Castles. FOOD. Chill.

Today was another what in the world are we doing here day. We visited a castle from the 14th century. It was a rather small castle, but still pretty cool to see. Itis under renovation. We also visited the hometown of Tito- the leader of the Croats for a really long time. I cant decide if I like him or not. He was communist and socialist. Its really hard to understand. I wanted to just showcase some of the food on here today- since I dont really have much else to talk about. We like the laid back days- but we have been working on our health blog since 530- it is 930 now!! So we have been eating LOTS of meat. This is Croatian dinner style- or lunch too- appetizers of the most ugly salami- proscitto (some kind of smoked meat)- and some cheese. Today we had the most AWFUL appetizers ever- MEAT ENCLOSED IN JELLY that is FAT!! and some beef sald in this green sauce that made it look like dog food- and then we had 3 dips for the bread- 2 were cheese based and really good- the other was bacon fat and stuffing-like. OMG. Disgusting. They brought out the jellied meat and I touched it and it was cold and jiggly. I didnt eat it. Back to order of dining: appetizers, generally meats and breads, then soup, then cabbage salad :) (cabbage lettuce tomatoes and sometimes cucumbers in vinegar), then the main course- generally 2 meats and 2 starches- and then sometimes dessert. So today after apps we had noodle soup (they dont put meat in it momma!! :) ), then salad, then of all things we could have had- WE HAD FRIED CHICKEN AND BAKED BEANS!! Of course it was great- very different from ours, but so good! They dont use any sauces here- so i was dying for some ketchup, but I managed. The Croats tend to eat a lot of pork- so there were also boiled pork chops today. Rice with peas and these potatoes we have yet to figure out- but are really good! Then we had TWO pastries today. One apple one cheese. Amazing. The portions here are incredibly huge. We eat cereal and soup with what we use in the states for SERVING. Here are some of the food highlights from today..and some of the lowlights! Big Guh definitely aint starving- I have gained weight from being here :(!!

Oh and today we had banana peppers and pickles for apps. I tasted the pepper and lets just say it was too hot for me! Mild to everyone else!

soup is from another night- super good. I hope you are all well- I got a lil homesick last night- but I am ok now. I have been looking at your pics :) and showing you off to my classmates!! Week one- done. Below is Tangerine Schweppes?

Turn my swag on... and a vineyard

What up America!! Well today started rather ABRUPTLY. We have to be in the lobby at 8:45 every morning- I stayed up til 3 writing to you last night about the 2 emotional days- and then went to sleep. My roomie usually sets her alarm clock for 745, but somehow this didnt happen today. I woke up BY THE GRACE OF GOD and that only at 740!! I sat up looked at my watch and yelled to Elizabeth to get up!! We got dressed, faces washed, teeth brushed and hair pulled up in a matter of 3 minutes. Insane. Nobody even noticed we were missing from the lobby! So- started the day on the hour long ride up the mountain. Today's trip was UTTERLY boring- Im dead serious. We stopped in a cute lil town and had some dessert- like whipped cheesecake- not so much a fan- then drove WAAAAAAAAY up the mountain. and I mean way. We had to listen to some translator- who we couldnt understand- and he took us serioously in the middle of a meadow 5 miles- that we had to walk- to see some "ancient tombs"- from the IRON AGE. Wow- I am pretty sure I have never been so bored in my life- ohhh and he took us to see a cow watering hole. My parents paid $3000 for me to walk to a watering hole?? Anyway- we had lunch down the mountain- got back on the bus and went UP UP UP the mountain- seriously at one time the bus was not driving on the road and we were pretty much dangling off the side! That is the pic to the side! and that is not the rd!! We had to pass 3 HUGE dump trucks- so scary!! We went to the REMOTE villages- and I can honestly say it was one of the most boring things I have ever done. but I did get some really pretty shots of the Creator's handiwork:

