Retroactive: Dubrovnik and Such

Because I've been away from steady internet access, I haven't been able to post some blogs I've been carrying around on my flash drive. This post talks about things that took place the weekend of June 14 - 17. Sorry for the delay!



Thursday: At night Sara and I picked a random spot for dinner that turned out to be a wonderful, tucked-away restaurant where tourists do not typically go. I know this because we sat next to a professor from the University of Mostar who told he comes to this place to get away from 1. his students during finals time and 2. the tourists. I’m amazed it’s a not a tourist spot because it’s not far from the Old Bridge, the main tourist attraction in Mostar. But it’s a bit hidden, so perhaps that’s what protects it. The place itself was a delight. Surrounded by trees, it’s a cool (temperature-wise) locale, comfortable as well as beautiful. And the dinner was yummy. I ordered sea food risotto, but they only serve it on weekends, so I enjoyed a chicken fillet instead. Sara and I decided the weekend-only rule must mean the sea food is fresh. We’ll be returning. Ambiance and tastiness aside, what made the place such a treat was the company. I mentioned the professor; we talked to him a good amount. Turns out he was from Croatia, was a refugee during the war, lived in Atlanta (calls it home), and is now teaching in Bosnia, as well as helping rewrite the Bosnian Constitution. He was very grandfather like, probably in his mid-sixties, enjoying dinner with other professors. After our dinner, the gentlemen treated Sara and me to wine and an incredible chocolate/sugar crepe. Then, one of his friends came to the his table with trout caught from the nearby river. The owner cooked it up, giving Sara and me hefty sample to taste. Delicious.

Friday: For part of the work we’re doing here (which I should probably explain at some point) Sara and I are visiting Mostar NGOs (Non-Government Organizations) and schools and non-profits to see how they work, their strengths and weaknesses, how they collaborate with the organization we’re hailing from, Center for Civic Initiatives, and whatever else we want to know, I suppose. On Friday we went to a school and residential center for children with special needs. Kids with mental, emotional and physical disabilities can attend this school, and some of them live there during the week. It was a beautiful facility. And the teacher who showed us around was so nice and so helpful. He took the time to give us a tour of everything, introduce us to co-workers, and drink coffee with us to discuss the school, Bosnia, the state of social services, etc. It was the last day of school and a meeting arranged last minute, so I felt he was exceptionally generous with his time. It was interesting to talk about how children are affected by of parents with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The meeting was a great experience.

Friday Night: A classmate working in Sarajevo came down to Mostar and we all hopped on a bus to Dubrovnik, Croatia. On the bus we met a sharp young woman from London, who was on holiday, on her way to enjoy the coast. Not only did she provide fun conversation in an endearing accent, but she found us a place to stay for the night, by texting the person who was renting her a room. In Dubrovnik it’s popular for people to rent out rooms in their homes. When you get off the bus, you are bombarded with little old ladies saying “Need a room?” I like house accommodations. They’re nicer than hostels and not much more expensive. That night, Sara, classmate Molly and I had dinner in the Old Town, then went to an outdoor bar for drinks. We left around 1:00 a.m., shortly after I had briefly fallen asleep in my chair. At a bar. I am a champ.

Saturday: First let me start off by saying how beautiful Dubrovnik is. The Old Town is a completely walled-in stone city, which looks and feels medieval. Most of the town is surrounded by the Adriatic Sea, which is blue and warm and wonderful. Off the Croatian shore there are these lusciously green islands that make me think Croatia is the Hawaii of central Europe. We took a ferry out to one of the Islands, Lokum and spent the day there sunning and swimming.

Side note: Dubrovnik is a big tourist spot. While were there, huge cruise ships would come to port and drop hundreds of touristy folk off. So while Dubrovnik is a great get-a-way, it’s also crowded and somewhat expensive. On the plus side, everybody speaks English.

Saturday night: Found a place to stay closer to Old Town, rinsed the sea salt off our bodies, ate dinner, drank coffee, got gelato (not as good as Florence’s but hit the spot), and enjoyed the night life until about 3:30 a.m. Fun story: We we’re talking to a Scottish guy who had recently been to Sarajevo. We told him we were in school for International Trauma* Psychology, and he said “I met some of you in Sarajevo!” (But in a Scottish accent.) It turns out he had dinner with a couple people from our program earlier in the week. As he said it, “The world is small.”

Sunday: More sunning and swimming. The weather both days was magnificent. Even though I slathered on SPF 30, I got sunburned. That Mediterranean sun is strong. Returned to Mostar on the 3:15 p.m. bus.

Thing I do not like about Dubrovnik: So many men in Speedos. Along with torture and human trafficking, there needs to be a humanitarian effort to abolish men in tight bikini bottoms.

Thing I do like about Dubrovnik: Cuisine. It’s on the Adriatic Sea across from Italy, so it’s known for good sea food and Italian dishes. My favorites.

Bonus thought: I would like to celebrate my creativity. I left my contact lens case back in Mostar, so I soaked my lenses in a bottle cap instead. However, before I pop the champagne, I should realize my creativity was only needed because of my stupidity. Oopsy.

*The real name of my program is International Disaster Psychology, but we, the students, find International Trauma Psychology a more fitting name and have started to use it when explaining what we’re doing in Bosnia.