Heyy to All!
So I am pretty sure most of you who have ever watched tv have seen these commercials before; you know the ones where Tide is participating in the 'Loads of Hope' campaign where any proceeds that they receive go to families who have been affected by disaster. Well I thought this would be the perfect place to stand on my soap box to promote this campaign and all of the great things that it has done for the many people affected by disaster in our own country. Basically, this campaign travels around with a mobile laundromat and the volunteers wash, dry, and fold the clothes for individuals affected by the disaster the team is responding to. You can support this campaign by purchasing any yellow cap tide product or a vintage tide t-shirt! Which I don't know about you, but those vintage tees look pretty cool! :D So here is the website below. Check it out! I know it's sometimes annoying to put the effort in, but I mean we all do laundry, and just think about how much you could be helping out with a simple purchase.
http://www.tide.com/en-US/loads-of-hope/how-you-can-help.jspx
I love and miss you all!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
some pics
The first pic is of Bree and I getting ready to go to the rap concert. The second pic is of Christina and Bree at the concert, the third is the concert itself, and the last one is Tuzla at dusk! Enjoy!
winding down.
Well, it certainly feels like a Tuesday, that's for sure. This week has been pretty good so far and it can only get better! I only have 2 more days of work & then to Dubrovnik I go, to lay on the beach and relax before I head back to USA! This past weekend was pretty eventful, which I wasn't expecting. Friday night, as I mentioned in my last post, the girls and I went with our friend Samira down to the river where there were rappers performing. It was actually a pretty good time and there were a ton of people there! It was pretty crazy.. lots of kids and teens... lots of underage drinking. However, when I asked Samira what the legal age to drink in BiH is, she said it wasn't really enforced. Hmm interesting. It just goes with the statements Alma and Amir have presented to me that under-aged drinking is a serious problem here in BiH... no kidding? However, I think a big part of that is just kids being kids, but that's just me.
Anyway, so the show was great and we got home pretty early. There's only so much rap a person can take... especially when it's in another language. HAHA! I was planning on just laying out at the Salt Lakes, however, Bree's coworker Jennita invited us to her parent's cottage on Saturday! It was adorable! And none of her family members speak any English, so she had to translate, but it was such a great experience and her family were so kind and adorable! Bree and I took a bus (about 30 min outside of Tuzla) and she picked us up from the bus station. Jennita's mom made a ton of food! She had this vegetable soup, these pies with what I think was something similar to a turnip, but it was delicious! And lots of coffee! :D It was so relaxing out there and Bree and I had the greatest and most relaxing time. After we ate, Jennita, her cousin Alma, Bree and I took a walk through the land that they grow all of their crops on. It was such a beautiful walk through nature. And we got to see the area where Jennita's grandmother was born and raised. Now her grandmother lives behind her parent's cottage. She was a great woman. Jennita described her having been 'sick' recently.. which was interesting to me that she used that language, because in first meeting the grandmother you could immediately detect that she had suffered a stroke because she had no control over the right side of her face. She knew we didn't understand the language, but it was funny, she kept talking to us in Bosnian.. that was a bit awkward, haha because Bree and I could only imagine what she was trying to say. But we did get a couple of things, which I was happy about!
We left their home later in the evening and left with a bag full of pears and apples that had been grown on the parents farm! They just kept filling the bag! So thanks to them we have lots of fruit for the rest of the week! :D Then Sunday came and Bree an I just went to the Salt Lakes to relax by the water. I started my 9th book of the summer.. can you believe it?! 9 Books in 8 weeks.. me.. ridiculous. I got a bit sun-burned.. I know, I've already been reprimanded *(hehe love you Frank!)* and I know I should know better. I'm working on it. : ) So all-in-all it was a pretty eventful weekend and very relaxing one too!
Yesterday was my last day working at the hospital. It was a bitter-sweet thing. I am so very glad to have had that experience working there. It was cool, once we were all finished with the groups Dr. Esmina and the rest of the staff took us on a tour of the hospital. It was great to see; kind of sad, but still important. At one point we stopped back in the office for them to show us pictures of a what the psych clinic looked like during the war.. honestly, I would love to see those pictures displayed in a museum.. they were heart-wrenching...The conditions these people had to live in.. was unbelievable. They had taken all of these photos and blown them up, because at the time they used them to petition to get a new building after the war because of the conditions these people were forced to live in. Some of the pictures showed the patients having to eat dinner on the floor because they didn't have proper furniture for them... the walls were water-stained and rusting out.. I wish the rest of the world could see these pictures.
I took this picture in Mostar when I went rafting. I just came upon it when we were walking around Old Town. It means a great deal to me and I wanted to share it with you all.
Anyway, so the show was great and we got home pretty early. There's only so much rap a person can take... especially when it's in another language. HAHA! I was planning on just laying out at the Salt Lakes, however, Bree's coworker Jennita invited us to her parent's cottage on Saturday! It was adorable! And none of her family members speak any English, so she had to translate, but it was such a great experience and her family were so kind and adorable! Bree and I took a bus (about 30 min outside of Tuzla) and she picked us up from the bus station. Jennita's mom made a ton of food! She had this vegetable soup, these pies with what I think was something similar to a turnip, but it was delicious! And lots of coffee! :D It was so relaxing out there and Bree and I had the greatest and most relaxing time. After we ate, Jennita, her cousin Alma, Bree and I took a walk through the land that they grow all of their crops on. It was such a beautiful walk through nature. And we got to see the area where Jennita's grandmother was born and raised. Now her grandmother lives behind her parent's cottage. She was a great woman. Jennita described her having been 'sick' recently.. which was interesting to me that she used that language, because in first meeting the grandmother you could immediately detect that she had suffered a stroke because she had no control over the right side of her face. She knew we didn't understand the language, but it was funny, she kept talking to us in Bosnian.. that was a bit awkward, haha because Bree and I could only imagine what she was trying to say. But we did get a couple of things, which I was happy about!
We left their home later in the evening and left with a bag full of pears and apples that had been grown on the parents farm! They just kept filling the bag! So thanks to them we have lots of fruit for the rest of the week! :D Then Sunday came and Bree an I just went to the Salt Lakes to relax by the water. I started my 9th book of the summer.. can you believe it?! 9 Books in 8 weeks.. me.. ridiculous. I got a bit sun-burned.. I know, I've already been reprimanded *(hehe love you Frank!)* and I know I should know better. I'm working on it. : ) So all-in-all it was a pretty eventful weekend and very relaxing one too!
Yesterday was my last day working at the hospital. It was a bitter-sweet thing. I am so very glad to have had that experience working there. It was cool, once we were all finished with the groups Dr. Esmina and the rest of the staff took us on a tour of the hospital. It was great to see; kind of sad, but still important. At one point we stopped back in the office for them to show us pictures of a what the psych clinic looked like during the war.. honestly, I would love to see those pictures displayed in a museum.. they were heart-wrenching...The conditions these people had to live in.. was unbelievable. They had taken all of these photos and blown them up, because at the time they used them to petition to get a new building after the war because of the conditions these people were forced to live in. Some of the pictures showed the patients having to eat dinner on the floor because they didn't have proper furniture for them... the walls were water-stained and rusting out.. I wish the rest of the world could see these pictures.
