Orgasmic Chocolate

Now I have always been a huge fan of chocolate and I have had my fair share of fantastic chocolate dishes, however, I have just had an experience which may top them all (may). My experience was that of "Chocolate con Churros". Some of my new friends at the hostel were going to a Chocolateria that this guy´s friend had recommended as the best one in Madrid so I went with them because I love chocolate and churros are pretty good as well, so chocolate con churros sounded great. :)

Chocolate con Churros is drinkable chocolate with fried pastries (they are long and thin, kind of like straws, and are quite tasty). It was heavenly! I actually almost didn´t finish mine because it was so rich (if you can believe it). But, since it was so darn good and I can´t rationalize leaving something so yummy behind, I did finish my portion. Next time I will be sure to split it with someone else instead of having my own. I have to remember the name of this Chocolateria, because the next time I am in Madrid I will definitely be visiting. It is called "Chocolateria San Gines" and it is just off of the Plaza Major. When you go to Madrid, you have to go there. Bring a friend so you can actually finish your chocolate con churros...and go hungry because they fill you up surprisingly quickly.

Besides my orgasmic experience with chocolate, I also went to see the Van Gogh exhibit at one of the museums. It was great. I really like Van Gogh´s work and it was nice to see pieces that you don´t normally see or hear about. The exhibit was of his last scenes which he painted in the last couple of weeks of his life. Apparently, he painted around 70 pieces in the last weeks of his life, which is truly incredible. The exhibit was beautiful and I am really glad that I sucked it up and paid the $5 to see it. It was better than the Museo del Prado for free. :)

Winding Down

I now have a little over a week left before I head back to the US. It is a little odd. This summer has been great and full of new experiences and I don't want it to end because that means I have to go back to the routine of school and work. However, I have had enough traveling for awhile...at least in the sense of having to change beds every other night. I'm ready to sleep in a decent bed with good pillows for an extended period of time. I also want a Mountain Dew, but that's not that big of a deal. :)

Madrid is fantastic. I can see myself living here (after I brush up on my terrible Spanish). Savina and I went Salsa dancing Saturday night, which was a blast. We were out far too late though and wanted to get up early Sunday so we could get to the Museo del Prado before Savi had to meet a family friend. (Sundays are free at the Museo del Prado...good deal.) So I ended up running on maybe four hours of sleep Sunday...very interesting. Surprisingly enough, I made it through the day without killing anyone or even being really snippy with anyone and didn't even take a nap. Today, however, I was exhausted. We went to Toledo and walked around all day in the heat...ugh. I am a bit confused, too. When I was last in Spain I went to Toledo as well and I could have sworn that Toledo was the city in which I saw the Roman aqueducts. There were no aqueducts that we saw today. I may have to do a bit of research on this, because it is really bothering me. I think I may be going crazy...wait, too late for that, nevermind.

Anyway, we got some good, cheap sangria and Paella for dinner when we got back. It was wonderful. Then Savi and I split up...she is staying with a family friend until she leaves Wednesday and I have booked a bed in my hostel for another two nights. I fly to Manchester on Wednesday. It will be a lot of fun seeing Emilee again. I am going to have to ask her about Pimlico's final graduation because I think she went...those should be some interesting stories! Now I'm going to bed...I am beat.

España

Yay! I have an ¨ñ¨button on my keyboard...too cool. Anywho, I am now in beautiful Spain, in Valencia to be precise. I flew into Valencia, ran all over to find a cheap ferry and ferried it to Mallorca where I met Savi. Mallorca is very pretty, but it was nearly impossible to find a cheap place to stay. We spent the majority of Monday riding the bus up and down the coast in our search for a room for me. Why is it so difficult to give correct directions to the hotel you work at? Is it necessary to send potential guests to the wrong city? I don´t get it...maybe it´s an island thing.

