a nomadic lifestyle

Ok I have gone far too long without posting, and there is a lot to report.

First off- I have moved. Twice. Yep, becoming quite the little nomad over here in Sarajevo. The first move was precipitated by the arrival of Lauren McAlister from Mostar (well, originally from Vancouver) and our mutual desire for a roommate. We met through some friends and embarked on a rather tricky search for a place to live starting sometime in December. A friend explained to me that there are more apartments here than potential tenants, so there are lots of options available. The tough part is actually getting in touch with the people who are offering these options. The “classifieds” only come out on Fridays and you have to buy them separately. After purchasing them on 3 different occasions, and making about 70 calls total with the help of Bosnian-speaking friends, I think we only ever found 2 or 3 possibilities. Sometimes the apartments would already have been rented out, but more often people just didn’t answer their phones. A lot of this can be chalked up to how people view the way they fit into the economy here. As part of the former-Yugoslavia, BiH is a post-communist country that still isn’t convinced that life under the old system was all that bad. Or, even if they accept that, they have not fully embraced the “go get ‘em” energy of capitalism and continue in a more apathetic socialist “someone will take care of me” vein. This is also hindered by the job market here, which isn’t exactly booming, as well as political machinations and organized crime. This combination serves as one massive deterrent to hard work and forward movement. So in the end, no one cares too much about what they do- like actively trying to rent out property. Although then the fact that they paid for an ad at all seems a bit silly, but making a ½ effort is also often the way of things. What will be will be, but no need to inconvenience oneself in the mean-time.

This is also evident in the way a lot of business does actually get done. Once again it’s not what you do that matters, but who you know. The first place we did manage to move to- as Lauren’s arrival date rapidly approached and nothing was working out- I found through a friend of a friend. One of the women I have met who is doing her Anthropology PhD research here, mentioned to me on Jan. 2^nd that her cousin’s wife’s sister (a bit convoluted, I know) was trying to rent out a floor of her house. After further inquiries, she warned me that it was a bit far away, but I told her we might still be interested. Well, come Friday the 4^th I gave her a call b/c Lauren was arriving on Monday and all other options had fallen through. We went to see the place on Saturday, I moved in on Monday, and Lauren came on Tuesday- all in the blink of an eye really. It was far away, but it was really nice, cheap and certainly better than nothing- and better than not having any personal space or privacy as had been the case in my original situation. So that was that- but after not too long it was clear we would want a more convenient place. So Round #3 with the classifieds took place and Lauren shockingly enough met with success- but only with one place. This was Saturday the 19th- we went to see it on Tuesday, and moved in on Wednesday. Once again- all in the blink of an eye.

So now its Tuesday of the following week and we are settling in nicely. Our location could not be better. We are 5 minutes walk (if that) from Bascarsija (add in little v's over all the s's and c's) which is the old Turkish quarter. This is still a good distance from my work, but instead of being out in the middle of nowhere, we are right in the middle of everything. I love feeling the daily hustle and bustle of a city. In my last 2 housing locations, I didn't really have to opportunity to experience it- but here it is perfect. I try to leave here around 9 am to get to work, which can take between 30 and 45 minutes. If I walk for a bit at first, I can go through Old Town and see all the shop keepers gearing up for the day- unlocking their doors, opening windows, cleaning off the sidewalk. The past couple mornings have been sunny too- which makes all the difference. Last Thursday the weather was so great it had a noticeable impact on everyone. Several friends dubbed it "the day of life being fabulous." Funny how a clear blue sky can create that feeling, while a grey foggy one so quickly destroys it. In Sarajevo, grey is the norm so I feel lucky to be getting so many sunny days lately- our luck will probably not last.

So, yes, moving has been keeping me on my toes. The other big news is that Winds of Change will be performing next Thursday at the opening ceremony for Sarajevska Zima Festival which first took place during the 1984 Olympics here. The initial invitation was very exciting, but the disorganization of the festival is creating more and more problems. Willem will arrive next Monday, on Tuesday the group is supposed to record 3 songs, Wednesday there is a dress rehearsal, and Thursday evening is the ceremony. I have a feeling nothing will actually go according to plan, and next week will be utter chaos right up until Willem steps on the plane to head back to the Netherlands. I'll let you know how it goes.

