And here I am, again on Friday! Small step for a mankind, but a big one for my organizational skills, which are close to non-existing :) How's your week been? I hope you had a nice Christmas, if you celebrate on the 25th of December, or really productive days if that's not the case. I was mostly resting (a bit too much, to be honest) and now I'm on the road again, going to Belgrade to meet some more friends. I know I said this already, but being at home is awesome. :)
Weekend Reads #9
Friday, December 26, 2014
And here I am, again on Friday! Small step for a mankind, but a big one for my organizational skills, which are close to non-existing :) How's your week been? I hope you had a nice Christmas, if you celebrate on the 25th of December, or really productive days if that's not the case. I was mostly resting (a bit too much, to be honest) and now I'm on the road again, going to Belgrade to meet some more friends. I know I said this already, but being at home is awesome. :)
Thursday, December 25, 2014
Being an adult has some wonderful perks and I'd never swap places with my teenage self. As somebody said in a TV show, it sucks not being able to handle drama but needing to live with it every day - think of boys in high school, UGH! However, being an adult has its downsides, too. I'm not entitled to believe in Santa anymore. Nor the Easter Bunny. Nor the Tooth Fairy (not that I need her anymore, but still). You get the point. No more nice characters whose only purpose is to bring you gifts if you've been a good girl. Boy. Whatevs. And at some point years ago we stopped giving presents to each other in the family. Like, we're grown-ups now, who needs gifts?! (I do!)
I guess we turned to a more pragmatic approach. No need to wait for the holidays for, say, new pair of shoes, new nail polish or whatever I need - or think I need. But some magic got lost in the process as well.
Here's what I would ask from Santa.
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
This was a working title, meaning "finally writing about Rome and this is the post about Rome and Rome is so great and DO NOT avoid it anymore but click this title and write!". But actually, I like the sound of it. It captures everything I feel. It's not just 'Rome'. It's so wonderful, beautiful, amazing, magnificent, that it's 'Rome Rome Rome Rome'.
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I_recommend,
italy,
rome,
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Monday, December 22, 2014
I got up really early one day last week. Taken in Belgrade, Serbia
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Again I'm not delivering the links for the weekend reads, but more of a "start your week nicely" read. I mean, you miiight be still at the office, right? Anyway, here they are.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Here's a pic of Groningen this Saturday, because I still haven't showed you the town I now live in |
Oh well, it seems that there comes the time where I cannot even manage to post regularly once a week. I have an excuse though - I came to Serbia last weekend so the days before were all about packing and planing. I already ate some home cooked meals at my parents', went to Belgrade, and now I'm in Novi Sad, visiting my sister... and a dentist. Yep, this girl aged 26 will wear braces as of tomorrow. Eek! But everything for a nice smile, I guess.
Here are some interesting places on the web I stumbled upon recently.
Here are some interesting places on the web I stumbled upon recently.
Monday, December 8, 2014
Subjective feeling. Source |
Hey there, it's time for another round of #WeekendReads - at least it was time three days ago, but my assignments got me. It's getting seriously cold here in the Lowlands that most of the times I just stay inside wrapped in a blanket. Last week I somehow managed to watch the first season of a TV series I'm too ashamed to publicly admit which one it is; but hey, guilty pleasures, right! Everybody's got some. ;) I'm also trying to squeeze in some movies, and apparently I won't watch everything I have on my computer by the end of the year, because (drumroll) it ends in a few weeks. Huh! It's been one hell of a ride, this 2014. Probably my favorite year so far.
Saturday, December 6, 2014
The Dutch kids don't really appreciate Santa Claus. They have their own big guy who delivers presents: it's Sinterklaas (St Nicholas). Today is his day, but sometime in November Sinterklaas arrives to the Netherlands. They organize big parades on that day in all the cities. Yep, he arrives to all the cities in the country on the same day - that's what the children believe. Actually, when a few of us asked our Dutch classmate about the tradition, she said she kept looking around to see if there are any kids nearby, because it's really important to keep their belief in the good guy.
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Monday, December 1, 2014
No, I didn't make a typo in the title. Yes, I know you've heard of Murano island near Venice. But this one also exists. (Even an Italian friend asked me "But you mean Murano, right?". No. I mean Burano.)
Guys, this place is so so cute, and I'm so happy and grateful that people who'd organized the Science of Aphasia conference took us on this trip, otherwise I'd never know about this amazing little island! I mean, look at these houses - and the whole island is like this. They're small, painted in vivid colors, and just so picture pretty, I lost my friends who headed to get some ice-cream - I just had to stop to take a photo, and then again, and again.
