Sarajevo Classroom Experiences

So I have had some trouble getting on a computer the last few days, hence the drought of blogging. Plus, we have been so busy and only recently had any down time.

The last few days we have been working in a Sarajevo classroom for kids with special needs - autism as well as other disabilities. Local staff worked at stations targeting specific skills, and then we rotated through the stations with our child and a student from the University of Tuzla. The first day was a rough start - imagine eight children with autism walking into their classroom to find over 30 adults standing there waiting to make them work. Let's just say there was a lot of crying, screaming and pinching. And the kids had a hard time too. ;).

My little guy was two years old, and was definitely having a hard time with the huge change in environment. It is amazing how quickly everything you thought you knew about therapy and behavior management can go out the window in the face of a screaming two-year old. He cried and screamed through the better part of two hours. However, we did get some great exchanges with PECS to help him to request a break. PECS is a system of communication using picture items that a child will hand to an adult to request the things he wants or needs. Although it may sound like it replaces verbal language, research shows that it does not - in fact it is shown to help many kids develop verbal language while giving them an effective means of communication in the meantime. So, we made it through two hours of screaming, but were rewarded with a lovely team dinner up on the hills surrounding Sarajevo. We got to see the sunset over the city and were able to hear the prayer calls coming from the Mosques spread over the city. As the city got darker, we were able to see the tops of all the Mosques lit up, as well as the glow from the new National Library, replacing the one that was burned to the ground in the war.

I settled into bed hoping the next day at school would be better.

We woke up in the morning and made our way to the Tunnel Museum. During the war, Sarajevo was almost completely surrounded by the Serbian Army, with the exception of the airport, which is located at one end of the city. The airport was occupied by the UN and they tried to keep it a neutral zone. However, Sarajevans would try to cross the airport to get out of the city and most were killed in the process. So, they built a 1/2 mile tunnel under the airport connecting Sarajevo to the zone on the other side that was unoccupied by the Serbian Army.

The museum was a nice look at history, and that tended to be the theme of the day. It's amazing to think that a city the size of Pittsburgh was essentially surrounded and under siege for almost four years, and what the people went through. However, there are two sides to every story, and I know very little about the other side of the story.

Since there are so many of us traveling together, it takes us a minimum of 3 taxis to go everywhere. The highlight of my day on Thursday was taxi drivers. A local man drove a group of us from the museum to downtown that day. He had lived in the neighborhood near the museum before the war. However, since this was essentially on the front lines, his family moved away during the war, and then moved back later. He took us on a little tour of the city between the museum and downtown. He pointed out all the lines separating the different sides, as well as important landmarks in the city. We saw the brewery where Sarajevans got water during the war, and the bridge on which Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was killed - contributing to the start of World War I.

Later in the day we actually had a taxi driver who was a commander of the Bosnian Army during the war and who had used the tunnel extensively. They both talked about the different cultures and religions that currently coexist in Sarajevo. The second taxi driver said that he was Catholic, and the other two drivers with us were Muslim and Jewish. One commented that one big problem in Sarajevo was that no one could build any factories, because there are too many parties of people to please. For example, if someone wants to build a factory, everyone wants to know who they are - Croatian, Bosnian, Serbian, etc., and that nothing ends up getting done because nobody can come to an agreement. I couldn't help but think that it all sounded a bit familiar...

So after our history tour and lesson, we strolled through downtown, got some street food (cevapi), and made our way back to the hotel to set out for day two at the classroom.

Of course, it was much better than the first day. All of us and all the students had the hang of things from the day before, and although we had a different set of kids from the first day, things went much more smoothly, and there was a lot less crying. My child definitely had is issues, but was so smart and worked really hard at everything. I served as a much better teacher to both him and the student who was paired with me and left the day feeling like I may actually know what I'm doing from time to time. It's amazing how much confidence plays a role in everything. The first day, my confidence was shaken within the first 10 minutes of the session, and I felt useless and incompetent the rest of the time. Truthfully, I probably was - I was too in my own head to help my child or teach my student. But, being rejuvenated the next day, I was able to remember why I am here, why I love my job at home, and what I have to offer.