One other interesting note. Last Thursday, Baya and I attended an awards presentation for the Ars Aevi Contemporary Art Museum here in Sarajevo. They were being recognized by the Dutch charitable foundation the Prince Claus Fund. We were equally impressed by both the museum and the foundation, and had a great time first looking at the art and then chatting with people at a reception afterward. Baya pointed out some important people who were there to me and we even spoke with one or two of them. What completely shocked me though were the words of one particular Middle Eastern Ambassador. When I told him I was American, he advised me to say I was either Dutch or Canadian in the future. He then proceeded to go on a tirade about how Americans stereotype all Muslim people as extremists and terrorists, how we are so close-minded. In the face of all this, I barely managed to get a word in edge-wise. It was basically all my worst fears of the world perception of Americans come to life right before my very eyes. However, at the same time I was offended. Excuse me sir? "All Americans" stereotype? well, I think with your statement you have just done the same and made a bold and sweeping judgment about 300 million people. And to hear all of this coming from a diplomat I was particularly shocked. Fine for an individual to espouse these opinions, but shouldn't a state official have to be a bit more careful about what comes out of his mouth? I would think something a with a bit more tact might be in order. When he was done he gave me his card and laughingly said I would probably not want to be getting in touch with him. Now I am trying to imagine a situation where our paths would in fact cross again- maybe we'll need to bring some of his country's musicians to BiH- or better yet to the U.S.

an un-Orthodox Christmas

There's so much I could write about the Christmas trip to Serbia and Belgrade- overall we had a really great trip that involved a lot of lounging about Katie’s place which was just what I think we all needed. Poor Katie was had an ear infection though and had to spend some extra time away from Katie H. and I in attempts to get to the doctor and trips to the office. Her apartment was really cute/nice and much bigger than the place Katie has in Mostar (where we lived together for 2 1/2 weeks) and so it was really nice to spend time hanging out there together. We watched Love Actually, a ton of Arrested Development and the entire 1st season of 30 Rock (Chad I am now obsessed, I want to BE Liz Lemon), and a very strange Serbian movie that was supposedly a comedy but involved a lot of people dying and speculation about fate... I guess it reflects the dark sense of humor of the region. Oh and a movie called In America (a rather ironic thing to watch in Serbia) that was also really great and about an Irish immigrant family in the 80s.

Women in Black had a Christmas dinner for us on Christmas Eve, complete with turkey which was amazing b/c it’s not easy to come by in Europe and gifts for Katie. She had spent the day making chocolate chip cookies to give in exchange which worked out well for Katie H. and I who acted as quality control, eating all the broken ones and the not so broken ones and the slightly burnt ones and a little of the dough and...

We tried to do some tourist-y things too while in Belgrade but this proved harder than you might think. 1st Katie M. kept getting taken away from us trying to fix her cellphone, fix her ears, and then for WiB stuff. So we ended up having to do a lot of these things just Katie H. and I which was fine but we felt bad that Katie M. wasn't getting to enjoy her week too. The National Museum in Trg Republike (the main museum in the main square) was closed for rennovation and has been for awhile. So that was a no go. Then we wanted to go to the Contemporary Art Museum which is supposed to be great but involved getting 2 different buses, crossing the river and walking a ways through a cold and snowy park. We arrived on the door step only to find this museum was also being renovated. We elected to take a walk for awhile in the park so we at least wouldn't have come all that way for nothing- and Katie M. was also planning on coming to meet us at the museum so we had to hang around at least somewhat nearby so we could return there to meet her. ( Another complication in all of our activities was that our Bosnian cellphones could not send messages or make phone calls in Serbia. Katie M. could send us messages but that was the extent of our communication once we were separated.) So we just had to wait for her text to know when to return to the museum steps and that was pretty much all we could do. When we did finally meet up with her we took another bus together to Zemun which is a district of Belgrade up in the North-west corner of the city, past Novi Belgrade. Its supposed to be one of the prettiest parts of the city because it was a town built during the Austro-Hungarian empire. Clearly the architecture is a lot better than the communist parts of town. We stopped and had a snack in Zemun after walking around a little and Katie was also able to find a hardware store to buy some new hinges for her closet- you have to get excited about these little things when in a country where you don’t speak the language.

