Europe

I am still alive

2007-09-22T13:15:00.000-07:00

5 months after the last post on my blog Jana has finally managed to reset her password...I created the blog to record my travels and adventures and I guess it was a bit pointless trying to write about nothing after my travels finished. And tonight I turn the television on and there is Michael Palin travelling around the Balkans...It has brought the best memories and created such a great feeling...

I have a new job and I love it!

2007-04-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

The bottom line is that I think I have landed in my dream job. Second week in my new job and I believe this is it.
So..... Last year I left Exeter, after having studied there, and I decided it was time to move on. I went travelling, came back and moved to London. Tried one job for 3 months, didn't like it so handed in my notice. I went to an assessment centre at the end of Feb - I wanted to be a recruitment consultant. I got through. I started my job last week and it has been great so far. It's exactly what I am looking for. It's tough, hard work, brain stimulating, frustrating at times, too much pressure but it pays off. And I am bloody enjoying it. I used to envy all people who were passionate about their job, who were determined to succeed, who went the extra mile to make the difference. So, ladies and gentlemen, I no longer envy those people. I have finally found my niche. (just keep your fingers crossed for me that my enthusiasm will last and that I will not run out of my self esteem, energy and fuel). Guys, wish me good luck, I want this job!!!

P.S.Any objections or suggestions - email me. Would love to know what everybody else thinks. (Is anybody actually reading my blog????)

I am a year older now

2007-03-30T03:24:00.001-07:00

So for those of you who haven't seen me for a while this is what a 30 year old look like.
It happened like this: I decided to celebrate it with only a few friends and we opted for Cafe Loco in Muswell Hill. For those of you who live in London I highly reccommend it especially if you fancy a pleasent evening in a relaxing atmosphere. They do a selection of tapas from which you can choose, and although they are not big, they are very filling. And paella is just awesome! And even on Saturday night they have happy hour from 6-8pm and you can choose from at least cocktails - £2.50 each to get tipsy on. The waitress is german though (i think) and the chefs are eastern european. I have captured some of the moments from the evening so I will share them with you.

I am turning 30 tomorrow

2007-03-20T06:31:00.000-07:00

It's the first day of spring tomorrow and I am turning 30. Phew...... Not sure if I am supposed to feel different but I don't. Well, apart from trying to remember where all my twenties have gone. Let's see......
I remember my 21 birthday, big celebration on a barge with some friends. (Went with a guy called Leigh - best thing that ever happened to me was when we split up).
22 - no recolection whatsoever apart from being accepted to uni, it was my last year at college and didn't really want to say good bye to all my friends there - Dien, Leila, Malaika, Peta etc.
23 - horrendous year, started uni and my mum died. Moved to Exeter and lived on the outskirts. Lived with Louise from Birmingham and Emma. Oh my god it took us hours to walk to the nearest pub.
24 - moved to a house on Portland Street, met Clarisse and lived again with Louise and Emma. (Went out with a guy called "I am so good looking all the girls fancy me and you should be lucky you are with me". So decided it was time to let him go so he can find himself someone who would appreciate him more).
25 - working for Reuters then off to Spain - Salamanca. Lived with 3 spanish girls in a flat that was very cheap but had no central heating. Damn.... it was was freezing at nights and boiling hot daytime. Went out with someone who turned out to be already engaged to someone else....
26 - last year at uni. I actually enjoyed this year... No relationship, no pressure and stress from men just studying during the dayi and partying at nights.
27/28 - stayed living in Exeter and kept wondering whether it's time to move and start a new life. I was a bit torn between moving and staying, I loved the place (and still do) but I felt like I had to move on and move to London for a few years.
29 - handed in my notice, took the summer off and went travelling around Eastern Europe and Balkans. It was time to reconnect with my old roots. And I loved every minute of it. Moved to London after that and I am still trying to find out whether I made the right choice. So.... that's my 20's
30 - tomorrow, who knows what my 30's will bring.....

London under snow

2007-02-08T15:15:00.000-08:00

Who would have believed it? London under snow! And it all happened over night. I woke up this morning, openend the curtains and saw the road and pavement covered with snow.

"Thousands of schoolchildren have enjoyed the day off as more than 400 schools in London were forced to close after heavy snowfall."

"Network Rail has warned passengers to check services are running before setting off for their journey on Thursday."

"Snow takes hold across the country."

"England in grip of severe weather."

And yet again Britain is not prepared. Hundreds of schools all over the country have closed. Public transport is unreliable and there are major power cuts across London. Phew..... What would they do if they got the same amount of snow we get in eastern Europe? I think the whole country would colapse.

Introducing London

2007-01-30T11:48:00.000-08:00

Lowdown
Population: 8 million (population of whole Slovakia 5.3 million)
Time zone: Greenwich mean time
Coffee in the west end: £2.00 (I can live with that, currently paying over £2.00 for Starbucks latte with extra shot)
Pint of Lager: £2.50 (which works out cheaper than Exeter)
No-no: chatting to a stranger for no particular reason (they will either think you are crazy or a perv - which I am)
Best way to annoy a Londoner: stand on the left-hand side of a tube escalator (this applies to me, especially if you are in a hurry, you easily lose it on the tube).

The pace in London is hard and fast, the price for residing in such a vibrant, teeming city. This capital runs on ADRENALINE - as well as a goodly amount of coffee (as i do), Red Bull and Pro plus.