We went to an Italian restaurant downtown for dinner, then came back to work on our presentations for Saturday's conference.

On Saturday, most of us presented a topic to each other, as well as many of the students and therapists we have been working with over the past 9 days. I don't know about the students, but I learned so much from the other people on our team and know I will be a much better therapist next year because of it. I am really excited to go back to school next year with all this new information and with so many new skills and ideas.

After the conference, we walked to a restaurant in a park, where we had pizza for lunch. On our way, we ran into a Muslim family - a couple and their child. The dad was trying to talk to us in limited English - literally spitting out random words that he knew. Eventually, we found out that his wife was a psychologist in Kuwait, and Anna, our team leader got talking to her. Anna explained what we were doing here, and even as a highly-educated psychologist, she was so surprised to learn that kids with autism can be taught and that they could learn to speak. So, with that humbling thought, we made it to the restaurant, tried to avoid making out in public (see picture), and ate pizza.

Then, we took a horse-drawn carriage ride to a nearby park with natural springs. Sounds so nice, but I felt like the horses were so skinny to be pulling us, and our horse got spooked by a bike whizzing by and some stupid ladies who wouldn't get out of the road. So, I couldn't get off the carriage fast enough and insisted on walking the two miles back. I felt better both physically and morally after my walk, but realized I was turning into my mother =).

The park itself was beautiful. And, since the weather had dropped below 85 degrees for the first time since our arrival, we were actually able to enjoy it. While we were in the park, we saw a Muslim woman in a full burqua (although this one was purple). She had a little boy with her who clearly had some issues, and it was so difficult not to go up to her and try to explain about the classroom here and what it can offer. The classroom we are working in is really the only place like that in Sarajevo and there are so few services for kids with special needs here. However, I was so happy and impressed to see this woman out with the child in the park. As I've mentioned before, the culture in Bosnia view disability much differently than we do in the States and so many of the children are hidden in the house. It may not seem like it, but for this mother to have her child out and about in the park really was a big deal.

We went to a casual restaurant for dinner, and had yet another amazing meal.

The best part of the day - making it into bed before 11 for the first time since I've arrived.

This morning was our last day at the Sarajevo classroom - we ran two two-hour sessions for the two different groups of kids. As it turns out, the family of my two-year old child is from a different city in Bosnia (about 3 hours away) and had moved here to get services for this child. However, they have another child, and since he is enrolled in school in the other city, he stays with his grandparents and then the family drives the three hours to visit on the weekends. Since today is Sunday, my child wasn't able to come to school. This family literally split themselves up because the only services available were three hours away.

So, I worked closely this morning with the university student to develop some goals for our child and now have made it back to the hotel for some uninterrupted time on a computer.

Tonight, we are headed to dinner then out to a bar/club called Pussy Galore. Honestly, some things are the same wherever you go. The only difference is that here, the local women refuse to say the name of the bar.

Tomorrow, we take the three-hour bus ride to Tuzla/Zenica where we will stay until Friday morning.

Two cities down, one to go. I might actually survive this. =)

"Home" in Sarajevo.

Last night we made the bus ride from Zenica back to Sarajevo. I had to laugh on the bus when I realized I was feeling like we were going back "home".