The next day we decided to try going to the Jewish History Museum. Katie H. and I arrived there around 2:30 pm very excited to finally experience a museum. Sadly this was not meant to be- they had closed early due to the holiday season. (Note: this was Friday, not actually a holiday and not even during their week of Christmas which they do not celebrate until Epiphany in the Serbian Orthodox Church.) So we returned to the streets to wander for a bit. We saw a sign for Belgrade's Mosque and decided to check it out. We found it, entered the grounds and looked around to see what we could see. We weren't sure if it would be ok to go in or not, especially because it was Friday and we didn't want to interfere with any ceremonies or otherwise. A young man came out though and asked us if we wanted to see inside. He spoke some English and was really excited to hear we were there all the way from the U.S. He took us in and found another friend of his who also spoke some English, so between the 2 of them they did very well. The mosque itself was very small and is the only one left in Belgrade of the 100s that used to be there during the Ottoman Empire. This particular one was built in 1473, so its amazing that it is still there and in use. They also took us upstair to a little balcony that is an area for women to pray. They said we could ask them any questions we wanted, so we ended up finding out a little about them too. One was a student in Turkey and was home in Belgrade for the holidays. The other lived in Belgrade and works on ambulances with emergency services. It was funny though- the one who is studying in Turkey said that he would always come back to Belgrade, it is his city and it is where he wants to live. The other though said he would like to leave- he does not like the discrimination he experiences in Serbia as a Muslim. Basically they were both really wonderful though and really friendly- Katie and I were very pleased to feel like we had finally learned something more about Belgrade. Very funny though that one of the few things we saw while we were in intensely Orthodox Belgrade was the mosque and we only ended up there b/c we were turned away from the Jewish museum. Fate has a wry sense of humor.
One of the other really great things we did get to do while we were there though was visit Kalemegdan which is an old fortress which was originally built during the Ottoman empire. It is in the middle of a great park with lots of trees and paths and walkways and then around the fort itself there are different paths and bridges and all kinds of exciting things to explore. We went at night, on Wednesday, right after a full day of new snow which made it feel like a very fabulous and mysterious adventure. It was so beautiful- I took a bunch of pics (see facebook). We also had a really great dinner afterwards at a restaurant which is considered a great traditional Serbian place.

I’ll mention our Christmas very quickly so as not to completely exclude it, but it was somewhat sad because Katie was away all day and we weren’t able to do too much of anything we had planned. Once she left the apartment in the morning, Katie H. and I realized we couldn’t access any of the Christmas music on her laptop b/c she hadn’t told us the password. We solved the problem though by singing carols together, which was really quite nice (my personal favorite from our repertoire was definitely The 1st Noel). We spent a lot of time reading and writing which also wasn’t bad- except for being worried about Katie M. the whole time. We did cook a very nice dinner though, and when Katie finally reappeared it was with some really great pastries for dessert. Not exactly how we had envisioned Christmas, but for the week as a whole we did alright.

Ok that wasn't exactly in order, but it’s at least some of my adventures from the last week. Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Sretan Bajram, and Happy New Year!

So I spent this past weekend doing not too much of anything- a little gathering with English-speaking friends on Friday night, and a meeting to consider new living arrangements and a language lesson on Saturday. One of the highlights though was when I decided to venture forth on Sunday to do some exploring. I wasn't really sure where my nose would lead me, but the snow looked so beautiful I couldn't let the day go to waste. I started out towards Old Town and then ventured on a path up the mountain and wherever it might go. I found myself on a little narrow alley winding in between the houses that are nestled on the mountains surrounding the city. I was not the only one taking advantage of the winter weather- I passed a group of children who had brought out their sleds and were racing one another along the path. Their game made me wish for a sled and a companion, so I could do the same. (Gags, remember when we went sledding on trays from the pit and pieces of cardboard, freshmen year?) As I climbed higher and reached a better vantage point, I noticed there was a trail that continued along the river and possibly away from civilization. Praying that this was the case, I made my way back down to the valley towards my hope for some peace and quiet. Sure enough the houses dwindled as I went further and eventually the only sound was the rushing of the river and the crunching of my feet in the snow. I had some company on the path. Other people and families were also out to enjoy the winter day- but I relished the moments when I could see no one ahead of or behind me. It was a very liberating feeling after being in cities for the last 2 months, not living in a space that is truly my own, and traveling around with the group last week. I wanted to expand my whole body to become a part of the mountains, river, snow and sky around me- or at least just plop myself down on the ground to make a good snow angel.