I did finally find a somewhat inexpensive place which was really old and neat, with a ton of character. Unfortunately, I chose to stay the two nights in the summer when it rained (it ¨never¨rains in the summer) and I got a free shower in bed my first night. Now, I know about breakfast in bed and I think that is a pretty cool thing, but a shower in bed is a new one for me. Tuesday morning I woke, not to steaming coffee and french toast, but to water dripping on my head. I moved, thinking I could avoid the one leak, but to no avail as multiple leaks sprouted up all around and over my bed. The last couple of hours of my night´s sleep were spent on a hundred-year-old loveseat in the parlor room of the Pon Resadencia. Good times. I was able to receive a discount because of this surprise morning waterfall and got a new room. Apparently they don´t use my first room in the winter because of the bed showers, but it doesn´t rain in the summer, so I should have been fine. Silly me. Maybe I was just too smelly.

Savi and I are now in Valencia and are headed to Madrid tomorrow morning. We´ll be in Madrid for about 5 nights and then I will be off to Manchester to visit Miss Rauschenberger (AKA Emilee). Good times. I can´t wait for tapas!

Italy

I am now in Rimini, Italy enjoying the beach after having gone to Florence for a couple of days with a day trip to Pisa. Yesterday I went to San Marino with some people I met on my travels and at the hostel here in Rimini. San Marino was beautiful! It's a shame there are too many tourists there. Tomorrow I am off to Milan for a day before catching a flight to Valencia, Spain. I'm meeting up with Savi in Spain and we'll travel a bit together, which will be a lot of fun. Then, I hope to head north and visit a friend who recently moved to Manchester. It's actually really nice not having any set plans. Freedom, ahhh.

Winging It

Zadar is pretty cool. It has a real laidback feeling - maybe it's all the Italian influence. I ended up not going to Plitvice Lakes because it rained the last two days and I learned that people were having difficulties getting buses back and then needed to pay a taxi-way too expensive for me. Crap. So, the beautiful lakes are out and I am on to Ancona, Italy tonight.

I'm taking a ferry, which should be interesting. I have deck space, so I'll find someplace and roll out my sleeping bag and sleep the night away (hopefully). I have no real plans set for Italy as of yet. Perhaps Savi will find a cheap flight and we'll meet up, or perhaps I'll simply campout in random places...we shall see. I'm kicking myself for having left my tent. It would be nice to have a tent. No worries about rain with a tent over your head, of course a cool, natural shower never hurt anyone. (Wishful thinking there)

Splitting Split

I'm leaving Split this morning. It's far too touristy for me and I've seen all I would like to see. I stayed last night simply because it was cheap. A bit buggy, but cheap. What do you want from a dorm/student hostel? Thankfully I finally got hot water this morning...halfway through my shower. I was happy though. Today I head on to Zadar where I will then go to Plivitce Lakes which are beautiful from all that I've heard. Then I think I may head on to Italy...we shall see what the transportation situation is in Zadar. Off again!

The former Yugoslavia

My time in Novi Sad ended Wednesday night. The send off that NSHC had for us was incredible. Our friend, Mima, had us over for lunch Wednesday after spending the whole morning cooking! It was delicious. Then the staff at NSHC took us out to a "ranch", which is really a traditional Vojvodina farm. (Vojvodina is the province of Serbia in which Novi Sad is located.) We got to look around, pet horses, drink coffee, and enjoy traditional desserts before the speeches and gift-giving began. It was so nice to see how much they had all enjoyed and appreciated our time there. Then it was on to another cafe across town at the fortress and to a neighboring restaurant after that for pizza. I said my good-byes and sped off for home to grab my things, call a cab, and go to the bus station to catch the last bus to Sarajevo.

Sarajevo is beautiful. I would highly recommend a visit to Sarajevo. It is unlike any other place I have seen in my time in the former Yugoslavia. As we came over the mountains to where we overlooked the city I felt a difference in the air. It's hard to explain, but I could feel that Sarajevo was different and loaded with history. Driving through to the bus station I saw building after building riddled with bullet holes and pock-marked from shells. My bus stopped at a bus station out on the edges of town. Later I found out that Sarajevo has two bus stations...one main station, and one for Serbs (for buses to and from Serbia and the Republic of Serbska). I loved my time there and was able to spend some time with some of my classmates, which was great. Even though I was only there for 3.5 days, I will miss the calls to prayer that I heard multiple times daily. It amazes me how calming the calls are.

