resfeber

14 June 2017

it's been 4 years in the making and for a long time it felt like it couldn't come any sooner. but now, months and weeks are flashing by and very soon we will embark on a big adventure.

coming september we will start a journey through asia. we begin in moscow where we'll take the train to mongolia, then china, after that japan, back to china into south east asia and so on..

we will be on a serious budget and we plan to work/volunteer most of the way. we're planning to stay mostly in the country side, helping with construction and growing food. ''we'' are me, my boyfriend djordje and our friends luana and dennis - so this is an adventure with four!
these last years there's been a mixture of emotions - from fear to extreme happiness and anticipation, but the closer it gets the calmer i get. planning the trip has helped me a lot with dealing with my anxiety. my future is uncertain, i've accepted it and lately i've been even rejoicing in it. 

it's strange to think i'll stop working on trincar uvas jewelry so i've been postponing the day i will close my shop to the very last minute. it's a bag of mixed feelings - on one side it's difficult to stop because i love doing it so much and it's been growing and reaching more and more people; on another side i look forward to liberating my creativity to other mediums and challenging myself in new ways. i also love the idea of learning new techniques along the way and having the time to explore them. of course i am bringing with me a box of supplies (mostly for embroidery) so i'll keep creating in some shape or form!

so for now one more month of working and then two months of saying goodbye to our families and friends. there will be so much to share!





polska

3 June 2017

last week i went to poland with my good friend Nadia. it has been a trip we have been planning for a while now. i wanted to visit her country and get to know where she comes from. being an immigrant myself i know how often you miss that part of the life of your friends. you don't get to know their childhood friends, their family and their hometowns. and what a great thing to share with each other!

we visited warsawa guided by nadia and all her wonderful friends. i saw a city full of life (and lots of vegan restaurants!).
the photos i took are mostly from the old town (the last one is from the gardens of the university, which i loved!) but the real warsawa lies beyond the charming historical center in a dynamic mix of old and new buildings and different generations living side by side. wish i had stayed a bit more!






after warsawa we went to płock. a small town 100 km north of the capital, where Nadia grew up. i feel tempted to say that having lunch with her parents was the highlight of the whole trip. we couldn't really communicate except with smiles, but the warmth was just wonderful and difficult to put in words.

another day another destination. to kraków we went! 85% of warsawa buildings were destroyed during second world war, in kraków on the contrary much is still preserved. we wondered around the city to discover it's beautiful buildings and a very relaxed vibe. my camera's battery was dead most of the time so i couldn't capture the city in images.

it's been difficult starting to write again on this blog. especially when it comes to deeper feelings. and what comes next is just about that. 
one of the reasons we went to kraków for was because it lies one hour away from auschwitz and birkenau. we spent one day visiting both camps. it's quite difficult to put in words the feelings visiting such place provoked. 
i touched the walls, the wood, the floor of a place where more than 1 million people were murdered, starved and tortured with immense coldness and intent. on one side my heart felt numb and i couldn't relate to all the people that once lived and died here. but my head was awake and i thought of the present. of how many atrocities are still being committed. how we treat each other. how fear, ignorance and money command. can it be changed? has it ever changed?









and then i looked a bit further and watched the trees dancing in the wind. there they stood for centuries. and life continued.

i shall continue to live my life practicing empathy. and that remains the most powerful value i live by.