Zenica home visits definitely had their ups and downs - but overall it was an amazing experience. We were able to work with both the current Bosnian therapists, as well as two university students on each team - modeling therapy techniques and providing feedback. The six Bosnian therapists are part of a team here that has recently become an NGO (Non-governmental Organization - basically a non-profit). Most of them have other full-time jobs and they go to people's homes in the evenings to provide therapy to the children. Some of the children have autism, others have other disabilities like Down Syndrome or cerebral palsy. The therapists are mostly speech pathologists, but some are psychologists, and they are all doing many different types of therapy. Scope of practice is a non-issue here, and I have to thank the COTAs and OTs I have worked with in the past for providing me with so much knowledge I could pass on here. These therapists have to work with the children and families on fine motor, gross motor, speech, language, swallowing, cognitive skills, school skills, behaviors, and pretty much anything under the sun. The concerns of the families seemed to be very focused on outward and visible signs of disability (i.e., hand flapping, squealing), and it has been a big challenge to help the families understand the benefits of treating the causes of these "symptoms" rather than the symptoms themselves. As we provide children with more functional ways to express their wants and needs, their screaming and other behaviors will decrease. I left Zenica feeling as though it had been a true success and it was so wonderful to hear that all the groups felt the same way. One therapist from our team works in California with older children with autism, with a heavy focus on taking them out into the community for functional skills training, and by her second day here had the Bosnian children out and about at the grocery store. The only real negative that there wasn't more time. Hopefully though, we have shared enough with the therapists, students, and parents that they can share with others.

Here are some pictures of the area surrounding one of our homes (about an hour outside Zenica) and of the Bosnian therapists going through all of the awesome things we brought.

So after three long days of therapy, we gathered at the hotel for pizza, loaded our 23 bags (yes, for 14 people) into the cars - and headed to the bus station. One of the SLPs in our group speaks the language here and we've learned quite a lot that we wouldn't otherwise have heard. For example, when one taxi driver called another he said "yep, it's a whole bunch of girls and lots of bags". And yes, I said pizza. The food here has truly been awesome (and cheap), but the pizza is spectacular. Thin crust, amazing cheese, and very little sauce. Who would have though I'd come to Bosnia and be obsessed with the pizza. I am pretty sure when I return, I'll be craving Bosnian pizza. Plus, they serve it with ketchup - the sweet kind.

We arrived in Sarajevo late last night, were assigned rooms, and set out to locate them. Of course, room 311 wouldn't be next to 310 or even 309 - or even in the same building as 308, so we had quite an experience finding it. We were directed at first to a totally different building across the courtyard, so we rolled ourselves past all the people (wait, did I say people? I meant men - since there are only ever men anywhere) eating ice cream (yep, grown men eat ice cream sundaes here on a regular basis) to the shady building across the way. We found the elevator, and when the door opened, neither of us moved. The 'elevator' was about 2x2, and didn't exactly look like it has annual inspections. After a look at each other and a shrug, we squeezed on, just to the have the elevator lurch six inches. Let's just say it was quite a scene to see us scramble out of the box, tripping over each other and out of the death trap. So, we rolled ourselves up a spiral staircase, up and down hallways, to find that every room number except ours appeared to be present. So we ambled back down to ask for directions (a third time) and were directed to another part of the hotel (in the original building). We finally found our room, just to find that the air conditioner wasn't working - in fact, the buttons were completely missing and the window was open. Since it's 90 degrees here and we were on the first floor, we figured this wasn't going to work, so we made our way back to reception where they informed us that someone would fix the air conditioner. We tried to tell them that the button was completely missing, but they assured us that it could be fixed. Sure enough, someone was able to fix it - by shoving a metal key into the holes and wiggling it until it kicked on. Oh thee of little faith. We cheered, and said Hvalla (thank you), and sent the man on his way (his reflective vest said "SECURITY"). Of course, the A/C wasn't actually working - just blowing out air, but hey - you've got to pick your battles.

We washed out feet in the designated basin, and went to bed.

This morning, Christine and I made our way down to the breakfast buffet. We were the first of our team to get there, and then realized we were literally the only women not wearing burqas. Now, today I am wearing cargo capris and a loose tank (so you can't see the sweat dripping down my back). In the grand scheme of things, the dress here varies and I've seen many people wearing tanks, strapless dresses, etc. But, as it turns out, we are staying at the same hotel as the Kuwait Consular Office, so all of a sudden I feel like a tramp. Based on the looks I get when I walk around, I don't think I'm the only one who feels that way. =)

So today we have a bit of free time this morning and then we work at the school from 3-7 (I think). This time, we will be in a setting more like a classroom, and are each paired with a specific child and a new university student. We will follow our child through their day in the classroom, and help them participate in activities, providing models and feedback of therapy to the current therapists and students. We do the same thing tomorrow and Sunday. On Saturday we are hosting a conference where we will each be presenting for all the therapists and many of the students from all three cities that are participating in this years program.

