tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-171749022011-04-21T17:38:55.643-04:00A picaresque account of a year in Kragujevac, Serbia.Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.comBlogger731100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1151256516007797262006-06-25T13:11:00.000-04:002006-06-25T13:31:17.333-04:00

Much to our amazement, we didn't have to pay a penny in extra baggage fees, even though we had twice the allowed amount (and my back still hurts). I'm not sure if it was because Dan spoke to the check-in guy in Serbian, because I smiled cutely, or just because the guy was too stunned by how much baggage we had to think about charging us. At any rate, we're home with all our stuff and we didn't

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1150787200794387052006-06-20T03:05:00.000-04:002006-06-20T04:02:25.483-04:00

Today is our last full day in Serbia. We'll spend the day packing and visiting friends. Tomorrow morning we head back to Boston. Of course, I'm sad to leave behind my friends and the life we've made here. I still remember returning to Serbia from a trip to Budapest and sighing with relief at the sounds of Serbian. I like that for a short time a language other than my own meant "home." I'm

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1149590253979702692006-06-18T03:50:00.000-04:002006-06-18T04:45:09.853-04:00

As soon as we arrived and got out of the cars, the accordions started up (of course). When the groom's party arrives at the bride's house, there is a tradition that the groom must shoot an apple placed somewhere in the yard by the bride's family before being allowed inside. Sometimes they put it in a tricky spot, like on top of the house or up in a tree (how difficult the shot is supposedly

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1150406920976703242006-06-15T17:27:00.000-04:002006-06-15T17:28:40.996-04:00

It's great to see that the US is caught up in World Cup fever this year (hah!).I was showing this piece to a friend in Serbia, and I had to explain the joke.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1149666214099336292006-06-07T03:41:00.000-04:002006-06-07T03:43:34.113-04:00

Ok, so you'll have to wait a week for the rest of the wedding saga. We leave today for our tango vacation in Croatia. After that, we only have one more week in Serbia! See you soon in Boston.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1149503685769299842006-06-05T06:28:00.000-04:002006-06-18T04:48:54.056-04:00

One question that has come up with surprising frequency over the past year is "Have you been to a Serbian wedding yet?"While none of our friends were willing to get married just so we could attend a wedding, our friend Milos did get us invited to his friend’s wedding, so I can now answer "Yes." And also "Wow!" Yesterday we spent about 15 hours at wedding-related activities. For blogging purposes,

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1149237066987266272006-06-02T04:31:00.000-04:002006-06-03T11:06:13.173-04:00

Last Sunday, Kragujevac had its annual goulash cook-off down by the lake. Naturally, this wasn't something we could miss.It started at noon, and we arrived around 2 to the tantalizing smell of simmering goulash (and the sight of at least a dozen people dressed in traditional Serbian garb). There were about 30 contestants, including a team from the fire department, and each had set up a metal

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1148456552355299762006-05-24T03:35:00.000-04:002006-05-24T03:46:42.916-04:00

For my US readers who may be wondering what Serbians really think about the whole referendum thing, Bg Anon, a new contributor to Belgrade Blog, has posted his views on the Montenegrin referendum.Of course, there are other opinions, but most of the people I've spoken with have had very similar takes on the situation.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1148285413377125962006-05-22T04:06:00.000-04:002006-05-22T05:08:59.386-04:00

Unofficial results are showing that yesterday Montenegrins voted (by a very narrow margin) to dissolve the union with Serbia. As far as I can tell, today is business as usual here in Kragujevac. Over the past week I asked many Serbs for their opinions and predictions of the referendum, and I can sum up the overall response with one big shoulder shrug.I was watching the weather report on CNN this

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1148209255293491612006-05-21T06:25:00.000-04:002006-05-21T07:05:37.313-04:00

We've been busy over the last few weeks completing projects and attending conferences, many of which have long been symbols of the end of our stay in Serbia. The only big thing we have left is our tango vacation.I don't want anyone to think that I'm impatiently counting down the days until we leave Serbia (because I'm not), but the fact is that today is May 21 and our return tickets to Boston are

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1147095966920838182006-05-08T09:46:00.000-04:002006-05-08T09:54:58.796-04:00

Last Wednesday Dan and I taught a swing dance class at the American Corner. We had 10 couples, and everyone picked up the steps relatively quickly. Such fun!The flying hair! The green sneakers!

