent notes of what I’m writing on the white board while others try and repeat everything that I say. It is fun to watch each style of learner do what they do best whether that is listen, repeat, write, or simply read. All of the children that I work with during the day, have had or will have English in school. This group has not yet started their formal English education so I’m trying to provide a base for them to be successful once they begin more structured classes in the elementary school.
Group one is 1st-3rd grade students. They arrive each morning eager to get started. Some take diligent notes of what I’m writing on the white board while others try and repeat everything that I say. It is fun to watch each style of learner do what they do best whether that is listen, repeat, write, or simply read. All of the children that I work with during the day, have had or will have English in school. This group has not yet started their formal English education so I’m trying to provide a base for them to be successful once they begin more structured classes in the elementary school.
The second group in 4th-6th graders. These students have begun to learn English in their classes but are at different levels of comprehension and ability to communicate orally. This is one of the difficulties of having such wide age groups- some students not only are more advanced or further behind than their peers; the students in my class span three grade levels. Since this is the case, I have decided that the best thing I can provide these children is speaking in a native voice and with correct grammar and encouraging them to engage in conversation. I’ll try and help with the actual mechanics of the language, but I think that I am best able to help the students become comfortable with speaking in English.
The third group of students are 7th and 8th graders. They have had formal English instruction in school for the past 5 or 6 years. Some of these students are very good at English already. Others are intimidated by their peers’ success. I am struggling to have those who are not as comfortable to speak up and join our conversation. This is a very fun class to have. The students would like to practice their speaking skills and don’t want much written work. Who can blame them, it is summer time and they are coming in for extra help.
We have decided to make this class a conversation session focusing on using various verb tenses. It is fun to talk about what everyone likes to do. One difficultly I am having with this class is overcoming what Americans like to talk about and what Bosnians talk about. I know what Americans like to talk about, especially in language classes- where they have been, what they have done, what their hobbies are and those sorts of things. These conversations are particularly short with these Bosnian students. Many of them have not traveled much. They don’t have many hobbies beyond playing soccer or volleyball and talking to their friends.
When I hear all of this, I realize how much we take for granted the many activities that Americans partake in to fill their free and idle time- for better or worse. I’m amazed and inspired by what makes these students happy and I wish many people in the states would be content with the many gifts that they have.
I have had several obstacles in addition to the language barrier. First of all, since this is a drop in center, the same group of kids don't show up everyday. This is understandable since it is the summer and kids enjoy having their free and definitely need to play. But on the other hand, it is very difficult to prepare a lesson plan and I have spent quite a bit of time reviewing previous days vocabulary.
Another major obstacle is the heat. It has been really bad the past week, seriously it has been terrible. It has been so hot that parents won't let their children go outside or even to our center. This makes the days at the center go by very slowly. Air Conditioning would be nice. Luckily, I have been getting some research done for grant preparation and helping the Center for Balkan Development begin their initial assessment on kicking off the "Youth Initiative" for all of Bosnia. So at least I have felt productive.
I also enjoyed a little R&R last weekend with some friends from college in Croatia and Montenegro. Thanks Pottsy, Diana, Angela, and Ashley for a little Croatian Vacation.Monday, June 11, 2007
Teaching is scary
Yesterday was the big day; the day that I began teaching formal classes with the students at Bolje Sutra. We ended up breaking the students and parents into 4 different groups based on age. It was certainly difficult. I’m though excited to continue the challenge. It will mostly be a challenge because I am still struggling with learning Bosnian. I wish that I could help the students more by offering some directions and instructions that they understand, but we shall see how it goes. I know that I will be having help from the staff and other volunteers at Bolje Sutra so that encourages me. I’m glad that there are so many online resources available for ESL teachers and I plan on taking full advantage of the techniques and tips that they offer.
Things are going pretty well for me here. I’ve been trying to get everything ready to apply for my residence permit and that has been a pain. I had to spend half of a day at the hospital to make sure I didn’t have any high-risk diseases. That was certainly an ordeal. This is about how it went…
One of the animators at Bolje Sutra, Arnell, and I arrive at the hospital at 7am when they open. We have to pay the nurse extra for my forms; I don’t know why it isn’t included in the fee for the exams. She also gives me a list for all the steps I must go through in order to get the certification. I had to complete the following: blood test, urine test, chest x-ray, visit a psychologist, a neural-psychologist, and a physical.
During my blood test the nurse stopped to take a drink of coffee and a drag off her cigarette. The guy who took the x-ray of me thought I spoke German and insisted on giving me directions in German. I tried to tell him I didn’t understand in German, but that didn’t really seem to help. I failed to mention that before each exam I have to wait 20 minutes or more for the person to be ready to see me.
Next, Arnell and I headed to the first psychologist. When I entered the office I notice there are many charts to test for color blindness and other little ink-blotchy things. I thought that this exam was going to be fun and I started to practice the colors in Bosnian. The psychologist came in, she looked strangely at the two of us and sat down. She was about 28. Arnell explained to her what I was doing and why I was there. She turned to me and asked me how I was. I said, I was doing well. She then pulled her stamp out the drawer and stamped and endorsed my forms. She made sure to write that “He is not too crazy to be in Bosnia”. That was the end of my exam. I particularly liked how she emphasized that I might be crazy but not too crazy for Bosnia.
Then came the Neural-psychologist. There were about 10 people in line. Arnell jumped to the front and stuck his head in the office. I followed him into the office after he motioned for me to join him. Again, Arnell explained my situation. The doctor got out his stamp and stamped my forms. The stamps said that I didn’t have vertigo, epilepsy, or schizophrenia. I’m glad he was able to evaluate me so quickly. Arnell thinks that the psychologists are psychics as well.
At last I was on to the final test. I was sitting waiting to have my physical and another doctor walked by and saw me waiting. He invited us into his office for the exam. We chatted for a little while about my name being Irish and him going to Ireland once. Then the conversation turned towards politics. He was interested in my stance on politics. Arnell told him that I was a nice person and just wanted to help people. The doctor then proceeded to tell me about the needs of his political group he was a local leader of. Something like the Croatian farmers party or something. Apparently they are a really old movement and represent the needs of more than just Croatians. It seemed like a labor union for farmers, carpenters and other people in rural areas.
Finally we moved into the exam. He began taking my blood pressure. Then he realized I had set my water bottle on the floor. He scolded me for placing it there since I could pick up bacteria and get an infection. I suppose his reasoning in logical enough; he is a doctor after all. Next he moved on to finding my heart rate. No, that’s not right, first he offered me a cigarette, then he lit one himself, then he checked my heart rate. I know the medical system might not be up to snuff in Bosnia compared to Western standards, but offering a patient a cigarette during an exam seems a little ludicrous. I’m guessing they might translate a few of the articles from the New England Journal of Medicine. Maybe not though.
Other than that, things are going well. The students are excited that I will be going to the school soccer game next weekend. I enjoy watching them practice on the asphalt field outside of the center. I wish that I could play half as well as these 13 year olds. Well I’m off to administer a little pre-test to the students.
Until next time- Patrick
Things are going pretty well for me here. I’ve been trying to get everything ready to apply for my residence permit and that has been a pain. I had to spend half of a day at the hospital to make sure I didn’t have any high-risk diseases. That was certainly an ordeal. This is about how it went…
One of the animators at Bolje Sutra, Arnell, and I arrive at the hospital at 7am when they open. We have to pay the nurse extra for my forms; I don’t know why it isn’t included in the fee for the exams. She also gives me a list for all the steps I must go through in order to get the certification. I had to complete the following: blood test, urine test, chest x-ray, visit a psychologist, a neural-psychologist, and a physical.
During my blood test the nurse stopped to take a drink of coffee and a drag off her cigarette. The guy who took the x-ray of me thought I spoke German and insisted on giving me directions in German. I tried to tell him I didn’t understand in German, but that didn’t really seem to help. I failed to mention that before each exam I have to wait 20 minutes or more for the person to be ready to see me.