After touring lots of churches- we made our way to a vineyard- super pretty. Out host family greeted with us with rakia- I dont know if that is how to spell it- but it tastes like jet fuel. It burned my nosehairs when I had just a sip- wow, It is made from fruit- fermented somehow. and it is awful- but dont worry- I will be bringing you all some back- and it is about a 12 oz btl- that is 45% alcohol- intense. We had amazing food: appetizers of hams, salami, cheeses- lots of homemade bread in 3 diff flavors- lettuce with vinegar- pork steaks off the grill- noodles and beef stew- and roasted veggies- and some amazing rice stuff- it was so amazing- I guess the boring part of the day was made up with the party in the vineyard- lets just say the students sure had an amazing time. Dont worry, I was 1 of the 5 sober ones- out of 20. The time there was just fun to finally relax with our professors and enjoy the amazing view. I have to go post up other stuff on the "health" blog- but I hope you find this video hilarious- this is on the way home from the vineyard. Please note- the back of the bus is not in tune with the front! HA! make sure your volume is up!

Emotionally Draining

Well, I applogize for not having a post for last night- we were about 3 hrs away from Hotel Jadran in Zagreb- at the Hotel Mursa and the grad student boy had the comp- so I didnt have any way to let you know about my day!! But it kind of worked out- these past 2 days have probably been the most intense of my life- in regard to being uncomfortable and upset. We have visited 2 cities that were HEAVILY affected by the Civil War in the former Yugoslav Rebuplic- 1991-1996. We drove to Osijek (ah-see-ek) and Jasenovac (Yo-sen-o-vac) which is outside of Osijek. Here we learned about the Ustasha concentration camp. 75,000 were killed or lost their lives here at this camp. The site is now a memorial- so we didnt see anything on the land but part of a rail way that was used to bring the citizens. They were forced to build their own barraks, fences around camp, lookout towers, embankments, and infrastucture- and then were heavily beaten and abused. The palce is just a field now- marked by hills to designate what types of buildings or mass graves were there in the 90s. The architect made the site very peaceful- you wouldnt know it was used for awful war crimes- nature has taken back over the land and life is abundant there. There is a huge lotus monument in the middle to symbolize petals to the sky- looking for the futurn- and then the bottom is turned upside down to not acuse not to blame, but not to hide the truth of what really happened here. This site was not as intense as some of the Nazis- but it just made your gut churn to know people walked this ground and died- for no reason. We saw Bosnia- I could have swam to it- it was about 50 yards away and the Roma, Jews, and Serbs walked a path to be shot down at the river. It was very erie. The planks walking to the monument were made from the railroad ties used to transport people to the camp. It was very overwhelming and my heart breaks for these people. We then went into a museum that have all 75,000 names printed on glass. There was a ring someone made in the camp that said "This too shall pass"- what an AMAZING testimony- God really opened my eyes to the things I complain about.

names of the victims of the c.c.

We then went on a walking tour of the city of Osijek and had an AMAZING dinner. Im eating lots of meat- so my iron should be good! We then went out on the town and just had a group of 11 sit at a cafe and share some time and drinks. Stayed up getting to know the roomie. It was very good.

note the damage to roofs

Today was MUCH more intense that yesterday- I cant put into words the emotions or thoughts. So my writing is just to allow you to see you a piece of what we felt. We visited Vukovar- the heavest hit in Croatia- and it is so real. We saw all kinds of half destoryed buildings. We went to the Hospital that served as a refuge place for the Croatians- this was so sad. For 3 months they holed people in the basement- overcrowding at its finest- 75-85 to 1000 bombings per day hit the outside of the hospital. Patients were stacked in bunk beds and placed in the hall. THe hospital wasnt supposed to be bombed, but the Geneva Code was broken. We walked the city and saw destruction- visited a Military Museum- that didnt resonate well with me- offering paintball to the "kids" to show then what the military is like- just broke my heart bc these ppl have been through enough and war should not be placed on display. We then went to the hardest emotional place I have ever been to- a site of a massacre and mass graves. We walked the grounds where 266 men from the hospital were brought to and killed. We went to a hangar where they were beaten to the point of death for 4 of them, then drove the road they were driven on to be shot and thrown in a mass grave. All of these men were injured and disabled from the hospital. It was the most humbling experience I have had in a long time. TO be in a place where torture took place- so overwhelming. This hangar is now a memorial to those men- their pictures fade in and out on the walls and some of their belongings are below in glass on the floor- so heartbreaking. The floor is gunshells. In the middle is a large spiral that has a projector spinning their names into a dark circle, then at the end the names fade into a candle- so their memory lives on. The ceiling has 266 blue stars in the ceiling to commemorate their lives. 200 bodies were exhumed- 66 are still mia. There were also 3 women killed here, and one of them was 6 months pregnant. It is brutally overwhelming- writing this does these people no justice.