After Sarajevo, I was on to Mostar where I met up with my friend, Amber. The bus ride there was beautiful. We drove along a river that was the most stunning color. It was a deep blue-green and changed colors depending on how the sun hit it. At times it had a turquoise tint and other times is was more emerald with hints of jade. I have never seen a river that color. Mostar is a total tourist trap, but if you venture out away from the main few streets you see the devastation that hit the town. The majority of the town is still empty, bombed-out buildings with trees growing through the rubble. While I hate tourist traps, I hope that the money tourism brings can help the city to rebuild. We only stayed there for one night...Hostel Dino for €10/night, if any of you ever venture to Mostar. Monday afternoon we headed onto Dubrovnik, Croatia. It is another very pretty and picturesque place, but full of tourists. We'll be here today and tomorrow and then Amber will head to Pula and I will go up to Split. I just hope I don't get ill on the bus ride...ugh.

Ciao, Serbia

I am leaving Serbia tomorrow. It's kind of hard to believe that it has already been two months. There are so many things I have to do before I leave that's it's a bit crazy. All my laundry needs to be done and I need to pack up my bag, our apartment needs to be cleaned, I have to write some stupid paper that I thought I wouldn't have to worry about until I was back in Denver, we have to say goodbye to all our friends and coworkers here...and the list goes on. Thankfully the weather has cooled down considerably (I am currently wearing a thin sweater and pants - Gasp!) so we aren't wilting from the heat, but that means that my clothes will take significantly longer to dry. Crap.

Novi Sad has been a great place to live for the past two months and I've met some really cool people. I've had some unique experiences and gotten different perspectives on the conflicts that ripped this part of the world apart not too long ago. I haven't agreed with all of those perspectives, and some of them have been extremely uneducated ones, but I think it has been good to gain the few insights and look at things from different angles. I know that if I had been placed in Bosnia I never would have heard those differing perspectives, nor would I have been open to listening to them. It is truly interesting to hear how the past is (or isn't) viewed here and it has been interesting, as well, to listen to the disagreements that Serbians have over the same issues. Nevertheless, I am ready to move on. I am really ready to drink REAL coffee (that actually smells like coffee as well) and not instant, and I am ready to eat something besides pork and ground beef, tomatoes, and cucumbers. Pizza without ketchup is another thing I look forward to. :) These are all things I am sure I will be able to find once I leave Serbia...Italy will be wonderful.

Tomorrow night I will hop on a bus to Sarajevo for the weekend. I'm really looking forward to seeing some of my classmates there as well as finally seeing Sarajevo. Getting in and out of Serbia is a bit of a pain, so our traveling has been limited. There is not a train to Sarajevo...not even from Beograd. Apparently, one needs to take a train to some other town or city (who knows where?) and then switch and get another train to go to Sarajevo. Ridiculous. (But the war has been over for so long and no one is affected by it...BS!) All this means that I have to take a bus through the lovely, winding, mountain roads for many hours...I wish I had some dramamine - ugh. Hopefully I'll be able to fall asleep and avoid motion sickness.

After Sarajevo I will head to Mostar and meet up with Amber and we'll trek up the coast of Croatia before she goes to meet Ryan and I travel on to Italy. That's the tentative plan, anyway. The next month is basically free and I'll be going where my wandering feet take me. It should be an adventure. I'm ready for an adventure.