Next, Arnell and I headed to the first psychologist. When I entered the office I notice there are many charts to test for color blindness and other little ink-blotchy things. I thought that this exam was going to be fun and I started to practice the colors in Bosnian. The psychologist came in, she looked strangely at the two of us and sat down. She was about 28. Arnell explained to her what I was doing and why I was there. She turned to me and asked me how I was. I said, I was doing well. She then pulled her stamp out the drawer and stamped and endorsed my forms. She made sure to write that “He is not too crazy to be in Bosnia”. That was the end of my exam. I particularly liked how she emphasized that I might be crazy but not too crazy for Bosnia.
Then came the Neural-psychologist. There were about 10 people in line. Arnell jumped to the front and stuck his head in the office. I followed him into the office after he motioned for me to join him. Again, Arnell explained my situation. The doctor got out his stamp and stamped my forms. The stamps said that I didn’t have vertigo, epilepsy, or schizophrenia. I’m glad he was able to evaluate me so quickly. Arnell thinks that the psychologists are psychics as well.
At last I was on to the final test. I was sitting waiting to have my physical and another doctor walked by and saw me waiting. He invited us into his office for the exam. We chatted for a little while about my name being Irish and him going to Ireland once. Then the conversation turned towards politics. He was interested in my stance on politics. Arnell told him that I was a nice person and just wanted to help people. The doctor then proceeded to tell me about the needs of his political group he was a local leader of. Something like the Croatian farmers party or something. Apparently they are a really old movement and represent the needs of more than just Croatians. It seemed like a labor union for farmers, carpenters and other people in rural areas.
Finally we moved into the exam. He began taking my blood pressure. Then he realized I had set my water bottle on the floor. He scolded me for placing it there since I could pick up bacteria and get an infection. I suppose his reasoning in logical enough; he is a doctor after all. Next he moved on to finding my heart rate. No, that’s not right, first he offered me a cigarette, then he lit one himself, then he checked my heart rate. I know the medical system might not be up to snuff in Bosnia compared to Western standards, but offering a patient a cigarette during an exam seems a little ludicrous. I’m guessing they might translate a few of the articles from the New England Journal of Medicine. Maybe not though.
Other than that, things are going well. The students are excited that I will be going to the school soccer game next weekend. I enjoy watching them practice on the asphalt field outside of the center. I wish that I could play half as well as these 13 year olds. Well I’m off to administer a little pre-test to the students.
Until next time- Patrick
Monday, June 4, 2007
2 weeks in Bosnia.
I have been in Tuzla nearly two weeks now and I am begining to become more settled here. My understanding of the language is coming along, slowly. I can understand some conversations when they are in simple verb tenses. If they aren’t, I don’t stand a chance. Bosnian, as all Slavic languages, is very difficult. A change in one letter in a noun can change the entire meaning of a sentence.
I am also learning a little more about what my responsibilities at Bolje Sutra will be. Depending on how many people sign up for classes, it looks like I will have 4 or 5 classes. The classes will be separated by age group and we will have one class for more advanced students and one for parents so they can learn some English to better help them in their jobs.
I have already been teaching some to the pre-school students. This is quite an interesting process. It begins with Murveta and I teaching each other a little bit. The communication between the two of us is slow and we need two dictionaries to make things work. After we have learned a little bit, we teach the children.
First Murveta will say what we will teach in Bosnian, then she says it in English. Next, I say the word in English. At this pint Murveta has the kids repeat it in English. The we go around the classroom having each of the kids repeat what was said.
So far we have covered, “Good day”, “How are you?”, “I am fine”, “my name is…”, and the colors. I have been using online resources for ideas of how to be a better instructor. I will also be ordering a TEFL book.
Another way I am interacting with the pre-school kids is by playing with them. When they are playing with blocks on the floor with they will ask what certain animals we are playing with are called English. After I tell them it is a cow or chicken or horse, they laugh. Then they repeat the name. It is really funny to relate to the kids this way, but for now this is one of the few tools I have.
In addition to English classes, I will be teaching a computer class. The basic function of the class will be how to use Microsoft Office. Computer use for kids is minimal since the elementary schools do not have computers. The computers at the center are barely functional but they will have to do the job. I will also try to have DSL access to the internet donated from the phone company since internet access is expensive here. Having internet would be a wonderful way for the students to learn more about the world they live in.
During the past two weeks there have been many thunderstorms. Nearly everyday. Some come in the morning, but most happen in the evenings. Even though there have been so many thunderstorms, we have only lost electricity once.
We were at the center and the kids had all come inside because the winds had picked up. With the influx of children, Brko, one of the staff members, got out the water color paints. Then the thunder and lightning came. Soon there after the power went out.
Binasa told me that during the war Solina was without power for over 2 years. I couldn’t imagine such a thing. She said it wasn’t too bad. They cooked by fire and used candles at night. Since there wasn’t imminent threat in the city, the kids were able to play outside. Binasa said that the worst part about not having electric was not being able to use the washing machine.
This week I also found and moved into an apartment. The land lord echoed a similar message about living without what we in the developed world consider automatic and expected amenities. The day after I moved in he brought up three- 5 liter jugs. He instructed me to fill them up with water and keep them for when there is no running water.
Apparently up until about a year ago, there was only 6-7 hours a day of running water. It was necessary to keep some water around for those other hours to cook, wash and flush the toilet with. I did as he told and just two days later when I woke up and wanted to have tea and take a shower, there was no water coming out of the shower head. I thought it was just something with the faucet, so I tried the sink. Still nothing but a little spit of water. As I was on my way to the kitchen to see if that faucet had any water pressure, I saw the filled jugs and remembered my land lord’s warning. Sure enough the kitchen sink didn’t have water either.
So, I put the water jugs to use and filled a kettle full of water. After it had nearly boiled, I had my tea while the water cooled and then “showered” in the sink. This slight inconvenience made me begin to appreciate the stability and comforts of the developed world. The thunderstorms also leave me with the question, how many kilometers away was the lightning strike if the thunder is five seconds after the flash?
I am also learning a little more about what my responsibilities at Bolje Sutra will be. Depending on how many people sign up for classes, it looks like I will have 4 or 5 classes. The classes will be separated by age group and we will have one class for more advanced students and one for parents so they can learn some English to better help them in their jobs.
I have already been teaching some to the pre-school students. This is quite an interesting process. It begins with Murveta and I teaching each other a little bit. The communication between the two of us is slow and we need two dictionaries to make things work. After we have learned a little bit, we teach the children.
First Murveta will say what we will teach in Bosnian, then she says it in English. Next, I say the word in English. At this pint Murveta has the kids repeat it in English. The we go around the classroom having each of the kids repeat what was said.
So far we have covered, “Good day”, “How are you?”, “I am fine”, “my name is…”, and the colors. I have been using online resources for ideas of how to be a better instructor. I will also be ordering a TEFL book.
Another way I am interacting with the pre-school kids is by playing with them. When they are playing with blocks on the floor with they will ask what certain animals we are playing with are called English. After I tell them it is a cow or chicken or horse, they laugh. Then they repeat the name. It is really funny to relate to the kids this way, but for now this is one of the few tools I have.
In addition to English classes, I will be teaching a computer class. The basic function of the class will be how to use Microsoft Office. Computer use for kids is minimal since the elementary schools do not have computers. The computers at the center are barely functional but they will have to do the job. I will also try to have DSL access to the internet donated from the phone company since internet access is expensive here. Having internet would be a wonderful way for the students to learn more about the world they live in.
During the past two weeks there have been many thunderstorms. Nearly everyday. Some come in the morning, but most happen in the evenings. Even though there have been so many thunderstorms, we have only lost electricity once.
We were at the center and the kids had all come inside because the winds had picked up. With the influx of children, Brko, one of the staff members, got out the water color paints. Then the thunder and lightning came. Soon there after the power went out.