I took this picture in Mostar when I went rafting. I just came upon it when we were walking around Old Town. It means a great deal to me and I wanted to share it with you all.
Friday, July 24, 2009
tgif
Well, it's finally Friday. I wasn't sure if it was ever going to get here. Nothing really new going on over here in Tuzla, except that by 5:30pm I will be home in 13 days! :D This week was pretty slow. The hospital was pretty interesting this past Monday. We were actually able to talk with the clients, via translator of course. But it was great because we were just talking about life things and, I don't know it was just nice to have that opportunity to talk to them in a clinical/therapeutic way. I wish I had gotten to spend more time there...
Throughout the rest of the week I was pretty busy at CRP. I completed all of the workshops I put together for students in secondary school. It ended up coming to 5 workshops total and I put together all of the slides with all of the info related to each topic; 1. Looking at schools in Bosnia Heryegovina, 2.Finding Financial Aid, 3.How to produce an effective and strong resume and cover letter, 4. How to prepare for an interview, & 5. Writing a personal statement. Most of these workshops were designed to make the students more confident in their capabilities when applying to college, but I also wanted to reach the kids who were in that in between, of going to university or working first. I was really happy with the way it all turned out! And it was great, yesterday I met with Alma *(not my sup, a different Alma)* and she really loved all of the work that I did and told me that hopefully in the near future they will be able to put all of the info that I gathered into a booklet to provide for the students, aka, these workshops are really going to be implemented into the school systems here!!!! Even though it may not happen right away, it was just great to feel like I contributed something of significance to the organization and to the community, even if it is on a smaller scale, I am entirely satisfied with that and really happy. I still have one more piece of the project to complete (writing letters to a student and to a politician of why they should go to college, or get involved in the program), but I think this will be a pretty easy piece.
A little later today Christina and I have to present our findings on the other workshop that we have been working on (the CPR and first aid trainings in remote villages). It's my sup's last day, hence why we are presenting today. I think that should go very smoothly and quickly. And it's Friday.. so you know what that means.. relaxxxxx. Tonight my co-worker from the hospital, Samira is taking Bree, Christina and me, down to the river where there is going to be a concert. Apparently, this person is a rapper, and he was born and raised here in Tuzla. He started out here in Tuzla, rapping at the very place we are going tonight, and that's how he got his 'stardom.' So this should be interesting...
My plan for the rest of the weekend is to get sun! I am going to be lounging at the salt lakes all weekend and also in town getting some last minute souvenirs and things. Also just preparing for my trip to Dubrovnik, Croatia! I am really pumped about that! The girls and I are going to be taking a direct bus from here this coming Thursday night. The only reason we are cutting out of work a little early is because everyone is going on holiday in the office. Actually, I think there are only going to be like 2 people here in the office all next week too. But yeah so we leave at 9pm Thursday and we should get to Dubrovnik around 6am Friday morning... I know.. a 9 hr bus ride... I booked a room for us at a hostel, but it's really just someone's house that has apartment type rooms off to the side of it and that's how these people make money, off tourists like us :D Needless to say, next Thursday can't come quick enough! Then back to Denverrrrr! :DDDDDDD
Throughout the rest of the week I was pretty busy at CRP. I completed all of the workshops I put together for students in secondary school. It ended up coming to 5 workshops total and I put together all of the slides with all of the info related to each topic; 1. Looking at schools in Bosnia Heryegovina, 2.Finding Financial Aid, 3.How to produce an effective and strong resume and cover letter, 4. How to prepare for an interview, & 5. Writing a personal statement. Most of these workshops were designed to make the students more confident in their capabilities when applying to college, but I also wanted to reach the kids who were in that in between, of going to university or working first. I was really happy with the way it all turned out! And it was great, yesterday I met with Alma *(not my sup, a different Alma)* and she really loved all of the work that I did and told me that hopefully in the near future they will be able to put all of the info that I gathered into a booklet to provide for the students, aka, these workshops are really going to be implemented into the school systems here!!!! Even though it may not happen right away, it was just great to feel like I contributed something of significance to the organization and to the community, even if it is on a smaller scale, I am entirely satisfied with that and really happy. I still have one more piece of the project to complete (writing letters to a student and to a politician of why they should go to college, or get involved in the program), but I think this will be a pretty easy piece.
A little later today Christina and I have to present our findings on the other workshop that we have been working on (the CPR and first aid trainings in remote villages). It's my sup's last day, hence why we are presenting today. I think that should go very smoothly and quickly. And it's Friday.. so you know what that means.. relaxxxxx. Tonight my co-worker from the hospital, Samira is taking Bree, Christina and me, down to the river where there is going to be a concert. Apparently, this person is a rapper, and he was born and raised here in Tuzla. He started out here in Tuzla, rapping at the very place we are going tonight, and that's how he got his 'stardom.' So this should be interesting...
My plan for the rest of the weekend is to get sun! I am going to be lounging at the salt lakes all weekend and also in town getting some last minute souvenirs and things. Also just preparing for my trip to Dubrovnik, Croatia! I am really pumped about that! The girls and I are going to be taking a direct bus from here this coming Thursday night. The only reason we are cutting out of work a little early is because everyone is going on holiday in the office. Actually, I think there are only going to be like 2 people here in the office all next week too. But yeah so we leave at 9pm Thursday and we should get to Dubrovnik around 6am Friday morning... I know.. a 9 hr bus ride... I booked a room for us at a hostel, but it's really just someone's house that has apartment type rooms off to the side of it and that's how these people make money, off tourists like us :D Needless to say, next Thursday can't come quick enough! Then back to Denverrrrr! :DDDDDDD
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
here's a few more rafting pics!
The first pic is the 2nd raft that Bree and I jumped into, going through a rapid. The second pic is of the cliff that I jumped from into the river below! That's me right on the ledge!
what an awesome weekend
Well, one thing is for certain.. I am so glad I listened to everyone else but myself! hahaha! Rafting was so awesome! The experience was truly great! So Bree and I arrived late in Mostar and had a very low -key night with the girls, and probably one of the best pasta dinners I've had in Bosnia yet! With the busy day ahead of us we called it a night to ensure we'd get our butts out the door in time! Which is exactly what we did! Go us! We got to the hostel, which I just have to say is probably one of the most efficiently run hostels I've come across, because they are also a travel agency. Here is the link if you are at all interested in the other things they do: http://www.hostel-miturno.ba/.