Inferno

So I am finally able to post again. For some reason the computers I have been using have not let me write any new entries...very strange. Oh well, it's Serbia. I am in the last week here in Novi Sad and it is somewhat strange. While I am really excited to travel for an entire month, I will miss the friends I've made in Novi Sad and the cheap prices of Serbia. :)

The past week has been hellishly hot. Southeastern Europe was hit with a wicked heat wave and it was miserable. It was in the 40's all week long and didn't drop much at all at night (maybe high 30's). For those of you who, like me, are not familiar with Celcius, that means it was in the 100's and dropped to the 90's at night. 104 to 110 degrees F for a week sucks, especially with the humidity and no fans. That's right folks, Serbia doesn't believe in fans. Some people have AC (the stupid little units drip on ou as you walk down the street), but apparently fans have not caught on. I asked Dejan about fans and he said you could find one for about 50 Euro. I told him that was crazy. $65 for a fan! Sheesh. So Susie, Anhchi, and I just puddled. Sleeping was nearly impossible and when we woke up we were in a pool of sweat...good times. Thankfully, a cool front has come through Serbia and the weather today and yesterday has been beautiful. It's so nice to be able to sleep at night and not want to shower 20 times a day.

EXIT was fabulous. We all had a blast and of course I got sick afterwards from not sleeping. I'm too old for this stuff. :) We all were in the papers, which was funny. Being in the front row helped with that, as did having an asian girl in our crew. Since Serbia is SO white, they are fascinated by anyone who looks different. It is very different from what I'm used to in the U.S. The Beastie Boys concert was really good and we have some really good pics thanks to Anhchi's camera. Lauryn Hill and Snoop were alright too...Snoop puts on a really good show. My favorite, though, was Basement Jaxx. I had not even heard of them although I knew some of their songs, but they were great! I think that was by far the most fun of the performances we saw up front. I would have liked to see more of Groove Armada, but we had to get out of the crazy Prodigy crowd and take a breather, so we missed most of their performance. Those were all acts on the main stage. There were over 20 stages at EXIT. The dance arena was probably the wildest...people were packed into it until they forced everyone out of the fortress each day at 8am. I have some video footage and some pictures. I would definitely recommend EXIT to anyone who loves music and likes to party...you should check it out next year.

Work is winding down. At the same time, however, it is picking up in some ways. I had a workshop on Classroom Management for the volunteers at the Roma Children's Center on Tuesday evening and Susie and Anhchi are doing a Stress Management / Self-Care workshop on Friday. Nena has also asked me to give suggestions about what other workshops they should have for the volunteers before the Center reopens. I probably could have had four or five workshops with them if it had been planned earlier. Live and learn. Next week we hope to go visit a Roma NGO that is also working with the kids, helping to register them in school and prepare them to go to school if needed. It sounds like a great organization and is even cooler, in my opinion, because it is a Roma NGO (ie, Roma people run it and work there). It flies in the face of all the negative stereotypes that people in this region have about Roma. I love that!

If you ever happen to find yourself in Serbia and you find out there is a basketball game against the U.S., don't go. This happened to us this past weekend. Apparently, there is some championship tournament for "under 19" basketball teams. Countries send their "national" under 19 basketball teams to compete. It's like an international high school bball tournament. I wonder about other countries and how seriously they take their national teams...I think ours was some AAU team that just decided to do it. Serbia takes it VERY seriously. Good grief. I have never seen such a hostile crowd. I felt really bad for those kids on the court. They were booed consistently, including during the national anthem and when they went to shake hands with the Serbian team and after the game when they had lost and went to shake hands with the Serbian team again. Ridiculous. Talk about poor sportsmanship and disrespect. Now part of this is political, which I understand, but these are a bunch of high school kids that have nothing to do with our governmental policy. I was really proud of those boys though. They were very classy and were good representatives, never stooping to the level of the crowd. Susie, Anhchi, and I were the only U.S. citizens in the crowd and we were loud and cheered the whole time. I think if we had been men we may have had some trouble, but being women, we only got minimal crap from people around us. We ended up leaving before the medals were awarded because I couldn't handle the booing any longer. If they booed the boys after we lost and were going to shake hands, what would keep them from booing throughout the awards ceremony? I would have gotten too pissed off and something may have happened, so we left. Why the hell would you boo the team you just beat? Ugh.