Binasa told me that during the war Solina was without power for over 2 years. I couldn’t imagine such a thing. She said it wasn’t too bad. They cooked by fire and used candles at night. Since there wasn’t imminent threat in the city, the kids were able to play outside. Binasa said that the worst part about not having electric was not being able to use the washing machine.
This week I also found and moved into an apartment. The land lord echoed a similar message about living without what we in the developed world consider automatic and expected amenities. The day after I moved in he brought up three- 5 liter jugs. He instructed me to fill them up with water and keep them for when there is no running water.
Apparently up until about a year ago, there was only 6-7 hours a day of running water. It was necessary to keep some water around for those other hours to cook, wash and flush the toilet with. I did as he told and just two days later when I woke up and wanted to have tea and take a shower, there was no water coming out of the shower head. I thought it was just something with the faucet, so I tried the sink. Still nothing but a little spit of water. As I was on my way to the kitchen to see if that faucet had any water pressure, I saw the filled jugs and remembered my land lord’s warning. Sure enough the kitchen sink didn’t have water either.
So, I put the water jugs to use and filled a kettle full of water. After it had nearly boiled, I had my tea while the water cooled and then “showered” in the sink. This slight inconvenience made me begin to appreciate the stability and comforts of the developed world. The thunderstorms also leave me with the question, how many kilometers away was the lightning strike if the thunder is five seconds after the flash?
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Hello from Tuzla
I arrived in Tuzla in the afternoon of Tuesday, May 22nd. I was so excited to finally arrive. The day started out with me leaving Belgrade, Serbia via bus. The first bus brought me into Bosnia but into the Republic of Srpska, the Serb controlled portion of the country. The Bosnian boarder agent looked at me quite strangly, and my passport was the only one he took off the bus. Obviously not many Americans take this route into the country. Once in the Republic of Srpska, I had to change buses so I could arrive in Tuzla which is part of the Bosnian Federation.
When I arrived in Tuzla, I couldn’t find a kisok that sold phone cards to the pay phones, only pre-paid cell phone cards, so I couldn’t give Semir- the translator at Bolje Sutra (Better Tomorrow) a call. Semir had given me instructions to give a taxi driver in case I couldn’t get a hold of him. I approached a taxi driver and asked him to take me to “Osnovna škola Solina”- the Solina Elementary School, where Bolje Sutra’s center is.
When I got out of the taxi in Solina, with my big bag, I had many eyes staring at me. Kids stopped playing soccer and adults waiting for the bus paused mid-conversation to watch me pass by. Apparently travelers with large bags in the small village suburb is not normal.
I walked toward the small building that is Better Tomorrow on the side of the school which I had seen in pictures. A million thoughts were racing through my mind. Most importantly was “What am I going to say.” I caught a woman’s eye as I walked past the window and by the time I was reaching for the door knob she was opening it.
“Are you Patrick?” Maurveta asked in Bosnian. Shoot, that was my first line. I answered that I was Patrick. She rushed me into the office to meet Binasa, the director of Bolje Sutra and my new boss. After less than 2 minutes I used up all the Bosnian I could remember. So the three of us sat. In silence. Smiling at each other.
Sitting in silence is becoming one of my new favorite past times. Most of the time I am thinking what I would say, if I were to say something. One begins to really measure the importance of what they would like to say. We sat for about 5 minutes until Mirza, one of the volunteers who speaks English, arrived. I was given a little orientation to Tuzla and the center.
Then it was time to go home. I am currently staying with Binasa, so her husband came to pick us up. Mirza said, “This will be interesting since Binasa does not speak English.” I couldn’t agree with him more. He said that he would pick me up from Binasa’s home at 7 since we were going to a basketball game in the city. That left we me with just 2 1/2 hours of silence and difficult communication, I thought.
Shortly after we got to Binasa’s home, a 3 minutes drive away, dinner was ready. A meal of cold roasted lamb, sheep’s cheese, lots of tomatoes, and bread was served. It was amazing. For dessert we had baklava Binasa had made for her daughter’s wedding the weekend before. Binasa also spoke much more English than she led me to believe. She definitely had an intermediate level of understanding and speaking, but she wants to get better as the summer goes on. We became a little more acquainted with one another.
The basketball game was a lot of fun. It was a playoff game against Sarajevo. The Sarajevo team was far better with players who had played all over Europe and in the NBA. The crowd was mostly composed of football (soccer) fans that were getting ready for the final football match the next day. The arena was the size of the Chiles Center at UP, about 5 or 6,000 fans could be seated inside, if that, and the seats were folding wooden chairs. The entire game people were throwing streamers onto the court. People whistled to boo every time Sarajevo had the ball. They had loud football chants every time Sloboda had possession. The teams from Tuzla, both football and basketball, were called Sloboda which means “Freedom”. The best part of the game was when the ref’s mad a bad call, people would throw nuts and beer at the refs and players. Everything at the game was cheap. Tickets were only 4 km and beers were only 1 km (or $3 and $.75).
Wednesday morning I walked with Binasa to Bolje Sutra and arrived at 9am. I studied Bosnian for an hour and then another volunteer came in from the center at Sički Brod. We had coffee while they talked business. The coffee is quite strong here. Starbucks doesn’t have anything on this stuff. As kids began coming into the center, they were asking to meet me. After a few minutes of watching, laughing and speaking in Bosnian, they began showing off their English to me. It was basic, but very good. Some had much more confidence than others. I noticed the kids signing up for something on the wall. I found out it was a sign up list for my English class. After one day, 40 of the 80 slots were filled. Apparently there will be a class for the parents too!
The first three days were exhausting trying to acclimate to Tuzla. I go into the center each morning with Binasa. The first hour or two are quiet before the kids arrive. It is fun when the kids come in because they want to show off what they know and what they are learning. At the same time they are trying to teach me Bosnian. They certainly learn much more quickly than I do. The good news is that there are a few groups of children who are working with me so I can try to learn things multiple times.
It is difficult to understand the kids sometimes, especially when they get excited and begin shouting. It doesn’t help me if they speak louder, but it makes them feel better. This is something I will remember for when I begin teaching- “Speaking louder does not help comprehension.” The pre-schoolers are also difficult to understand and they just talk at me thinking that I understand. The hardest thing is that I don’t understand pre-schoolers at home. The fact that they speak a foreign language makes it that much more difficult.
Over the weekend, I went with Mirza twice to the Korzo- downtown Tuzla. Friday was a very solemn day. It was the 12th anniversary of the bombing that killed 72 people in Tuzla. Most of them were young people. The bombing happened in 1995, as the war was coming to an end. The young people ofTuzla began going out on weekends. The Serb army sent a grenade into the center on one of those evenings and killed many and hurt even more. There were flowers laid at the site of the attack and at the memorial where most of the victims were laid to rest and a big remembrance ceremony was held.
Saturday evening was much livelier. The streets were filled with young people, strolling through the downtown pedestrian zone. Everyone was dressed up. There were so many people walking through the street it was difficult to walk two people wide. Some people sat and had juice, pop, or beer. It was very lively until about 11pm when most of the people have their curfew. There were some café’s that were open later playing loud techno or hip-hop music.
Sunday evening, Binasa took me over to the neighbors home who were on the second day of a wedding celebration. The party had dwindled to about 35 close friends and neighbors, but the music was still lively and the food and drinks were still going down. There was a wide variety of meats and cheese to choose from. I had some roasted chicken and salami. The hosts made sure I always had a full glass of beer. The people were very hospitable and I felt honored that they had me over on such a special occasion. Some of the men wanted to teach me how to dance the to accordion and violin music so I tried my best. One man said they celebrate a wedding for two days and 10 hours each day. That is definitely a great way to celebrate a marriage.
I am excited to begin my first full week at the center. My Bosnian is getting better by the day. I am still looking for an apartment. It is difficult to find something on the right side of town that is furnished, but we have some leads into some possibilities. Tomorrow, there are some supporters coming to see the center from France and I am excited to meet them. I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend and I will post pictures when I'm not using a dial up internet connection.