So, we packed in to this huge old school van. And seriously it was hilarious... when we stopped for gas, the two guys who came with us who work at the hostel had to get out and push the van to get it to start. It felt like the scene straight out of 'Little Miss Sunshine!' It was rediculous. Needless to say I thought our driver was going to kill us.. these people in Bosnia really like to drive fast. Anyway, we made it to the site in one piece and were served brunch since it was like 11 something. Then we geared up in our wet-suits and water shoes and back in the van we went! We drove about 45 min away to our destination of rafting on the Neretva River, and met the man who was to be our guide... the few words to describe him.. mean & sexist. Apparently he we found out later that he had had a little to much Raqija (which is the local brand of liquor here that everyone drinks) and was a huuuggggeeeee jerk. He apparently felt the need to scream at us when we (and even the two guys from the hostel) weren't doing something correctly. He also felt the need to have the mindset that women are incapable of knowing how to row a boat. Well, FYI, telling 6 women from America who are the liberal, somewhat hippie's (hush Frank), and feminist types, that they are inferior to men at rowing a boat does NOT go over well... at one point he actually stopped the boat and made two of us get out because he wanted 2 more men in the boat... yeah, but excuse my french, he was an asshole. So, Bree and I decided to make life easy on everyone and we hopped out.. which was the best move because our new guide actually spoke English and so did the other two guys in the boat.
I think my absolute favorite part of the trip was when we came up to this one area that was alongside the river that had a ledge about 5 to 6 feet hanging over the river. Since my last trip to Mostar, I had wanted to cliff jump at the waterfalls, but because it had just rained I couldn't.. so here was my chance! I was sooo excited and nervous as all hell! It was hilarious because the second I turned around from Bree and headed up to climb the rocks my adrenaline kicked in and my whole bottom half of my body was shaking! It was so great! When I hit the water a huge rush of cold just hit me! (the water was freezing!.. not long before we hit this point their was a waterfall that flows into the river and that water is only 9 degrees! So it gives you a little perspective, but don't worry it was not that cold!) But the greatest thing about it was when I poked my head up out of the water and saw the rest of the IDP girls had jumped right behind me! I cheered on Bree to jump and in she went! It was such a great moment. We finished our rafting trip on the Neretva and ended up back where we ate Brunch. It was so cool, the staff their cooked us traditional Bosnian meals (which were delicious!) and it was just great!
Needless to say we were all pooped! We headed back to Mostar and just hung around the girls apartment. We called it a night pretty early and slept in on Sunday, which was nice not to have to rush. We got to see even more of Mostar the following day, because Bree and I just decided to take the 3pm bus back to Sarajevo.. which we felt like we were chancing it, but we didn't care. We ended up getting back to Tuzla at 9pm.. it was a really long trip, but it was totally worth it! It makes me want to see what water rafting in Denver is like!! Who knows, this could be my new thing! haha but seriously, it could! : D
So the first picture is the entire group that was in our rickity old bus! The second is a picture of the group on the boat *(please note the guide in the yellow backpack with the cig in his mouth..)* The third, is a picture of Autumn and I in our wet suits! The fourth, is a pic of Abbie and I when all of the groups stopped an hour in to the trip to lounge around on the 'beach.' The last is a pic of the meat that the people cooked for our traditional Bosnian meals!
So, we packed in to this huge old school van. And seriously it was hilarious... when we stopped for gas, the two guys who came with us who work at the hostel had to get out and push the van to get it to start. It felt like the scene straight out of 'Little Miss Sunshine!' It was rediculous. Needless to say I thought our driver was going to kill us.. these people in Bosnia really like to drive fast. Anyway, we made it to the site in one piece and were served brunch since it was like 11 something. Then we geared up in our wet-suits and water shoes and back in the van we went! We drove about 45 min away to our destination of rafting on the Neretva River, and met the man who was to be our guide... the few words to describe him.. mean & sexist. Apparently he we found out later that he had had a little to much Raqija (which is the local brand of liquor here that everyone drinks) and was a huuuggggeeeee jerk. He apparently felt the need to scream at us when we (and even the two guys from the hostel) weren't doing something correctly. He also felt the need to have the mindset that women are incapable of knowing how to row a boat. Well, FYI, telling 6 women from America who are the liberal, somewhat hippie's (hush Frank), and feminist types, that they are inferior to men at rowing a boat does NOT go over well... at one point he actually stopped the boat and made two of us get out because he wanted 2 more men in the boat... yeah, but excuse my french, he was an asshole. So, Bree and I decided to make life easy on everyone and we hopped out.. which was the best move because our new guide actually spoke English and so did the other two guys in the boat.
I think my absolute favorite part of the trip was when we came up to this one area that was alongside the river that had a ledge about 5 to 6 feet hanging over the river. Since my last trip to Mostar, I had wanted to cliff jump at the waterfalls, but because it had just rained I couldn't.. so here was my chance! I was sooo excited and nervous as all hell! It was hilarious because the second I turned around from Bree and headed up to climb the rocks my adrenaline kicked in and my whole bottom half of my body was shaking! It was so great! When I hit the water a huge rush of cold just hit me! (the water was freezing!.. not long before we hit this point their was a waterfall that flows into the river and that water is only 9 degrees! So it gives you a little perspective, but don't worry it was not that cold!) But the greatest thing about it was when I poked my head up out of the water and saw the rest of the IDP girls had jumped right behind me! I cheered on Bree to jump and in she went! It was such a great moment. We finished our rafting trip on the Neretva and ended up back where we ate Brunch. It was so cool, the staff their cooked us traditional Bosnian meals (which were delicious!) and it was just great!
Needless to say we were all pooped! We headed back to Mostar and just hung around the girls apartment. We called it a night pretty early and slept in on Sunday, which was nice not to have to rush. We got to see even more of Mostar the following day, because Bree and I just decided to take the 3pm bus back to Sarajevo.. which we felt like we were chancing it, but we didn't care. We ended up getting back to Tuzla at 9pm.. it was a really long trip, but it was totally worth it! It makes me want to see what water rafting in Denver is like!! Who knows, this could be my new thing! haha but seriously, it could! : D
So the first picture is the entire group that was in our rickity old bus! The second is a picture of the group on the boat *(please note the guide in the yellow backpack with the cig in his mouth..)* The third, is a picture of Autumn and I in our wet suits! The fourth, is a pic of Abbie and I when all of the groups stopped an hour in to the trip to lounge around on the 'beach.' The last is a pic of the meat that the people cooked for our traditional Bosnian meals!
Friday, July 17, 2009
well... COUNT ME IN!
hahaha! so, I'm sure you can assume from the title of this post that I have decided to travel back down towards Mostar and go rafting! I am really pumped about it! Bree and I are going to be leaving Tuzla around 2:30pm and heading down to Sarajevo, and then catching a bus from there straight to Mostar! Though it is a 6hr trip there and back, I don't even care! I just want to have fun this weekend!
I realized a few things during this whole charade, that even though I was trying to make a gracious and responsible choice in regards to my finances, I feel that I have been doing pretty well at budgeting myself (with the help of Frank and Mom of course, for realizing that). Also, I sort of lost sight of the whole 'this is once in a lifetime' kind of mentality. I think that had to do with the fact that I closely approaching my end date here in Bosnia, and maybe I was just trying to prepare myself for the 'real world' once again. Well, I'll push that task till next weekend! :D Just kidding. But seriously, I think I just need to enjoy the little bit of downtime that I have left in these next coming weekends.