Why is Burano so colorful? I have no idea. I read that if someone wishes to paint their home, they must send a request to the government, and then they will allow certain colors. How crazy is that?! I also heard/read that it's like this because drunken fishermen had troubles finding their homes when going back after a day on the sea. Who knows?!
Sunday, November 30, 2014
If you had asked me what I thought about winter two years ago, I would have been a girl version of the Grumpy Cat: I. Hate. It. I thought it was pointlessly cold, pointlessly unpleasant and just... well, pointless.
But then again, you could say I was a bit of an ignorant when it comes to winter. I neglected proper clothing for the sake of looks, and I pretty much didn't behave as if it's really cold. That's why I loathed winter: I didn't know it. So when I was forced to spend a winter in Finland, I got to know it. Really know it. And having spent winter there made me realize two things: winter in Belgrade, or pretty much anywhere else in continental Europe, is nothing compared to the one in Scandinavia; and it was good that I had to spend it there, because now I know all the do's and don'ts. Today I'm sharing them with you.
Friday, November 28, 2014
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Taking baby steps to reviving the blog again. (Posted a late Instagram update yesterday). And not missing the Weekend Reads. I'm actually quite happy to prepare these posts, every time I read something new I wonder if it would suit Weekend Reads. Well, I hope I'm bringing some fun/interesting/useful content here!
Thursday, November 27, 2014
I feel like the White Rabbit from Alice in the Wonderland: Oh my god, oh my god, I'm so late! I usually post Instagram posts at the beginning of the (odd) month, but this month I just didn't feel... inspired. I don't know. I kinda neglected this lil' online place of mine. Well, soon enough it will be time for another Instagram update, so I better deliver this one! So, September and October. September seems like ages ago. Which is a pitty, because it almost feels like a previous life. And it was the coolest.
Before I start with the photos, I just want to wish a happy Thanksgiving to all the Americans who stop by! I hope you have a wonderful holiday and a wonderful dinner. Have I told you that I had a Thanksgiving dinner two weeks ago, hosted by our American teacher? It was that early because it was the date everyone could make it, and it was my first Thanksgiving ever. I had no idea traditional American food was SO FREAKIN GOOD. I was so full. That turkey, and the sweet potatoes, and the beetroot and apple salad, and the stuffing, and the gravy, and I'm just craving that right now!! What a night.
Friday, November 21, 2014
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I cannot believe that I never blog if I don't have the time, yet I don't want to miss this new feature I introduced on Fridays. But I guess if I cannot offer you my traveling adventures or something else I've come up with, it's only fair to make it up to you with some links to keep you occupied. And those deffo take less time to be delivered to you. So, here we go.
Friday, November 14, 2014
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Hello lovlies!
So, as you can see, my last post is from last Friday, which means I'd had a very busy week at uni. I have to admit that I started counting the days to the Christmas break, which also means going home! I need a break. Two days in Amsterdam over the weekend were great, but I need more, haha! Amsterdam is, by the way, such a cutie, and currently it's nr. 2 in my list "most beautiful cities in the world". (Do you remember which one is the first?)
This weekend will be devoted to a lot of decluttering: I decided I had too many things in my wardrobe I rarely ever wear (one needs space for new season's items, right?!), and plus, you wouldn't believe the condition of my Downloads folder. I just cleaned my Desktop a bit, it was such a mess, I wasn't able to see the background properly. Now it's all neat and clean, and I have this as the background.
Friday, November 7, 2014
Looking forward to seeing this for myself later today! (via) |
Hello friends,
Another weekend is just around the corner! I woke up at 6:45 without the alarm - that's close to a miracle - and now I'm sipping on my coffee, after I'd had my breakfast. Which I made last night. (Overnight oats - to make sure I have my oats even if there's a chance I'd be lazy to make an oatmeal.) I don't know who I am and what happened to... well, me, but I like it. I am by no means a morning person, but I really, really like it when I'm able to take it easy - instead of running around all panicky because I don't know what to wear, and the class starts in less than half an hour. No fun.
Anyway, I'm going to Amsterdam this afternoon! And I'm super excited, I've never been there before. My best friend from my hometown moved there in 2005 and has been inviting me to visit ever since, but I never had both the money and the time. So after nine years, I'll finally see him in a place other than our town!!
What are your plans for the weekend? For the second time, I'm delivering some awesome places in the cyberspace for you to check out. Have fun!