Take Care.
When I arrived in Tuzla, I couldn’t find a kisok that sold phone cards to the pay phones, only pre-paid cell phone cards, so I couldn’t give Semir- the translator at Bolje Sutra (Better Tomorrow) a call. Semir had given me instructions to give a taxi driver in case I couldn’t get a hold of him. I approached a taxi driver and asked him to take me to “Osnovna škola Solina”- the Solina Elementary School, where Bolje Sutra’s center is.
When I got out of the taxi in Solina, with my big bag, I had many eyes staring at me. Kids stopped playing soccer and adults waiting for the bus paused mid-conversation to watch me pass by. Apparently travelers with large bags in the small village suburb is not normal.
I walked toward the small building that is Better Tomorrow on the side of the school which I had seen in pictures. A million thoughts were racing through my mind. Most importantly was “What am I going to say.” I caught a woman’s eye as I walked past the window and by the time I was reaching for the door knob she was opening it.
“Are you Patrick?” Maurveta asked in Bosnian. Shoot, that was my first line. I answered that I was Patrick. She rushed me into the office to meet Binasa, the director of Bolje Sutra and my new boss. After less than 2 minutes I used up all the Bosnian I could remember. So the three of us sat. In silence. Smiling at each other.
Sitting in silence is becoming one of my new favorite past times. Most of the time I am thinking what I would say, if I were to say something. One begins to really measure the importance of what they would like to say. We sat for about 5 minutes until Mirza, one of the volunteers who speaks English, arrived. I was given a little orientation to Tuzla and the center.
Then it was time to go home. I am currently staying with Binasa, so her husband came to pick us up. Mirza said, “This will be interesting since Binasa does not speak English.” I couldn’t agree with him more. He said that he would pick me up from Binasa’s home at 7 since we were going to a basketball game in the city. That left we me with just 2 1/2 hours of silence and difficult communication, I thought.
Shortly after we got to Binasa’s home, a 3 minutes drive away, dinner was ready. A meal of cold roasted lamb, sheep’s cheese, lots of tomatoes, and bread was served. It was amazing. For dessert we had baklava Binasa had made for her daughter’s wedding the weekend before. Binasa also spoke much more English than she led me to believe. She definitely had an intermediate level of understanding and speaking, but she wants to get better as the summer goes on. We became a little more acquainted with one another.
The basketball game was a lot of fun. It was a playoff game against Sarajevo. The Sarajevo team was far better with players who had played all over Europe and in the NBA. The crowd was mostly composed of football (soccer) fans that were getting ready for the final football match the next day. The arena was the size of the Chiles Center at UP, about 5 or 6,000 fans could be seated inside, if that, and the seats were folding wooden chairs. The entire game people were throwing streamers onto the court. People whistled to boo every time Sarajevo had the ball. They had loud football chants every time Sloboda had possession. The teams from Tuzla, both football and basketball, were called Sloboda which means “Freedom”. The best part of the game was when the ref’s mad a bad call, people would throw nuts and beer at the refs and players. Everything at the game was cheap. Tickets were only 4 km and beers were only 1 km (or $3 and $.75).
Wednesday morning I walked with Binasa to Bolje Sutra and arrived at 9am. I studied Bosnian for an hour and then another volunteer came in from the center at Sički Brod. We had coffee while they talked business. The coffee is quite strong here. Starbucks doesn’t have anything on this stuff. As kids began coming into the center, they were asking to meet me. After a few minutes of watching, laughing and speaking in Bosnian, they began showing off their English to me. It was basic, but very good. Some had much more confidence than others. I noticed the kids signing up for something on the wall. I found out it was a sign up list for my English class. After one day, 40 of the 80 slots were filled. Apparently there will be a class for the parents too!
The first three days were exhausting trying to acclimate to Tuzla. I go into the center each morning with Binasa. The first hour or two are quiet before the kids arrive. It is fun when the kids come in because they want to show off what they know and what they are learning. At the same time they are trying to teach me Bosnian. They certainly learn much more quickly than I do. The good news is that there are a few groups of children who are working with me so I can try to learn things multiple times.
It is difficult to understand the kids sometimes, especially when they get excited and begin shouting. It doesn’t help me if they speak louder, but it makes them feel better. This is something I will remember for when I begin teaching- “Speaking louder does not help comprehension.” The pre-schoolers are also difficult to understand and they just talk at me thinking that I understand. The hardest thing is that I don’t understand pre-schoolers at home. The fact that they speak a foreign language makes it that much more difficult.
Over the weekend, I went with Mirza twice to the Korzo- downtown Tuzla. Friday was a very solemn day. It was the 12th anniversary of the bombing that killed 72 people in Tuzla. Most of them were young people. The bombing happened in 1995, as the war was coming to an end. The young people ofTuzla began going out on weekends. The Serb army sent a grenade into the center on one of those evenings and killed many and hurt even more. There were flowers laid at the site of the attack and at the memorial where most of the victims were laid to rest and a big remembrance ceremony was held.
Saturday evening was much livelier. The streets were filled with young people, strolling through the downtown pedestrian zone. Everyone was dressed up. There were so many people walking through the street it was difficult to walk two people wide. Some people sat and had juice, pop, or beer. It was very lively until about 11pm when most of the people have their curfew. There were some café’s that were open later playing loud techno or hip-hop music.
Sunday evening, Binasa took me over to the neighbors home who were on the second day of a wedding celebration. The party had dwindled to about 35 close friends and neighbors, but the music was still lively and the food and drinks were still going down. There was a wide variety of meats and cheese to choose from. I had some roasted chicken and salami. The hosts made sure I always had a full glass of beer. The people were very hospitable and I felt honored that they had me over on such a special occasion. Some of the men wanted to teach me how to dance the to accordion and violin music so I tried my best. One man said they celebrate a wedding for two days and 10 hours each day. That is definitely a great way to celebrate a marriage.
I am excited to begin my first full week at the center. My Bosnian is getting better by the day. I am still looking for an apartment. It is difficult to find something on the right side of town that is furnished, but we have some leads into some possibilities. Tomorrow, there are some supporters coming to see the center from France and I am excited to meet them. I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend and I will post pictures when I'm not using a dial up internet connection.
Take Care.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Greece
5-20-07
Greece has been great. The only shame is that it takes so long to get anywhere. We arrived in Athens 8 days ago on the InterCity train from Thessaloniki. It took 4.5 hours, about 3 hours less than the regular train but it cost 3 times more. From the train station we headed straight for the Plaka in search of the restaurant which serves the best Gyros in the world. I led the three of us with only a few small wrong turns to the block where the restaurant used to be. However, the establishment was not there. I felt sick. Three and a half years ago it was the best gyro, now it was a tack Greek and religious art shop. We sat in the baking sun, hear broke and hungry. After settling for another gyro we jumped on the metro headed for the port.
The heat was sweltering. 35 degrees Celsius reported one reader board by the port. We found the terminal where our ferry was to leave and slowly made our way over there. Luckily, no one died of heat stroke.
The overnight ferry was nice. We had bunks on the boat and my room was a little UN meeting. We had a snoring french man, an Indian Engineer, and an account from China who worked for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Liz, Samantha and I spent the afternoon sunning ourselves on the back of the boat an read.
Around sunset we met Chris, the South African, on his way to Ios for the summer. He promptly introduced me to every girl on the boat. Soon the 4 of us met two girls from the Baltics. One was from Latvia and the other from Lithuania.
They had a grant from the EU to interview young people throughout Greece. The prior 7 months they had traveled the mainland discovering what educational and employment opportunities the kids had. They were embarking on a 7 month mission through the islands to gather "data" to make comparisons. They said it was obvious that the people on the mainland had more opportunity, but they still wanted to do the work since it meant being paid to island hop.