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1147089538310434762006-05-08T07:19:00.000-04:002006-05-08T09:33:11.180-04:00

May 6th is the slava of the city of Kragujevac, so this past weekend was one big party.On Friday we celebrated the first anniversary of the American Corner. At the party, we announced the winners of the creative writing contest and gave out prizes and awards. I was chatting with one of the winners, talking about Lemony Snicket (her prize was the box set of the first three books) and she asked

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1146567103575212852006-05-02T06:32:00.000-04:002006-05-08T07:02:55.580-04:00

Ok, I know that is perhaps the most obvious title I could have used for this post, but I couldn't resist. Who knows when I'll have another opportunity like this?Dan and I recently returned from five and a half glorious days of exploring Istanbul. The weather was just about perfect, the sights were magnificent, I tangoed in my fourth country, and (unhappily) there were throngs of tourists. We

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1146397585229449682006-04-30T07:46:00.000-04:002006-04-30T07:46:25.256-04:00

We just got back from our adventure in Istanbul, and we're still getting our thoughts in order for blogging. In the meantime, here are a few things worth checking out:Slate's Fred Kaplan on exporting more of American culture than The OC and tanks.Two Chinese Boys. Funniest thing I've seen in ages.New ads for Dunkin' Donuts. Music by They Might Be Giants.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1145205385160113352006-04-16T12:25:00.000-04:002006-04-16T12:36:25.186-04:00

In case you guys over in the States haven't heard, the Balkans are pretty much under water at the moment (although not being situated on any of the major rivers, we are A-OK here in Kragujevac). The Danube has reached record levels, and the flooding is destroying houses and farmland throughout the region. When I was returning from Budapest last Monday, there were times when the water was less

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1144755924339487332006-04-11T07:34:00.000-04:002006-04-11T09:56:38.466-04:00

While Dan has been busy blogging away over the past few days, I've been taking my mom around Serbia and Budapest. We had a great trip, and my mom did the work of the USPS by hauling lots of my favorite things across the ocean. Three cheers for Ginger Betty's ginger snaps! Also gingerbread cookies that look like the Serbian flag. Thank you mom!It was interesting to watch someone having first

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1143484756516202632006-03-27T13:35:00.000-05:002006-03-27T15:31:26.170-05:00

Yesterday our landlords took us on a road trip through central Serbia. We were in search of the Resava Monastery. Fortunately, the man we stopped for directions thought we were looking for a different monastery and told us entirely the wrong way to go.The monastery the guy sent us to was smaller, but sometimes when you don't end up where you planned, you do end up exactly where you're supposed to

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1143317741142542272006-03-25T15:13:00.000-05:002006-03-25T15:15:41.183-05:00

I was having a good game (for me). I was definitely on track to break 300. But I had to call "uncle."Dan got not one (decides), not two (adjutant), but THREE (illness) bingos. It's just not sportsman-like.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1143297021264433742006-03-25T09:25:00.000-05:002006-03-25T09:30:21.353-05:00

Viktor from Belgrade Blog posted an excellent answer to my often thought (but rarely vocalized for fear of being insensitive) question of what it was like during the bombings. Very informative for Americans who have not had to live through anything similar.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1143282614040581562006-03-25T05:02:00.000-05:002006-03-25T05:32:44.286-05:00

We were having coffee with friends after a jazz concert last night, and the conversation turned, as it almost always does, to politics. None of us (except Dan) actually like talking about politics, but it's something you just can't avoid. As our Serb friend put it, "I don't care about politics, but politics care about me."In Serbia, what's going on with politics actually effects people's lives.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1142768844864693042006-03-19T06:42:00.000-05:002006-03-19T06:47:24.886-05:00

Belgrade "Help Desk" Blog posted a recap of the events of the past week. Great pictures of the "Spring arrives three days earlier this year" event, where citizens got together in Belgrade on the day of the funeral to wish that "Milosevic doesn't happen to us ever again." Inspiring!