Monday, November 3, 2014
Everybody knows how much I loved Berlin and its vibrant atmosphere - but sometimes you just need a break. That's why one day in September I woke up at 5 AM and hopped on a bus to Rostock, a town on the Baltic sea only 2 hours away, and then went to a nearby sea resort, Warnemünde. So calm. Fresh. Relaxing. You cannot believe you'll be back in the city by the end of the day. And when you do, you feel reborn. Energized. Your batteries full to the maximum. Ready to tackle the routine.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Last time I told you about things worth seeing/doing in Venice. Today I just wanted to share some more photos of this beautiful place, so I'll let the photos speak for themselves. Don't you just hear them saying 'come to me, come to me'?!
Friday, October 31, 2014
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Hello friends,
This type of a blog post is nothing new in the blogosphere, but I realized it's time I made one (two, three...) when I noticed there are way too many things I stumble upon and want to share on Facebook, that it's almost rude - I'm sure many people already hid me from their News Feeds because I'm an oversharer. But when I find something nice, interesting, intriguing, funny... I just cannot help it, I want to share it with the world! So why not share it with you guys as well?
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Venice is actually in a way responsible for my Italian trip, because hadn't there been for a conference everybody from my master's program attended, I'm not sure I would have decided to do it. I didn't know what to expect, because I know a lot of people who visited it and didn't really like it very much, so I was impatient to see it myself. Long story short - I loved it! I found it extremely charming (one would perhaps say 'romantic'), I loved the architecture, the cute bridges and alleys, and, oh, the water! Maybe it has to do with the fact that my hometown doesn't have a river, a lake, anything (just a canal... not a very interesting one); in Venice (and around Venice) I realized not only how much I love the sea, but that I love water in towns in general. I remembered how much I liked Saint Petersburg and its canals; or Berlin; or, after all, the town I now live in (Netherlands = canals). So it really didn't come as a surprise that I absolutely enjoyed my hours in Venice. They were few - we did attend the talks and poster presentations after all - but they were enough to wonder why on Earth somebody wouldn't like this place.
Sunday, October 26, 2014
I finally got some time to write about my Italian adventure again! As I said, I will not be writing in the exact order I visited places - and I actually wanted Rome to be the next city I would be writing about (it certainly did precede Florence), but I've got a problem there, the city is so beautiful and I want to say so much about it, that I feel I need A LOT of time to do that, and also fear that nothing I say could really compare to the jewel Rome is. But anyway, back to Florence!
I spent more than a day there, but it is a relatively small town and everything worth seeing can be seen in one day. Well, except for the museums - which I missed, and which are the exact reason I will be coming back to Florence one day. Don't repeat my mistakes and book the tickets in advance!
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firenze,
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Monday, October 13, 2014
Never in my life have I waited in line to get somewhere during the day (if we count out banks, post offices, doing administrative and paperwork at uni... you get the point, I'm talking about coffee places & bars & such). Well, ok, I rarely even waited in the night (I would usually not go to places that are so popular you have to wait to get in there). I cannot even remember what the last time I waited was... um, maybe six months ago in Paris? So as long as I can remember it seemed to me that these two things go together - actually, I wouldn't ever, not for a second, even think otherwise - lines are for night clubs, and that's it. Then I went to a place in Berlin I read about, and I couldn't believe my eyes when I got there and witnessed a line of about 50 people. At 7 PM. It seemed just crazy. Again Berlin-themed blogs and websites I'm following found a place to tell everyone about - apparently I wasn't the only reader... My flatmate and I weren't sure whether we should stand in the line or not, because I only had time for like one drink. But then we decided that's it, we're getting in after coming all the way there ('there' being Neukölln, not really a neighborhood you visit daily).
Saturday, October 11, 2014
I was strolling through Venice with my friend Chaya, and then I saw an old-ish couple struggling with three enormous suitcases and a number of smaller bags. "What do they need so much luggage for?!", I asked Chaya in a disbelief. She laughed: "Tihana, I wonder the same thing about you!"
Almost three weeks before I was packing for my Italian trip. I don't own a big backpack, so I had to pack a suitcase, and I was aware of the fact that I would have to drag it around every time I change city - which was like every two-three days. I have two sizes: a small one, carry-on, that I use for weekend trips, and that can be in fact used for up-to-five days' trip, so that one I didn't even consider; and a big one, that I use for summer holidays, trips home, and well, moving countries. So I had to pack wisely, pack only things I will definitely wear, bear in mind that I don't want it to be too heavy... the usual things. I failed miserably, and it was during the very first half of the trip that I realized it. And now I'm here to share the wisdom.