We retired to our cabins early to rest before the fiesta on the islands (I think this sentence was inspired by the Hemingway I just finished). At 6 am we arrived in Santorini. George, the owner of the Villa, met us at the port to get checked in. No sleeping on the dock and hiking into the city for me this time.
The city was very quiet this time of morning. Weird. We dropped off our bags at the hotel and began exploring the city in the serenity of the early morning hours. As we wandered up the caldera rim, a photo shoot commenced, we were taking pictures of nearly anything. The colors of the town were amazing in the light. We also picked up a heard of dogs a few hours.
Later in the day we visited the beach at Perissa. The sand there was a beautiful black. Black sand equals really hot. It hurt your feet to walk on the sand. To make it tolerable, we had to do lots of swimming in the clear blue water. Rough, I know.
On the bus ride back to town we stopped at the Santo Winery, just as the guide book recommended. They were right on. We tried several wines that were all made from grapes on the island, all during sunset from the caldera rim. Simply amazing. It was made more entertaining by the wedding being held on the back terrace as the sun was setting. Now Liz wants to get married there- this means I might get to come back!!
The next day we rent a little jeep and cruised around the island. Highlights included the red Beach, the light house, a nude beach, and wandering through a labyrinth of white houses and blue roofs. For the evening hours, we went out to Oia, where they claim they have the most beautiful sunsets in the world. The sights were beautiful, but I think a Central Oregon sunset during fire season i tough to beat.
The next morning we headed to Ios, the next closest island on the way towards Athens. It is known for it's crazy party scene. We stayed at the "Far Out Beach Club". You had your choice of laying by the beach or by the pool across the street from the beach. During the high season- July and August, is is said that people have drinks in their hands by noon and leave the clubs at 7am. I'm glad it was not high season.
We spent a few good days relaxing by the beach, reading, and visiting sights on the island including Homer's tomb, the author of the Iliad and Odyssey. The island was fairly empty except for people searching for jobs. This was nice since they were a friendly group and they would give you drink specials at the bar they got jobs at.
On Samantha's last night in Ios, we went out to dinner at the taverna on the jetty at the end of the beach. We arrived a few minutes before sunset. They showed us the specials o f the day- still alive in the coolers next to the water. Samantha had grilled shark, liz had seafood spaghetti and I had stuffed Calamari. This dish was amazing. It consisted of an entire quid, cleaned out, the stuffed with feta, tomato, and peppers, rolled back up and skewered back together. It was then grilled on a hickory fire. Oh my, it was soooo good. It was nearly as good as the meals in Romania.
5/22/07
I've arrived in Bosnia and am enjoying it. I'll most more soon.
Greece has been great. The only shame is that it takes so long to get anywhere. We arrived in Athens 8 days ago on the InterCity train from Thessaloniki. It took 4.5 hours, about 3 hours less than the regular train but it cost 3 times more. From the train station we headed straight for the Plaka in search of the restaurant which serves the best Gyros in the world. I led the three of us with only a few small wrong turns to the block where the restaurant used to be. However, the establishment was not there. I felt sick. Three and a half years ago it was the best gyro, now it was a tack Greek and religious art shop. We sat in the baking sun, hear broke and hungry. After settling for another gyro we jumped on the metro headed for the port.
The heat was sweltering. 35 degrees Celsius reported one reader board by the port. We found the terminal where our ferry was to leave and slowly made our way over there. Luckily, no one died of heat stroke.
The overnight ferry was nice. We had bunks on the boat and my room was a little UN meeting. We had a snoring french man, an Indian Engineer, and an account from China who worked for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Liz, Samantha and I spent the afternoon sunning ourselves on the back of the boat an read.
Around sunset we met Chris, the South African, on his way to Ios for the summer. He promptly introduced me to every girl on the boat. Soon the 4 of us met two girls from the Baltics. One was from Latvia and the other from Lithuania.
They had a grant from the EU to interview young people throughout Greece. The prior 7 months they had traveled the mainland discovering what educational and employment opportunities the kids had. They were embarking on a 7 month mission through the islands to gather "data" to make comparisons. They said it was obvious that the people on the mainland had more opportunity, but they still wanted to do the work since it meant being paid to island hop.
We retired to our cabins early to rest before the fiesta on the islands (I think this sentence was inspired by the Hemingway I just finished). At 6 am we arrived in Santorini. George, the owner of the Villa, met us at the port to get checked in. No sleeping on the dock and hiking into the city for me this time.
The city was very quiet this time of morning. Weird. We dropped off our bags at the hotel and began exploring the city in the serenity of the early morning hours. As we wandered up the caldera rim, a photo shoot commenced, we were taking pictures of nearly anything. The colors of the town were amazing in the light. We also picked up a heard of dogs a few hours.
Later in the day we visited the beach at Perissa. The sand there was a beautiful black. Black sand equals really hot. It hurt your feet to walk on the sand. To make it tolerable, we had to do lots of swimming in the clear blue water. Rough, I know.
On the bus ride back to town we stopped at the Santo Winery, just as the guide book recommended. They were right on. We tried several wines that were all made from grapes on the island, all during sunset from the caldera rim. Simply amazing. It was made more entertaining by the wedding being held on the back terrace as the sun was setting. Now Liz wants to get married there- this means I might get to come back!!
The next day we rent a little jeep and cruised around the island. Highlights included the red Beach, the light house, a nude beach, and wandering through a labyrinth of white houses and blue roofs. For the evening hours, we went out to Oia, where they claim they have the most beautiful sunsets in the world. The sights were beautiful, but I think a Central Oregon sunset during fire season i tough to beat.
The next morning we headed to Ios, the next closest island on the way towards Athens. It is known for it's crazy party scene. We stayed at the "Far Out Beach Club". You had your choice of laying by the beach or by the pool across the street from the beach. During the high season- July and August, is is said that people have drinks in their hands by noon and leave the clubs at 7am. I'm glad it was not high season.
We spent a few good days relaxing by the beach, reading, and visiting sights on the island including Homer's tomb, the author of the Iliad and Odyssey. The island was fairly empty except for people searching for jobs. This was nice since they were a friendly group and they would give you drink specials at the bar they got jobs at.
On Samantha's last night in Ios, we went out to dinner at the taverna on the jetty at the end of the beach. We arrived a few minutes before sunset. They showed us the specials o f the day- still alive in the coolers next to the water. Samantha had grilled shark, liz had seafood spaghetti and I had stuffed Calamari. This dish was amazing. It consisted of an entire quid, cleaned out, the stuffed with feta, tomato, and peppers, rolled back up and skewered back together. It was then grilled on a hickory fire. Oh my, it was soooo good. It was nearly as good as the meals in Romania.
5/22/07
I've arrived in Bosnia and am enjoying it. I'll most more soon.
Rila Monastery
5-15-07
After a short stay in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, we headed up to the mountains to visit the Rila Monastery.
The monastery was founded in the 10th century after St. Ivan Rilaski spent 7 years living in the mountains. The complex was rebuilt in the 19th century after a fire. Today it is the most popular tourist attraction in the country. Most people visit on a day trip from Sofia, but "let's Go" guide book suggested that we make it an over night trip. We thought that would be a good idea since it was on the way to Greece anyway.
Once we arrived to the monastery, we followed some directions to the Camping Bor which Let's Go recommended. It was 2 km away from the monastery. When we got to the campground, it looked vacant and abandoned for years. In one corner there were some workers cutting wood planks. We asked if we could check in, in Serbian but no reply. They didn't speak English, and couldn't understand my broken Serbian. I must of said something in Italian, because the old man began speaking Italian to me. Now we could communicate. He said the bungalows were closed. I asked if we could sleep in the field and said that we could for free. I was very happy, but the girls had other feelings. They also gave us a piece of bread and sausage which they were cooking on a fire for lunch. We were amazed at their hospitality, and decided we would give them all names of our own. That definately gave us good entertainment during our hike.
