Friday, December 26, 2008

One Month!

me: "I'm studying abroad in the Balkans."
you: "....hmmm.... where is that....?"
me: "You know, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo?" (or a simple, "near Italy." HA.)
you: "Whoa. You can go there?"
me: "Um, sure, why not..."
you: [inevitably] "Don't they have, like, landmines?"

I'm leaving in a month. Jittery, restless, excited.... but I still have a long To Do list!

Sretan božić i sretna nova godina!
(Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDd_Km853P4&feature=related

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Sarajevo Roses

For those who are curious...

"A Sarajevo Rose is a concrete scar caused by a mortar shell's explosion that was later filled with red resin. Mortar rounds landing on concrete create a unique fragmentation pattern that looks almost floral in arrangement. Because Sarajevo was a site of intense urban warfare and suffered thousands of shell explosions during the Bosnian War, the marked concrete patterns are a unique feature to the city.

As the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo was a central zone of conflict during the Bosnian War. The Bosnian Serb Army deployed troops and artillery in the surrounding hills, and on May 2, 1992 began imposing a blockade on all traffic in and out the city, starting what was to be known as the Siege of Sarajevo. The Bosnian Serb Army constantly bombarded the civilian population in the city in an effort to prevent the home army from deploying. It has been estimated that on an average day more than 300 shell rounds were fired into the city.

As a memorial, throughout the city, explosion marks have been filled with red resin to mark where mortar explosions resulted in one or more deaths." -Wikipedia "Sarajevo Rose"

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

CNN presents "Scream Bloody Murder"

(CNN) -- They share a deep sorrow: an idealistic American who tried to protect the Kurds of Iraq, a Canadian general who refused to follow orders in Rwanda, a French priest who fought for the soul of Cambodia.

Each one tried to focus the world's attention on the world's most heinous crime: genocide. Each time, they were shunned, ignored or told it was someone else's problem.

To understand why, CNN's Christiane Amanpour traveled to the killing fields of Europe, Africa and Asia for a two-hour documentary, "Scream Bloody Murder."

Having reported on mass atrocities around the world, this time Amanpour traced the personal accounts of those who tried to stop the slaughter.

The yearlong CNN investigation found that instead of using a U.N. treaty outlawing genocide as a springboard to action, political leaders have invoked reason after reason to make intervention seem unnecessary, pointless and even counter-productive. (Read more...)

"Scream Bloody Murder" will air again on Friday, December 6 at 8:00pm Eastern.


Other CNN media about Bosnia & Herzegovina is available here.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Lunch with Zeljka

The end of my time in D.C. (for the next few months, at least) is quickly approaching - 3 term papers, 2 finals, and I'll be saying PEACE OUT CUA!!

I had lunch with Zeljka, the institutional advancement officer (a.k.a. fundraiser) at Women for Women International, today. W4W is an organization that works with women survivors of war with a holisitic approach to transform them from victim to survivor to active citizen. I've been volunteering at their headquarters in Van Ness since September and it has been awesome!!! They have programs in Bosnia & Herzegovina and Kosovo, in addition to the Middle East & Africa. I hope to visit a Bosnian women's group as part of my ISP project when I'm in Sarajevo (and I'm totally getting an internship at W4W for next summer)... maybe a Kosovar group too, if I can engineer it! Please check out their website and consider supporting W4W.

Anyways, Zeljka is from the Balkans herself (how cool is that?!?). She grew up in Belgrade (the capital of Serbia) and her dad is Croatian. She was so excited to hear about the SIT program and was eager to give me all kinds of information. She's also my lifesaver, becuase I have a huge term paper on NGO management for my social change/int'l development class due next week and I wanted to profile W4W, since I'm already familiar with its mission, vision, and programming. She gave me some good insight on how W4W is organized internally and put me in contact with some of the other officers who can give me even more details. One can only learn so much as a fly on the wall (as a volunteer), so I'm really glad that I had to chance to speak with her.