So, this is london - some cities are born great, others have greatness thrust upon them - London has achieved both. The typical Londoner is dead, long live the typical Londoner. And if you want to know how londoner's define themselves is by being indefinable. Many people, like myself, live here for a couple of years before moving, exhausted and financially RUINED, but definitely exhilarated, back to somewhere far less demanding. And it is truly a challenge to talk about the identity of the capital's millions of inhaitants - you are as likely to hear Polish, Czech, Slovakian, Russian, Spanish, French, Italian as English.

I have recently found out that I live in one of the most expensive areas of London and the house prices reflect it. Totteridge Lane: average price of a house £2-3million. When you drive through Totteridge lane you can only see "the cheaper houses" with big driveways and private ponds. The more expensive are hidden behind the trees overlooking vast areas of green valleys. The average house on Totteridge lane has 3-4 cars priced at 40k each. How does the other half live? Most of the houses belong to Arsenal football players and famous celebrities. The High street is paved with estate agents offering to sell houses at these "afordable" prices. I think only Bishops Avenue beats these hous prices.

All I can say about London : " I am loving it" and no, I do not go to McDonalds!

My favourite place on Earth so far

2006-12-13T08:10:00.000-08:00

I have been sorting out my pictures from backpacking and felt really nostalgic when i saw these. I fell in love with Bosnia and Hercegovina. I thought i share these with you.

Bridge in Mostar

Sarajevo as seen from the hills

Ruins in Mostar

Bridge in Mostar at night

Home sweet home

2006-12-12T08:08:00.000-08:00

For those of you who haven't had a chance to visit my country in winter, here are some photos from last Xmas. I hope you like them. I am also posting some website in case you are interested in reading about Slovakia.
www.slovensko.com
www.slovakia.org
www.slovakspectator.com

Tarantino versus Ritchie

2006-12-12T07:38:00.001-08:00

Tarantino or Ritchie?Snatch and Lock stock and two smoking barrels have been long compared to Reservoir Dogs and pulp fiction. L&S&2&smoking barrels have been produced on a small budget with mostly unknown actors and when it became a box office hit Ritchie was suddenly compared to Tarantino. Ritchie just like Tarantino uses an unconventional storytelling device in his films.

And as one american critic said:"You have to give the British credit. Whenever we Americans come up with some really tasty bit of protean popular culture, like as not our former colonizers pick it up and take it a step further. We invented rock 'n' roll; the British produced the Beatles. We invented techno and house music; the British transformed them into a worldwide culture. We gave birth to Quentin Tarantino; the British answered with Guy Ritchie."

LOCK STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS (1998)
Tagline: A Disgrace to Criminals Everywhere.

Plot Outline: Four London working class stiffs pool their money to put one in a high stakes card game, but things go wrong and they end up owing half a million pounds and having one week to come up with the cash.

FAMOUS QUOTES
Rory Breaker: If the milk turns out to be sour, I ain't the kinda pussy to drink it.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Eddie: They're armed.
Soap: What was that? Armed? What do you mean armed? Armed with what?
Eddie: Err, bad breath, colorful language, feather duster... what do you think they're gonna be armed with? Guns, you tit!

SNATCH (2001)Tagline: Stealin' stones and breakin' bones Plot Outline: Unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookmakers, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers, and supposedly Jewish jewelers fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond.

FAMOUS QUOTES
Customs official: Anything to declare?
Avi: Yeah. Don't go to England.
------------------------------------------------------
Turkish: Fuck me, hold tight. What's that?
Tommy: It's me belt, Turkish.
Turkish: No, Tommy. There's a gun in your trousers. What's a gun doing in your trousers? Tommy: It's for protection.
Turkish: Protection from what? "Zee Germans"?
--------------------------------------------------------------
Eighty-six carats.
Rosebud: Where?Avi:
London.Rosebud: London?
Avi: London.Avi's Colleague: London?
Avi: Yes, London. You know: fish, chips, cup 'o tea, bad food, worse weather, Mary fucking Poppins... LONDON.

One of my favourites

2006-12-08T02:19:00.000-08:00

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling leaves in glee;
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company!
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

London,London who loves you most?

2006-12-07T03:15:00.000-08:00

You the pearl of Britain, the city of all nationalities, the city of opportunities and excitment will you take me under your wings?

change of guards

Millenium Bridge

St. Paul's Cathedral

London, 1802 by William Wordsworth
Milton! thou should'st be living at this hour:
England hath need of thee: she is a fen
Of stagnant waters: altar, sword, and pen,
Fireside, the heroic wealth of hall and bower,
Have forfeited their ancient English dower
Of inward happiness. We are selfish men;
Oh! raise us up, return to us again;
And give us manners, virtue, freedom, power.
Thy soul was like a Star, and dwelt apart:
Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea:
Pure as the naked heavens, majestic, free,
So didst thou travel on life's common way,
In cheerful godliness; and yet thy heart
The lowliest duties on herself did lay.

this makes me feel SOOOOOOOOO good

2006-12-06T03:36:00.000-08:00

I went to london for a makeover, I was pampered for a day, had a haircut, a bit of make up, drunk champagne and watched gay hairdressers styling women's hair. This is the result. It makes me feel good (and vain) at the same time.

