Weekly Updates

Hello everyone! I know I have not been posting as frequently as I have in the past, but with school starting and trying to study, go out, and write a blog, daily updates become quite difficult. So from now on I will write my blog once, maybe twice a week. This will allow me to avoid burning myself out from blog writing. 

So this week on Monday all the exchange students went to a Mexican Cantina. There was over 25 of us at the restaurant. We filled up the entire back room. It was really a Mexican oasis in Croatia, the food was super authentic, the beer was imported from Mexico (Corona and Dos Equis), and they had one of the best mariachi bands I have ever heard. All the players were from Croatia but they were FANTASTIC. I did not suspect them to be of such a high quality. Later in the week I found out that they went and played in a competition in Mexico and won. They had 3 violins, two trumpets, one bass guitar and two classical guitars. You could tell that these were real musicians, everything was played with perfect pitch and style, The music really made the food. We ordered a ton of different food and it was served family style. I ate so much I thought I was going to explode! The food was kinda pricey for Croatia, realistically it only cost about $26 per person, including drinks but for Croatia that is a lot of money. I talked to the girl from America again, it was funny because I asked her what she did only to find out that just the day before I was reading a huge article all about the conference she is working on. It is really an impressive thing, I want to go to it but I it is invite only and they already sent out invitations. I think I will write the embassy and see if they can let me be just a little fly on the wall. It is an economic forum about entrepreneurship between Croatia and the USA. I really badly want to go, I know they will broadcast it live online, but it is the networking that I really want.

The outside of of the art gallery, this is just one building.

Then this Wednesday I met with Zvanko. He took me to the release of a book, it was on a famous Croatian sculptor. His photos were in the book so he was invited to the big release. It was actually really cool. It was in a huge museum that I did not know existed. It was a big, it use to be an old leather tanning factory and it was converted into an art exhibit. The gallery is of all the famous artwork in Croatia, but copies. All the art is plaster or replicas of the real work. There are over 13,000 different pieces in the entire building. Sadly most parts of the building were closed. We did get to see one. It was the gravestones of a famous cemetery. They look like tombs, but they are actually giant headstones. I also saw some painting from a church. I want to go to the church because you could tell that being in the church the paintings would be much more powerful. It was really cool to walk around with no one there tho. Zvanko brought his camera and was shooting the whole day. It was really amazing to get to watch him work. His photos are beyond fantastic. I really hope I can learn how to be a better photographer from watching him and following him around. I swear his stuff is national geographic level.

To give you some perspective of the size of each headstone.

These are some of the work from the artist.

 After Zvanko took me to the art gallery, we went to the Mexican Cantina! I was super excited, the food was really good the first time, and it did not disappoint the second time either. It was really nice just to have lunch with Zvanko, he is such an interesting guy. He is full of interesting facts and stories. I think he is one of the smartest people I know, hands down. It was a wonderful start to my day. I went home wrote my last blog then I took a short nap and it was out partying with the group again. We went to Peppermint club. On Wednesdays they play all 60's music and it is a riot. I know all the words to the songs because its all Ray Charles and Elvis type of music. It is awesome, and they dance swing in the club so I fit right in. I know some of the other students are getting bored of the club but it is a really fun time!

That was most my week, today I went out with a friend who showed me around town. It was really nice too because she is from an American school here and speaks really good english and has a similar upbringing so it is nice to find a similar person in that respect here. Then I went appartment hunting with Kristina, we went to one place that look really, really bad on the outside. Piles of garbage and really run down, but the apartment was SUPER nice. I really wanted to take it but the outside was really bad. Not a neighborhood for a forigner. But I think I found a place only a block away from Kristina so I am really excited. We go tomorrow to check it out. I hope it is as nice as in the pictures! 

Beyond that this week has been pretty normal. I will mention that a guy got onto the tram and had all these balloons and it made my entire day Tuesday. The whole thing was crowded and when he got on everyone smiled and started laughing for a long time. Anyway hope everyone is safe where ever you guys are! 