I love you all! I'll update as soon as I can to let you know how the trip went! I'm sure I'll have tons of stories! :D
I realized a few things during this whole charade, that even though I was trying to make a gracious and responsible choice in regards to my finances, I feel that I have been doing pretty well at budgeting myself (with the help of Frank and Mom of course, for realizing that). Also, I sort of lost sight of the whole 'this is once in a lifetime' kind of mentality. I think that had to do with the fact that I closely approaching my end date here in Bosnia, and maybe I was just trying to prepare myself for the 'real world' once again. Well, I'll push that task till next weekend! :D Just kidding. But seriously, I think I just need to enjoy the little bit of downtime that I have left in these next coming weekends.
I love you all! I'll update as soon as I can to let you know how the trip went! I'm sure I'll have tons of stories! :D
Thursday, July 16, 2009
attempting to be responsible with my $ in a foriegn country
Jessie! (that's another greeting that I've learned)
So.. I'm in a pickle folks. I received an email from one of my fellow IDPer's that a bunch of members of the BiH stationers are going to be taking a rafting trip this Saturday!! My predicament is more internal than anything, but its a frustrating situation nonetheless! The ladies who are organizing these festivities are my lovely Mostar girls, who I visited to ring in the 4th abroad. It looks as though this water rafting trip will be about 90km, which is about $65 in the US, which really is a good deal, because it includes transportation to and from the site from Mostar, breakfast and lunch, the equipment, rafting for 3-4 hrs, and pictures of the days events on a cd! The only thing is that i'm going to be spending a lot of money, just to go rafting (which fyi, I have never done before!) I guess the question I'm asking myself is, is it worth all the money?? One side says, YES IT TOTALLY IS! : You are doing something you have never had the opportunity to do before, you are going to be with your friends, you are getting the hell out of Tuzla, it will be a blast, and the weather is supposed to be relatively good. The other side of me says WELL I'M NOT SO SURRREEE... : you are spending a lot of money in one weekend (nothing I haven't already done though!) what if you get there and the weather turns out to be crappy (well, I guess I save 90km then & I'll get to see more of Mostar!, it's a lot of money that you may need when you get home.. (ok, fine, this is true..)
So, you see?? I can't seem to make a decision!! I have 3 weeks left here and one more trip I am taking to Dubrovnik, Croatia on 7/31 (which is 2 weeks away! but I have $$ put aside for that) I just want to be responsible, but I am about to throw all to the wind and say 'COUNT ME IN!' Well.. we'll see, I have to make my decision in a couple of hours....
So.. I'm in a pickle folks. I received an email from one of my fellow IDPer's that a bunch of members of the BiH stationers are going to be taking a rafting trip this Saturday!! My predicament is more internal than anything, but its a frustrating situation nonetheless! The ladies who are organizing these festivities are my lovely Mostar girls, who I visited to ring in the 4th abroad. It looks as though this water rafting trip will be about 90km, which is about $65 in the US, which really is a good deal, because it includes transportation to and from the site from Mostar, breakfast and lunch, the equipment, rafting for 3-4 hrs, and pictures of the days events on a cd! The only thing is that i'm going to be spending a lot of money, just to go rafting (which fyi, I have never done before!) I guess the question I'm asking myself is, is it worth all the money?? One side says, YES IT TOTALLY IS! : You are doing something you have never had the opportunity to do before, you are going to be with your friends, you are getting the hell out of Tuzla, it will be a blast, and the weather is supposed to be relatively good. The other side of me says WELL I'M NOT SO SURRREEE... : you are spending a lot of money in one weekend (nothing I haven't already done though!) what if you get there and the weather turns out to be crappy (well, I guess I save 90km then & I'll get to see more of Mostar!, it's a lot of money that you may need when you get home.. (ok, fine, this is true..)
So, you see?? I can't seem to make a decision!! I have 3 weeks left here and one more trip I am taking to Dubrovnik, Croatia on 7/31 (which is 2 weeks away! but I have $$ put aside for that) I just want to be responsible, but I am about to throw all to the wind and say 'COUNT ME IN!' Well.. we'll see, I have to make my decision in a couple of hours....
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
& the music plays on...
So it is the beginning of week 6. Only two and a half more to go. And I can't wait. Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed my time here, but I'm done; I'm ready to go... but since I have nothing else going on at the moment, I will update you on this past week..
Thursday, Alma, Amir, Christina, and I traveled to the municipality of Milići and we got to see some more CRP/ Red Cross trainings being conducted at the local health center there. It was good to see, and there was a completely different dynamic at this one than we had seen in Srebrenica. We interviewed 6 people, getting their perspective on the trainings and what not. It looks like Christina and I will be giving a presentation to the rest of the staff, explaining to them the details of our interviews and what not. I think that may be happening in 2 weeks, since most of the staff will be gone that last week of July because they are all going on holiday.
Then Thursday night Amir's band was playing at Club Privilege at Hotel Tuzla. It was a great time! We got to hang out with a lot of the CRP & Mercy Corps staff and it was nice to see them outside of work. Amir's band was awesome! It was great sounding music, even though I hadn't a clue to what the lyrics meant since it was all in Bosnian (hahaha) but it was a great time. And since we were supposed to be going to Srebrenica on Saturday, Alma decided that we should just take Friday off, because 'it's going to be a very draining experience', she said. So that is percisely what we did. And I took full advantage of the R&R and dragged my tush out of bed early on Friday and went to the salt lakes, solo. I got to work on my tan and enjoyed the time by myself, getting to 'people-watch' everyone in Tuzla who joined me at the salt lakes.
Unfortunately, our trip to Srebrenica on Saturday was canceled. It was pouring rain and my supervisor at the hospital, Dr. Esmina, didn't want to travel in such conditions. Also because we would have had to be walking in the mud and what not. So, needless to say I went back to bed after having gotten up at 6am, and proceeded to have a lazy Saturday. Me and the other girls just hung around for a bit and watch movies on the tv and then Bree and I decided to venture out into the rainy day for some retail therapy (which was very much needed). It was nice, we strolled into the center of town and had pizza for lunch, then we went and had traditional Bosnian coffee, and then treated ourselves to some ice cream for the walk home. All in all it was a pretty good day, aside from the rain.
Sunday strolled around and Bree and I went to the salt lakes to just sit by the lake and enjoy the relaxing sunday, like sunday's are supposed to be. We were invited by some of my coworkers to attend a bbq at another coworker, Sabina's house, so we were really looking forward to that. However, I guess bbq's here don't start at the normal time of 1 or 2pm but instead at like 10:30am! Bree and I had just arrived at the Salt Lakes when we got a call saying that our ride would be coming to get us in 20 minutes! Needless to say we canned that idea and told the group we would just take a cab... which we did... which was 20 KM, but it was totally worth it! I had a great time hanging with all of my coworkers and just sitting on the porch drinking beers and relaxing. Especially, because we got to play some volley ball! haha! And Eddin, one of the guys who works in CRP cooked dinner for us all and it was soo delicious! Bree and I ended up getting back to the apartment a little after 9pm, and we both had work the following day, so we were pretty exhausted.