This is what happens: you get the hair cut, hair dye, make up and champagne for free? Sounds too good to be true? Well it is! then you get invited to have a look at the pics that were taken by a professional photographer, bad move, they charge £50 for a 7x5 photo, What a rip off! I got one for free and the other one at reduced price.
Photographer:"How much are you looking to spend on these photos?
Me: "Not much, i just want the one that's free"
P:"But you know people spend thousands on photos like this"
M:"well, in that case they are stupid"
P:"You could give some of them to your boyfriend,you look so beautiful in them"
M:"i don't have a boyfriend"
P:"you could put them in a frame and hang them on your wall"
M:"what for, i don't want to be looking at myself,how vain"
P:"you could give them to your male friends or boyfriend"
M:"I don't have any male friends or boyfriends"
P:"do you want me to be your boyfriend?"
M:"I don't want a boyfriend,thanks"
P:"I would like to take you out sometime"
M:"I am too busy"
I did get a discount and managed to buy one of them for £30 instead of £50, still, a total rip off! so i've got 2 pics now and don't know what to do with them, definitely not putting them in a frame and hanging them on my wall, so they are at the moment collecting dust on one of my shelves. Moral of the story: don't bother with expensive photos!

Back to UK, back to reality

2006-11-09T10:09:00.000-08:00

Oh..... it has been tough 3 weeks.... as our plane touched the ground at Stansted airport after 9 hours flight from Cuba, cold weather and reality hit me in the face as hard as a wet tea towel. Well, I am back in UK, comtemplating and procrastinating again......
I started my new job yesterday.... feel great at least it keeps me occupied and out of mischief. I will keep you all posted on what's happening in my life..... which at the moment is not a lot.

Buenos dias Cuba

2006-10-24T02:59:00.000-07:00

Bar Bilbao

Making mojitos

Coco taxi

Centro Havana

Cuban boys

Beach

Art on the streets of Havana

Jana loves Slovakia

2006-10-24T02:34:00.000-07:00

Me and my best friend Sona

Spisska Sobota near Poprad

Tatra mountians

Me hiking in Tatra mountains

Michael's tower in Bratislava

Overlooking the capital from the castle

Prishtina, Kosovo

2006-09-05T02:52:00.000-07:00

Prishtina's main boulevard. Everybody has a satellite on their balcony

The unforgetable trip to Prishtina, Kosovo

2006-09-05T02:28:00.000-07:00

I went to Kosovo yesterday and the trip was something to remember. I missed the only bus in the morning and got persuaded by a taxi driver (who proposed a marriage to me, would you believe it? and wanted me to send him an invitation letter so he can visit me in Slovakia) to take a taxi to the boarder and catch the bus there. We were speeding on the road and finally caught the taxi at the boarder. There were 2 buses - 1 to Prizren and another to Prishtina, Kosovar capital. I took the one to Prizren only to find out on the way there that there were no buses back that day and I had to wait until the 5am bus the next day. As it happens the manager of the bus company agreed to transfer me on the bus to Pristina for my phone number and agreeing to meet him for a drink in Bratislava.

I got to Pristina after about 4 hours and had a look around. It was a bit difficult to get around as 1)for obvious reasons Kosovar Albanians refuse to speak Serbian and 2)hardly anybody speaks English. I managed to get around somehow. It was baking hot, the streets were packed with people (not even one tourist though) and the main Boulevard (Boulevard Bill Clinton) was buzzing with life. I thoroughly enjoyed the weather, had a snack and a beer in a little restaurant around the corner from the main square and got stared at a little bit - they are not used to foreigners.

Kosovo remains an UN protectorate and when you pass the boarder (if they let you in, my passport was taken away and thoroughly checked and 2 british people were turned back at the Macedonian/Kosovo boarder) you get a stamp UNMIK (United Nations Mission in Kosovo). Anyway, i am glad they let me in, managed to get a few invitations to visit Kosovo again and get a personal guide.

So beautiful!!!SLife is tough for Jana

2006-09-03T07:48:00.002-07:00

I spent the day on the beach today. It was quiet, the beach was almost empty and Ienjoyed spending some time with Osar Wilde and his portrait of Dorian Gray until i was joined by 2 love birds who for some strange reason had to sit next to me. I decided to leave.
I met Mira - a lady that sells fruit and vegetables just down the road from where i am staying. She tells me how she lost her job, having been to 2 universities she had never imagined that she would sell vegetables on the streets. Everybody in Ohrid seems to have lost their jobs after the privatization took place and they were no longer needed. The unemployment is high and people try to earn money however they can. So i buy grapes, plums,melons and peaches from her every day!

Jana In Macedonia

2006-09-01T09:34:00.000-07:00

I am now in Macedonia, Ohrid Lakes - it took me only 20 hours to get here from Zagreb after an experience of illegal ticket sale on the bus and flat tyre. The story is as follows: we were supposed to depart at 6pm yesterday but due to the overbooked bus and bus drivers accepting money from those who did not book tickets in advance, we had to wait for 45 mins for the bus from Ljubliana to take us to Macedonia. We got a flat tyre on the way, somewhere in Serbia pass Belgrade and because the bus driver had neither a spare tyre nor a pump we were stuck on the motorway for about 4 hours. We were supposed to arrive to Ohrid at 9am and we got here at 3pm. You have got to love EAstern European public transport, it certainly gives you an experience of a life time, it's unpredictable, and you never know if the bus/train will be able to make it.

Dubrovnik

2006-09-01T09:14:00.000-07:00

This was taken from a cafe called "The cafe with the best view" and as you can see the view is lovely. Adriatic sea is actually blue compared to the black sea that is more less grey.

Dubrovnik, a view from my room where I stayed. The house had a lovely terrace overlooking the harbour and self-catering facilities that included a cork screw and a bottle opener!

Dubrovnik Old town

Photos as promised

2006-09-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

Me and Betty

Zach and I on the train from Mostar to Sarajevo

Me in the Partisan Cementary - the red top, how appropriate?