Benda out

Sundays

 I love Sundays, I have only been here for three Sundays yet every Sunday is has been wonderful. Every Sunday Kristina and Serta pick me up and we meet with Zvanko and Nada at Nada's parents house for a large lunch. This is really a happy time. The whole family comes together and cooks and laughs in the kitchen. It reminds me of my own family and makes me appreciate even more how my friends here have integrated me into their family. They always try to incorporate me into the conversation and make me feel accepted. Even when I do not understand what is being said at the table it still is a good time. They say the if you have two identical plants and put one surrounded by a loving and good environment it will grow stronger than if the other plant was left alone. Just simply being with these people I feel happy, I really love my Croatian Family.

The food is completly wonderful, again it was full of flavor and very succulent.For starters there was soup that was to die for. I always like it so much, I really should learn what it is made of. It looks simple but it really yummy. We then had chicken prepared in multiple ways, with sides of rice and peas, salad, and a kind of buttered noodle dish. It was really good. As you can see in the picture, it not only taste good but it looked good too! After stuffing myself so much that all I wanted was a nap, we had homemade doughnuts. Obviously I couldn't turn this down! I somehow found room and boy were they fantastic! Not like our doughnuts in the states, a little thicker and tasted a but like lemon. I really enjoyed them!

After spending most the afternoon at Nada's parents house, Kristina, Serta, and myself were off to the hockey game. It was the first night for playoffs and the team they were playing is from Czechoslovakia. This game was nothing like last weeks game, it was like watching a completely different team. They were fast, sharp, and fierce. Withing the first two minutes the team scored! The entire match was like this, back and forth back and forth. At one point someone got hit in the teeth with a stick and he was knocked out. Luckily he came around and skated off the ice but not after leaving a huge trail of blood. As much as I wish I know how to play hockey, I much prefer my teeth! But in the end we were the winners! It was such a good game!

I really love my life here, I love the friends, people, and things I am doing. It would not be anything without the people I spend my Sundays with. They make me feel like I belong and it helps me to not miss home. I cannot wait for next Sunday already! Every week here is full of so many new things. I am learning so much, I just cannot wait for spring to come so I can go travel and explore more of Europe also. Well it is time for bed.
Benda out

My school throws parties?

So today is Friday, apparently my school is throwing a party at a club. Really? I think that is actually pretty awesome, instead of turning a blind eye to what students are doing, they are capitalizing on it. The school gets happy students and creates good will. Everyone at the other schools that were there thought it was sweet and the club took all the liabilities if someone got hurt. At least the school is doing a really good job of connecting with students. But before the party I did actually go to school. On my way there was a nightmare! The traffic lights were out on the intersection that I had to cross, not a big deal but really really crazy trying to cross the street. After that I got on the tram, only to have it get stuck behind a tram that broke down.... Luckily I left 40 mins early so the time it took to walk to the next intersection where I could catch a different tram was only 20 minutes worth of walking.

Getting a Kebab before class

 At this point I was a little sad, mainly because I hadn't eaten. So while waiting for the next tram I ate my favorite fast food here! It is a kebab, oh my lord, every time I eat one it taste so completely fantastic yet they all are made completely different. This was the first thing I tasted in Croatia that was actually spicy. So I will be making more stops at this kebab place in the future. I know this is semi boring, me talking about a kebab place, but that is because you have not had one of these delights, and if you have I know your on the same page as I am.

Oh quick side note, some new graffiti was added outside my apartment, a giant red heart. You cannot help but smile because it is absurdly large on this wall. I walk by it like 20 times and finally decided that I should share this big heart with everyone. Speaking of things that I want to share, I saw the most peculiar man on the tram on my way to class. He had a bowler, white beard, and looked like he walked off the bottle of Johnny Walker. He had a red silk ascot. I tried to take a picture without causing any commotion, unfortunately this picture was the best I could muster. I know its blurry, just make believe the image is totally awesome, are you smiling and kinda laughing a little? If not keep trying it will come to you I promise.
 I then met up at me German friend, Micheal, place. He has one of the best views of the city I have ever seen. I am currently planning on relocating and only wish! That I could find a place with a similar view! Sadly it takes 192 steps to get up to this point. Oddly specific number? That is because I could not believe how many steps I had to climb, my lanta, it was the worlds largest staircase ever. So I started counting at the bottom, I may be a few off, I will get back to you when I visit him again.