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1142293958928358512006-03-13T18:30:00.001-05:002006-03-13T18:52:38.930-05:00

My U.S. readers may be wondering about the atmosphere in Serbia following the death of Slobodan Milosevic. I can report that in some quarters, his death has been dramatically overshadowed by the Eurovision fiasco.Eurovision is an annual musical competition among the European countries, and every country is allowed to send one representative performer or group. Serbia and Montenegro are two

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141906640551445592006-03-09T07:05:00.000-05:002006-03-09T07:17:20.573-05:00

The Canadians beat the US baseball team yesterday in the first World Baseball Classic. I know, I know, I didn't want to believe it either. But it's in the New York Times.Now, I was expecting to face some competition from, say, the Dominican Republic. But Canada? Didn't they just shut down the Expos because no one went to the games?My boy Varitek hit a grand slam, but Red Sox youngster (and

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141466316495512922006-03-07T04:51:00.000-05:002006-03-07T09:55:54.850-05:00

Last Friday was opening night of a film festival at our local theater - it seems that the films from the Belgrade festival are making the rounds to the regional theaters. We met up with our friends, bought some popcorn, and went in to see the first film, Broken Flowers. According to the advertisements, the movie was supposed to be followed by some sort of concert.We took our seats, glad that

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141488112031017972006-03-04T10:59:00.000-05:002006-03-04T11:01:52.086-05:00

In case you don't check our "official" blog, Serbia ELF News, here's the scoop on an exciting event we have planned at the American Corner. Thanks to Speedy Rice for volunteering to come speak.Is a newspaper wrong to print cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, even if hundreds of people die in the resulting protests?Should a newspaper blow the cover of a covert CIA operative? Should reporters go to

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141463573391302042006-03-04T03:57:00.000-05:002006-03-04T04:39:32.880-05:00

Check out this International Herald Tribune article about corruption in the healthcare field.In the States we may have an outrageous system of paying for our healthcare, but at least the doctors are generally honest. A Serb friend of mine is just two months away from having a baby, and throughout the pregnancy she's had to go to a number of different doctors and pay I don't know how much to get

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141331308592857482006-03-02T15:15:00.000-05:002006-03-02T15:46:09.190-05:00

In light of all the recent talk about fugitives from the Hague Tribunal, I would like to share a joke that we heard from a taxi driver in Belgrade.Radovan Karadzic is tired of being in hiding, so he goes to a plastic surgeon in Switzerland and says, "Change everything, make me completely different so no one will recognize me." The surgeon says, "No problem, Mr. Karadzic." So he has the surgery

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141299920751374212006-03-02T06:42:00.000-05:002006-03-02T07:07:00.833-05:00

Bird flu has now been found in Serbia.I don't spend any time near poultry, so I'm not worried. I am surprised that it took this long to show up here, since it's seems to be everywhere else in Europe.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141154915714581552006-02-28T14:28:00.000-05:002006-02-28T14:39:25.686-05:00

Ok, maybe it's not a blizzard, but poor Srce went and put all their tables outside. Ice cream, anyone?

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1141052355516850072006-02-27T09:57:00.000-05:002006-02-27T09:59:15.516-05:00

I've been meaning to set up an on-line photo album so we can share pictures from our travels. I've finally done it (although I haven't put them all up yet). You can see our Sarajevo photos here. I've also added a link over on the right there under "Serbia Links" that you can check periodically for new collections. I'll try to post here when I put up new pix.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140883921404363282006-02-25T10:39:00.000-05:002006-02-25T12:14:00.766-05:00

In our house, Dan does most of the cooking. There are some things that I make very well, but mostly I'm too lazy, and tend to eat cereal rather than make a "meal." Dan, not being such a fan of Frosted Flakes, makes very nice meals for us on a regular basis.That's not how things work in Serbia. The women are definitely the ones who cook and clean, and it's not just what the men expect of them,

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140770321448158452006-02-24T03:21:00.000-05:002006-02-24T03:58:32.290-05:00

Yesterday Dan and I had the opportunity to go to an Embassy-sponsored jazz concert in Belgrade. It was a great excuse to go to the city, take in some culture, and catch up with some of our Embassy friends, so Dan moved his classes around a little and we went.We had some errands to take care of before we left for the city, and we were running a little late to catch the 1:00 bus. We grabbed the

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140599150506128402006-02-22T04:00:00.000-05:002006-02-22T04:05:50.846-05:00

...are just fantastic. Check out this article Dan found about the taxi drivers / philosophers in Belgrade.P.S. Dan can't remember where he found the link, but he suspects it was on another ex-pat blog. So if it was you, sorry for the poor scholarship!