here are some belongings

It is really late- I have so much more to talk about- but I will catch you up later- we have to be up in a few hours. Pray for healing in this land- war has left a mighty void in these people and my heart was broken for them today. A priest we met with left us with the words "God Bless America and Croatia"- that is my prayer for these people.

6 Lectures

Today was pretty much alllllll day about listening to Public Health people. We had to listen to 6 different people- doctors, deans, surgeons, psychologist, and the Croatian diplomat. We learned a lot about the health of Croatia- and history of what great things came out of the country. One of the founding members of the WHO is from here- but let me just tell you- this man was WAY ahead of his time. He should be called the Father of Health Education because everything he was doing paved the way for my degree. I had never heard of his name before this trip- and that is really sad considering he did SO SO SO much for Public health and prevention strategies and social medicine. Andrija Stampa-look him up. He is now a role model for me in my career. Seriously we were in classes ALL day- we didnt even get a real lunch break. I caught myself sleeping a few times- because I would wake up and my notes would just be scribble in one spot. We learned A LOT- I would say 3 out of the 6 were completely boring. The weather is cool today. No funny stories I dont think. I thought I deleted every picture on my camera last night- and I think I did- because they arent there until you connect the USB- but by the grace of God somehow they were there last night when I tried again amidst my frustration!! So- just be thinking about the people that I am on this trp with. I am pretty sure some Jesus needs to be added to their lives. I had a good talk with another girl today- she is not in church and said "Ive never read the Bible"- pray I can be used by God somehow in these people's lives.

We got our health blog up- nothing added yet, but the site is http://www.healthforalluga.blogspot.com/

Check it later this week. Off for a night out and up early in the am- 3 hr bus ride.

Plitivice Lakes and Passing Out..literally

Let's start from last night shall we? We went looking for a pizza place at an outdoor cafe and had some good cheese pizza and local drinks There was a group of 9 of us- the 2 guys and some really awesome girls. We laughed and talked and just hung out forever. My new friends were kept laughing by my lovely accent and just my comments about the trip. It was fun and then we walked back to the hotel around 1045- and Elizabeth and I (thats a pic of us) stayed up til 245 working on hw and talking. I think I found my "purpose" last night. My roomie and I talked about church- she isnt involved and doesnt seem to really know about saving grace. Pray for her- and me that I can plant some seeds and be the example I should be. My verse that I read yesterday morning was "I want to know Christ..."- I do and through this trip have been more aware of his grace and creations- pray that she can learn about that too :)

So bed and up this am to go on the HIKE. The Keens passed the test!! No blisters!! Yay!! That $100 was worth it deddy!!! I need to set the stage for this hike: we rode a AWESOME hot pink charter bus with suede and leather brown :) and tan seats. I got AMAZINGLY sick and about 15 mins into the trip I had to go to my teacher at the front and ask for motion sickness meds. The faculty just looked and me and said "we are about to get off the interstate- how are you this sick on a straight road?!" I took the pill and about 30 mins later we made a pit stop and I thought I was about to leave a great impression on my roomie. I got to the bathroom, hung over the toilet (which smelled like a wet dog), and nothing. So I got back on the bus, tried to sleep it off and not look out the window, and was fine when we reached our 2 hr away destination. We heard a good lecture about this AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL NATIONAL PARK called Plitvice Lakes- (plitvisey). The water is THE CLEANEST AND PUREST on the planet. The algae remove all the toxins from the lake, but while they do that it forms these tratervines- this is an actual living rock- because the algae removes the carbonates and solidifies the rocks- these solidified rocks form natural dams in the water. The place is breathtaking (that will come into play later). We HIKED this mountain/lake for 4 hours. It was never hot and it ws really spectacular. God sure knew what he was doing when He made this place- I was just awestruck. Waterfalls and beautiful perfectly clear greenblue water. Wow is all I can say God!!!