My language may be a bit dramatic here, and it's not that I haven't gotten to experience much natural beauty since being here in Bosnia and Herzegovina. On the contrary, this is one of the most naturally beautiful places I think I have ever been in my life. For someone who has only lived in regions characterized by "rolling hills," the mountainous landscape is particularly fascinating.

However, up until Sunday, I had not had a chance to consider all this beauty by myself or give it the attention it deserves. My soul was finally free and able to sing as I ambled along that path.

So it was with great difficulty that I finally did turn around and head back towards Sarajevo. Unfortunately I may have over-stayed my welcome outdoors- by the time I got home my boots were soaked and I was exhausted. But it was a good sort of exhaustion; the way you feel after a full day of skiing. I was home by 4, but took several naps before going to sleep early in the evening- my bed felt particularly cozy that night.

This week has been slow, but I have been able to use it to continue taking care of all the basic necessities which still have yet to be pinned down. Also doing a bit more brainstorming for new ideas and projects I can do. Most importantly- getting very excited to go to Belgrade next week for some Christmas celebrations with the Katies! I promise I will eventually write more about the WoC concerts, it still continues to be such a massive event in my brain that writing about it is proving tricky. A simple moment in nature (with photographs to illustrate!) was much more managable.

Recent Happenings

Well, I would love to be writing about how great everything is right now- and there has been a lot of excitment lately with the Winds of Change concerts and Laura Hassler (MwB Int. director) visiting from the Netherlands. However, right now I am just pretty much exhausted from all of it. We had 4 concerts in 4 cities in 4 days (with 4 after-parties) which was all a bit much. That took place from Thursday thru Sunday (6th-9th) leaving me pretty much useless by Monday. I accomplished pretty much nothing, sort of slept in, but then the weather was weird and unusually warm- so my body just really couldn't figure out what was going on. Yesterday, I was on my way to feeling more normal but since Laura, her daughter, Wendy, and Michael were all here there was lots to meet and discuss. Not that I can even really contribute much yet to all the talk, but there was a lot of information that I needed to sit and absorb. This meant that I was fully occupied from 10:30ish when I finally straggled into the office until midnight. And then I needed to get here at 8 AM today in order to let the accountant for the Music Bus into the office. And, as always with any NGO, there are various funding issues right now for our programs. So while that doesn't directly affect me, it does make the atmosphere here rather gloomy.

All the new information is very exciting and seems to offer a lot of new tasks for me to participate in/take charge of/organize. Right now though all I think I really want is a nap- but even last night I couldn't sleep because there was so much going on in my brain with all the new stuff- funding, applications, cross-cultural differences in business, politics between the MwB Int and BiH, requests for me to come work in Alkmaar at some point and requests to come to Srebrenica. Yeah. So. Overload.

On a happier note, the Winds of Change concerts were very successful and a lot of fun. My one particular task was to get people to give us their contact information so we can let them know about other MwB programs and future WoC events. Due to my lack of language skills this was only minimally successful, but it was at least an ok start to something. Hopefully I can expand on what I managed this time in the future. I also did odd-jobs throughout the tour which will probably also increase with the next round of WoC- possibly even receiving the very official title of "Production Manager" but we shall see. I guess it depends on how useful I actually manage to be.