My final note for today...any of you who are Harry Potter fans, go get the book and read it now. It is fantastic! I couldn't wait, so I got a copy here. It would have been awful if someone had given away the ending before I could read it, so being the nerd that I am, I got it and read it within two days (it would have taken less time if I hadn't had to go to work). :)

Proof

Much to our surprise, our picture with Snoop DID turn out. I guess when a 9 foot tall bouncer takes a picture at his belly, it gets most people's heads...who knows? Craziness.

EXIT Teaser

Since I am exhausted and not feeling well (I KNEW I shouldn't drink the water being passed around at the concerts!) I am only going to write a short little teaser about this weekend and will add details later. This weekend was a blast! My roommates and I (I have a new roommate) were in the papers and one of my roommates and I met Snoop Dog. No joke. We got a picture, but because the bouncer who took it wasn't the brightest crayon in the box we're not sure if it actually has all our heads in the picture. Anhchi's screen on her camera is broken so we were unable to check it. Once we download it I will post the picture...at least it will have Snoop's legs. :) We met a ton of people and had a lot of fun. That's all for now...I'll write more about it when I'm feeling better. Damn sick people.

Technical Difficulties

So I started an entry yesterday morning and was including the pictures I took of our flat. Unfortunately, the internet at NSHC went down and never came back, so the only thing saved in my draft of that entry was its title.  Those of you who have been wanting some photos will just have to wait awhile longer, as the pictures are on a computer at work and the internet is still down.  That's the way it goes in Serbia. :)  

It's all good though, because Susie and I have discovered a little internet cafe around the corner from our flat where it costs $1/hour to use the internet.  Yeah buddy!  We also were at work for a whopping 2 hours, tops, today since we couldn't do any research on the internet.  Life is really tough.  Even better, tonight we are heading to the wine festival in the city center.   It will be an international event, with our friends including Serbians, refugees from Croatia, Bosnia, and Montenegro, and Italians and a band from Croatia that plays Cuban music.  Awesome.

Our flat

I've been meaning to post some pictures of our awesome apartment, but it's been difficult. It takes fifty hours to upload pictures here...but I have managed to work it out. So, here are some pictures of where I am living until August 5.

Weekend in Beograd

This past weekend was a ton of fun. Susie and I went down to Beograd (AKA Belgrade) for the weekend and stayed with our two classmates, Amanda and Amber. We had a blast! After a short bus ride to Beograd, we dropped off our bags at the girls' flat and went down by the river to get some dinner. We decided to be a little daring and went to a Thai restaurant (ethnic restaurants here are all owned, operated, and run by native Serbs). Thankfully, it was good, but it was definitely different than Thai food in the US.

After dinner, we went into the city center and checked out the fortress. The views were beautiful...we were there at a good time and got to see the sunset. Then Amanda and Amber introduced us to dark chocolate Serbian ice cream....HEAVENLY! We ended up at a couple of cafes until the very early hours of Sunday morning and got back to the flat and crashed. French toast and hash browns were on the menu Sunday afternoon (a late brunch) and it was off to the city center again.



Sunday afternoon and evening included a series of random events. We met some Slovenian guys who invited us to stay with them if we visited Slovenia and then listened to a jazz/blues band in the fortress. When we heard the woman singing, I thought it had to be a black singer from the states. I was so wrong! It was a little, white, Serbian girl with a very soulful voice. I seriously felt as though I had been transported to New Orleans if I just listened to the band and didn't look around...it was kind of strange, but fun.

Dinner was at a little Italian restaurant. There was an American at the next table who we thought sounded like a bit of a jerk. Boy, were we wrong! This guy heard we were Americans and paid for our dinner. The waiter told us after the man had left. The four of us were speechless! Maybe he wasn't such a jerk afterall.



After an enjoyable day we headed back to the flat and went to bed. The next morning Susie and I caught a bus back to Novi Sad and got to be lazy for the rest of the day.