So, as you can see, I am having a really great time. I think part of 'the debbie-downer' in me is that I am just sort of over it, if that makes sense to anyone. However, I can imagine it doesn't to some, because I can totally sit on the other side of my argument and say 'why the hell are you complaining?' But truth be told, it's all just monotonous a lot of the time and it's getting old. The work I'm doing is interesting, but it doesn't make it feel any less like busy work, sometimes. I mean, yea is having mundane work part of, well, work? Yes. But, I don't know.. I think 8 weeks is just a bit too long...
Thursday, Alma, Amir, Christina, and I traveled to the municipality of Milići and we got to see some more CRP/ Red Cross trainings being conducted at the local health center there. It was good to see, and there was a completely different dynamic at this one than we had seen in Srebrenica. We interviewed 6 people, getting their perspective on the trainings and what not. It looks like Christina and I will be giving a presentation to the rest of the staff, explaining to them the details of our interviews and what not. I think that may be happening in 2 weeks, since most of the staff will be gone that last week of July because they are all going on holiday.
Then Thursday night Amir's band was playing at Club Privilege at Hotel Tuzla. It was a great time! We got to hang out with a lot of the CRP & Mercy Corps staff and it was nice to see them outside of work. Amir's band was awesome! It was great sounding music, even though I hadn't a clue to what the lyrics meant since it was all in Bosnian (hahaha) but it was a great time. And since we were supposed to be going to Srebrenica on Saturday, Alma decided that we should just take Friday off, because 'it's going to be a very draining experience', she said. So that is percisely what we did. And I took full advantage of the R&R and dragged my tush out of bed early on Friday and went to the salt lakes, solo. I got to work on my tan and enjoyed the time by myself, getting to 'people-watch' everyone in Tuzla who joined me at the salt lakes.
Unfortunately, our trip to Srebrenica on Saturday was canceled. It was pouring rain and my supervisor at the hospital, Dr. Esmina, didn't want to travel in such conditions. Also because we would have had to be walking in the mud and what not. So, needless to say I went back to bed after having gotten up at 6am, and proceeded to have a lazy Saturday. Me and the other girls just hung around for a bit and watch movies on the tv and then Bree and I decided to venture out into the rainy day for some retail therapy (which was very much needed). It was nice, we strolled into the center of town and had pizza for lunch, then we went and had traditional Bosnian coffee, and then treated ourselves to some ice cream for the walk home. All in all it was a pretty good day, aside from the rain.
Sunday strolled around and Bree and I went to the salt lakes to just sit by the lake and enjoy the relaxing sunday, like sunday's are supposed to be. We were invited by some of my coworkers to attend a bbq at another coworker, Sabina's house, so we were really looking forward to that. However, I guess bbq's here don't start at the normal time of 1 or 2pm but instead at like 10:30am! Bree and I had just arrived at the Salt Lakes when we got a call saying that our ride would be coming to get us in 20 minutes! Needless to say we canned that idea and told the group we would just take a cab... which we did... which was 20 KM, but it was totally worth it! I had a great time hanging with all of my coworkers and just sitting on the porch drinking beers and relaxing. Especially, because we got to play some volley ball! haha! And Eddin, one of the guys who works in CRP cooked dinner for us all and it was soo delicious! Bree and I ended up getting back to the apartment a little after 9pm, and we both had work the following day, so we were pretty exhausted.
So, as you can see, I am having a really great time. I think part of 'the debbie-downer' in me is that I am just sort of over it, if that makes sense to anyone. However, I can imagine it doesn't to some, because I can totally sit on the other side of my argument and say 'why the hell are you complaining?' But truth be told, it's all just monotonous a lot of the time and it's getting old. The work I'm doing is interesting, but it doesn't make it feel any less like busy work, sometimes. I mean, yea is having mundane work part of, well, work? Yes. But, I don't know.. I think 8 weeks is just a bit too long...
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
More pics!
#1 this is the old guy on the bus back from Sarajevo a couple of weeks ago.. yeah you know.. how for the 1st 10 minutes I thought "aww," then the next "eww gross, get off of me..." thank Christina for the documentation...hahahhaha
#2 Some of the girls hangin out in Mostar!
#3 The Stari Most bridge
finally! some visual!
Ok, so the 1st is Bree, Christina, and me, after we just finished having a delicious and authentic Chinese food meal!
2nd- is the front entrance to the health center in Srebrenica..where the hold the re-certification trainings for the volunteers in the surrounding villages. The nearest hospital is 1 hour away....
3rd- That's me sitting on the overlook when we went to see the Kula Grad Castle ruins in Zvornik, Bosnia. The river separates Serbia (on the right) and Bosnia (on the left).
4th- Christina and I posing in the window over looking the landscape and river at the castle.
p.s.
ok, so real quick, this is more for my dad... but I had espresso! Me! I know! And I actually enjoyed it. I didn't just have it once either! I had it 2x throughout the day on Sunday!! hahaha ok
Love you all!!
Love you all!!
Stari Most
What a weekend! Seriously.. I think I did more in this entire past weekend than I have in a really long time! Crazyness! So Bree and I caught a bus out of Tuzla this past Friday... holy jesus.. it took us 6 hrs to get to Mostar. And yes, that is the actual travel time. It took 3 hrs to get to Sarajevo, then we hopped on a bus after meeting up with Miss Emily and then it was just under 3 hrs to Mostar from there. But, it was totally worth it! We had such a blast!
As soon as we got there, we all got ready and headed out to this restaurant to have pizza. And I know what you're wondering.. it actually wasn't served with ketchup. However, if I am recalling correctly, I feel as though we were asked if it was wanted. After dinner we headed to the old town of Mostar and went to this bar/club called Ali-Baba. It was IN A CAVE!!!!!!!! How sweet is that!?! We didn't stay very long since it was packed with people, but long enough to have an awesome time! Also we had to get up super early the next morning. The reason, you ask.. well, one of the girls who resides in Mostar that is in my program booked a touristy type of thing for all of us through this local hostel. It was sooo cool! We had to be there by 9am and 3 tour guides took us in separate cars to all of these destinations surrounding the city of Mostar. It was beautiful.
The first place we went to was in a town called Blagaj. It had this fortress right near the river (seriously, the river flowed right outside the house!. A former Duke who once ruled Herzegovina had ordered that a Dervish Monastery be build at the source of the Buna River, which is where we were. Since we were entering a place of worship, all of the girls in the group had to wear head wraps and long skirts. It was so interesting to have to do something like that... it gave me a very very small understanding of the culture. The architecture of the house was beautiful. It had obviously been restored, but apparently was from the 16th century!Can you believe that??! From there we headed towards a famous town called Počitelj, where there were ancient ruins and a huge fortress that stood up a hill. It was quite a work out climbing all of the stairs that were once there. The mosque that sits midway on the hill had been destroyed during the war and recently restored. At the entrance of the mosque and to the side of it, they had some of the original stone work that was salvaged from the wreck. Unfortunately, we (meaning the girls) couldn't enter because we didn't have any head scarves. So we climbed to the top and were walking around the once upon a time fortress and there was such a beautiful view at the top....then... my camera died. what the hell?? ugh such unfortunate luck! anyway, it was somewhat good, because since I no longer had anything to take pictures with it made me realize that walking through neck-high grass may not be the best of ideas. Then the crazy person in me kicked in, and I was convinced I was going to have a tick on me.... I didn't though, so we're 'A-OK' in that department!