Almost three weeks before I was packing for my Italian trip. I don't own a big backpack, so I had to pack a suitcase, and I was aware of the fact that I would have to drag it around every time I change city - which was like every two-three days. I have two sizes: a small one, carry-on, that I use for weekend trips, and that can be in fact used for up-to-five days' trip, so that one I didn't even consider; and a big one, that I use for summer holidays, trips home, and well, moving countries. So I had to pack wisely, pack only things I will definitely wear, bear in mind that I don't want it to be too heavy... the usual things. I failed miserably, and it was during the very first half of the trip that I realized it. And now I'm here to share the wisdom.
(via) |
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I_recommend,
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Thursday, October 9, 2014
When I left for Italy, I had a solid number of almost-ready-to-post blog posts here. Some were totally ready, others required a little bit of photo editing, or a little bit of writing, but I thought I could totally manage with posting regularly. I also planned to post about Italy on the go, and I was silly enough to think it would be possible to go out in the morning, spend a day outside and then come home and choose and edit photos and tell you about my days. Well - didn't happen! Travelling is beautiful, but also exhausting, so when I would get back home in the evening, I just wanted to s.l.e.e.p. Also, not to mention the internet thing - when you're travelling, you're highly dependent on wi-fi, which I hate. So anyway, one of the things I planned to post was sort of a bucket list, but not really, only things I plan (=wish?) to do before my 30th birthday*, and I wanted to do that on my 26th birthday, which was two weeks ago. I've always loved my birthday, and somehow I don't think 30 is too much - at least I changed opinion when a close friend of mine turned 30 and she was still the same person! But still, as I said here, one more year and I will have to refer to myself as being in my late twenties, which is crazy - especially when it comes to how I feel (and look!). And I feel like a teenager. OK, I shouldn't have told you this :)
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So, if you want to get to know me better, keep on reading. And enjoy your age, whatever it is!
Monday, October 6, 2014
Finally I am settled down in one place and have time to start re-living my big Italian adventure here on the blog. For those of you who missed it (how could you?!), I was travelling through Italy in September for almost three weeks. September is the time off in my master's program—except for the conference Science of Aphasia that we are supposed to attend. The conference is held in a different place every year, so this time it was Venice we had to go to. We've known about this for a year and I was very excited, because I had never been to Italy - even though it is rather close to Serbia. But it never bothered me too much because I've always known I'd go to Italy someday—who would miss this gem of a country anyway? So as the summer approached, I decided not to go to Serbia in September - that's why I went home in July, I wrote about that on the blog—but to Italy. From Rome up north! But then a dear Italian friend of mine told me to go to Naples. Naples? Ummm, I've heard of it, of course, but why should I? "They have the best pizza there," he explained. "Naples is the home of pizza. You will not have better pizza anywhere else. And you should trust me on this, because I am from the north, Naples is in the south, and we're not each other's favorite people... so when I tell you pizza is the best there, you know I'm not lying." Well. Pizza indeed has been my favorite dish since I was a little child. Didn't take much until I booked my ticket to Naples.
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Saturday, October 4, 2014
Hello lovely people,
I wanted to quickly say hi and excuse myself for not posting anything these days. This is in fact the first chilled out day I have had in almost a month! I have tons of blog material, but I haven't had any time so far to make it postable :). You might have noticed that I was travelling through Italy in September for three weeks and that was one of the best trips of my life! Italy is amazing, I had a blast, I fell in love with Rome like with no other city and I think I need to live there at least three months in my life. I celebrated my 26th birthday in Milan (one more and I will have to refer to myself as in 'late-twenties', urgh!), flew back to Germany and two days later I moved to the Netherlands. I am now living in a beautiful town of Groningen in the north of the country. This is my first time in the Lowlands so I'm very happy, I haven't had the time to explore the town yet but I'm looking forward to it. Of course, I am also looking forward to visiting a very dear friend in Amsterdam, and I hope it would happen soon.
I don't have any photos of this cute picturesque town I'm in, so I'll just leave a photo of one of the wonderful perks of living in the Lowlands: stroopwafel!
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everyday_stuff,
holland,
personal,
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Thursday, September 25, 2014
So far I've been trying to show you Berlin in photos and words, and I hope I've been at least a bit successful in a way that you thought 'oh, this looks interesting / worth visiting'. Today, a few weeks before I'd leave Germany, I'm bringing you some songs with videos filmed in Berlin. I think it started when my friend posted a Seeed video you'll find below, and then I started watching related videos, playlists and such. Over time I've come up with this li'l list of mine of songs I enjoy both because of the music and the videos. I hope you like it!
This video by Alle Farben for the song She Moves (Far Away) was filmed in Tempelhof during a music festival. Doesn't it look just relaxed and as if it's possible not to have any worries in life?! If you like the song, you can also find the official video here.
