Belgrade - Keeps gettin' better!

So…since my last post telling of my “willie waterbug” shower trauma, things here in Serbia have improved exponentially...with just a few setbacks…just as I thought they would!

I can’t believe it has only been a week! There is so much to do and to learn that each day seems to be a week unto itself!! But after my first week here in Belgrade I am really starting to get into the swing of things and starting to enjoy myself.

Now, while I was always committed to staying positive and excited about my time here, the first few days were challenging in many ways (as I noted in previous entries) and when I woke-up on Sunday (again at some ungodly early hour b/c I am still not over jet-lag) and the sky was once again grey with fog and rain (I had begun to think that the sun had forgotten about Serbia!) a feeling of gloom to match the sky had settled over me. I was feeling frustrated that I was struggling with the Cyrillic alphabet, was tired of the rain, was annoyed that I did not have a working shower and was feeling generally far away and foreign.

Adding to these gloomy feelings was the fact that the neighborhood I have settled in, a place in the old part of the city called Dorcol, does not look like the Belgrade I remember. The large communist bloc buildings are run down, there is trash overflowing the dumpsters on the street, there are large patches of mud where grass should be, and no one ever smiles on the street (where are the Mormon missionaries when you need them?).

Some Gloomy images from the windows of my Belgrade flat...

I had been trying to keep a positive attitude, but was sinking into grey when I received a call from a friend of a friend – a Macedonian guy named Bojan who lives here in Belgrade. In spite of the horrid wet weather (and doubly in spite of the fact that Balkan people in general seem to fear that death will find them if they have wet hair and get a chill), Bojan came to my apartment to take me out in the downtown of the city. HOORAY!!!

Upon arriving in the downtown area – just a 7 minute walk from my flat – I was overcome with a sense of joy and relief! Here is the European city I remember! Walking areas, cute shops, gorgeous buildings and even more gorgeous people!!! We went to a lovely café for a coffee, and had a great talk about everything under the sun. Then, after quickly buying umbrellas, we went to several bookstores in the downtown shopping district (called Knez Mihailova) where I bought a great map of the city, a fantastic guidebook about Belgrade and a nice collection of interviews with Edward Said! We then went to the market to buy the part I needed to fix my shower.

Cool church in downtown Belgrade...

Cool building in downtown Belgrade...

Austrian Embassy Downtown Belgrade...

Knez Mihailova - shopping district - downtown Belgrade...

So Sunday was a GREAT day!!! There was a somewhat sad moment however when I realized that I had seen on more than one occasion an elderly person digging through the trash and/or begging on the street. I was not surprised to see Roma (“gypsy”) kids begging in the streets, as, although sad, this is a common sight in southern Europe. But I was shocked and saddened to see people who looked like they could be my own grandmother in such a state of destitution. Bojan explained to me that these were people who had grown up under the socialist system and who as a result of the collapse of socialism now had no retirement and could not find work as any open jobs go to younger people. I immediately felt guilty for throwing away food I did not finish, and learned that it is common practice for people to place unwanted food in a plastic bag and hang it next to the trash bins so that people did not have to dig for it.

Monday I was up ridiculously early again and had my first day of work. I was commissioned to serve on a fellowship committee to help choose 20 Serbian college students to study for a year in the US on a USAid fellowship. While I go a little lost on the way, the fact that the sun was shining for the first time since my arrival overrode any potential frustration I may have felt. My neighborhood actually looked beautiful in the morning sunlight and I really enjoyed my first day of this job.

View of lovely sunrise from my Belgrade flat...

When the work was done for the day, I walked from the office through the downtown into the most lovely city park I have ever seen! Kallemegdan Park is like Belgrade’s Central Park. It is HUGE, gorgeous and filled with people. There is a part where people are selling various wares, as well as a zoo, a small amusement park for kids, a few cafes, a night club, and many statues and monuments all situated on several levels of a large hill overlooking the point where the Danube and Sava rivers come together. The park itself in situated around a large fortress that is thousands of years old.

As I walked around the park taking pictures and looking at things, I was approached by an old man (it is common for retired men to gather in the park during the day – forced out of their homes by their wives who need some space to themselves) who saw me taking photos. He began to speak to me in Serbian and I was stammering and awkward at first. I expected that once he heard my terrible language skills that he would retreat and I would go about my business, but amusingly this was not the case. This man walked with me around the park for 2 hours, talking to me in Serbian the entire time! While I only caught about 60% of what he said, by the end of the conversation, my language skills had started to come back, and I began to remember a lot of my vocabulary. The highlight of our conversation had to be the Serbian “history lesson” he gave to me, which surprisingly I actually understood given that this is an area that I have studied!

View of merchants in Kallemegdan...

View from Kallemegdan Park...

Part of fortress in park...

Part of fortress in park...

After 2 hours I was thoroughly freezing and my feet were aching (given that I had just come from work and was wearing heels). I hobbled home, happy that I had practiced my language, thrilled that I now know enough to have found my way home, and excited to get home and get warm! But all in all…Monday was a great day!!

Tuesday was to be my first day at the university where I will teach this semester. While it was again gloomy outside, it was not raining and the single day of sunshine is enough to hold the promise of better days to come such that the gloomy weather is no longer getting under my skin so much. I met my colleague Eric who showed me the way to the university (a 40 minute commute by tram) and after stopping to marvel at the local street construction workers who were enjoying a beer with their 9am break, we were off to my new job.