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140463126178652852006-02-20T14:15:00.000-05:002006-02-20T15:31:25.603-05:00

We're having a spell of stunning weather - temperatures around 18 C with sunny skies. It makes me impatient for the real spring and the trove of delicious fresh vegetables we've been promised. But being a New Englander, I fully expect a blizzard next week to make up for the warmth.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140277101085781652006-02-18T10:32:00.000-05:002006-02-18T13:27:28.293-05:00

I'm feeling a bit guilty because I haven't posted any insightful yet witty commentary on life in Serbia lately; I just haven't spent a lot of time here in the past two months.Yesterday I flew back to Serbia from Vienna. One of the major triumphs of my trip was getting from the bus station to the Belgrade airport and vice versa without any help. This was a huge accomplishment for me, because

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1140288820406070272006-02-18T09:47:00.000-05:002006-02-25T11:14:35.836-05:00

Regular readers know that one of the things we miss most about the US is ethnic food.I found taco seasoning packets in Vienna.I understand that actual Mexicans don't necessarily use spice packets, but for me that's just about the real thing. We just finished our first "taco" dinner, Serbian style. We have no tortillas or taco shells, so we used slightly oversized melba toast-like crackers. It

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139597345978287122006-02-10T13:45:00.000-05:002006-02-10T13:53:39.060-05:00

I've clearly got baseball on my mind. I was preparing a handout for an upcoming presentation, and I listed the author of Frindle as Matt Clement (Red Sox pitcher) instead of Andrew Clements (the actual author). Eagle-eye Dan spotted the error before I made any copies.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139569107854547972006-02-10T05:42:00.000-05:002006-02-10T08:15:28.690-05:00

I'm sorry, I couldn't resist the cheeseball title.I finally got in touch with the tango community in Belgrade, and last Wednesday Dan and I went to our first milonga. One of the things that I love about tango is that it's instant community wherever you go. We arrived at the club 15 or 20 minutes after the milonga started, put on our shoes, and had a few warm-up dances. When we sat down for

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139321394390856792006-02-07T09:07:00.000-05:002006-02-07T09:13:22.060-05:00

Today we went to our local UPS office to mail off my application for graduate school.It cost 50 euros. And that's taking into account the discount the UPS guy gave us because he remembered reading about us in the newspaper (he was a very nice man).I had better get accepted.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139220919964142412006-02-06T04:54:00.000-05:002006-02-06T05:15:20.490-05:00

Tomorrow we're celebrating Black History Month at the American Corner. We've put together a presentation on African-American music that should be excellent, if the play list is any indication. Here is the list of songs that we'll be playing all or part of:Menu Di Ye Jewe - Babatunde OlatunjiNo Room in the Jailhouse - Reverend J. M. GatesDidn't My Lord Deliver Daniel - Howard Roberts ChoraleGood

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139082386247460672006-02-04T14:41:00.001-05:002006-02-04T15:40:06.050-05:00

We recently passed the mid-point of our stay in Serbia.I don't have anything grand or profound to say, but I'd like to pause and take note of the moment. I can't think ahead to actually leaving; we have so many things to do between now and then... coffee will be drunk, conferences will happen, and babies will be born!Dan had to submit a mid-year report detailing all of his professional

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1139050865284269922006-02-04T05:55:00.000-05:002006-02-04T06:06:19.020-05:00

I have a question for all the Serbs out there reading my blog:Who actually likes turbofolk?I am mystified by the continued existence of this music form when I haven't met anyone who will fess up to actually enjoying it. The only people I know who listen to it are the bus drivers (which is unfortunate for those of us who rely on buses to get around). Everyone else just talks about how bad it

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1138823991020905252006-02-01T14:55:00.000-05:002006-02-02T04:28:20.510-05:00

