Supersized Mostar Post

Warning, long post ahead!

I type this from my apartment in Mostar. No, I don’t have internet there. However, from my place my computer does pick up wireless signals, they just aren’t strong enough to give me full internet capabilities. Who tries to steal wireless in a post-conflict country? This girl.

Because there aren’t an abundance of internet cafes nearby, and I don’t know how much time I’ll have to blog at work (do people here waste as much time on the internet at work as they do in the U.S.?), my plan is to write from home, save my stuff to a flash drive and transfer my entries when I have the chance.

So I’m in Mostar! I like reaching final destinations and knowing when I unpack my bags I won’t be packing them up for a while.

After 2 fun days in Sarajevo, we—Kristine, Sara and I—overslept a bit Saturday morning, so in a slight rush we said goodbye to Kristine (whose blog you can enjoy by clicking on a link I’ve provided in the side panel) went to the bus station, where we missed the 12:30 p.m. bus we intended to take but got ourselves on a 1:00 pm to Mostar. We had gone to bed around 4 a.m. and woke up around 11:15 a.m. when we had planned to leave for the bus station at 11:30 am. Hey, we were adjusting to our new European time zone. And, when we called our Mostar contact person at 12:30 p.m. to tell her we would be late, it sounded like she was still in bed, and we found later out she had a good night herself the night before, so we didn’t feel bad about the 30 min. later-than-expected arrival.

The ride to Mostar was beautiful. Green and hilly and sunny. From what people had warned me about, I expected my first views of Mostar to be that of war damaged buildings. Not the case. Yes, there was some indication of that, but there seems to be more new buildings and building reconstruction than anything war-torn. I’m under the impression that had I been staying in Mostar 2 years or even 1 year ago, I’d be saying differently.

Ivana, who works at the organization I’m placed with this summer, met us at the bus station and was nothing but extremely welcoming and incredibly sweet. She drove us to our apartments and gave us chocolate, local candy and fruit, along with folders with tons of Mostar maps and brochures as welcome gifts. Then she drove us around town, took us out for Bosnian food and coffee, brought us to a grocery store, and drove us back home. So helpful, so nice—such a pleasant way to begin a new city. She told us she just turned 26, but I would have guessed older. Not on looks, but on maturity. She looks like my cousin Jocelyn, which will provide a visual for about, oh, two of you.

From Saturday evening until Sunday evening (it’s 10:30 p.m. Mostar time as I write this) Sara and I have done a lot of exploring the town. Our apartments are about a 15 minute walk to the center of town, and once you’re there you can get to anywhere in Mostar by walking.

I start work Monday (tomorrow at this point in time), the 11th at 11:00 a.m. Ivana says she wants to let us sleep. Ok by me. Unfortunately, our direct supervisor had a recent medical emergency and is out of the office, so I don’t know when Sara and I will begin full-blown work.

Fast facts:
· It’s HOT here.
· Sara and I have studio apartments right next to each other. They’re darling. Brand new, completely furnished and nicer than my place in Denver. I’ve included a picture of the living area and will post more soon.
· My Croatian comprehension and speaking skills continue to not exist, but I seem to be surviving well on blank stares and hand gestures.