Sarajevo roses - filled with red paint (now it's more greyish pink), left from the war where a bomb exploded and the death toll was high. There is quite a few of them in Sarajevo

Old Bridge from a restaurant where we went to have some lunch,the river is actually that colour, it's absolutely stunning. The divers jump from the top after they've collected money

Mostar Old town. I felt very desorianted when I arrived - on one side of the town you have mosques and on the other churches. It's really amazing

In Zagreb

2006-08-30T08:06:00.000-07:00

I am in Croatia again, I managed to make it to Zagreb after 9 hours on the train from Sarajevo. I am leaving for Macedonia tomorrow, going to see monasteries and Lake Ohrid. It's suppossed to be beautiful. 12 hours on the bus, wish me luck.

Jana and the landmines

2006-08-27T06:20:00.000-07:00

Located about 3 hours south-west from Sarajevo. The city was badly damaged during the war including the famous bridge that connects the muslim part of town with the christian.
I arrive at 8pm from Dubrovnik, drop my bags of and decide to go out. Narrow cobblestone streets, little cafes and restaurants, kiosks with souvenirs open till late. I reach the centre, there is a group playing outside, life band with a female singer - bleached blond hair and lots of make up in Eastern European style. I order a glass of wine and politely refuse the ice the waiter offers to put in my wine only 1 minute lately regretting in deeply, not only that the wine is foul it's also warm enough to make a cup of tea. I join the crowd standing outside the bar, listening to the singer who is loud and can not sing to save her soul. 20 mins later : I had not eaten since the early morning so the wine hits my head with the speed of light. It no longer seems so foul, neither does the singer seems so awful. I order another wine, this time with ice. i repeat the procedure again. By this time my head is dizzy, my vision is blurred so as a good citizen i decide to walk back. The pavement is moving under my feet and as somebody lits a bin a few metres away i start getting paranoid. The street on which i walk back is deserted and suddenly i remember what "The Bible" (lonely planet guide) says "AS there are still unexploded landmines do not walk where there are no locals". I pass the half destroyed buildings with bullet holes and pavements with concrete sticking out and still don't see a soul. I panick, " oh my god, don't let me tredd on a landmine". I spot a group of Bosnian men and i start following them. They are locals.Right? So it's safe to walk behind them. They see me and slow down, i slow down too, they speed up, i speed up too. They scoul at me, i smile and pretend i am enjoying the evening walk on my own. By this time they must think i have lost my marbles. As the cheap bosnian wine russhes through my veins and i look at all the deserted buildings, on the point of collapsing no wonder i get paranoid about landmines. I made it home safely, woke up in the morning with a headache and had to laugh at my stupidity. There are no landmines in the pavements!
the moral of the story: Do not drink cheap Bosnian wine and walk home at 2am in the morning on your own through the ruined buildings. Not a good combination.

Sarajevo Film Festival

2006-08-27T06:03:00.000-07:00

Showing approx 15 films each day in different locations.

12:08 EAst of Bucharest - an interview about revolution in Romania in December 1989. 1 old man who couldn't care less, 1 owner of the TV company that shows the interview and 1 drunken teacher who can not remember a thing about the Revolution as is drunk most of the time

Grbavica - mother coming to terms with the consequences of the war, living with daughter who wants to know who her real father is. Film depressing.

Road to Guatanamo - 3 British muslims get arrested in Afghanistan, title very much self explanatory. My friend Zach (American) has made the following statement about this film "they should just set up kiosks outside of movie theaters that show this, so that after the movie you can renounce your american citizenship on the spot. fucking hell".

7 and half - 7 different stories about the 7 mortal sins.

Volver - last film i saw, Spanish, director Pedro Almodovar. Unable to compare it with the rest of them as it wouldn't be fair on all the young film makers who made the most of the financial help they got in order to make these films

Sarajevo tour

2006-08-27T05:57:00.000-07:00

I went on a tour of Sarajevo, went to see "The Tunnel" - the only life line between Sarajevo and the Bosnian territory during the siege - well whatever is left of it. The tunnel has now collapsed and the family that built a house on top of it manage to save 25 meters of it. It took 150 men 4 months and 4 days to dig the 800 metres long, 1.60m tall and 1 metre long tunnel that was the only way to transport food from the bosnian territory to Sarajevo. Approx 3000 people crossed the tunnel each day, carrying about 50kg of food and water. Young, old, men and women. There is a rucksack weighing 35kg for people to try to lift it up - oh my god it was heavy.

Sunny (the tour guide)tells us a few jokes to keep our spirits high:
"A man was swinging on a children’s swing in a park in sarajevo, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth whilst the snipers were shooting. One man sprinted by, he saw the swinging man and shouted, “what are you doing? can’t you see they’re shooting?!” and the man replied, still swinging, “of course, but i was bored staying inside so i decided to fuck with the snipers.”

"2 men are digging a trench. One of them says "man that's deep enough, you don't have to dig anymore". And the other one replies "But if I dig deep enough, i might find oil and then they will save us".

"2 men are sitting in the bench, looking at pigeons.
"Did you bring any bread for the pigeons?"
"No, i eat them without bread".

Welcome to Sarajevo

2006-08-22T05:28:00.000-07:00

This place is great. All of you that have been will know what I mean. Pretty little streets selling lots of goodies. I want to buy so many things but unfortunately my bag is full already. Apart from that my wheel has gone wonky and it makes a terrible noise when i pull it.