We went on a short hike and then headed to the only store to buy groceries for all of us for dinner. When we returned, the workers were packing up to head into the city where they lived. We had all this extra food. They were very nice and helped us find fire wood and built it for us. After they left we began grilling our meats and even baked some with cheese in a tile, which is on every Bulgarian menu.
After a cold night of sleep for the girls and a good one for me, we went on a hike to St. Ivan's tomb. He had lived on the side of the mountain, so that's where we headed. It was a beautiful little hike. The legend is that if you pass through the cave where St. Ivan lived, and emerged from the hole at the top you were spiritually reborn. Not wanting to miss this opportunity we squirmed our way through the cave where it was dark and quite cool. It was a good experience, but I wouldn't say I felt reborn. Later that day we headed back down to the monastery and then hopped a train to Greece to begin the next leg of our adventure. We were begining to be tired from all the traveling and our bags were getting heavy. Some peopel were struggling more with their bags than the others. Liz and Samantha were definately ready to relax on the beach but I was very sad to leave the beautiful mountains.
After a short stay in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, we headed up to the mountains to visit the Rila Monastery.
The monastery was founded in the 10th century after St. Ivan Rilaski spent 7 years living in the mountains. The complex was rebuilt in the 19th century after a fire. Today it is the most popular tourist attraction in the country. Most people visit on a day trip from Sofia, but "let's Go" guide book suggested that we make it an over night trip. We thought that would be a good idea since it was on the way to Greece anyway.
Once we arrived to the monastery, we followed some directions to the Camping Bor which Let's Go recommended. It was 2 km away from the monastery. When we got to the campground, it looked vacant and abandoned for years. In one corner there were some workers cutting wood planks. We asked if we could check in, in Serbian but no reply. They didn't speak English, and couldn't understand my broken Serbian. I must of said something in Italian, because the old man began speaking Italian to me. Now we could communicate. He said the bungalows were closed. I asked if we could sleep in the field and said that we could for free. I was very happy, but the girls had other feelings. They also gave us a piece of bread and sausage which they were cooking on a fire for lunch. We were amazed at their hospitality, and decided we would give them all names of our own. That definately gave us good entertainment during our hike.
We went on a short hike and then headed to the only store to buy groceries for all of us for dinner. When we returned, the workers were packing up to head into the city where they lived. We had all this extra food. They were very nice and helped us find fire wood and built it for us. After they left we began grilling our meats and even baked some with cheese in a tile, which is on every Bulgarian menu.
After a cold night of sleep for the girls and a good one for me, we went on a hike to St. Ivan's tomb. He had lived on the side of the mountain, so that's where we headed. It was a beautiful little hike. The legend is that if you pass through the cave where St. Ivan lived, and emerged from the hole at the top you were spiritually reborn. Not wanting to miss this opportunity we squirmed our way through the cave where it was dark and quite cool. It was a good experience, but I wouldn't say I felt reborn. Later that day we headed back down to the monastery and then hopped a train to Greece to begin the next leg of our adventure. We were begining to be tired from all the traveling and our bags were getting heavy. Some peopel were struggling more with their bags than the others. Liz and Samantha were definately ready to relax on the beach but I was very sad to leave the beautiful mountains.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Things I have learned in Eastern Europe
5-9-07
-Communism did not promote a strong marine biology program. The aquarium in Varna, on the Black Sea coast, show cases of decaying stuffed sea lions, neons, The European Conger (Conger Conger), guppies, carp, gold
fish, and catfish. The inside reminded me of prison.
-A meal of a salad and entree is nearly enough food for two people. And while I'm at it, let me describe what salads in E. Europe. They include exactly what is listed on the menu, with the most plentiful ingredient listed first. The shopska salad, my favorite, consists of cucumber, tomato, bell peppers, onions and feta. That's it. They are all chopped and tossed together. Another favorite is the yogurt salad. The Bulgarians love their yogurt. This includes cucumber, tomato, onion, peppers, ham lathered with plain yogurt. If you actually what lettuce or any greens you have to specifically order them.
-Communism did not promote a strong marine biology program. The aquarium in Varna, on the Black Sea coast, show cases of decaying stuffed sea lions, neons, The European Conger (Conger Conger), guppies, carp, gold
fish, and catfish. The inside reminded me of prison.-A meal of a salad and entree is nearly enough food for two people. And while I'm at it, let me describe what salads in E. Europe. They include exactly what is listed on the menu, with the most plentiful ingredient listed first. The shopska salad, my favorite, consists of cucumber, tomato, bell peppers, onions and feta. That's it. They are all chopped and tossed together. Another favorite is the yogurt salad. The Bulgarians love their yogurt. This includes cucumber, tomato, onion, peppers, ham lathered with plain yogurt. If you actually what lettuce or any greens you have to specifically order them.
-No mean yes, and yes means no. At least in head nodding this is the case. You shake your head in approval. Nod when you don't want the sausage. Shake when you understand and nod when you don't want a ride from the taxi driver. As you can imagine, this leads to some hiccups in communication.
-Mormon missionaries look the same in Bulgaria as they do in the US.
Short sleeve white button up shirt and black name badge- in Cyrillic. The funniest thing is that Liz and Samantha go to School in Salt Lake City. Samantha even knew friends of one of the missionary from high school. Usually we run into them when we have a beer in our hand which makes it a little awkward for them.
-Liz pointed out today, "Osam Deset" ( said really mumbled) is usually less than one leva. That being said, if anything ever costs a significant amount the people will type it out on a calculator to make the price seem more official.
-Vlad the Impaler- not a nice guy. His reputation lies in unifying Transylvania but also for being a brutal dictator. His favorite means of torture was tying a person's two feet to horses and then impaling them on a wooden spike. He was nice enough to oil the spikes to ease the pain. He enjoyed it more because the victim would live a little bit longer. To commemorate this brutal man, the three of us rotate wearing our Vlad the impaler t-shirts. It also makes it easy to know what I'm going to wear every three days.
More posts to come shortly....
-Mormon missionaries look the same in Bulgaria as they do in the US.
Short sleeve white button up shirt and black name badge- in Cyrillic. The funniest thing is that Liz and Samantha go to School in Salt Lake City. Samantha even knew friends of one of the missionary from high school. Usually we run into them when we have a beer in our hand which makes it a little awkward for them.-Liz pointed out today, "Osam Deset" ( said really mumbled) is usually less than one leva. That being said, if anything ever costs a significant amount the people will type it out on a calculator to make the price seem more official.
-Vlad the Impaler- not a nice guy. His reputation lies in unifying Transylvania but also for being a brutal dictator. His favorite means of torture was tying a person's two feet to horses and then impaling them on a wooden spike. He was nice enough to oil the spikes to ease the pain. He enjoyed it more because the victim would live a little bit longer. To commemorate this brutal man, the three of us rotate wearing our Vlad the impaler t-shirts. It also makes it easy to know what I'm going to wear every three days.
More posts to come shortly....
Thursday, May 10, 2007
A hike through the woods...
5/5/2007
Yesterday was quite the day. We set off shortly afternoon to visit a monastery on the side of a mountain. The lady at the hostel, not Yarina, told us to follow the street signs, so we did. Apparently it was only 6 km away. What she didn’t tell us was that we would be hiking on the side of the freeway. So we kept walking on the two lane road, cars honking at us and flashbacks of the bike trip through Tuscany popping into my mind.
We eventually found the turn off for the monastery and a little trail with the monastery’s name written in Cyrillic. We pressed on down the trail. Soon enough we came upon a complex of buildings and an old church. There were many bee boxes in the gated church grounds. Thinking this was the chapel of the monastery, I swung open the wrought iron gate and tip toed past the bees. Meanwhile Samantha and Liz laughed. Turns out this was not the church we were looking for, although there was a beautiful Madonna and Child gracing the portico of the chapel.
We decided to explore the complex further.