When we arrived at the “Faculty of Political Sciences” where my office is located, one of the first things I noticed was that we somehow had been in a time machine. There were students gathered outside and in the hallways, and all were smoking – inside and out. As you pass each office of the faculty members, they were also smoking as they enjoyed their Turkish coffees which were being delivered by a woman who you call from your office and who then brings your coffee in minutes!! Eric brought me to our shared office, which is as large as most Dutch apartments and is as well appointed as any office I have had at American universities with the exception of a printer…which would have come in handy!

I then had several meetings with those faculty members with whom I will work, and then enjoyed a delightful lunch in the adorable faculty restaurant (NOTE: not a cafeteria, but a REAL restaurant!) where we ate a delicious Serbian meal with several faculty members. One of the faculty members with whom we dined was talking about the state of Serbian politics. She mentioned something about knowing the current president, a man named Boris Tadic, and of having known the previous president (who had been assassinated a few years back) a man named Zoran Djindjic. At first I thought she meant she “knew” them in the sense that she had studied them – the way that those of us who study political discourse “know” Clinton or Regan or Bush – when I suddenly realized that she meant she KNEW them – like she had grown up with them, went to school with them, fought for change in Serbia with them!!! Imagine…actually knowing your leaders!! It struck me as amazing to live in a country where one could actually KNOW the people who were the leaders!!!

All-in-all my first day at the University made me really excited to start my work here!!! I am so lucky to get to work with people who are so well connected to the people and phenomena that I will study here, and for the first time since I have been here I felt so lucky, so totally fortunate to have been awarded this fellowship!! Now, Serbian students are different in many ways from American students [for example: while American students are not ashamed to say things to their professors like “I don’t really like to read and write” and often skip classes, Serbian students are dedicated to learning all that they can; on the other hand, Serbian students, while highly skilled at rote memory, are not skilled at critical/analytical thinking, and rarely if ever challenge or question professors (who are thought to have ultimate knowledge). American students are much better at this, and most often easily engage in discussion and debate. So…these are a few of the differences I will have to adjust to.] Still, I am so excited to get into the classroom here and see what I can learn from the students and how I can use my teaching style to ignite their passions in different ways!!

As we took the tram back to our part of town, Eric and I decided to get off the tram a few stops early to walk through the city on our way home. Again, as I was at work and because people here all dress very sharply, I was dressed in my work clothes and wearing heels. Much to my horror (though not the least bit surprising for those who know me) as I alighted from the train, I stepped in a small pot-hole on the side walk and hit the ground with the force of a dozen eggs being dropped from a 12th story roof! SMACK!! Road rash on both hands, bleeding knees, and severely bruised pride, I jumped to my feet as if I was fine, and walked home with each step shooting fire up my legs!!! A few more wobbles on the cobblestone streets convinced me that 2 days in heels are enough for the entire 6 months I am here! I vowed to send all of my heeled shoes home!!!

My first wounds...

I stopped back at my apartment, immediately put on my Chuck Taylors, and left the flat again to go meet Eric’s wife, Meg, with whom I was to spend the evening. The first thing we did was go shoe shopping as now I realized I was in need of some nice work shoes that did not have ANY heel! As I saw my reflection in several store windows, it became immediately clear that, although I LOVE my Chuck Taylor’s, I looked terribly out of place in a city where everyone looks well put together. As such, upon purchasing a comfy and heel-less pair of boots, I put them on my feet in spite of inadequate sock choice.

Meg & I continued on our journey, visiting 2 parts of town I had not yet been, and choosing a cute café for dinner and drinks. The walk was lovely, the city was buzzing and even though my feet were screaming as blisters formed on my toes and heels, I was having a wonderful time! At dinner I ordered a Jack on the rocks. (Viskej sa ledom). The waiter then asked me in Serbian what sounded like “How many ice would you like?” Sure I did not understand I asked him to repeat himself, which he did twice. Again, sure I was confused about my vocabulary, I asked again and when he said in English “How many ice do you want?” I laughed at myself a little!! I had not misunderstood him! I had forgotten that it is a truly American thing to assume a glassful of ice with enough whiskey to look like 3 or 4 fingers when poured on top – a nice pour that would be naturally expected at home. In Europe at large the American obsession with ice is often commented upon and asked about. Whether it be Coke, or lemonade or liquor, local people do not often use ice at all, and if they do it is one or two cubes. So…while I was a little embarrassed that I had forgotten this and assumed that with ice means ICE and LOTS OF IT, I was also a little bit glad that I had actually understood what he was saying in Serbian, I had just lost the cultural context!!

After a truly lovely meal, we walked (well I hobbled at this point) back to my neighborhood and upon reaching my flat (and tearing off my shoes!) I fell into a deep and satisfied sleep! Tuesday was a great day!!! Even with the fall, and the blisters and the mis-communications…I went to sleep totally content and excited to move into the next few days.

Today is Wednesday. I had to go to the US embassy as well as the Serbian government offices for my residency visa. It is pouring rain again, and it has gotten cold. Still, I am happy and looking forward to going to work at the scholarship committee again tomorrow and Friday. Things are good here in Serbia and they keep getting better. I know there will still be some stupid moments, and I will likely trip and fall more than one more time, but overall, I am really pleased with the progress I have made so far and feel that I am getting used to the cultural differences and am well positioned for great productivity in my work while I am here.

I am meeting some very interesting and exciting people. I am getting to know the good things on offer here in the city. And I am actually starting to be really busy!!!

So with this, I will sign off for today. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the photos!