Monday, September 15, 2014
If you come to Berlin as a tourist, this is a place unlikely to be missed. After having seen Alexanderplatz, Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburger Tor, one needs to take a relaxed stroll down this section of the Berlin Wall. It's located close to the center, in Friedrichshein, along the river Spree. It's the longest open air gallery in the world (1.3 km long, which is also the largest remaining section of the Wall).
After the Wall came down in 1989, artists from all over the world gathered to make this unique and original piece of art. They transformed the former untouchable Wall with bright paintings and activist messages, celebrating life, joy, freedom and hope.
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Thursday, September 11, 2014
Raise your hand if you're a girl and have never watched Sex and the City and/or Gossip Girl. I don't see any! These two have been guilty pleasures of mine for years; and although I know that none of them is very intelligent nor deep, I loved both for many reasons, one of them being the supporting character: New York City. I fell in love with it like you fall in love with a person you know online: you see many sides of them, yet you've never seen them in person - but it doesn't stop you from being completely and utterly in love with them. I've read and heard about severe NYC winters and awful hot summers; but at this point I feel I'd forgive every sin of imperfection to this city. We'll see how it goes once we meet - no plans so far, but it'll definitely happen. Until then, fall knocking on our doors, I leave you with these shots of NYC and its people on a hot day in 1969, taken by photographers of Life magazine. Aren't they beautiful?! You can almost hear the car horns and feel the humidity.
Monday, September 8, 2014
I once thought Kreuzberg was my favorite part of Berlin. It's fun - cobblestone streets, cute cafes on the pavements, a lot of greenery, hipsters, immigrants and their stores, what more could you ask for? But then I went to Friedrichshein. Friedrichshein is WOW! While I find Kreuzberg more relaxed and laid-back, with people eating vegan stuff and drinking beer lazily while sitting on the sidewalk, sipping coffee and working on a computer in a coffeeshop, Friedrichshein is so alive. For example, when you arrive at Warschauer Strasse station, probably the first thing you will hear is a singer or a band busking outside of the station. Turn to your right and cross the bridge, you will find punks on their couches on the street with little cardboard boxes saying something like PLEASE DONATE FOR WEED.
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berlin,
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Friday, September 5, 2014
This time I won’t mourn over the past two months and how time flies and this and that; we’ve entered September so it means New Year’s is just around the corner, and you canot neglect that fact. Moreover, it’s my birthday in few weeks and to be honest, it’s hilarious that I’m turning 26 and I’m still being asked for my ID when buying... ummm, when entering clubs. :) So, if you’re living in Europe, this past summer was probably one of the worst you’ve experienced – weather-wise. Actually, did I just say summer? I don’t know what was wrong with it, but it was summer for maaaybe ten days. Two weeks? Apart from the beginning of June, Germany was cold. I was looking forward to going home to Serbia, wholeheartedly hoping it would be warmer there because hey, it’s in the south, right? – but nope, Serbia bailed on me. I mean, okay, I did experience some sunny days and a few were even hot, but rarely would it exceed 30 degrees Celsius. Which is fine if you ask me, but it’s not normal for this time of the year! In Serbia we’re usually swimming in our sweat during the whole months of July and August, so excuse me, but this sudden change is not normal, no matter how convenient! And back in Germany I had to admit that the fall was here – not later but in mid-August. How awful is that?!
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Friday, August 29, 2014
I like clicking "attend" to various Berlin events on Facebook just to keep them there and know what's going on in the city - but truth be told, I rarely actually attend. Most of the times I'm busy, but it also happens that I'm just not in the right mood. Last Wednesday it almost happened that I missed this thing, but in matter of minutes I packed my tote bag and decided I'm heading out. And I was so glad afterwards!
The thing we're talking about here was Berlin Summer Market. Hipster kingdom. Fashion & arts market. Place of the cool kids. It took place at an amazing venue that I'm looking forward to exploring by day, and I will because it's THAT awesome! (What I love about Berlin is that I keep stumbling upon great new places/things, but that's another story.)
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Hey lovelies,
I just wanted to update you on a... well, on an updated feature of the blog. If you click Travelling from the Link List above, you will now be able to see a neat list of the posts on my travels - so far you could have seen only bunch of posts labelled "travelling", so if you didn't feel like scrolling, you might have missed, for example, some of my favorite posts featuring Finnish Lapland. As for the future travels, I'm hoping to bring you at least two more European countries (and their capitals!) by the end of the year, but more on that soon. ;)
In the meantime, as I said on the Travelling page, some of the places I've been to didn't receive much of my attention to get to the blog (which is by no means their fault, only mine!), but they did find their way to my Instagram profile! So if you want to stay updated on where I'm roaming, follow me and drop me a line there to make sure I check out your profile - I love finding new inspirational Instagram people!