Getting to travel around with the group was a lot of fun- like being on a glorified high-school band trip except this group involved professionals and extremely talented students. Willem van Merwijk (conductor/music arranger/sop. sax player), Jaume Gavilán Agulló (trombone), and Srdjan (singer) all came from the Netherlands to participate and the rest were students from the Music Highschool and Music Academy here in Sarajevo. It was great being around lots of people close to my own age and I often felt like I should probably being doing more "work" and less socializing. I suppose I'll be making up for that now.

Somewhat in a tizzy

Well, I've been here about two weeks now and I'm sorry to report it seems there are still quite a few things I have yet to figure out. My mobile for example. It was all set up just fine and I've been texting and calling away for the past month, making contacts, getting others numbers, etc. Well, now there seems to be some sort of glitch- I bought more prepaid credit (which is how the general system works here) but was baffled by all the numbers and instructions (in Bosnian) so I figured a simple inquiry of a friend would suffice to get everything cleared up. Wrong. I tried to get someone to help me out last night but he too was mystified and said my card has expired- by which I assume he means my SIM card which is not a good thing seeing as thats basically the essence of your phone. So- this is going to take some more detective work and maybe someone who knows a little more about technology- like a teenage boy.

Also issues with my living arrangements. The family is so nice- really they are, I can't complain. But its hard to maintain a certain degree of privacy in the current set-up. I don't have a sink in my room (but do have a stove, counter and fridge), and haven't managed to accumulate much in the way of dishes or utensils yet so all cooking involves me going into the kitchen to find said utensils, wash dishes, etc. This wouldn't be so much of a problem except the kitchen is employed as a sitting room, tv room and bedroom all in one- so the family is always there. always. They don't mind my intruding and I certainly appreciate the use of their things but it still just makes things complicated which I do not need when I get home, am tired and just want to relax. (Entertaining note: my landlady has given me a couple more items for my use over the course of the last week, (1) a mirror, (2) slippers- she knew I already had my own, but apparently felt they were not adequate, and (3) a toaster which is just hysterical and always makes me think of the line, "I don't mean to point of a finger of blame, but, who broke the good toaster?")

One of the latest developments which is particularly terrible is the arrival of a dog somewhere within earshot of my bedroom window. I want to say this creature arrived last Monday and has barked more or less non-stop ever since. In the evenings its annoying, but at 5, 6, and 7 in the morning is when it is particularly painful. I don't think I've been able to sleep well for the last week due to this- which is probably also why some of the above mentioned issues are now grating so seriously on my nerves. A good night's sleep can work wonders...

So, I've come up with a couple resolves in all of this. First on the agenda- earplugs. I need to ask someone how to say that in Bosnian. Second on the agenda- the phone. If I do need a new SIM card I'm not going to be too pleased (especially because someone who I thought was a friend sold me the card in the first place- I will feel rather ripped off if it was actually only good for a month) but it won't be the end of the world and just needs to be taken care of. In regards to living arrangements, it is a problem which will require more patience but in the meantime is manageable. (Although Freddie or Wilma may die before I leave- I thought I left all the cats at home...)

Good news is I start language classes tomorrow! I'm totally psyched (and if you're going to use the word psyched, you better mean it). Also, this week we have all the Winds of Change concerts which is also huge and going to be very exciting. I got to call the Sarajevo BBC correspondant about it on Friday actually- if she and any other English-speaking press members need extra assistance or information, I'm the one for the job. I'm also hoping to take a bunch of pictures for the website and things of that nature. Should be exciting overall and hopefully the concerts will all go well- there's a good deal of pressure due to all the sponsorship and media attention the event is getting. Crossing my fingers...

Another note: Gerardo and I further discussed our experiences with our respective embassies last night. Apparently the Spanish Embassy isn't such a sweet time either. He still hasn't actually gone but had a phone conversation that has served as a deterent. First he was on hold for about 20 minutes, then, rather abruptly someone picked up the phone and began with,
"who are you?" He wasn't exactely sure what they were looking for with that question, so he began to explain his volunteer work. After that they asked him when he was coming to register. Response, "um... I don't know- tomorrow?" "Ok, we'll see you at 10 o'clock tomorrow." And of course that didn't happen, because he still hasn't been. We've also discussed the joys of our landladies (his is convinced his name is Ricardo) and grocery shopping. Its really nice knowing there's someone else here that is bewildered as I am by apparently everyday things.