From there, we headed to Međigorje, which is somewhere I really wanted to go, and it just so happened that the tour was leading up to that destination. So I first heard of Međigorje through my Bosnia & Herzegovina book that I bought.. the story goes, that back in the 80's a couple of teenagers were up on the hill and the blessed mother appeared and spoke to them. No one at first believed these teens, but a priest did. Since that day, the little town of Međigorje has become the second largest pilgrimage site for Catholics.. apparently.. I had no idea. Nonetheless, it was really neat to see and witness. I went into the church that was there.. there was a mass going on, so I just decided to stay in the vestibule and a listen a bit. then I lit and candle and was on my way. Unfortunately, we weren't able to actually go up on the hill where the apparition was seen (I call it that because that's the actual name of the hill, Apparition Hill) because it is a 3hr hike one way to get up there. But they had the statue of Mary outside the church for those who are unable to trek all the way up. The also had this huge statue of Christ symbolizing his crucifixion, and water came out of his knees and there were a lot of people there collecting the water to bring it into the church to be blessed. There were some people there holding Jesus and praying. It was intense.
While we ate lunch, it unfortunately began to rain.. but it was just like the 4th of July spirit to do such a thing. And I don't care if I was in another country, I was celebrating July 4th damn it. So I continued to enjoy my American inspired meal of a hamburger and french fries, accompanied with a delicious beer. hahahha. Our next stop was supposed to be Kravice Waterfalls... but the tour guides were hoping that if we waited a bit it would the storm clouds would pass. So we stopped at this new Ethno Village, which was sort of weird and yet interesting at the same time. It was basically this resort type of place.. but I kind of felt like I was walking around on a compound, and was expecting to be asked to join some sort of freakish cult at any moment. And our tour guides prompted us to go here because there would be free wine.... they lied.
So we left that joint and headed to the falls. I was determined to jump off a cliff. However, I really didn't feel like breaking my leg, or you know, possibly my neck.. so I opted out of jumping off the slippery rocks and decided that I didn't travel 6hrs one way to just see these waterfalls... I was damn well going to jump in. It's once in a lifetime, right? So I did! IT WAS FREEZING! Neil, Abbie's friend who was visiting her jumped in too & then I talked Abbie in to doing it as well, by telling her I'd jump back in and quickly get out! That was a blast! Really cold, but totally worth it.
We were all pretty freakin tired from the days events so we headed back to the apartment and got ready to go to dinner.... 4 hrs later and we were out the door *(well, what do you expect with 7 girls, 1 guy, and 1 bathroom??)* Dinner was pretty freakin awesome. We had Italian at this little place and then we decided that we wanted to hit the Mostar scene once again... but after a very filling dinner and just from being tired we decided to have one drink and hit the road.
The next morning we woke up early because Bree and I had to catch an 11am bus back to Sarajevo. So we wanted to go have coffee and see more of Mostar and the Old Town. While having coffee, the girls totally talked us into staying until 3pm! Which we were really excited about... however, we decided against it after we found out that the last bus leaving Sarajevo for Tuzla left at 6pm and that only gave us a half hour to play with. Could you imagine if we had missed the last bus out of Sarajevo to come back! That would have sucked.
So to make my extremely already long story short (hush Mom, I have huge blisters on the bottoms of my feet from walking in my sandals but it was totally worth it!
As soon as we got there, we all got ready and headed out to this restaurant to have pizza. And I know what you're wondering.. it actually wasn't served with ketchup. However, if I am recalling correctly, I feel as though we were asked if it was wanted. After dinner we headed to the old town of Mostar and went to this bar/club called Ali-Baba. It was IN A CAVE!!!!!!!! How sweet is that!?! We didn't stay very long since it was packed with people, but long enough to have an awesome time! Also we had to get up super early the next morning. The reason, you ask.. well, one of the girls who resides in Mostar that is in my program booked a touristy type of thing for all of us through this local hostel. It was sooo cool! We had to be there by 9am and 3 tour guides took us in separate cars to all of these destinations surrounding the city of Mostar. It was beautiful.
The first place we went to was in a town called Blagaj. It had this fortress right near the river (seriously, the river flowed right outside the house!. A former Duke who once ruled Herzegovina had ordered that a Dervish Monastery be build at the source of the Buna River, which is where we were. Since we were entering a place of worship, all of the girls in the group had to wear head wraps and long skirts. It was so interesting to have to do something like that... it gave me a very very small understanding of the culture. The architecture of the house was beautiful. It had obviously been restored, but apparently was from the 16th century!Can you believe that??! From there we headed towards a famous town called Počitelj, where there were ancient ruins and a huge fortress that stood up a hill. It was quite a work out climbing all of the stairs that were once there. The mosque that sits midway on the hill had been destroyed during the war and recently restored. At the entrance of the mosque and to the side of it, they had some of the original stone work that was salvaged from the wreck. Unfortunately, we (meaning the girls) couldn't enter because we didn't have any head scarves. So we climbed to the top and were walking around the once upon a time fortress and there was such a beautiful view at the top....then... my camera died. what the hell?? ugh such unfortunate luck! anyway, it was somewhat good, because since I no longer had anything to take pictures with it made me realize that walking through neck-high grass may not be the best of ideas. Then the crazy person in me kicked in, and I was convinced I was going to have a tick on me.... I didn't though, so we're 'A-OK' in that department!
From there, we headed to Međigorje, which is somewhere I really wanted to go, and it just so happened that the tour was leading up to that destination. So I first heard of Međigorje through my Bosnia & Herzegovina book that I bought.. the story goes, that back in the 80's a couple of teenagers were up on the hill and the blessed mother appeared and spoke to them. No one at first believed these teens, but a priest did. Since that day, the little town of Međigorje has become the second largest pilgrimage site for Catholics.. apparently.. I had no idea. Nonetheless, it was really neat to see and witness. I went into the church that was there.. there was a mass going on, so I just decided to stay in the vestibule and a listen a bit. then I lit and candle and was on my way. Unfortunately, we weren't able to actually go up on the hill where the apparition was seen (I call it that because that's the actual name of the hill, Apparition Hill) because it is a 3hr hike one way to get up there. But they had the statue of Mary outside the church for those who are unable to trek all the way up. The also had this huge statue of Christ symbolizing his crucifixion, and water came out of his knees and there were a lot of people there collecting the water to bring it into the church to be blessed. There were some people there holding Jesus and praying. It was intense.
While we ate lunch, it unfortunately began to rain.. but it was just like the 4th of July spirit to do such a thing. And I don't care if I was in another country, I was celebrating July 4th damn it. So I continued to enjoy my American inspired meal of a hamburger and french fries, accompanied with a delicious beer. hahahha. Our next stop was supposed to be Kravice Waterfalls... but the tour guides were hoping that if we waited a bit it would the storm clouds would pass. So we stopped at this new Ethno Village, which was sort of weird and yet interesting at the same time. It was basically this resort type of place.. but I kind of felt like I was walking around on a compound, and was expecting to be asked to join some sort of freakish cult at any moment. And our tour guides prompted us to go here because there would be free wine.... they lied.