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You can also like my Facebook page (and make me happy yay! and make sure you're among the first ones to see when the new posts are out) or follow me on Bloglovin. I'm a huge fan of Bloglovin and if you follow a number of blogs, it's a perfect way to stay organized and not have too many bookmarked websites. I, for example, pay a visit to the blogs I follow on Sundays, and since I started using Bloglovin I don't have to visit each blog separately to see if there are new posts. Cheers to the saved seconds!
And last but not least, if you're more into the 140 characters social network, you can follow me on Twitter in Serbian or English. I really blabber a lot in Serbian - I typed so much over the past few years on Twitter that I could've easily published a book instead. Or two.
Hope to see you around!
Love, Tihana
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Monday, August 11, 2014
I never loved history in school. So many battles and dates and kings to remember, so many things that I could not connect to anything. I did like stories on how common people lived back in the ages and what they did and how they spent their time, but no teacher wanted to teach that. They all had a plan they had to stick to. It wasn't before 2nd or 3rd year in the uni that I realised the awful truth: they were bad teachers - or the system itself was bad, because none of them ever even tried letting us see the bigger picture. They taught lessons as completely separate units, and that's how we students perceived them. We were never told about the connection between things and events that there were. I don't know why that is, but I do feel that I'm lacking an awful lot of knowledge of the world's history.
That especially applies to the 20th century. In Serbia it is taught in 8th grade of the elementary and 4th grade of high school - both times it's the final year and everybody's concerned about getting to the high school they want to enrol in, or university. The teachers know that, so some of them don't really ask much from students. And here I was last year, in my mid-twenties, coming to Berlin for the first time ever, and having no idea of the Berlin Wall and the post-war events and the GDR and the fall of the Wall... EMBARRASSING or what!
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Friday, August 8, 2014
Few weeks ago my friend Tamara had an idea of us and some other friends exploring Belgrade for a whole day and taking photos of it for my blog. Yay! Such a sweetheart. We wanted to make a locals' insight for prospective tourists - what to see, where to go, where to eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, where to go out. But eventually, my visit was much shorter than I had expected and then we only had a couple of hours to fool around with her camera. Plus two more girls, whom I hadn't seen for a long time, joined us, and you can imagine that reunion with old friends is more about fun than work. I'm not complaining though, it's how it should be. :) It reminded me once more what a beautiful city I used to live in. I mentioned it in an earlier Belgrade post, I will always consider it home.
Monday, August 4, 2014
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I know two weeks' time is short in theory, but my trip back home felt even shorter! Like, didn't I just arrive two days ago? And now I'm back in Germany, I landed an hour and a half ago and here I am, sitting at the uni, waiting for the class. Again, in theory, I have two months here before I move to the Netherlands. But I'm planning to do some travelling in September, and maybe road takes me somewhere at the end of August too. We'll see. So basically, I feel as if I only have three weeks left to enjoy Berlin and Potsdam, and besides attending my Scientific Writing course and writing proposal for my thesis and thinking of what I want to do when I grow up (PhD matter again), I want to do all the things I've been planning to, but just thought I'd do them sometime. Well, a similar thing happened to me in Finland, and in the end I never visited the city museum, for example, so I don't want to leave Germany with a similar feeling of "I should've done that". That's why I have some sort of Berlin bucket list with things to do before I leave.
Monday, July 28, 2014
I met Hannah May last September, and we haven't really talked much that evening - well, she did most of it actually, because she had spent a semester in Finland and we were yet to experience it (naturally, everyone's super worried when they're moving to such a cold country in the winter!). However, we did become friends on Facebook and started following each other on Instagram, so I discovered that we're sort of soul sisters because we share endless love for all the things cute, beautiful mugs, Scandinavian design, Moomins and coffee. She is also a passionate traveller, just like me, but unlike me, she's all into crafts, and I feel that I shouldn't even try, because I'm so clumsy and have no sense of making anything. So today I'm sharing a super easy DIY I found on Hannah's blog, and it actually looks like something even I could do, so it's been on my to-do list for a while now.
Friday, July 25, 2014
This is the weird time of a vacation when you want to continue blogging, but haven't really been working on anything vacation-related (or home-related in my case) that you could post, and on the other hand it would be weird to post Berlin stuff from afar. (Berlin is sleeping all tucked in in my Drafts folder and you'll see it soon enough!) So today I'm sharing something I find too cute and I hope you like it too!