Dan and I recently started a third, joint blog to keep track of some of the more official things we do, including upcoming events at the American Corner, any special workshops or presentations we're giving, class assignments for Dan, and other related news.The new blog, titled Serbia ELF News, may be of slightly less interest to our American family and friends, but the Serbian bloggers out there

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1138803934318649662006-02-01T09:14:00.000-05:002006-02-01T09:25:34.346-05:00

Last night we went to our local theater to see the new King Kong. I'm a long time fan of the original - when I was little my Uncle Donny would bring over a VHS tape to play for me and my siblings, and we watched it many, many times. So I was excited to see the remake with new special effects and whatnot.The gorilla was great, I though the actors were good, but I think Peter Jackson is suffering

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1138613492520858892006-01-30T04:28:00.000-05:002006-01-30T04:54:47.596-05:00

I had a great time exploring Budapest while Dan was in meetings. We were there for the regional ELF conference, and I was the only spouse, so I had all sorts of time for myself. I walked all over the city and poked into different shops, enjoying the sights and sounds of a new place.My favorite thing from this trip was going to the Szechenyi thermal baths located in the city park. Beautiful 19th

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1138138223648556802006-01-24T16:22:00.000-05:002006-01-24T16:36:05.690-05:00

We're getting the tail end of the recent Russian cold snap (it was -50 C there) and temps here are hovering around 0 F, dipping below at night. Not nearly so bad, but still quite chilly.I was on my way downtown this morning and, as I turned a corner, I saw two guys standing in front of a beat up old Yugo with the hood up. They were holding this big black box thing under the hood, balancing it

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1138093523930793052006-01-24T04:05:00.000-05:002006-01-24T04:39:02.170-05:00

Lunchtime! Beef stew, stuffed grape leaves, roasted potatoes, pickled cabbage, and Fanta!Inside the mosque.Gorgeous!The view from the slopes.This guy cruised over us while we were on the chairlift.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1137933982628426252006-01-23T17:03:00.000-05:002006-01-24T04:40:04.503-05:00

We have a three day turnaround between our vacation in Sarajevo and Dan's conference in Budapest, and I wanted to let you know about Sarajevo before we dash off again.We took the bus out last Tuesday, and it was a magnificent ride through the mountains of western Serbia / eastern Bosnia. The vistas were stunning, but it was best not to look over the side of the road; it's a loooong way down to

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1134835290210362992006-01-14T09:55:00.000-05:002006-01-14T10:38:53.483-05:00

Just before we went home for the holidays, I did the first of a series of training sessions with local librarians. Verica, my contact from ACDI-VOCA, and I traveled to the village of Lapovo to talk to the librarians about promoting literacy in the community, the importance of reading aloud, and the nuts and bolts of how to give a good reading.The workshop was attended by the librarians and by two

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1136759880403484412006-01-08T17:35:00.000-05:002006-01-08T17:38:00.403-05:00

Dan and I went to our second annual New Year's tango in Providence (although this time we didn't get there until New Year's Day) and our photo is up on the website. Check it out! We were out of tango shape in a big way - we hadn't really danced since September - but we had a fantastic time and got to meet up with our tango friends.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1136759305393972272006-01-08T16:52:00.000-05:002006-01-08T17:35:02.830-05:00

We returned to Serbia last Wednesday after an action-packed ten days stateside. The flight back was uneventful until we arrived in Belgrade and my bag wasn't there. This was upsetting because (a) it had some of my favorite stuff in it and (b) the bag itself is a fancy backpack and would have been pricey to replace. I gave about a 50-50 chance of seeing my things again and was delightfully

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1135174447507803872005-12-21T09:13:00.000-05:002005-12-21T17:15:35.423-05:00

Last night we went to our first slava. This is one of my favorite Serbian traditions; every family has a special day to honor a saint and on that day they celebrate by eating A LOT and hanging out with each other. The first night of the slava, the actual day of the saint, is reserved for immediate family. The second day is a chance to invite over extended family and friends. It's also a chance

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1134568959273513082005-12-14T08:54:00.000-05:002005-12-14T09:38:39.050-05:00