There was a brightly painted porch area with brilliant blue and gold portraits of biblical scenes. On the porch, there was a table draped with a table cloth and an empty glass pitcher. Surely someone must have been around. In the center of the courtyard was another chapel. We walked timidly towards the open door.
When we entered the chapel, we must have startled him. He may have been sleeping there since the chapel was built, many centuries ago. Long white hair and a beard disguised his face. He wore a faded black hat and robe. The priest greeted us in Bulgarian and we thanked him for his graciousness in English.
The church was absolutely beautiful. The
old frescos or tempera paintings were mostly hidden with a thin black layer of soot from years of candles burning during celebrations and to represent people’s prayer intentions. There were a few places where the paintings had been cleaned. The colors were brilliant in those places. Bright blues and reds and greens. They all contrasted marvelously with gold leaf around each saint’s head.
As we left the chapel, I asked the old priest if we could take pictures and relied, “Molim” or please. We snapped a few photos and we were on our way.
Along the road on the way back we found a nice trail leading back to Veliko Tarnovo, so we decided this would be better than walking along the highway. The path was beautiful,.JPG)
taking us through the forest and then the rocky hill sides. Many trails split off along the way and each of them had the same red and white trail markings. Soon enough, we weren’t quite sure where we were. After some debate we decided to follow the sound of a shepherd up the hill. He was tending to his 7 dairy cows each with a different toned bell around her neck. We proceeded down the hill and we could finally see the town across the valley. There were many trails criss-crossing the floor between small garden plots. I decided I should ask a gardener the way to the town center. He confirmed that we were in fact on the right trail. Once we wound our way through the city’s twisted streets back to the center of town. We decided it was time to treat ourselves to a beer. Zagorka, a Bulgarian lager, was an excellent end to our adventure.
Yesterday was quite the day. We set off shortly afternoon to visit a monastery on the side of a mountain. The lady at the hostel, not Yarina, told us to follow the street signs, so we did. Apparently it was only 6 km away. What she didn’t tell us was that we would be hiking on the side of the freeway. So we kept walking on the two lane road, cars honking at us and flashbacks of the bike trip through Tuscany popping into my mind.
We eventually found the turn off for the monastery and a little trail with the monastery’s name written in Cyrillic. We pressed on down the trail. Soon enough we came upon a complex of buildings and an old church. There were many bee boxes in the gated church grounds. Thinking this was the chapel of the monastery, I swung open the wrought iron gate and tip toed past the bees. Meanwhile Samantha and Liz laughed. Turns out this was not the church we were looking for, although there was a beautiful Madonna and Child gracing the portico of the chapel.
We decided to explore the complex further.
There was no movement or activity anywhere. We quietly crept through an arched entry into the confines of the complex. Still, no one to be seen. There were sings of life, however. The flower garden looked well tended to. There were bright white sheets hanging to dry from the balcony gently flapping in the breeze.
There was a brightly painted porch area with brilliant blue and gold portraits of biblical scenes. On the porch, there was a table draped with a table cloth and an empty glass pitcher. Surely someone must have been around. In the center of the courtyard was another chapel. We walked timidly towards the open door.When we entered the chapel, we must have startled him. He may have been sleeping there since the chapel was built, many centuries ago. Long white hair and a beard disguised his face. He wore a faded black hat and robe. The priest greeted us in Bulgarian and we thanked him for his graciousness in English.
The church was absolutely beautiful. The
old frescos or tempera paintings were mostly hidden with a thin black layer of soot from years of candles burning during celebrations and to represent people’s prayer intentions. There were a few places where the paintings had been cleaned. The colors were brilliant in those places. Bright blues and reds and greens. They all contrasted marvelously with gold leaf around each saint’s head.As we left the chapel, I asked the old priest if we could take pictures and relied, “Molim” or please. We snapped a few photos and we were on our way.
Along the road on the way back we found a nice trail leading back to Veliko Tarnovo, so we decided this would be better than walking along the highway. The path was beautiful,
.JPG)
taking us through the forest and then the rocky hill sides. Many trails split off along the way and each of them had the same red and white trail markings. Soon enough, we weren’t quite sure where we were. After some debate we decided to follow the sound of a shepherd up the hill. He was tending to his 7 dairy cows each with a different toned bell around her neck. We proceeded down the hill and we could finally see the town across the valley. There were many trails criss-crossing the floor between small garden plots. I decided I should ask a gardener the way to the town center. He confirmed that we were in fact on the right trail. Once we wound our way through the city’s twisted streets back to the center of town. We decided it was time to treat ourselves to a beer. Zagorka, a Bulgarian lager, was an excellent end to our adventure.Friday, May 4, 2007
6 days of Eastern Europe
5/2/07- i'm publishing now since I didn't have internet access the last several days.
It's been 6 days since we left Barcelona and it definitely has been exciting. After our overnight flight from Barcelona to Bucharest, Romania, we awoke bleary eyed and dazed in a bleak holding room to go through immigration. When it was our turn to talk to the boarder guard, he asked me why Romania. I said "I want to sight see." He said, "Good luck," and stamped my passport. The taxi ride we took was a crazy ride. Even though the driver ripped us off, it still may have been worth it as he swerved in and out of traffic, passed in the lanes of on coming traffic and using red lights as California stops. He took us straight to the bus station were we quickly bought a ticket to Brasov, the heart of Transylvania. Later that day we took a tour with a group from our hostel to see some of the historic sites of the region. One of these was the castle of Bran, otherwise known as the inspiration for Dracula's Castle. It was a nice day outside, but if it had been a stormy night, there is a good possibility it would have given me the creeps. I'm just glad that Vlad the Impaler was not around or else that would have certainly sent chills down my spine.
We spent the next few days in Brasov. It was a beautiful old town with many sites to see. We spent our time strolling around and eating. The food was amazing. We had several hearty soups and stews that were to die for. The main courses weren't bad either. The best thing was that we could eat multiple course meal including salad, soup, main course and drink for around 10 euro.
All of the people we met at the hostel who had spent any time in Bucharest, advised us against con-artists and blocks and blocks of ugly communist era apartments. With that advice in mind, we tried to minimize the amount of time we spent in the capital city. After checking into the hostel, we thought we would do a quick walk through of town visiting the historical section of the city and return to the hostel for a quiet night in. Our first stop on the tour was the Palace of the People, the 2nd largest building in the world after the Pentagon in DC. The crazy dictator of Romania in the 80's decided to build this behemoth of a building to house parliament and all the other administrative offices of the communist bureaucracy. Allegedly at one point in time the construction of the building used 85% of the GDP of the country. No wonder so many people lived in run down shacks and the infrastructure was in such disrepair. Knowing all this, I was excited to see what building had sucked all the resources from the people.
But when we arrived to the park outside of the palace, we were in for a surprise. It was May 1st. Labor day in communist countries or Polish friend, Lucas, informed us. After all the countries' revolutions, the people didn't want to get rid of the holiday so they kept it. And what we stumbled upon was the National Labor Day Party. No Peter, this didn't compare to Goose Creek in it's rowdiness, but it was one huge party. I would guess there were 50,000 + people gathered in the park. There was live music, rows of port-o-potties and more barbecues than I have ever seen working concurrently. I would say there were probably 100 large grills BBQing small sausages called Mici (pronounced Mee shh). The president had sent everyone- I'm not sure if they were just government workers, or everyone- tickets for 4 mici and a beer. Every man woman and child. There were little kids carrying around 6-packs of tall boys back to the family picnic spot. People were giving 12 tickets at a time and wanted all 48 of their mici for their group. Needless to say, it takes a long time to BBQ enough tiny sausages for 50,000 people. We waited in line with the Romanians to partake in their national holiday. After The lady grilling them up laughed at as as we salivated over the hundreds of mici on the grill. over an hour in line, the mici we received were less than fully cooked. That didn't take away from their flavor. We just used lots of mustard, like the rest of the group, and they were delicious.