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Monday, July 21, 2014
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Aaand here I am, typing this post in my mom's kitchen and being the happiest in a while! Of course, it was nice when I used to come back home on occasional weekends while studying in Belgrade, but sometimes I would do that because I felt like I should. Now, however, I really count the days and feel happy to do so! So why is it good to go home?
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Friday, July 18, 2014
Have you ever taken off and wondered how it would be to be outside on the runway? Have you thought to yourself that it would make an amazing place to skate or ride a bicycle? Well, if so, you're not crazy - runways do seem like great places to do such things. There is one airport in the world where you can actually do it - and it's in Berlin.
Monday, July 7, 2014
Ako želite da pročitate ovaj post na srpskom, kliknite ovde.
Recently I got a comment on my blog post on Warsaw saying "reading your traveling posts gives me a travel itch, and makes me want to pack up and wander away...". It came from a girl from Serbia. What I do know about it from my own experience is that she probably has to wait for her travel itch to be gone. Because she cannot scratch it. If you live in Serbia, chances are that your daily life is a constant struggle: pay the bills, buy food, and at the end of the day you may have enough to go out on weekends and/or visit the theatre, but traveling... it's a big issue. Maybe once a year - to the seaside. Some even go to the mountains in the winter. The majority, however, just has to let the travel itch go.
Recently I got a comment on my blog post on Warsaw saying "reading your traveling posts gives me a travel itch, and makes me want to pack up and wander away...". It came from a girl from Serbia. What I do know about it from my own experience is that she probably has to wait for her travel itch to be gone. Because she cannot scratch it. If you live in Serbia, chances are that your daily life is a constant struggle: pay the bills, buy food, and at the end of the day you may have enough to go out on weekends and/or visit the theatre, but traveling... it's a big issue. Maybe once a year - to the seaside. Some even go to the mountains in the winter. The majority, however, just has to let the travel itch go.
But there are ways to travel on the cheap, and even though I do live a life that could be seen as a bit more glamorous than the one I led in Serbia, I am still the happiest when I find a cheap deal. So even if you can afford traveling, it's always good to save even the little bits that you can later spend on food, souvenirs, or whatever makes you happy once you are away.
Kako putovati za sitn(ij)e novce
Post on travelling on the cheap in English here.
Moram da priznam da mi je neobično da pišem blog post na srpskom - osećam se kao da pišem mejl. :) Ovo će zasad biti jedini post na srpskom, a za njega sam se odlučila zbog specifične teme - mislim, mogu ja da pričam o jeftinom putovanju iz Beograda na engleskom, ali malo je besmisleno.
U svakom slučaju, ideja za ovo mi je došla preko komentara na blog post o Varšavi: "Svaki put kad čitam tvoje tekstove, uvek me zasvrbe tabani i dobijem želju da se spakujem i otputujem negde iste sekunde." Kao što sam već napisala u tekstu na engleskom, sa sve objašnjenjem zašto je tako (na srpskom, nažalost, ne moram da objašnjavam - sve znamo), autorka ovog komentara najverovatnije mora da iskulira svrab u tabanima i sačeka da prođe. Meni je zbog toga žao, jer je generalan stav u Srbiji da su putovanja luksuz - a ne mora da bude tako. Upravo s više mogućnosti za putovanja, koje sam dobila kao student u inostranstvu, malo sam korigovala svoj pogled na putovanja, i mislim da je moguće putovati čak i iz Srbije a da to ne bude strašan udar na budžet. Naravno, nemoguće je očekivati da ćete otići negde i da to vaš novčanik neće ni osetiti, ali uz nešto štednje ovde, nešto pametnih izbora onde - možete se naći u Parizu preko vikenda, a to je nešto. :)
Friday, July 4, 2014
Hello there everyone! I just cannot BELIEVE that the first half of the year is gone already. These 6 months have gone by so quickly. I guess it has to do with moving countries and constant travelling (11 flights!), plus excitements of all kinds, and I apologize to my Mom once again for not contacting her in a while - June began and it feels as if the day after it was July 1st already, it's crazy, sorry Mom, I love you the most!
So here is the recap of the last two months in Instagram photos.
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Wednesday, July 2, 2014
When I last time wrote about Warsaw (here) I promised to show you the beauty of its Old Town. So without further introduction, here it is! Enjoy!