Before I decided to study abroad in the Balkans, I had never [personally] met anyone from the region before, didn't know anyone who spoke Croatian, and only encountered a few people who could point to any of the countries on a map. Since then, I've talked to so many people who know people/have family there, or speak Croatian (shout out Suzie!), or want to visit me - especially in Dubrovnik. It's really weird how one finds connections like these!

I am so ready for this semester to be over and to get on with the holidays, inauguration, and leaving (Jan 26!) already!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Travel Arrangements

Bok! I'm starting to plan my travel arrangements for the spring (in addition to starting a bit of online Croatian language training). I'm crazy excited. I talked to the travel agent arranging the group flight today. We're flying JFK-Vienna-Zagreb on Austrian Airlines - heading out on January 26, the program ends May 11.

I'm not planning to return with the group - I'd like to see Rome, then, of course, the requisite stop in Magstatt to see the relatives(!!). Vienna will be my travel hub, of course. I don't like the idea of flying east only to fly west again (PTSD of my August 2007 Basel > Zurich > Munich > Philly mess), but if it means spending some time in Austria and saving some money, I'll hack it! I'm flying back on Saturday, May 30th.

All of this needs to be finalized by November 21; it's so hard to plan things this far in advance for a spontaneous person like myself.

Sve do kasnije!!
(Until later)

Monday, October 6, 2008

My SIT Study Abroad program...

The Balkans: Post-Conflict Transformation in Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia

Program Overview:
The SIT Study Abroad program The Balkans: Post-Conflict Transformation in Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia engages students in rigorous coursework and research that explores the internal dynamics and processes at work in post-conflict societies, with special attention to gender and its role in civil society and conflict transformation.

The program gives students the opportunity to experience various aspects of far-reaching changes taking place in Balkan societies, ranging from women’s movements to peacebuilding. Through lectures and seminars in the dynamic Croatian capital of Zagreb and field excursions to Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, students gain factual information and a theoretical framework as they explore post-war transformation in the region. Students engage with the region’s cultural and social environment through their stays with host families and excursions in Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, and experience firsthand the richness and complexity of Balkan societies

A culture in transition:
While conflict in the Balkans has receded, the new nation-states in the region continue to experience dramatic transformations in their politics, societies, and economies. Perhaps most significantly, a dramatic shift in gender roles has placed women at the forefront of efforts to embrace new political and social roles as the Yugoslav successor states attempt to integrate with their European neighbors.

The Balkans: Post-Conflict Transformation in Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia is based in Zagreb, Croatia’s capital since 1991 following secession from the second Yugoslavia. The cultural, scientific, economic, and governmental center of Croatia, Zagreb is home to industrial firms and scientific and research institutions. Students explore the ongoing transformation in this dynamic city, as well as in Sarajevo and Belgrade, as they learn from and work with academics, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and social change activist groups to gain a firsthand perspective on the ongoing transformation of Balkan societies.

Program Information Sheet
Program Coursework
Program Highlights

**Update: 10/08/2008, 17:50**
I called SIT today and found out I've received full acceptance to the program!! I haven't sent in all of my completed medical forms yet, because I'm waiting for the labs to come back.

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

I am a pincushion

I [finally] mailed my application to SIT for the Balkans: Post-Conflict Transformation program about two weeks ago. I got my conditional acceptance right away and I've been working on getting the confirmation materials squared away.

I had my physical today and started the vacinations. I went to the Northwest Nurse Practitioner Associates, which is located by the zoo, and had a really good experience with the NP there. She's really informed and informative. NNPA could be the answer to "What do you do when you have a student health center that has great services until you actually need them?" She spent over an hour with me, discussing not only my history & doing the physical/tests/injections, but also giving general advice for staying healthy here and, of course, while I'm abroad.

Right now, I feel like a pincushion - I got scratched for my TB test yesterday at the health center and, today, I had blood drawn for a CBC and got a Tdap injection (Tdap is for tetanus, diptheria, and pertussis - vaccination against pertussis is especially important, she said, because of the great chance of me interacting with children while conducting my ISP in country). Luckily, I don't mind needles! I'll be starting my Hepatitis A and typhoid vaccines at a later date.

The TB test will be read tomorrow and the rest of my labs (CBC and urinalysis) should be back by Monday. Fingers crossed.