This is only a slice of the panorama he has!

 Other than that, the night went pretty well! We all met at the club, I was in the VIP section, this time we had like a small cove with couches so the club did not seem over crowded and it was a lot more fun. Everyone wore masks for the carnival that started here. It was fun, I had a Zorro mask, but darn I guess I forgot to take a picture of me with it on... or that may have been on purpose.... yeah it defiantly was on purpose...

Me taking a pic with Aimee
 (This was the 3rd attempt because I was to tall
to stay in the frame!)

I did actually meet another American here. Her name is Aimee and she works in the US embassy. Really sweet girl, she is from LSU and is also Greek. It was nice to have someone who was from back home to talk to. After the club we went to another club and listened to Balkan music, but by the time we got there I could only stay for a short time because I was ready to fall asleep standing up! It was an awesome night! I love the memories I am making here, but my next post should be about Sundays, and man do I love Sundays here.

Romain Faggot (real name) and Juliette

Exploring Old Zagreb

Statue in the center of Zagreb

First an apology, I am sorry for everyone who has been reading my blogs, I am aware that I am not the best writer in the world, but as someone pointed out, my writing is really hard to read. So I will try to write better and be more coherent in the future. 

So where to begin? Today was a really good day in my life, nothing spectacular happened and no life changing events happened, but today's memories will stay with me for a long time. It was just simple put a wonderful day. I do not have classes on Wednesdays, not till half way through the semester. So I woke up late and caught up on some much needed sleep! I have been trying to see everything, be everywhere, and meet everyone that it really wears you out, so sleeping in felt wonderful. After waking up I had a small breakfast of fruit, I normally do not like oranges all that much, but here they are so sweet I cannot help but to eat them. After having a nice and lazy morning I strapped on my camera bag and went out to explore the city.

In front of the main theater, you can see the
 wedding couple in the background

I first stopped in the heart of the city. This is where the above picture was taken, I stupidly forgot to record the name of the statue, but if I had to take a guess it is St. George slaying the dragon? I want to say I am correct, that is the only dragon slaying story that I can recall. Right next to the statue is Croatia's National Theater. It is a HUGE yellow building adorned with tons of ornate carvings and sculptures. As I walked up to the building I saw 2 or 3 other photographers and was about to talk to them, when I realized that they were photographing a wedding! I admit, I did take some photos of the happy couple because they looked right out of a fairy tale. I then walked around and snapped photos of the building at different angles. It is a nice change of pace to actually take photos for myself once again, rather than it being my job. I remembered why I liked photography so much in the first place. On a side note, the sculpture in the photo on the left is from oneIvan Meštrović. He is a famous sculptor from Croatia, he has a very recognizable piece in downtown Chicago of an Indian riding a horse. 

Road sign showing all the things to do within
walking distance

After the theater I walked down the main road. I feel that to really learn a city, you should walk everywhere. You get to notice things that are so wonderful, that in a car or tram they become just a mere blur. Every nook and cranny in Zagreb has some historic story or wonderful piece of art just hiding. I think you could walk for a month and still not see all the public art and everything Zagreb has to offer. I stopped at a road sign trying to figure out where I wanted to go first. There are so many museums and landmarks to see, I knew I will again be out next Wednesday walking around. I decided to not go to any museums today and to save that for next time. I have a friend who lived here for one semester already and she promised to go with me to any museum that I want to go to. I am so excited because They have SO many things to do and see here! Also because of the conversion rate from US dollars to Croatian Kuna it makes things relatively cheap to see and do things here. I really suggest if someone is looking for a place to study abroad try Croatia, it is in the heart of Europe, is cheap compared to other European city's and the people are wonderful!

I decided I would walk to the open air market and start my journey. As I walked down to the market I stopped at the hot dog stand on the side of the road and grabbed a hot dog. I really love the hot dogs here, they are real sausages stuffed inside french bread with french mustard. It only cost like $2.50 in Dollars. You cannot beat that price for so much flavor! As I sat and ate my hot dog I realized I was sitting in front of a statue and a church. There is so much going on here that it is easy to overlook what is right in front of you. I feel like that is common in many peoples lives. Overlooking what is right in front of them, the things that really matter. This again is why walking is my choice of transportation, you get to slow down and see everything. I do need to say, if any of my friends from Croatia are reading this I like walking, I am just not use to doing so much of it. I often say how I am not use to walking to much here, I mean EVERYWHERE we walk and it does get tiring but my legs are doing much better after the first few weeks. 