So we left that joint and headed to the falls. I was determined to jump off a cliff. However, I really didn't feel like breaking my leg, or you know, possibly my neck.. so I opted out of jumping off the slippery rocks and decided that I didn't travel 6hrs one way to just see these waterfalls... I was damn well going to jump in. It's once in a lifetime, right? So I did! IT WAS FREEZING! Neil, Abbie's friend who was visiting her jumped in too & then I talked Abbie in to doing it as well, by telling her I'd jump back in and quickly get out! That was a blast! Really cold, but totally worth it.
We were all pretty freakin tired from the days events so we headed back to the apartment and got ready to go to dinner.... 4 hrs later and we were out the door *(well, what do you expect with 7 girls, 1 guy, and 1 bathroom??)* Dinner was pretty freakin awesome. We had Italian at this little place and then we decided that we wanted to hit the Mostar scene once again... but after a very filling dinner and just from being tired we decided to have one drink and hit the road.
The next morning we woke up early because Bree and I had to catch an 11am bus back to Sarajevo. So we wanted to go have coffee and see more of Mostar and the Old Town. While having coffee, the girls totally talked us into staying until 3pm! Which we were really excited about... however, we decided against it after we found out that the last bus leaving Sarajevo for Tuzla left at 6pm and that only gave us a half hour to play with. Could you imagine if we had missed the last bus out of Sarajevo to come back! That would have sucked.
So to make my extremely already long story short (hush Mom, I have huge blisters on the bottoms of my feet from walking in my sandals but it was totally worth it!
Friday, July 3, 2009
apparently, i'm turning over a new leaf...
Yesterday we headed back to Srebrenica to observe more of the re-certification trainings for the volunteers in the surrounding villages. BBBUTTTT before we got there, we took a little detour to Castle ruins, and the castle was built somewhere near 500 years ago!!! It isn't exactly a touristy site, i.e. there were NOOO people there; so it was just 'Uncle Mira' (as we have now adopted this name for Amir), Alma, Christina, and me. It was really awesome! There were these lookouts that looked over the river that separates Bosnia from Serbia! It was fantastic! And even though the castle was in ruins... we went inside & took pics of it! It was really one of the coolest things I've done! And as most of you already know, I am a huge nerd that loves history stuff like this, so I was truly thrilled!
After that we headed to hammer out our duties. Christina and I met with the director of the local health center in Srebrenica, to talk to her about the program and just get some info from her. So that was pretty interesting. Then after that us ladies were heading towards the room where the trainings were going on.... but I just couldn't go back in there. Seriously... it smelled so terrible, I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. And I was not the only one thinking this. We smelled this same thing the day before, and I just couldn't do it again. It was a cross between the most god-awful B.O you have ever smelt and a sweaty, musty, old sock. >YUCK< So instead of going back in the room to just observe, Christina and I took the opportunity to talk to Alma more about the war. And I have to just say that I am so grateful for having Alma as a supervisor. She has been so willing to teach us about what has happened here and share all of the experiences she has endured. I specifically wanted to talk to her about how the war broke out in Tuzla, because apparently it happened in the intersection right outside our building... and she told us the whole story... me being a very visual person, and with Alma's descriptive discussion, I have many images playing over in my head of what was experienced here...
Once our observation time was completed, we headed in to the center of Srebrenica to go to a local restaurant to meet up with one of their colleagues, whom we had met the day prior. While there, I decided to buck up and try some coffee!!! And this wasn't just any ordinary coffee either... it's authentic Bosnian coffee, but it's authenticity actually comes from Turkey, it being Turkish coffee and all. But there's a whole way that it is made and everything. It came out on this copper plate and there was my little cup that looked like it was for an espresso; and then there was this beautifully designed copper cup that looked like it was the size of a double shot glass,which was holding the coffee, and it had a beautiful handle jetting out from the top of it. There were two sugar cubes in my espresso-like cup. Alma instructed me to do it the 'proper' way, which was to take both of the cubes and one by one put them in the copper coffee holder and stir. Then she told me to just pour it into my little cup and drink... but to be careful not to drink the grinds. But when someone tells me not to do something, I became curious so I did it anyway. It wasn't terrible because I knew to make sure to only have a bit, but I wanted to try it, hahaha. That's the stubbornness in me : ) Needless to say, it was really really really good! Seriously, I think Turkish coffee is like me new favorite thing!! hahaha! But seriously!
Then the rest of my day just tapered off and we got home and relaxed. I did go for a walk into town with Bree and did a little bit of shopping for myself! haha :) I found an adorable top that I have been eye-ing for a week now, and then I found a cute dress too! And seeing as my clothes are still drying from when I had to re-wash them because they didn't dry fast enough the first time and the mildewy smell set in.. the shopping was needed!
Well friends, off to Mostar for me this evening! I am super pumped about it! I will be sure to update the blog asap. And again sorry about the pics... facebook apparently hates me or something. hahaha I love you all!!
Cao Cao
After that we headed to hammer out our duties. Christina and I met with the director of the local health center in Srebrenica, to talk to her about the program and just get some info from her. So that was pretty interesting. Then after that us ladies were heading towards the room where the trainings were going on.... but I just couldn't go back in there. Seriously... it smelled so terrible, I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. And I was not the only one thinking this. We smelled this same thing the day before, and I just couldn't do it again. It was a cross between the most god-awful B.O you have ever smelt and a sweaty, musty, old sock. >YUCK< So instead of going back in the room to just observe, Christina and I took the opportunity to talk to Alma more about the war. And I have to just say that I am so grateful for having Alma as a supervisor. She has been so willing to teach us about what has happened here and share all of the experiences she has endured. I specifically wanted to talk to her about how the war broke out in Tuzla, because apparently it happened in the intersection right outside our building... and she told us the whole story... me being a very visual person, and with Alma's descriptive discussion, I have many images playing over in my head of what was experienced here...
Once our observation time was completed, we headed in to the center of Srebrenica to go to a local restaurant to meet up with one of their colleagues, whom we had met the day prior. While there, I decided to buck up and try some coffee!!! And this wasn't just any ordinary coffee either... it's authentic Bosnian coffee, but it's authenticity actually comes from Turkey, it being Turkish coffee and all. But there's a whole way that it is made and everything. It came out on this copper plate and there was my little cup that looked like it was for an espresso; and then there was this beautifully designed copper cup that looked like it was the size of a double shot glass,which was holding the coffee, and it had a beautiful handle jetting out from the top of it. There were two sugar cubes in my espresso-like cup. Alma instructed me to do it the 'proper' way, which was to take both of the cubes and one by one put them in the copper coffee holder and stir. Then she told me to just pour it into my little cup and drink... but to be careful not to drink the grinds. But when someone tells me not to do something, I became curious so I did it anyway. It wasn't terrible because I knew to make sure to only have a bit, but I wanted to try it, hahaha. That's the stubbornness in me : ) Needless to say, it was really really really good! Seriously, I think Turkish coffee is like me new favorite thing!! hahaha! But seriously!