I am staying here partly because of the film festival that is going on for a weeek. It is great. There is a number of venues all over the city where you can watch different films. However, if you buy a ticket to see a film in the National Theatre you get to walk on the red carpet, followed by cameras and people taking pictures of all the guests walking in. It's really cool, it makes you feel like a star. The day before yesterday Nick NOlte and Bono from U2 were invited so we saw them as they walked in front of us. Then I was interviewed by the Sarajevan TV - commenting on the film we saw. Most of the films are about the war, its impact on people and how their lives have changed.

Pics to follow, i have been having some difficulties downloading them onto my blog

Croatia instead

2006-08-17T02:21:00.001-07:00

I did not make it to Sarajevo as originally planned. Well, i ended up in Dubrovnik in Croatia after i left Montenegro. Dubrovnik is a nice town - but i prefer Kotor in Montenegro. Those of you who think that Crotia is stunning need to visit Montenegro. If God created Paradise on EArth it has to be Kotor. Dubrovnik, will bleed your bank account dry - it's actually more expensive than London - and I am not exaggerating, it's full of tourist - specially the ones that go on tours in groups, there is nowhere to move, the Old Town is very pretty but it's packed.
I went to the memorial museum, and it made me really sad. They had some photos of the war in the museum and until that day i really did not know that Dubrovnik and Croatia as a whole were so badly affected during the Balkan War. So sad.
I am departing for Bosnia today, Staying in MOstar overnight and then Sarajevo's film festival.

The 1 where Jana abandons Montenegro for Sarajevo

2006-08-13T06:03:00.000-07:00

I was hoping for a bit of sun and a swim in the Adriatic Sea, no chance. It has been raining all day so i will be leaving Montenegro tomorrow. Off to Sarajevo. Is anybody from Belgrade still/yet in Sarajevo?

4 things i hate about Eastern Europe

2006-08-12T08:40:00.000-07:00

1)the toilet situation - I nearly had a fight with a toilet lady today. As we crossed the border to Montenegro we had a break, I did not have any Euros (Euros used in Montenegro and Kosovo, Dinars in Serbia) to pay for it so sneaked in for free. She went mental. Well, dear lady I have about 6 different types of currency in my purse but Euros are not one of them - British pound, Bulgarian Lev, Romanian lei, Bosnian Mark, Slovakian Koruna, Czech Koruna, "f... this my dear lady,i am going to the toilet for free and you can have some romanian leis" "Slovakian citizen jailed for 3 night for failing to pay tax on taking a pee"
2)unable to let my steam out by swearing - Everybody understands. The swear words in all slavic languages seem to be the same, kurva!!!
3)lack of hot water - 4th day in a row and I have not had a hot shower, shit at least in Belgrade the water was luke warm, in Montenegro it's freezing cold.
4)Eastern Europeans are obsessed with eating meat - I have now been eating chicken for a week! I have cheese and chicken coming out of my ears. Please, somebody send me some nice vegetarian pie with some carbs in it! I am turning into a protein myself!
Anybody fancy joining me in the balkans?

Jana + Montenegro = Love

2006-08-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

Jana is in Montenegro and she is not leaving!!!!
I have made it after a horendous 12 hour journey. But these pis are worth it. This is the fortress that is 1300m long. You pay 1Euro to put your life on line, having to walk up 1500 steps all the way to the top on an old pavement dating from the 8th Century. It took me an hour to walk up there, but the pics are stunning, this is really a must. As I walk back down, i hear this funny noise "meeeee", I turn around and there she was, Cindy the goat (2 Serbian girls walking in front of me named her Cindy). I shouted "koza" (goat in slovakian) and as it happens to be the same work in every other slavic language everybody looked my direction. 3 Polish kids started to run after her so she consequently ran after me.There - I was being stalked by a mountain goat, I could see myself in the newspaper "A Slovakian citizen eaten by a mountain goat" or "A girl slips in the San Giovanni fortress and turns into a slovakian pancake". Guys meet Cindy

Koza Cindy

The Cathedral of St. Tryphon. The original church is from the VIII century, according to the annals of Constantine Porfirogenet (the Byzantine czar). A new church is built in 1166 (on the picture). The cathedral was seriously damaged and rebuilt after the earthquake (1667). The second earthquake from 1979 also damaged the cathedral and the careful restoration of parts of its interior has not been completed to the present day.

The old town of Kotor, a look from the "San Giovanni" fortress.

History lesson

2006-08-12T04:06:00.000-07:00

JANA LOVES HISTORY!!!!!!!
Timeline: Break-up of Yugoslavia
A brief history of the dramatic and violent changes that took place as the Yugoslav Federation disintegrated during the 1990s.

1991-1992: DISINTEGRATION

Yugoslavia was first formed as a kingdom in 1918 and then recreated as a Socialist state in 1945 after the Axis powers were defeated in World War II.

The constitution established six constituent republics in the federation: Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia. Serbia also had two autonomous provinces: Kosovo and Vojvodina.

By 1992 the Yugoslav Federation was falling apart. Nationalism had once again replaced communism as the dominant force in the Balkans.

Slovenia and then Croatia were the first to break away, but only at the cost of renewed conflict with Serbia.

The war in Croatia led to hundreds of thousands of refugees and reawakened memories of the brutality of the 1940s.

By 1992 a further conflict had broken out in Bosnia, which had also declared independence. The Serbs who lived there were determined to remain within Yugoslavia and to help build a greater Serbia.

They received strong backing from extremist groups in Belgrade. Muslims were driven from their homes in carefully planned operations that become known as "ethnic cleansing".

By 1993 the Bosnian Muslim government was besieged in the capital Sarajevo, surrounded by Bosnian Serb forces who controlled around 70% of Bosnia.