Roma kids

Friday we had our first day with the Roma Children's Center. It was an experience. There were at least 50 kids there and only one adult who spoke Serbian at first. Good times. Thankfully, some of the volunteers showed up later on and were able to help with containing the chaos. It was chaotic because they were having a party to celebrate the end of the school session and everyone came. I took a ton of pictures (which I will attempt to post with a very slow connection) and some video of the shows they put on. We got to hear some traditional Roma songs and watch the kids break dance as well. It was a riot!

Nena is the person who is in charge of the Roma Center and she asked us to come up with things we would like to do with the kids. However, we have been informed that they are losing the property that is used for the Center, so I don't know if they will still have that program. Right now I'm looking for funders to try to keep the Center programs open. I think I may have located one, but they'll need a lot more to sustain the programs. It's a good thing I have so much experience with grants!

First night out in Serbia

Saturday Susie and I met Dejan, his girlfriend, and some of his friends in the city center. Poor Susie had to deal with the only single guy that came...he latched onto her within 10 seconds of arriving. It was kind of funny, but I felt bad for her. This guy, Petr, was all up in her space immediately. It was almost unreal...Susie kept moving backward and even ended up putting her hands out in front of her to ward the guy off, but he kept on coming. This continued the entire night, despite repeated refusals and physical avoidance on Susie's part. Petr came up to around Susie's chin, and she is 5'3"...oy...she's also 12 years younger than this guy. We laughed about it later, but Susie was not happy that she had to fend him off all night. Luckily, I was able to help her with this task...I'm kind of big and scary to a little 36 year old fuzzy man. Why can't guys just take a hint?

We did have a good time, though, and made some more friends. Some of our new friends called us up the following night to go out as well. That was more relaxed than Saturday, but still a good time. Unfortunately, Susie had a migraine and wasn't able to go. Mima, one of the girls we met Saturday, helped us locate some pain medication that Susie can have, since she can't take any ibuprofen, which was very nice of her. We are hoping she won't have to use it, but it is nice to have. Other than that, we are just chillin'. I went and bought a couple of books today because I have nothing to read since Iberia still hasn't gotten my lost bag to Katie, and we laid around and read on our lovely balcony. This is the life! As one of our new friends said, "In Serbia, time is pleasure." I like that, it is so much nicer than "time is money", and it is a hell of a lot more fun!

TV in Serbia

Susie and I have cable in our flat. It is actually very entertaining. Today I was extremely lazy and slept in and then watched random TV shows and some volleyball and soccer. Susie and I were highly entertained by some very hot men in some terrible shows (firefighters...need I say more?). There are some majorly campy movies and shows. Most of the movies are in English with Serbian subtitles, although there are some German and Russian movies with subtitles as well. The majority of the English movies are completely unknown to Susie and I, even though they were obviously made in the US. It is silly fun. There are also a ton of Spanish soaps on, so it is good times flipping through the channels to see what's on. Commercials are awesome as well! We were cracking up at some random commercial for exercise equipment this afternoon. Now I'm at an internet cafe and about to puke because someone is smoking like a chimney in a very enclosed space. Blech. Oh well...I figure being lazy is fine since we plan on going out tonight...we have to rest up. :)

First Day of work?

So yesterday (Thursday) was our first day of work...if you could really call it that. We got in to work at 10am and met with Dejan about the projects we may be working on and what we could contribute. That meeting lasted a few hours and then we got a tour of the offices and were shown our desk. After checking email we went home because there wasn't anything for us to do (They actually sent us home). :) We ate lunch, watched some TV, and then went back over to NSHC to meet Dejan. He was working at Srce ("heart" in Serbian) and wanted to show us the office. Srce is an NGO that provides support by email and over the phone for people in crisis, including suicide. It is all volunteer run and does some really good work.

Another coworker, Nana, came there as well and took us around after our introduction to Srce. We got to go to a couple of the local bars that are not so easy to find and Nana helped us to figure out what foods Susie could actually order. (I am so glad I'm not a vegetarian!) It was a lot of fun. Nana introduced us to some Serbian beers we had not yet tried and we were able to learn about some hidden bars we can frequent.