So, I'm supposed to be working on a paper I promised for an upcoming conference of librarians. It's something I really need to finish before I fly home for the holidays (eight days and a wake up) but here I am, blogging. Who else out there blogs to procrastinate? Raise your hands!This is what's on my mind. People ask us all the time how I reacted when I heard about moving to Serbia, and I usually

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1134220363991771342005-12-10T08:12:00.000-05:002005-12-10T08:18:18.556-05:00

This is our dog, Ben. He really belongs to our landlord, but we like to play with him. His latest toy was a plastic flowerpot he had taken away from one of the flowers. We were worried that bits of plastic were not good for his digestion so we got him squeaking rubber french fries as a replacement. He seems to enjoy the flavor - look at his tail wag!

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1134038603090460992005-12-08T05:19:00.000-05:002005-12-08T06:05:41.260-05:00

This was big for me, because there were around 70 people there, and I wasn't sure if I would freeze up or not. The vice dean attended, even though he doesn't speak English. It turns out I was full of pep and gave (what I think was) an interesting lecture on motivating kids to read and incorporating read aloud into elementary school English classes. The phrase that got the best reaction from the

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1133526240380978722005-12-02T07:21:00.000-05:002005-12-02T07:30:07.570-05:00

I'm only a recent convert to the Daily Show for the simple reason that I didn't have cable until right before we moved here. So for two weeks I basked in the glory of regular viewings, and then we skipped town.Late on Saturday nights and midafternoon on Sundays, CNN World runs "The Daily Show: Global Edition." This was an amazing find. From what we can tell, it's the best bits from the previous

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1132261767005326972005-11-26T04:30:00.000-05:002005-11-26T04:22:22.583-05:00

I grew up in a family where, when going out to eat, the fight over who gets to pay the bill usually comes to fisticuffs. A prime example occurred when I was in high school. I was going on a school sponsored trip to England and I didn't have a ride to the airport, so a friend's parents gave me a lift. My mom met us there after she finished work, and we went to one of the airport restaurants for

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1132601267483706182005-11-21T14:33:00.000-05:002005-11-21T14:34:30.913-05:00

I'm starting to plan a creative writing contest for the American Corner that I hope to run in the spring. There will be two age groups (8-11 and 12-15) and we will provide a theme or subject and allow a month for the kids to write. At the end of the month we'll have an awards ceremony where we will give out the prizes (obviously) and read some of the stories aloud. We're still working out the

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1132418880111873882005-11-19T11:46:00.000-05:002005-11-19T11:48:00.123-05:00

Delicate white flakesFalling slowly through the airMelting on the ground

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1132153069862576882005-11-17T15:29:00.000-05:002005-11-17T15:41:55.823-05:00

While we were out running errands the other day we ran into our Serbian teacher and his girlfriend; we decided to join them for treats at Srce, the local ice cream parlor. It was a wonderful impromptu meeting, and we lingered over ice cream and conversation. Later on, while we were finishing our errands, we came across two different acquaintances from the American Corner. It's surprising to me

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1131630163347089722005-11-10T08:42:00.000-05:002005-11-10T08:42:45.866-05:00

Eating out in Kragujevac has been something of a challenge. There are many bakeries and places to get crepes (palacinke, in Serbian). There are fast food stands a-plenty (hamburgers the size of my head) and we've found a few pizza joints. Of course there are places to get traditional Serbian foods, although we haven't been able to find them yet.The problem, as with food shopping, is that there

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1131119987879721092005-11-07T08:57:00.000-05:002005-11-16T15:10:09.670-05:00

Last Monday we hosted a Halloween party, our first major event at the American Corner. The two librarians we work with were willing to put up with our craziness, and it was good cultural education because Serbians don't have Halloween.I enlisted my mom to send us some authentic decorations, and she came through in a big way. We had tons of spider webs, Frankenstein posters, rubber bats and

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1130679485438241692005-10-30T09:45:00.000-05:002005-10-30T09:55:53.286-05:00

Other events that kept us busy this week were the start of Dan's classes, two programs at the American Corner, and our first Serbian lesson. But by far the most exciting was our excursion to the Belgrade Book Fair.This is an annual week-long event that takes place at the Belgrade Fair Grounds. There are 14 buildings of book fair - below you can see the main hall, which features Serbian publishers