In Central Bosnia, the mainly Muslim army was fighting a separate war against Bosnian Croats who wished to be part of a greater Croatia. The presence of UN peacekeepers to contain the situation proved ineffective.

1995: DAYTON PEACE DEAL

American pressure to end the war eventually led to the Dayton agreement of November 1995 which created two self-governing entities within Bosnia - the Bosnian Serb Republic and the Muslim(Bosnjak)-Croat Federation.

The settlement's aims were to bring about the reintegration of Bosnia and to protect the human rights but the agreement has been criticised for not reversing the results of ethnic cleansing.

The Muslim-Croat and Serb entities have their own governments, parliaments and armies.

A Nato-led peacekeeping force is charged with implementing the military aspects of the peace agreement, primarily overseeing the separation of forces. But the force was also granted extensive additional powers, including the authority to arrest indicted war criminals when encountered in the normal course of its duties.

Croatia, meanwhile, took back most of the territory earlier captured by Serbs when it waged lightning military campaigns in 1995 which also resulted in the mass exodus of around 200,000 Serbs from Croatia.

1999: KOSOVO INTERVENTION

In 1998, nine years after the abolition of Kosovo's autonomy, the Kosovo Liberation Army - supported by the majority ethnic Albanians - came out in open rebellion against Serbian rule.

The international community, while supporting greater autonomy, opposed the Kosovar Albanians' demand for independence. But international pressure grew on Serbian strongman, Slobodan Milosevic, to bring an end to the escalating violence in the province.

Threats of military action by the West over the crisis culminated in the launching of Nato air strikes against Yugoslavia in March 1999, the first attack on a sovereign European country in the alliance's history.

The strikes focused primarily on military targets in Kosovo and Serbia, but extended to a wide range of other facilities, including bridges, oil refineries, power supplies and communications.

Within days of the strikes starting, tens of thousands of Kosovo Albanian refugees were pouring out of the province with accounts of killings, atrocities and forced expulsions at the hands of Serb forces.

Returning them to their homes, along with those who had fled in the months of fighting before the strikes, became a top priority for the Nato countries.

Meanwhile, relations between Serbia and the only other remaining Yugoslav republic, Montenegro, hit rock bottom, with Montenegrin leaders seeking to distance themselves from Slobodan Milosevic's handling of Kosovo.

2000-2003: MILOSEVIC OUSTED

Yugoslavia has disappeared from the map of Europe, after 83 years of existence, to be replaced by a looser union called simply Serbia and Montenegro, after the two remaining republics.

The arrangement was reached under pressure from the European Union, which wanted to halt Montenegro's progress towards full independence. However, Montenegrin politicians say they will hold a referendum on independence in 2006.

The death of Yugoslavia is only one of many momentous changes that have occurred since the end of the Kosovo conflict.

Slobodan Milosevic lost a presidential election in 2000. He refused to accept the result but was forced out of office by strikes and massive street protests, which culminated in the storming of parliament.

He was handed over to a UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague, and put on trial for crimes against humanity and genocide.

Kosovo itself became a de facto UN protectorate, though some powers have begun to be handed back to elected local authorities. One of the main problems in the province is getting Serbs who fled as Yugoslav security forces withdrew in 1999, to return to their homes.

Conflict between Serbs and ethnic Albanians threatened to erupt in late 2000 in the Presevo valley, on the Serbian side of the Kosovo border, but dialogue between Albanian guerrillas and the new democratic authorities in Belgrade allowed tensions to evaporate.

There was, however, a major outbreak of inter-ethnic violence in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 2001, again involving the Albanian minority. This was contained by Nato peacekeepers and ultimately resolved by political means.

2006: DEATH OF MILOSEVIC

Slobodan Milosevic was found dead in his cell in The Hague on 11 March 2006.

His long-running trial had been hit by repeated delays - partly because of his poor health - and no verdict had been reached.

A Dutch investigation concluded that he had died of a heart attack, dismissing claims by his supporters that he had been poisoned.

He was buried in his Serbian home town, Pozarevac, but the Serbian government had refused to allow a state funeral.

Serbia meanwhile came under intense international pressure to find and hand over General Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb commander topping the UN tribunal's list of wanted war crimes suspects, alongside his fugitive wartime political ally Radovan Karadzic.

Belgrade's failure to catch Gen Mladic set back its hopes for eventual EU membership, as the EU decided to suspend talks on forging closer ties.

In Kosovo reconciliation between the majority ethnic Albanians, most of them pro-independence, and the Serb minority remained elusive.

Several rounds of UN-mediated talks have been held, without any significant breakthrough. The UN wants to find a solution for Kosovo's disputed status by the end of 2006.

The state union of Serbia and Montenegro is all that remains of the federation of six republics that made up former Yugoslavia - but in a referendum on 21 May, Montenegro narrowly voted for independence from Serbia.

Montenegro's Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic led the campaign for independence, although the population was deeply divided as there are close cultural links between the two peoples.

Good Morning Montenegro

2006-08-12T03:30:00.000-07:00

The road from Belgrade to Montenegro is extremely curvy, passing through the thick mountains and rocks, so there is no surprise it takes 12 hours. When you look up you see thick forests and rocks that accompany you all the way to Montenegro. when you look down you see deep valleys with blue springs passing through the hard rocks. This is Montenegro, whose breathtaking beauty has been recognized by many who have passed through here. Montenegro - the last territory to break free from "Great Serbia", who only just now has won the independence from her. As Montenegro begins to tighten its border with Serbia from January 2007 and steals current titul of Slovakia "the youngest country in Europe" Serbia loses its last territory that connects her to the Adriatic Sea and is left behind, landlocked with its pride that suffers so much by losing Montenegro.