And with that, here are some photos of Sarajevo from our first day here.

In the back you can see a little green-topped structure. Back in the Ottoman empire, they were very concerned with hospitality and felt that water and food should be provided to travelers passing through. To this day, drinking water comes out of it. 

Markets in the old section of Sarajevo.

The Miljacka River, which runs the length of the city.

The Miljacka river, and houses on the hills surrounding Sarajevo. During the war, snipers held the city under siege from these hills and the others surrounding the city. The siege on Sarajevo lasted nearly four years (from '92 to '95) and was the longest siege of a capital city in Europe since WWII. Civilians were particularly targeted and the UN estimates that 50% of children at the time witnessed a death and 40% were themselves directly targeted (over 16,000 children were injured or killed). On the left of this photo you see construction of the 'new' National Library, which replaces the one that burnt to the ground during the siege.

 

Zenica Day 2

Yesterday was our first day of home visits and suffice it to say, there were a few glitches. Overall the day was just fine and there is no doubt in my mind that we are so appreciated here. In Bosnia, there is such a different view toward Autism (and all disabilities) than we are used to. Many of the families we are seeing are trying to keep any diagnosis of Autism, or any sign that their child has a disability, a secret. Many of these kids can not attend school on account of their Autism, so they often do not leave the house. The local group of therapists here is trying to find some space to rent for an office/clinic, but no one so far will help them because no one knows/understands/cares about the work they are doing.
That being said, an American on the flight from Pittsburgh to Boston did tell us, "I thought Autism was only in America." Looks like we're all a bit in the dark.

So yesterday my partner and I did two hour (that's a long freaking time to spend doing therapy with one child!) sessions with three different children , while the local therapist, two university students, and the parents watched. Talk about pressure! All went well, and we returned to the hotel for an Fanta.

My highlight of yesterday was sitting on the porch of our hotel as a bus pulled up and let off a whole bus load of traditional Bosnian men and women. The filed onto the porch, even sitting in the empty seats at our table - not like 'oh may I borrow this seat and take it over to where my fellow Bosnians are' but more like 'hello, I am going to sit in this seat at your table, but turn away from you so I can listen to the accordion we brought with us.' So we sipped our Fanta and listened to live accordion music then retreated to our rooms for a shower.

Dinner with the group was at 8, followed by a night out with our Bosnian team.

Bar hopping in Zenica apparently means walking down a dark alley to a hidden staircase, then climbing up 4 flights of stairs to end up in what looks like someone's living room. Now, don't get me wrong, it was amazing - but I sort of wondered when I was going to have to use the secret password to get in.

To fully complete the effect of being in someone's living room, there was a tap that you poured your own beer from. Yep, you just went up, got a glass and poured your beer. Then, at the end told them how much you drank and paid your "bill".

With over thirty of us at the "bar" on a Monday night, we were quite the show, and this resulted in us being allowed to sign our names on the wall and also in them cooking us food. And no, this isn't a restaurant/bar - just a drinking bar. But the owner took it upon himself to whip up some salad and chicken at 1 in the morning to feed us all.

Not that I think people here diet, but if they do, they absolutely don't appreciate the concepts of low-carbs, or not eating within 5 minutes of bedtime. Everything is served with bread (my breakfast this morning is literally a basket of really good bread, and a plate of spreads - butter, jam, cream cheesy stuff, cheese, etc).

So with that, I will finish carbo loading and be off for another day of Bosnian culture training. :)

Zenica

We arrived safely in Zenica last night after a one hour bus ride through the countryside. Now I am sitting outside sipping coffee (more like espresso) with a lovely view of the steel mill across the street.

We are at a little hotel called Motel Almy which is quite nice (we have ac!) with the exception of the stuffed animals in the lobby .... not just a stuffed bear or anything, but one animal eating another.