I made it to the market just as people were closing their stands. The people here work so hard, you can tell just how they set up their market. So far this year it has been very cold and they come here and set up everyday. The carefully stack their fruit in a presentable manner, trying to persuade any passerby into buying something. They stack far more fruit than they know they are going to sell, but I think they do it because they are proud of the product they are selling. They want people to see that they are good farmers and that they produce a good thing. At the end of the day they carefully stack all their fruit, one by one, back into boxes. Some of the vendors threw some of their goods on the ground so the birds had something to eat. They all look worn but with smiles on their faces. As I walked by the stands some were selling other things than fruit. They could tell I was not from Croatia and quickly tried to sell me everything from silk lace to wooden flasks. They gave me businesses cards from every stand I went to, telling me to come back when I was ready to shop.

I am told that as the weather warms up, this place is brimming with people and those red umbrellas. 

The inside of the church.

From the market I walked over to the cathedral again. You cannot help but be filled with a sense of awe when you walk up to the building. It really humbles you for how big it is. I sat for a long time right in the middle of the square just looking at it. I was rewarded with many strange glances but it was just fine with me. I wanted to soak in all the building had to offer. Every corner has some religious meaning, stories I grew up with from church could be found being played out in the intricate carvings. I really am in love with this building. The inside is just as impressive as the outside. I promise I will spend a whole day photographing this church and make a post about it. The church has large paintings on the walls, with golden figurines all around. Candles are burning at all time in this church, and people are always here praying.

Do you see how small the people look at the bottom? 

 As I left the church I headed to the older side of Zagreb, where some of the best views in the city are. As I made my way down the small streets I bumped into this statue of an lady. This is a famous Croatian writer who wrote many stories. Why is she particularly of interest to me? The local brewery names all their beer after characters from her story. All the beer you see that is in mugs come from the micro-brewery here. So  I thought I would give her a small shout out here on my blog. I am going to try and find out more about her and maybe see if I can find some of her books in English to read.

All along the streets are things that I find fascinating. I really like the architecture. All the buildings remind me of the spirit of the people here. They are strong and have lasted the test of time over and over. They buildings are just simply wonderful and have adapted to the times, they have satellites and antennas hanging off of them, yet they still retain their own identify. From the small flower shop with red doors covered in snow, to the 5 star hotel just down the road. The past and present live side by side here.

I like this photo a lot for some reason 

A small flower shop tucked away. 

I will quickly cover the rest of my exploration because I know I tend to get long winded! I went through the old gate, the entrance to the old city. They have candles that people can light. Along the walls are the names of people, I was told it was for a horrible fire that nearly destroyed Zagreb. I am not sure, so I am quite curious as to what the whole story is. The rest of the photos below just show you the different sites of Zagreb. Beneath each photo is a small description. Comment if you have any questions! Oh and I used a special lens I borrowed from Zvanko to make all the buildings look super tiny. I am in LOVE with that lens. It is so much fun!
Benda out!

This is St. Marks Church, it sits right in the middle of the political center of Zagreb. 

This is a view of the city. The blue things are a sky lift, someone told me they are famous
I am not sure why though? 

This is graffiti on a high school door in the old city.

This is another view of the church, I had some better photos but this is the only one where the
church is clear.

A nun was stopped and asked for directions in this ally way, one of the
many ways to get to the old city.

This was just a girl that was wearing the hockey team that Serta coaches hockey for.

This is a girl playing ring of fire by Johnny Cash, She was not half bad, despite a slight
accent.

This is the club we go to every Wednesday, it plays songs from Elvis to Ray Charles and
everyone dances the Lindy, it is a version of swing dance. SO MUCH FUN! This is where I ended my day with my friends. Dancing the night away!

The Past Few Days....