"Montenegro with Yugoslavia YES, with Great Serbia NO"

Sunny Belgrade

2006-08-12T03:17:00.000-07:00

These pics were taken the evening i was leaving. The weather had been pretty shitty for the whole time i was in Belgrade but got better when I was just about to leave. Typical!!!

Did i tell you i opened a bar in Belgrade?

Tim decides to get some free swimming lessons (Besplatna Skola plavania)

The Capital on Two Rivers

Serbians in their element

The Hostel and the Crew

2006-08-10T09:45:00.000-07:00

Warning: As you can see by this time I had lost my hairbrush
This is some of our crew at Star Hostel in Belgrade taken the day we decided to experience Serbian nightlife at Blaywatch night club. Luckily we did not take any photos after our night out as some of us staggered home at 6am, having drunk a few barrels of white wine and really dodgy blue Serbian alcohol. Blaywatch is a nightclub on the river where they through paper napkins in the air. I guess that's the Serbian way to show respect to David Hoff.

From Toronto through Bratislava to Barcelona

Slovakia and Canada

L to R - Joel(Australia),Jana(Slovakia),Tim(Australia)

Tito's grave

2006-08-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

I decide to go and see Tito's grave in the museum of 25 may. I want to find out more about this man who half of the Serbs despise and the other half has no opinion at all. catch a bus from what seems to be a bus station only to be told by the driver that it is not a bus station. He lets me in. He looks in the mirror and asks me with a smile if i want to sit next to him. There is no chair, he pulls a little stool and puts his jumper on it so i can sit down. He offers to take me on a tour around Belgrade and shows me the important sights. His father is from Kosovo, fought for the Serbian army during war and decided to settle down in Serbia, his mother is from a little village near Belgrade. We take a trip around Belgrade and he tells me in his broken about the NATO bombings, shows me on my map the important landmarks, his favourite football team, he keeps chatting and chatting and tells me what i need to visit in Belgrade. We pass the museum and he says i may stay on the bus and get off when we turn around. I get off, wave at him, he smiles and wishes me a pleasant day. I walk up the stairs hoping to see Tito only to find out that the museum is now closed and I should come back tomorrow. I did not see Tito and got a tour of Belgrade instead.

History and Josef Tito: On 28 June 1914 Austria-Hungary used the assasination of Archduke Ferdinand by a Bosnian Serb to invade Serbia, sparking the WWII. After the war, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Vojvodina, Serbia and its Kosovo province, Montenegro and Macedonia formed the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes under the king of Serbia. In 1929 the country became Yugoslavia. In March 1941 Yugoslavia joined the fascist Tripartite Alliance. This sparked a military coup and an abrupt withrawal from the Alliance. Germany replied by bombing Belgrade.
The communist party, under Josip Broz Tito, assisted in the liberation of the country and gained power in 1945. It abolished the monarchy and declared a federal republic. Serbia's size was reduced, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Montenegro and Macedonia were granted republic status but Kosovo and Vojvodina were denied it.
Tito broke with Stalin in 1948 and Yugoslavia became a nonaligned nation - belonging to neither of the post-WWII power blocks led by the USA and the USSR (as a result of this they were the only country from forme Eastern Bloc allowed to travel abroad).

My notes: hence the negativity from some Serbs about Tito, *Tito should have created Great Serbia and not Yugoslavia*

Military Museum in Belgrade

2006-08-09T07:17:00.000-07:00

Revealing the history of Serbia and former Yugoslavia up to the 20th Century, some of it proudly presenting the equipment of NATO and KLA soldiers in 1999. There is also a book of impressions on a table outside the museum where people write comments with mixed feelings *great museum,learnt a lot about history*, *excellent collection*, *you are hypocrites,feeling sorry for yourselves,forgetting what you've done to the kosovan albanians*, *you deserved the 1999 bombing*. It certainly sends a strong message to the Serbian pride that they possess.

Belgrade Pictures

2006-08-08T10:03:00.000-07:00

>*Smrt Drzavi* - meaning Death to the State, i think it refers to Serbia

Belgrade Citadel - there is a military museum, will post pics soon.

View at Danube - if i swam it it would take me to my homeland, Slovakia

Ministry of Defence after 1999

MOD after 1999

Serbia

2006-08-08T09:56:00.000-07:00

I am now in rainy Belgrade. I have not seen much at the moment apart from a few bombed buildings (by Nato). The city seems very calm but grey. The journey on the train was much better than the Soviet train journey, it was a bit spooky though. Full moon hidden behind the clouds, passing Transilvania most of the night and barking of the stray dogs on the empty streets sent chills down my spine. No wonder the legend about Dracula generated from here. I arrived in this hostel - met a few Poles and got chatted to a Serbian guy who works here about politics, great Serbia, former Yugoslavia. There is so much pride, nationalism here and hatred against Tito who created Yugoslavia instead of Great Serbia. Will keep you posted about general feeling here. OFf to see a military museum now.

Good bye Romania

2006-08-07T00:39:00.000-07:00

Amanda left this morning, catching a flight to London, had to help her with all the stuff as she was taking some of my clothes back. I am finally free to travel lightly, managed to get rid of 3 pairs of shoes (out of 9 i brought with me) so have only one bag. She left me some toilet paper (very useful, vital equipment on travels in Eastern Europe), some jam made of apples (not sure what for but might be useful one day) and a pair of ancient flip flops that she bought for 2p somewhere in a back street of Bucharest. And trust me they are worth every penny!! I met 3 english guys who have just come back from Serbia on an overnight train (they are going back to England from the World Cup - somebody needs to sort out their geography). They were woken up at 2am by the ticket inspector - apparently the overnight trains between Bucharest and Belgrade are full of thieves and it is not safe to fall asleep on the train. Oh god, i can see myself waking up in the morning only to find out my bag, passport and all the money (i currently have 5 different currencies in my purse) have gone. Shit, better look on the internet where the Slovakian embassy is in Belgrade.