Last night we met the team here in Zenica. Basically, the company I am with (Speech Pathology Group: Children's Services International / SPG: CSI) did a training here two years ago, and one of the speech pathologists, Bojan, from the training went home and helped a child with Autism in his home neighborhood. Then, that family told another family, and that family told another family, and so on. Now, Bojan has a team of 6 that does home visits around Zenica. People actually come in from Croatia to see the team and have them help.

For our time here, we are paired in groups of five - two SLPs from SPG: CSI, the therapist from Bosnia that currently works with the child, and two students from the University of Tuzla. So the five of us as a group will see three kids today, in two hour sessions, from 9-11, 1-3, and 5-7 (driving up to an hour between each child). We then follow the same schedule and see the same three kids tomorrow and the next day.

So, since blogging from my iPhone is quite tedious and my breakfast just arrived, that's all I have to report for the day, but at least I can get some photos up today.

Bosnia, barely.

So far I have easy access to wifi, which means easy blogging, face booking, and e-mailing, but no great way to upload pics from my camera, but bear with me. So far it's been quite the whirlwind, and of course not in any way you might expect. To begin our travels (we flew to Sarajevo from Pittsburgh via Boston and Munich), we sat down and assessed our connections, realizing that we only had 60 minutes in Boston to get from one terminal to another (obviously complete opposite sides of the airport). So, being the proactive person I am, I went up to the desk to find out what our plan B would be, in the case that we would miss our connection. Of course we only had one hour in Munich also, and since there are not exactly hourly flights in to Bosnia, a missed connection would mean arriving at least a day later. At least. So, as I am talking to the gate lady, she asks me to hold on, gets on the speaker, and announces that the first officer was coming in on another flight, which was late. So, our 60 minute connection dwindled away to 30 minutes. However, being that there were no other flight options, we decided to just get on the Boston flight and then assess the damage from there. In Europe it is so easy to get from one country to another, so we decided if we could just get somewhere in Europe that night, we could get a train or another flight to Bosnia the next day. So, we get off our Boston flight at 8:00 (our next flight is already boarding) and the gate agent is already calling our name, telling us we've missed our connection. I asked him if there was any chance at all of us running to make it and he's all like "um, uh, well..." .... Enough said - let's go! So we take off running, with backpacks banging, wheels squeaking, and flip flips slapping - oh, and I of course am laughing hysterically because we are 'those people' looking like absolute idiots running through the airport for a flight we're not likely to catch. 20 minutes later, after the longest sprint of my life, sweating and panting, we squeeze into the middle two seats between two German guys who are not happy (along with the entire crew of Lufthansa) that we have delayed their departure by 30 seconds. All was well for the first three hours of our flight, until I woke up from napping light headed and passed out in my sleep. My last memory is of the infamous announcement "we have a medical emergency - any medical personnel on the plane please ring your call button". How embarrassing. But, Matt the medic was very helpful and brought me back to life. I spent the rest of the flight sitting in the galley in one of those flight attendant chairs, which are not, by the way, particularly comfortable. Miraculously, we arrived in Sarajevo in one piece and on time, sans luggage. I know I'm not the world's fastest runner, but unless that luggage moves faster than I can sprint, it never stood a chance. We spent the day yesterday fighting sleep and wandering around Sarajevo. It's really a beautiful city. Geographically, it's located in a valley between mountains, but the city itself is quite flat. It's really narrow, with one main street and river running through it. Now, I'm not an architecture guru here, but even I can see the striking difference between different parts of the city. There are the oldest buildings, from the Turkish-Ottoman empire, and then Austro-Hungarian styled buildings, all in stark contrast to the Communist-style housing. All of them are missing chunks out of the sides. As you move through the streets the stores change from little bazaars selling trinkets and tin, to L'Occitane and high-end clothing stores. Mosques and churches are mixed in between, as are hundreds of little outdoor cafes. In fact, many restaurants didn't even seem to have an inside at all - just hundreds of chairs organized outside and labeled with chair covers. We meandered through the shops, got some coffee, and made sure not to sit too long so we wouldn't fall asleep. There is such a contrast between people here - walking down the street you'll see a girl in a mini-skirt and heels, followed by a woman in full body and face cover. I did, however, have to stay outside the mosque on account of my bare shoulders. Slutty tanktop. The churches, mosques, and temples are everywhere. You can be standing outside a Jewish temple and hear the Muslim call to prayer from across the street. We returned to our hotel room, I washed my feet in the designated foot basin, then went back out for dinner. So far the food here has been quite good - not so different really, but it's always fun to find out what you ordered since the menus are in Bosnian only. The biggest challenge so far will be avoided an asthma attack as people here smoke EVERYWHERE. Supposedly, there is a law prohibiting smoking indoors in Bosnia, but since there are ashtrays as soon as you get off the plane at the airport, I am thinking this isn't widely enforced. After depriving ourselves of sleep all day, we slept well, had breakfast at the hotel, and then met to split up all our therapy materials for the three different cities we will visit. SO MUCH STUFF! We have 10 FULL suitcases of materials for the therapists and kids here - its so awesome! Right now, we are sitting and sipping espresso as I blog and send happy thoughts to the airport in hopes that my bags are there. We will catch a 4:30 bus for the hour ride to Zenica, where we will start home-visits tomorrow. Next time I'll try to blog from a computer so I can upload some pics. Love to all!