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1130518453529607552005-10-28T12:54:00.000-04:002005-10-30T09:51:15.403-05:00

We just finished our first whirlwind week and we’re exhausted with a delicious undercurrent of self-satisfaction.This week actually started last Thursday when we got up to catch the bus at 4:15 in the @(*&%^*! morning. Why would we do such a crazy thing? We wanted to visit my friend in Budapest, and that’s the only way we could make the train connection in Novi Sad.When we got to Budapest and met

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1129746544300279812005-10-19T13:50:00.000-04:002005-10-19T14:34:02.340-04:00

Tomorrow is our one month anniversary in Kragujevac. Dan finally starts classes next week and we're getting things going at the American Corner. So far we've had two discussion groups and one cultural presentation on baseball. Everyone talks about how excited they are that we're here (for many of them, we're the first Americans they've ever met) but it's hard to read their reactions to our

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1129220121610309682005-10-13T12:35:00.001-04:002008-07-22T22:53:33.522-04:00

Before entering a soccer match, you have to get searched. I mean, really patted down, not just "can I have a look in your bag." This is a measure to discourage soccer hooligans from bringing in anything potentially dangerous. They do have women security people to search the women, though, so it was fine.Red Sox fans get up a good cheer of "Here we go Red Sox" or, when feeling mean-spirited or

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1128972866001093172005-10-12T03:54:00.000-04:002005-10-12T04:06:55.826-04:00

Over the weekend in Novi Sad we finally had a chance to listen to some Serbian folk music. We first encountered it in the restaurant of our hotel. We went down for dinner and the band - one bass, one violin, one accordion, and two guitars - was just finishing their card game so they could start the next set. As they were picking up their instruments, two new patrons entered the restaurant, both

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1128629935124267162005-10-06T16:00:00.000-04:002005-10-06T16:20:35.163-04:00

Here we are, on our big adventure, and I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm a little bored. Dan's classes don't start for another two weeks and the things I've found to do (more later) don't get going until next week. It's a "hurry up and wait" situation, and we are getting stircrazy. Thank goodness for the Discovery Channel - Mythbusters is on every night at 7 and 9. We're also hanging out in

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1128269949100261102005-10-02T12:19:00.000-04:002005-10-03T07:46:55.106-04:00

As a middle-class American, I'm used to being able to get whatever I want whenever I want. I think it's in the Constitution. In Kragujevac, the variety of products available is unexpectedly broad. I can get Gillette razors or Nike sneakers or McDonald's hamburgers (not that I necessarily would - I'm just saying I could). This general availability of things makes it even more surprising when I

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1127846160084780502005-10-01T09:33:00.000-04:002005-10-01T10:42:30.260-04:00

When I first told my coworkers about our plans to move to Serbia, I got a lot of surprised, questioning looks. I also got a lot of "Where is that, exactly?" We eventually made a game of what's the craziest place that starts with an "S" for Meaghan to move to. Siberia, Syria, Samoa, Sri Lanka... you get the idea.The truth is, I had a hard time selling the idea of Serbia to myself and to my family

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1128112464108684042005-09-30T16:32:00.000-04:002005-09-30T16:34:24.113-04:00

"Stars and Strips Forever"I'm thinking of starting a collection of "anguished English" shirts.

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1127932017788099632005-09-28T13:53:00.000-04:002005-09-28T14:26:57.806-04:00

Today we had a field trip to Belgrade for orientation and registration at the US Embassy. The bus to the city was easy, although in the end it took close to two hours. Walking around Belgrade made me a little sad not to be posted there - I always have been a city girl.A trip to the embassy is really something special, especially in a country with some security concerns. The first thing you see

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17174902.post-1127816173119510202005-09-27T06:14:00.000-04:002005-09-27T06:51:25.806-04:00

We arrived in Serbia one week ago today. We just got internet at our house last night - this is a great relief, as I'm tired of watching the ticker on CNN World to find out if the Red Sox won. My husband Dan and I are here through a fellowship Dan has with the state department. He'll be teaching English at the local univeristy... I'll be, well, I'm not sure yet.The strangest thing so far is

Meaghanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17369579629313541326noreply@blogger.com4