Monday, June 30, 2014
When I first wrote this post, I thought it would be published before the Warsaw trip posts, so my intro was all about how little time I have (that is true anyhow) and how a solution would be to cut my hours of sleep, but if that's a key to becoming a happy blogging ray of sunshine, I'll delete my blog instantly. Haha! I'm a big sleeping fan and counting the days when sleeping will be recognized as a hobby. Anyway, I at least managed to publish one Warsaw post, the other one coming in two days, and today I'm sharing some photos from Berlin Karneval der Kulturen (Carnival of Cultures) that happened some weeks ago. One of my friends really wanted to go, and I didn't mind, so the two of us and another friend ended up in Berlin. I was so glad that we did! Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me, but I took some photos with my phone because I really wanted to share the atmosphere - I mean, as much as it's possible via photos! And it was really amazing, lively, cool, awesome! It was too hot though, so we didn't stay until the end (it lasted for about 8 hours) - we all got sunburnt, and we wondered how it was possible for performers to move and dance for hours in their costumes. It was around 30 degrees!
Saturday, June 28, 2014
I've always thought of myself as someone who loves travelling. But few years ago, there were countries that I wanted to visit (it was quite stereotypical: of course, the top of the list was reserved for England, France, Italy) and those I wasn't thinking about. The three and their capitals still remain my holy trinity - I'm actually hoping to get to Rome this year and then I'll have completed them - but in the meantime, I've changed in the sense that now I want to go everywhere. Name any country in the world - I might not have heard about it, or know nothing about it, but I want to see it!
Poland was one of those that I had never found interesting. Now, however, Poland is as interesting as almost any other, so when I found out that one of my favorite bands - Florence and the Machine - was playing in its capital, Warsaw - that was a perfect excuse to plan another trip.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Monday, June 23, 2014
As you might probably know, I come from Serbia. Serbia is a great country to visit—you might remember this post about the tourist campaign that was launched last fall. We are very proud of our food (seriously, eating in Serbia should land on anyone's bucket list), beautiful nature, laid-back people and their sense of having a good time. You know that popular saying "if you remember the sixties, you weren't there"? Well, maybe it should be modified into "if you remember partying in Serbia, you did it wrong". But on the other hand, it's not such a good country to live in. This online place of mine is all about nice things, so I'm not gonna write about politics, nepotism, corruption, homophobia and such. I am just going to express my regrets that an amazing and fun event such as Pride Parade is not being held in Serbia's capital because the majority threatens with beating up participants, since it's "not natural / contagious / a bad role model" and a whole bunch of stupid 18th century beliefs.
Well, last weekend Berlin was colorful and smiling, because it hosted Christopher Street Day.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Two days ago I had lunch with Hannah May, a lovely second-year student of my programme. She was talking about Groningen, a town in the Netherlands where she lives now and where I will live from October on. "So, if you live far away from the center, you never really go there... it's just like living in Potsdam, you never go to Berlin." Then she looked at me and corrected herself: "I mean, you do, but usually..."
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Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
May 28th. Had I been persistent, like I thought I would be, today would be the 100th and the last day of my #100happydays challenge.
I told you all about the challenge here on the blog, when I announced I'd be trying to fulfill 100 days of happiness. I was aware, because I read that on their website, that many people quit at some point, because they claim not to have time. Not to have time to be happy?! Ridiculous! That's why I was sure it's a piece of cake. I mean, I do believe that happiness is small things. I am truly happy when I have my coffee, whether it be the one I make at home and enjoy while browsing internet, or the one from Starbucks when I stroll the streets of my town - or any other. I am happy when I talk to my friends. In fact, even sun and warm weather can make me happy! So all I needed to do is document it.
Monday, May 26, 2014
As far as I can remember, I couldn't wait to grow up. That's probably something I share with all the kids in the world. I would walk in my mother's high heels at the age of four, destroy her makeup and make a clown out of myself when she wouldn't be looking. I would pretend I spoke English and speak in an imaginary language to myself. The world of adults always seemed so appealing and I was counting the days - or years - until I would grow big and be an adult myself.
Twenty-something years later, here I am. Well, one might argue about being big - just the other day I realised that all this time I've been secretly hoping I would get a few more centimeters, but apparently at the age of 25 you've reached your final height. Bummer! I'm not feeling that adult either, but this number is scarily high (truth to be told, I'm actually closer to my 26th birthday than I am to the 25th) and I guess 25-year-olds ARE adults. Even those who are still studying. Even when their income is a scholarship, and not a salary for something they do. Because they don't have a job.
I'm not regretting this, though. This wasn't supposed to be a post about how there is time for being responsible and how childhood should be enjoyed. I did enjoy, but I love this much more! Ok, maybe I'm not a member of the real world yet, because I don't work, but still, the majority of time I decide for myself and it feels just great. Not that mum doesn't know best, of course. She does and always will.
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