The next day was Elizabeth's 21st birthday. It also happened to be the day that we were going to Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria. So we woke up early, enjoyed the pancakes the Canadian women at the hostel made for us, and headed for the train station. We boarded the train headed for Greece. When we arrived at our cabin, it was full of Bulgarians. Once we sorted out where to sit, we crammed into the train car with the Bulgarians. The long train ride went by fairly quickly. We read, listened to music, looked out the window, and played cards. Since we couldn't speak to the Bulgarians things were pretty quiet but when the cards came out things perked up. They showed us the most basic card tricks but it was still fun.
Finally we arrived in Veliko Tarnovo and checked into the hostel. They recommended a restaurant to try for Liz's birthday dinner. We headed down there and had an amazing meal. We each had a salad, shared an appetizer,, and each had a main course. Needless to say that we had way too much food. Good thing it was absolutely delicious. To top it off we had a great bottle of Bulgarian wine. The whole meal was only 30 euro. It was a great feast to have for Liz's birthday. If this is what Bulgarian food tastes like, I'm definitely looking forward to the next week.
It's been 6 days since we left Barcelona and it definitely has been exciting. After our overnight flight from Barcelona to Bucharest, Romania, we awoke bleary eyed and dazed in a bleak holding room to go through immigration. When it was our turn to talk to the boarder guard, he asked me why Romania. I said "I want to sight see." He said, "Good luck," and stamped my passport. The taxi ride we took was a crazy ride. Even though the driver ripped us off, it still may have been worth it as he swerved in and out of traffic, passed in the lanes of on coming traffic and using red lights as California stops. He took us straight to the bus station were we quickly bought a ticket to Brasov, the heart of Transylvania. Later that day we took a tour with a group from our hostel to see some of the historic sites of the region. One of these was the castle of Bran, otherwise known as the inspiration for Dracula's Castle. It was a nice day outside, but if it had been a stormy night, there is a good possibility it would have given me the creeps. I'm just glad that Vlad the Impaler was not around or else that would have certainly sent chills down my spine.
We spent the next few days in Brasov. It was a beautiful old town with many sites to see. We spent our time strolling around and eating. The food was amazing. We had several hearty soups and stews that were to die for. The main courses weren't bad either. The best thing was that we could eat multiple course meal including salad, soup, main course and drink for around 10 euro.
All of the people we met at the hostel who had spent any time in Bucharest, advised us against con-artists and blocks and blocks of ugly communist era apartments. With that advice in mind, we tried to minimize the amount of time we spent in the capital city. After checking into the hostel, we thought we would do a quick walk through of town visiting the historical section of the city and return to the hostel for a quiet night in. Our first stop on the tour was the Palace of the People, the 2nd largest building in the world after the Pentagon in DC. The crazy dictator of Romania in the 80's decided to build this behemoth of a building to house parliament and all the other administrative offices of the communist bureaucracy. Allegedly at one point in time the construction of the building used 85% of the GDP of the country. No wonder so many people lived in run down shacks and the infrastructure was in such disrepair. Knowing all this, I was excited to see what building had sucked all the resources from the people.
But when we arrived to the park outside of the palace, we were in for a surprise. It was May 1st. Labor day in communist countries or Polish friend, Lucas, informed us. After all the countries' revolutions, the people didn't want to get rid of the holiday so they kept it. And what we stumbled upon was the National Labor Day Party. No Peter, this didn't compare to Goose Creek in it's rowdiness, but it was one huge party. I would guess there were 50,000 + people gathered in the park. There was live music, rows of port-o-potties and more barbecues than I have ever seen working concurrently. I would say there were probably 100 large grills BBQing small sausages called Mici (pronounced Mee shh). The president had sent everyone- I'm not sure if they were just government workers, or everyone- tickets for 4 mici and a beer. Every man woman and child. There were little kids carrying around 6-packs of tall boys back to the family picnic spot. People were giving 12 tickets at a time and wanted all 48 of their mici for their group. Needless to say, it takes a long time to BBQ enough tiny sausages for 50,000 people. We waited in line with the Romanians to partake in their national holiday. After The lady grilling them up laughed at as as we salivated over the hundreds of mici on the grill. over an hour in line, the mici we received were less than fully cooked. That didn't take away from their flavor. We just used lots of mustard, like the rest of the group, and they were delicious.
The next day was Elizabeth's 21st birthday. It also happened to be the day that we were going to Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria. So we woke up early, enjoyed the pancakes the Canadian women at the hostel made for us, and headed for the train station. We boarded the train headed for Greece. When we arrived at our cabin, it was full of Bulgarians. Once we sorted out where to sit, we crammed into the train car with the Bulgarians. The long train ride went by fairly quickly. We read, listened to music, looked out the window, and played cards. Since we couldn't speak to the Bulgarians things were pretty quiet but when the cards came out things perked up. They showed us the most basic card tricks but it was still fun.
Finally we arrived in Veliko Tarnovo and checked into the hostel. They recommended a restaurant to try for Liz's birthday dinner. We headed down there and had an amazing meal. We each had a salad, shared an appetizer,, and each had a main course. Needless to say that we had way too much food. Good thing it was absolutely delicious. To top it off we had a great bottle of Bulgarian wine. The whole meal was only 30 euro. It was a great feast to have for Liz's birthday. If this is what Bulgarian food tastes like, I'm definitely looking forward to the next week.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Enjoying Barecelona
I have been in Barcelona for 5 days now and figured that it was time to make a post. I am doing well. It took me a few days to adjust to the time change from the west coast, although staying at the disco until the early hours of the morning certainly makes the time change seem less severe. I have been very busy in the past few days touring and seeing the sites Barcelona has to offer. Sunday was an event filled day with a trip to see the Casteller Show. The Castellers are clubs of people who like to make human towers. I'm sure there is some cultural or historical background into why the people of Catalonia enjoy hoisting their precious children several stories above the square below with only a few people to support them. Thank goodness the government legislated the use of helmets a few years ago. You can find a picture of this here.
Later in the afternoon Liz and I went to a bull fight. Liz had met an old man, Emilo, when she bought our tickets who offered to show us around the ring before the fight and introduce us to the matadors. Low and behold we show up an hour early and Emilo gives us a tour of the ring, in Spanish. I'm glad Liz could help me translate. Then he takes us down the tunnel into the "dugout" if you will, where the matadors wait for their turn. After a short wait with a few other people and the Spanish Press, the matadors arrive and make their rounds of interviews and photos.
The bull fight itself was great. It was a little difficult to watch at first, but Emilo began pointing out the finer points of the technique and the rest of the pomp and circumstance. There was most certainly an art to the foot work of the matadors.
Later in the afternoon Liz and I went to a bull fight. Liz had met an old man, Emilo, when she bought our tickets who offered to show us around the ring before the fight and introduce us to the matadors. Low and behold we show up an hour early and Emilo gives us a tour of the ring, in Spanish. I'm glad Liz could help me translate. Then he takes us down the tunnel into the "dugout" if you will, where the matadors wait for their turn. After a short wait with a few other people and the Spanish Press, the matadors arrive and make their rounds of interviews and photos.
The bull fight itself was great. It was a little difficult to watch at first, but Emilo began pointing out the finer points of the technique and the rest of the pomp and circumstance. There was most certainly an art to the foot work of the matadors.
On Monday, I went up to the monastery at Montserrat and did some hiking. I hiked up to the top of the mountains that looked like something you would see in Zion National Park. Low and behold, at the top of the mountain, I found a helipad. If only Fr. Bruno knew...
Yesterday, I took few hours and relaxed in Park Guell. Gaudi's architecture is amazing, it was great to have some time to explore all of the little tunnels and trails throughout the park. After Liz finished class we met up and went to the beach. It was fairly crowded since it was around 80 degrees. Today I'm planning on going to the Segrada Familia, just a few blocks down from Liz's apartment and exploring some of the streets around Las Ramblas. If you are interested, I have posted more of pictures on my flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7885323@N08/sets/72157600122271522/
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