Then the rest of my day just tapered off and we got home and relaxed. I did go for a walk into town with Bree and did a little bit of shopping for myself! haha :) I found an adorable top that I have been eye-ing for a week now, and then I found a cute dress too! And seeing as my clothes are still drying from when I had to re-wash them because they didn't dry fast enough the first time and the mildewy smell set in.. the shopping was needed!
Well friends, off to Mostar for me this evening! I am super pumped about it! I will be sure to update the blog asap. And again sorry about the pics... facebook apparently hates me or something. hahaha I love you all!!
Cao Cao
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
& the work unfolds.
So this week seems to be flying by... week 4 almost completed. Work has been moving at a steady pace as of late. I seem to have gotten all of the details finely tuned within all of my projects, so I am on the grind with those.
As you know, Monday was my interesting experience with the dog pack.. haha, once we actually got to work, however, it seemed to go by quickly. That's probably because I was only there for an hour. After the first small group session, Christina and I were invited to go to one of the staff members(whom we have never met) ceremony where she defended her dissertation for her master's degree. It was very interesting to see how they handle their 'graduation process' from their programs here; even how they defend their dissertations. Though the entire thing was in Bosnian and I hadn't a clue what was really going on, I sill was grateful for the experience. We also had one of the staff from the hospital, Sandra, translate some of what was being said and what the dissertation was on, and all of that jazz.
Tuesday, I seemed to have had a fire lit under my tush because I was getting a lot of stuff complete for my one project. Though it is still in the beginning stages, I feel like I was able to outline a lot of what I want to get accomplish. This project (the motivating high school kids to go to college) has been pretty interesting. I am developing workshops that will hopefully be utilized in the local high schools. These workshops are designed to allow these kids to feel more confident in what they are doing; i.e. how to write a good resume, knowing the ins and outs of the entrance requirements for the universities here, how to write a personal statement, how to conduct a good interview, etc. I'm really hoping that if I get thorough information that these just may really be used.. that would be cool. So that's what I am working on there.
As far as the other project goes (the one regarding returnees to the remote villages, and their volunteering to be the 'first-responders' within their communities etc), Christina and I traveled to Srebrenica yesterday to sit in on a re-certification training that is conducted for the volunteers who started the program back in 2004 and 2006. It's a long drive out there.. about a 2 hour drive.. but it was cool, because before we went to the training, we met up with one of the nurses who trains the volunteers. He used to be in the Yugoslav army and now works and trains the returnees. We were able to interview him and ask him some questions regarding his perspectives and experiences regarding his experiences. I was grateful to get to speak to him, just to get some knowledge first hand. Then we arrived at the local medical center that is in the village.. seriously.. I will post pics when I can, but if you saw this center.. you would be shocked. But, while we were at the center observing the trainings, we were able to interview one of the gentlemen who was receiving the training, and it was great to get his perspective. So when all was said and done, we had two sides to compare. Just to remind you, my objective for this program is to prove its sustainability within the community. So through these very informal interviews, Christina and I have decided to come up with more formal interview questions in order to do just that.. but that is going to have to hashed out within the coming weeks. We are going back to Srebrenica today to bear witness to another group of volunteers receiving their follow-up training. Most likely again, we will be interviewing a couple of them.
As far as the weekend goes, my plans to celebrate the 4th of July in a foreign country are as follows: Bree and I are heading down to Mostar, which is located in the southern region, and actually considered to be a part of Herzegovina. I am really pumped about this, because we are apparently taking a tour around the surrounding villages on Saturday and we are going to get to see waterfalls! I am really excited! I am also just excited to get out of Tuzla again. And it looks like there will be a couple of the girls from the program, so we will all be ringing in the 4th together & with a bang no less!!! I have gotten almost all of my pics up on facebook... so as soon as I do, I will be able to put them up on here. Sorry for the delay.
Cao!
As you know, Monday was my interesting experience with the dog pack.. haha, once we actually got to work, however, it seemed to go by quickly. That's probably because I was only there for an hour. After the first small group session, Christina and I were invited to go to one of the staff members(whom we have never met) ceremony where she defended her dissertation for her master's degree. It was very interesting to see how they handle their 'graduation process' from their programs here; even how they defend their dissertations. Though the entire thing was in Bosnian and I hadn't a clue what was really going on, I sill was grateful for the experience. We also had one of the staff from the hospital, Sandra, translate some of what was being said and what the dissertation was on, and all of that jazz.
Tuesday, I seemed to have had a fire lit under my tush because I was getting a lot of stuff complete for my one project. Though it is still in the beginning stages, I feel like I was able to outline a lot of what I want to get accomplish. This project (the motivating high school kids to go to college) has been pretty interesting. I am developing workshops that will hopefully be utilized in the local high schools. These workshops are designed to allow these kids to feel more confident in what they are doing; i.e. how to write a good resume, knowing the ins and outs of the entrance requirements for the universities here, how to write a personal statement, how to conduct a good interview, etc. I'm really hoping that if I get thorough information that these just may really be used.. that would be cool. So that's what I am working on there.
As far as the other project goes (the one regarding returnees to the remote villages, and their volunteering to be the 'first-responders' within their communities etc), Christina and I traveled to Srebrenica yesterday to sit in on a re-certification training that is conducted for the volunteers who started the program back in 2004 and 2006. It's a long drive out there.. about a 2 hour drive.. but it was cool, because before we went to the training, we met up with one of the nurses who trains the volunteers. He used to be in the Yugoslav army and now works and trains the returnees. We were able to interview him and ask him some questions regarding his perspectives and experiences regarding his experiences. I was grateful to get to speak to him, just to get some knowledge first hand. Then we arrived at the local medical center that is in the village.. seriously.. I will post pics when I can, but if you saw this center.. you would be shocked. But, while we were at the center observing the trainings, we were able to interview one of the gentlemen who was receiving the training, and it was great to get his perspective. So when all was said and done, we had two sides to compare. Just to remind you, my objective for this program is to prove its sustainability within the community. So through these very informal interviews, Christina and I have decided to come up with more formal interview questions in order to do just that.. but that is going to have to hashed out within the coming weeks. We are going back to Srebrenica today to bear witness to another group of volunteers receiving their follow-up training. Most likely again, we will be interviewing a couple of them.
As far as the weekend goes, my plans to celebrate the 4th of July in a foreign country are as follows: Bree and I are heading down to Mostar, which is located in the southern region, and actually considered to be a part of Herzegovina. I am really pumped about this, because we are apparently taking a tour around the surrounding villages on Saturday and we are going to get to see waterfalls! I am really excited! I am also just excited to get out of Tuzla again. And it looks like there will be a couple of the girls from the program, so we will all be ringing in the 4th together & with a bang no less!!! I have gotten almost all of my pics up on facebook... so as soon as I do, I will be able to put them up on here. Sorry for the delay.
Cao!
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