So on the way to see one of the tallest waterfalls- we saw this: Someone being carried out on a gurny with a MASSIVE head trauma. Keep in mind I had JUST asked our tour guide what do they do if there is an emergency at the park!!! Wow- the person's head was SUPPER bandaged...and I wont post the bloody pic, but apparently he/she slipped and hit their head. We had to WALK through the blood to get over to the next waterfall!! Public heath concern!!! So we walked around this place forever- up and down rickety beech wood paths and up and down stairs!!!

But it was all worth it- these pictures are just a glimpse as to what I saw- and it was amazing!! We walked FOREVVVERRRR - took a ferry (ecofriendly :) ) across the lake- hikes some more- took a short ferry again- then seriously had to climb a mountain to get to dinner. We FINALLY made it to dinner- veggie soup, cabage vinegar salad, and turkey strognaoff-knockoff with rice- so good!!

Here comes the good stuff. At dinner me and 4 other girls- Stephanie- Kelsey- Jessica- and Brittany were all talking about life and work and all that good stuff- we were talking about this other girl Emily on the trip who passes out when she sees blood- and how she reacted today-(she did fine)- then I asked Brittany what was her blood type bc she had on a Red cross shirt- she said she didnt know- for some reason I felt compelled to ask them about if they had had any surgeries- Britt said she had spinal surgery- then we got into what its like to give blood- needles- how it feels- passing out and all that jazz. I started talkin about my acl surgery and its was making Steph really queasy- so we tried to change the subject and Britt said she had to go to the bathrm- the rest of us were in deep "passing out" conversation, and Jessica quietly goes- uh yall! YALL!! something's wrong!! Well bless if BRITTANY didnt pass out right there at the table!! Since I caused this catastrophe with my story- I went into super nurse mode (thanks Student Health for my great lessons about passing out- I did everything right :) ) I got up- looked at her- her eyes were open but no blinks and NO color in her skin- I lifted her to the floor and put her feet up on my stomach and called out "DR COTTON- WE HAVE A PASSER-OUTER!" We got her a cool cloth and I continued to hold her feet up til she came back. Intense- none the less since we were just talking about it!!n She was fine- im not sure if the altitude- dehydration- or my lovely story about my knee caused the inncidemt, but she was in good hands. We are really tired- and still have a TON of hw to do- tomorrow is alllllll a public health day- super pumped! VISITING THE CROATIAN HOSPITAL!! I am having a lot of fun learning and sighseeing- I hope you are enjoying pieces of my trip!! Now on 2 the books- so I can really pass out 2nite!!

Lavender and Chamomile..and glass doors

So.....our first night was ok. Out room smells like the inside of a cigarette box, and it is quite overwhelming when you walk in!! Our room is RIGHT over the street- which stays busy all day and night. I didnt bring body wash on the trip...no to the ppl who think I am not bathing over here like I do in the US..but I brought the baby wash cloths that already have soap in them (lavender and chamomile) and they are amazing :)....so we started the day with breakfast- CHOCOLATE FROSTED FLAKES!!! sooo good!! And half an orange- we then walked to get on a tram- like a bus-looking marta on a wire- kinda. They all look like they are from different decades- thankfully we got one one from the 2000 times and had air conditioning! Yes it is hot here- not humid at all- but hot while walking around.