Sorry this post isn't so exciting, this week hasn't held any super off-the-wall adventures. Hopefully, there will be more to report after the concerts.

Weekend Adventures: Banja Luka, accordian sing-a-longs, and more

So, Banja Luka. We had a really great trip- Baya had rented a van to get all of us there- he, myself, the driver, Timur a high-school student who plays saxophone, Adnan, who is a clarinet professor and is one conductor for WoC, and then 2 other guys- one who we just drove to Banja Luka and the other who played accordian. The drive to start out was pretty foggy and I could see nothing which was rather anti-climactic after I had heard so much about how gorgeous the scenery would be. We stopped in Travnik after awhile and walked around there, got water and some chocolate and then piled back into the van. Luckily the fog had cleared up at this and we wer able to see all the country side we were passing through. Timur proved a good companion to chat with- he speaks English really well because he lived in Florida for awhile with his family and still has relatives there who he visits. We got to Banja Luka around 1ish and the weather was really nice and mild. The music academy there is part of a whole university all of which used to be military facilities. We found Irma giving oboe lessons to a potential pupil for her permanent oboe classes which will hopefully start sometime in January. From there we all went to her hotel, got her bags and then headed to a restaurant for lunch which was a good thing because we were all starving. I tried chicken medallions with kaymek which is kind of like sour cream, really delicious, and definitely not good for you. We hung out there for a pretty long time, first sitting outside right by the river and then moving inside for coffee. We went back to the music academy then to see the concert Irma had been working with the students all week to prepare. Timur and the accordian player also joined in for the performance. I had the very exciting duty of official photographer and videographer for Irma. Hopefully my filming skills will be up to her standards...

Then the really exciting part of the journey came on the way back. Irma, Timur and I talked for awhile and then I dosed a bit and Timur was pretty much out cold. We stopped in Travnik again though around midnight to get a late night meal. This in itself was pretty exciting because the restaurant was in Ivo Andrić's house. Everything was proceeding more-or-less as usual until as we were finishing up our meal, the owner noticed the instruments we had brought inside with us and offered a free round of drinks if we stayed and provided a little music. So Adnan busts out his clarinet, the accordian player gets going too, and eventually the owner starts requesting various Sevda songs and singing right along. Then some other guys pop in, see whats going down, and then run to go get their accordian too so they can join in the fun. Everyone is singing along and Irma and I are just sitting enjoying everything and taking it all in. One of the guys apologizes for not playing any English language songs, but explains that if he had his guitar it would be a different matter. A spark of innovation must have struck though, because next thing we know we're all singing Knockin on Heaven's Door played on an accordian. I'm not sure what time we finally left, but maybe it was around 2ish.

The drive back after that was an experience to say the least. At that point the fog had descended once more and for all I could tell we were going to drive off the road into a ravine at any moment. I have no idea how the driver did it, but he just kept right on driving into what was basically nothing-ness save for the faintest appearance of lines on the road. I tried to sleep but it was a little difficult to relax as I stared at the road. I think Timur was the only one who managed to fall soundly asleep yet again. I really don't know how we made it, but I'm here to tell the tale and in the end we arrived back in Sarajevo a little after 4.