Today we arrived at work at 10am again and did some research on the internet about the different programs at NSHC. Then we got to go on a little field trip and went with Mira and Dejan to a town not too far away to sit in on a focus group with Roma girls about Reproductive Health services...what they know, what services are available, and what they need and would like to see. It was really great. I am looking forward to sharing the knowledge I have in this area with NSHC to help enhance the services they will provide. Now it is 2:30 in the afternoon and Susie and I have been told to check our emails and relax. I don't know if I will be able to just hang out much longer...I feel bad not doing anything, but I think I may get over it.

This weekend looks as though it will be fun. We are going to meet a bunch of new people tomorrow and crash a birthday party that Nana is going to. Good times. It will be our first weekend in Novi Sad.

Vacation

So I have decided that my internship in Serbia will probably be more of a vacation. I will only be working three days a week, leaving plenty of time for my roommate, Susie, and I to travel and explore. Our placement seems intent on us enjoying our time in Serbia and wants us to have a positive experience. All of our coworkers are very friendly and excited about practicing their English. That's great for them, but I need some serious work on my Serbian! Blank stares, handgestures, and the like will only get me so far. I get so frustrated not understanding ANYTHING. I hope I'll pick something up.

Yesterday and today Susie and I slept in and walked around. We found some great restaurants and cafes and an Irish Pub...so funny. There is also a Chinese restaurant here. Wild. Today we went to the market and fumbled around with understanding how much things cost. People were very nice about it and I'm sure it was funny to watch us. At least I have an umbrella now since it likes to rain at random times and can come down fairly hard.

TV is hilarious and most of the channels are in English and have Serbian subtitles...to funny. We have cable, but haven't really watched TV, just flipped through channels to see what there was. I still can't believe how nice our apartment is! Susie and I have gotten a good deal here in Novi Sad.

Arrival in Serbia

I got to Serbia Saturday night after a very long trip by train. 27 hours after leaving Paris I arrived in Novi Sad and was met at the train station by Dejan, our mentor at NSHC. I had to sign contracts for our apartment, which is fabulous, and ended up being given a cell phone by our landlady because she liked me. Susie got in Sunday morning and we were able to explore a little before crashing again. Today we are meeting the staff and visiting the two centers that NSHC runs. I will try to post pictures when I have time. Just wanted to let everyone know that I am alive and well. :)

Paris

My classmate, Savi, and I arrived in Paris this evening after an eventful trip. It all started when we checked in and the woman at the ticket counter at JFK failed to actually look at our itineraries. (Savi was ending up at Orly and I at Charles de Gaulle.) She put all of our luggage under my name and sent it off, only to figure out we didn't have the same destination airport after the luggage was on its way and after both of us had said something about our luggage. (Idiot.) Oh well.

Katie was picking us up at Charles de Gaulle, so Savi had to figure a way to get there and meet us (and get her bag). Poor kid. Luckily, she had a much earlier flight and had plenty of time to get across Paris to the other airport. Savi actually beat me to the airport by quite some time because my flight out of Madrid was delayed. I waited for our bags (including one for Katie for this summer) and discovered that Katie's bag was still in Madrid and I didn't have her address to fill out the form to have it delivered. (We have to call again in the morning to give the airline the info.) I don't understand how that works when I had an almost 6 hour layover. Whatever.

Katie picked us up around 8:45pm and proceeded to get lost multiple times throughout the city (rerouted, as she says). When we got to the house at 10pm we ate some food (STARVING!) and took a shower (finally). Now I'm going to bed. I highly doubt any of my future postings will be this long...sheesh.

Getting Ready

I have 2.5 weeks before I leave for Serbia. I still can't really get it to sink in. There is a ton of crap I have to do before leaving and I am beginning to really stress out about it all. It'll get done. This was one of the things on my list of to-dos. I've never had a blog before, so we'll see how well this works for me. I figure this is much simpler than trying to email everyone and this way people can check in when they get the urge. I have no idea how much internet access I will have, so I'll have to post how often I will be able to add updates after I get to Serbia. I can't believe I'll be in Serbia in 3 weeks! wow