For anyone actively reading my blog, sorry I haven't posted!!! I am  starting class this week and I am more concerned about getting the swing of things than writing the blog. BUT ! Do not worry you didn't miss much!

On Saturday some of got together to cook for one another. But when the day came we all did not know what to bring or who was cooking what. So I brought a pre-made pizza (it was the saddest pizza I have ever seen!) then we had some garlic bread and someone brought a little bit of stuff to make pasta. It was a small but enjoyable time. Especially since the people who couldn't cook brought liquor from their home countries. It was a really fun time. After we set out to a dancing. I love that we go dancing so much! I really enjoy dancing and the people here are just beautiful. I am glad to be spending my time with this group of people. They are just really wonderful people. For example! After we went dancing all night only the night tram was working. The tram only comes once and hour and I missed one and had to transfer to another one. So my friends who lived close by offered for me to sleep at their place tonight. They did not let me say no, they just made me stay. It was really nice of them, I would have taken two hours just to get home.

Now for those of you didn't know Serta, my Croatian Brother, is a coach for a hockey team here. It is really cool because I get to see all the games. So Sunday was my first time going to the game. They picked me up early so we could have lunch with Serta's parents. Little did I know his father is an official for the games also. Their whole family lives hockey! It really is refreshing to see a family work so close with one another. We had some really good food while I was at Sertas parents. We sat down and I had some Rakia, a local home made liquor. It was really, really strong this time. They all were watching me as I drank it, it was funny because I played it off like it was just regular tasting and they all were very impressed! It burned, but it was good! We had country fried chicken and ham. It was basically soul food, reminded me of back home a little. After eating until we could not move again we headed out for the hockey rink. Now keep in mind, this is probably the worst day I  have ever seen for snow in a while. I mean visibility was barely a hundered yards, and snow was in the streets up to your ankles. That is what was plowed! I mean it snowed really hard. But the stadium was still almost filled! I could not believe so many people came out to the game, only a few seats were empty! Also cheering in Croatia is not like cheering in the USA. They sing, and cheer and chant THE ENTIRE GAME! In the US we cheer for good things and then sit back and watch. Here they had two huge drums that the played the whole time, the crowed barely sat at all. They have some seriously dedicated fans here! I also have a video below that shows the opening of the game too. I really look forward to watching the games more often, I just need to learn the rules a bit more before I go back. On a side note, sitting only about 20 feet from us was the US ambassador for Croatia. How awesome would it be to be able to meet him!  

Picture of the Fans after a goal

Also earlier last week Zvonko and Nada came with a birthday cake! They hadn't seen me on my birthday so they brought me a fresh orange cream cake. It was simply gorgeous, I would have thought it came from a cake shop because it looked too perfect. But I know how well Nada cooks so that simply must be it! Luckily it was also Mario's Birthday, Setra's brother, the same day. So we let him blow out the candles and we shared our birthdays! It was really awesome! But i get ahead of my self, before we had cake we had stuffed cabbage. It was made in true Croatian homestyle and was also very tasty. It reminded me of meat that is stuffed in grape leaves. But this had a better sauce for sure. I ate like three huge helpings of it. I always forget they make desert so I eat so much that when the sweets come out I can barely eat any! But if your wondering I still do! I walk alot here but I think I am going to need to cut down on eating badly and drinking so much beer. All the food is fresh but so rich! Either cut down on what I eat or go to the gym, knowing me ill just stop eating so much, easier than a gym! :P

Yesterday was Valentine's day and also my first day of real classes. Luckily the realization that it was Valentines day had escaped me for half the day. The second half of the day did not treat me so well. This is the first valentines alone for me in nearly seven years. That mixed in with some other things that happened recently and I was feeling very alone. Not to mention everyone went to the last day of the chocolate festival here and it was all couples! Bleh! oh well! I bought the best dark chocolate Ice Cream I think I ever tasted in my life. Then I walked around the old downtown for a bit with some friends giving them a tour. Tomorrow I have free so I think I am just going to take a break during the day. I know we will be going to a club tomorrow and it plays all oldies. So it is really fun to dance too. Other than that I think that is it for me! Sorry for the late post!

Benda out!

A French Snow man:P