2006-08-06T23:26:00.000-07:00

Bucharest's star attraction - Palace of Parliament. Conceived at the height of Ceausescu's communist fervour it was called, ironically "The House of the People". It has 12 Floors. The urban wasteland that is B-dul Unirii was intended as the Champs Elysees- style axis for Ceausescu's criminal civil project which saw him destroy an entire suburb to build the parliament and Piata Unirii. It runs east for 3.2km from the square - build deliberately 6m longer than the real Parisian boulevard. Some 26 churches, 2 synagogues and a monastery in the city's most historic quarter were bulldozed to make way for this project, about 70 000 people were made homeless. Blast from the past: When the Berlin wall came down in 1989 we had massive demonstrations in the streets against Ceausescu's regime. Students would form a long snake and each one of them carrying a candle for all those that misterously disappeared or were shot, shouting "Ceausescu is a murderer". I was 12 at the time, looking out of the window on a cold November day in 1989 and wondering what the hell was going on.

Leaving today

2006-08-06T23:10:00.000-07:00

Amanda left this morning, catching a flight to London, had to help her with all the stuff as she was taking some of my clothes back. I am finally free to travel lightly, managed to get rid of 3 pairs of shoes (out of 9 i brought with me) so have only one bag. She left me some toilet paper (very useful, vital equipment on travels in Eastern Europe), some jam made of apples (not sure what for but might be useful one day) and a pair of ancient flip flops that she bought for 2p somewhere in a back street of Bucharest. And trust me they are worth every penny!!

I met 3 english guys who have just come back from Serbia on an overnight train. They were woken up at 2am by the ticket inspector - apparently the overnight trains between Bucharest and Belgrade are full of thieves and it is not safe to fall asleep on the train. Oh god, i can see myself waking up in the morning only to find out my bag, passport and all the money (i currently have 5 different currencies in my purse) have gone. Shit, better look on the internet where the Slovakian embassy is in Belgrade.

Heading west - final destination Sarajevo

2006-08-04T13:03:00.000-07:00

I have booked my ticket to Belgrade today. I am off on Monday, leaving Bucharest at 9.45pm - passing Transylvania on my right over night and reaching the Serbian boarder at 6am - Belgrade at 9am. Fingers crossed this carriage will be better than the Soviet one. 11 hours in total, wish me luck.
I will be spending a few days in Serbia, then going to Montenegro before i depart for Bosnia.

Rila Monastery

2006-08-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

It actually made the front cover of Lonely Planet for Bulgaria, we had to go and see it. Nearly 3 hours from Sofia - 150 km we take off in a "direct" bus to the Monastery only to be dropped off in the middle of nowhere and told to get another bus. A dusty road to nowhere (with a few donkeys,horses and goats on the side of it) takes us through the mountains
HIdden in Rila Mountains, it's something you have to see!

The paintings on the walls are all done by hand, it's something amazing, such attention to details.

And this is Zach, Clarisse and Me. She was smiling until a waiter told her to come back tomorrow if she wanted some food. She was not impressed and sulked all the way back, oh, what a joy.

My photos

2006-08-04T09:30:00.000-07:00

I met a really nice couple - who sing for living, and they offered to let me stay in their appartment (this is me and Didka and Koci her boyfriend), bless her she doesn't speak a word of english and i don't speak any bulgarian so we got by with my fading Russian. She loves cooking for other people so i was in my element. And she has a great voice too!

Bucharest and the hiking trip

2006-08-04T09:23:00.000-07:00

Thu 3 August 2006
We walked for ages around this massive lake in the middle of Bucharest and i met some friends of Amanda. Shaun (the guy in the blue shirt) is also travelling around Europe - heading for Croatia but choosing the safer root - via Hungary and then back down to Croatia. I am going to be a bit more adventurous and go through Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
We waited for ages for our dinner to arrive, then decided to go clubbing and ended up in a strip club instead. Oh, well at least the guys were happy. (from left you right) Amanda, Shaun, Ed, Sarah and little me). It was 11pm and i had 2 hours sleep, can you tell?

Romania and the train journey from hell

2006-08-03T00:38:00.000-07:00

Wed 2nd August 2006
I depart for Bucharest in an overnight train from Burgas - an experience of a lifetime. A journey of about 400km takes 11 hours. We wait at the border crossing for 2 hours!!! It's an old Russian train, something you see in the old Cold war films from the 50ties, with russian writing on the windows, no air conditioning (so during the day to melt and in the evening you freeze) and with a hole in the toilet (i nearly droped my MP3 player on the track). And this is an international train going all the way to Moscow with 5 passengers onboard - 1 Slovakian and 4 Romanian.

Eastern European Tour

2006-08-03T00:15:00.000-07:00

Wed 26 July 2006
I have finally managed to get my Eastern European backside of the beach and headed for Sofia.
After 2 days we depart and head for the Black Sea coast, in an overnight train with NO toilet. It is my phobia - travelling in public transport, in baking hot weather and not being able to drink any water. The scenery is not exactly something you want to see. There is one major town between Sofia and Burgas - Plovdiv and that is the only sign of life you will see on the way from Sofia to Burgas.