Sunday also held a few adventures of its own. I had coffee in the morning with Geni and Seka and then went to the market with them. I got a small introduction to the tram's in this process which was good b/c I had avoided riding them thus far. After that I went to meet Peter for coffee finally which was great to finally have a face to put with the name. He gave me a run down on restaurants, activities, other places to get things, etc. which was great and also a bit about himself. He's actually leaving soon (Christmas-ish) and fejdje is going to be moving into his apartment. He hopes to come back in June though so I suppose I may see more of him then. He's a lot more low-key than Adam, we discussed Adam's drinking habits and Peter said he's been "forced" to drink sliva/rajkia by Adam at 10 am on some occaisions. After we finished our drinks, I headed back home feeling very happy and zen-like; the weather was great, I was great, everything was great. However, it was not to last... I've struggled with the lock on the outside door of my building before- but this particular time it proved to be impossible. I knew there had to be some trick to making it work, and previously various jiggles, pushes and pulls had eventually produced results. This time- no luck. I finally gave up and rang the bell, hoping Seka or Geni would come let me in. Sadly, my ringing was misinterpreted and instead a second set of keys were tossed out the kitchen window for my use. I figured I would at least give them a try and that maybe me keys were just finicky or bad copies or something. No. It seemed that absolutely nothing would make the door yield. After awhile, Seka and Geni must have noticed I still hadn't appeared- but their solution was to drop down yet another set of keys. I almost cried. Luckily they didn't leave me alone with those for too long- Seka came down pretty quickly and issued what encouragement she could from the other side of the door (however it does take a key to unlock from the inside too, and I'm pretty sure I was in possession of all of them at that point). Apparently the trick though is to pull on the door with all your might from the outside, and push from the inside. So Seka pushed, and I was finally able to get in- the whole ordeal took over 1/2 an hour. Luckily though there was an excellent reward on the other side- Seka had made zeljanica for dinner (similar to spanakopita) and I was invited to join. So that was the positive ending to my Sunday- and I managed to get back at least a little of my zen.

excerpt from previous e-mail: the American Embassy is Evil

I went to the US Embassy today to register with my passport and everything. I was almost a little excited to go- in my imagination it had taken on epic proportions as a bastion of peanut butter and Starbucks coffee with country music playing in the background... ok I didn't really expect that- but at least some friendly American accents in a pretty building. WELL- I guessed wrong, instead I was first met by a massive concrete wall with no obvious entrance. After walking back and forth a couple of times and receiving suspicious glances from people behind thick glass windows, I was finally directed to the end of the fortress where security gaurds with automatic rifles curtly waved me around not 1 but 2 barriers. When I tried to enter the door I had been directed to, I was angrily told to "just wait a moment" by yet another man behind plate-glass. Then, "what are you here for?" "Um, to register...?" "Well, they're really busy right now, so just wait" so i did, without much choice in the matter- because who knows, if i did decide to leave at that moment without explanation maybe I would've been machine-gunned down right there on the street. Finally they let me in, but only for the very friendly process of scanning my passport, x-raying my bag, confiscating my hand-lotion, waterbottle, ipod and cellphone, and waving a metal detector over my entire body. It was more intense than airport security. Some welcome... I was finally allowed into a waiting area at that point and saw that what they had been "very busy" with before was putting 2 other guys through the same security check, except they were Bosnian. If I thought I had it bad, all I had to do was listen to the way they spoke to the one of them when they called him to the window. It was an intensive interrogation process, and whatever the poor guy said was a lie or wrong as far as the official was concerned. He was trying to get a work visa that he had already gotten on previous occaisions. Eventually they sent him and his friend back out to their car to get another document as further proof he wasn't a lying criminal. Meanwhile I continued to sit alone, wondering if my presence was known or not. All forms of life had disappeared from behind the windows. It was like waiting around at the MVA- a horribly warped and cracked out MVA. Bosnian-work-visa-guy reenters. I think both of us were debating whether or not to begin conversation with one another. Finally I say, "I don't even know what they're doing back there" and conversation flowed fairly easily from there. He pointed out I had it much better than he, which i agreed with and then we each explained why we were there. He was going to work for Celebrity Cruises which he had already done before and had never previously had issues with getting the visa. So apparently it all depends on what kind of mood they are in. At that point I was called to the window, strikingly not by the evil sounding interrogator that had been there before, but instead a friendly enough looking woman. I handed her my already-completed form and passport which she disappeared with for a moment and quickly returned. "Great, now you're all registered and we can contact you in case of an emergency. Which is
very important" all spoken in the tone of a 1st grade teacher, with a smile meant to reassure but based on the rest of my experience, really just creeped me out. I was shocked at how painless it had been though, with no additional questions about what I had written on the form or anything. With that I left as quickly as I could, wished the Celebrity Cruise guy luck, and reclaimed all my posessions from the security checkpoint. People actually seemed much more friendly now that I was leaving, strangely enough.

I hope to not have to go back anytime soon...