We went to the University of Zagreb today- the biggest university in the country and they are on strike, some of the students. They are striking for free education- and it looks like a bunch of kids just sitting around drinking and smoking outside with loud "techo folk" music and banners on the school. Some students still have class- the Med students were all in the library studying. We had 2 lectures from professors of the Uni- one on history and the other on language. History was interesting but amazingly boring! We then had lunch at the "cafeteria"- which would be the school lunch room equivilant. Sandwiches or a hot lunch- I had a ham sandwich on this flat round bread. They dont eat chips like we do. And we had bottled water with lime flavor- eh its ok- its made by Coca Cola and called Bistra Emotion. We stopped for 30 mins at this "hangout"area on the way to the Institue of Pilar- research center- that reaked of insense and had walls and tables that looked like the cover of a Grateful Dead album. We sat outside and tried the national drink- Cockta. At first I didnt see the "ta" on the lable and giggled to myself thinking- I sure hope someone orders a "Cock"- large size please. Then I saw the rest of the letters and still laughed at my inability to read. It tasted like vanilla coke w some fruit flavoring- and flat. It was a good thing to try- 1 time. We then went to Ins. of Pilar and had another short lecture on the population changes in Croatia and this was much more interesting.


We then toured the city for 2 hours- saw the Parliment, Government, the oldest and largest Cathedral in the country, and other points of interest in the city. There are SO many people here!! In the middle of sidewalks- and what would be roads- there are the CUTEST cafe's and resturaunts- with these huge umbrellas over the seating- which is really nice like rattan or soft cushiony seats. Smoking is very abundant here. After group touring we were turned loose for the rest of the night :) it is almost 7 here- we (me and the roomie) are going to dinner and drinks with some of the other students. Elizabeth and I walked around the city and I got an AWESOME shirt- they are kinda expensive so dont be mad if I dont bring you one! We also went to the bank to change cash into kuna- this was an interesting experience. Thankfully the teller spoke english and we had no trouble. 5.5 kuna= $1 US - so we are getting everything fairly cheap over here. We then had our first gelato- both of us for the first time ever- and Im pretty sure we are HOOKED. Snickers was mine and strawberry was Elizabeths- both were super good and only cost a lil over a $1!!! We then walked into the post office- which is where we use our phone cards- and while standing there talking about the place- oh a GLASS SLIDING DOOR decided to CRASH into my left EAR. I thought some rude Croat had just hit my ear- but I turn just in time to see the sliding door slide back into place. It hurt SO bad. It burned it hit me so hard!!! I dont know why it wasnt motion activated, because I was standing right in its path- but it hit just my ear and let me tell you that was enough!!! It still hurts!! We are going out in a few minutes- but I hope you get a good laugh at this post. Tomorrow we are hiking. Yes I will be on the trip :) _ this is the Keen's real test!! Love yall and miss ya!

Made it!!

I am sitting in my hotel room in Zagreb. WOW is all I can say about the past 2 days of travel. Here is a quick rundown:
Goodbyes were hard with my parents- I cried both times and had mascara running down my face at the airport when my dad said goodbye
Made it through security suuuuppper fast- not even 4 minutes
chilled on the floor in the waiting area and texted friends- got on the plane at 320ish- had a window seat and then no one beside me :)
I think I have found the one place I can not sleep- international flights!!! We had AWFUL turbulence- the first time I went to use the bathroom- the plance decided that would be the perfect time to go back and forth and shake vibrantly- I was holding on to the handle bar for dear life it seemed. Between getting woke up to eat and turbulence, I didnt get any sleep. I played with my ipod the whole time and froze, but the food was great and the flight was long but not bad at all.
I got to see the sunrise before Europe did- really I saw it twice if you can undeerstand that. I saw the most beautiful glow coming over Europe- blue and orange- then we were getting ready to land and dove under the clouds and got to see the light I had just seen appear here. Europe was beautiful to watch waking up- a soft orange glow over the land.
We landed and I met up with 3 other UGA girls and a faculty member and we chilled in Paris for 4 hrs. Then we hopped on a baby plane- maybe 40 people were on it and we had a great short flight to Croatia.
hopped in a taxi w the teacher and made it to the hotel
met my sweet roommate- her name is Elizabeth and our hotel room is about HALF the size of my living room- Im not joking. Super tiny
Dinner with the group and now ab 2 do homework
Great here so far!! Touring a university tomorrow and meeting faculty- ps there is a strike going on about the students wanting FREE education from k-grad school- so we will see how that goes! Im 6 hrs ahead- Croatia is interesting so far!