The Beginning of a new venture...Bosnia 2012

So, as some of you know already - Bosnia and Costa Rica are both in store for this summer. In Bosnia I'll be traveling with a team of professionals, mostly SLPs (that's Speech Language Pathologists for those of you who clearly don't know me well =)) to help provide some training, assistance, and materials to three different places in Bosnia, all relating to autism. We'll be doing a seminar, working with university students, and the best part - helping kids with Autism and their families. 


Check it out: Speech Pathology Group: Children's Services International


Not sure where Bosnia is? I had to look it up too:

In Sarajevo, we have specific kids we'll be working with, and I am so pumped to have a little 2-year old guy! Also, I'll be presenting with a coworker at the seminar: "Targeting Communication Skills in an Inclusive Classroom Setting." For you non-SLPs, BORING I know...but I'm pretty pumped about it!

In Lukavac, we'll be working more in "shifts" either in the morning or afternoon each day, where each of us will sort of host a center through which all of the kids will cycle throughout the day - meaning we will be working with each of 17 different kids each day with our own little areas of expertise.

We're still waiting for information about the kids from Zenica before I know for sure how it will work there.

So, that's all the professional stuff....

Now my rant.

I often look back on my wandering from 2 years ago and realize what a miracle it was that I made it across 4 continents, more than 7 countries, and god knows how many flights without 1.missing a flight 2.having cancelled flights 3.losing any of my bags. 

Obviously one person can only have so much luck...

And so it has already begun with Bosnia. 

I woke up this morning with an e-mail explaining one of our flights back from Bosnia had been changed (by two hours!), leaving us with exactly 25 minutes to connect in Newark, and get through customs. Obviously, that was a no-go, so I called Lufthansa, who explained that I would need to call Expedia. Of course, Expedia explained that I needed to call Lufthansa, who proceeded to tell us that the flight had been totally cancelled, the next flight out was full, and there were no other flights the next day. We now have all new flights, connecting in Chicago. Crisis averted, but I hope this is not a sign of things to come.

I'll just think of my little 2-year old waiting for me and it will all be fine. =)

Aotearoa

Yes, in answer to your questions (thanks for asking), we're all good here in New Zealand - as shaky as it may be. In all seriousness though - it was in Christchurch and we didn't even feel it here around Auckland. So, all is well, at least for us.

To be completely honest, there isn't much to say so far about New Zealand - just the good life, as usual. Dad and I are in Tauranga visiting my Nana while my sister and Mum are up in Auckland hanging out there for the week, since Kimbo works. But, it's apparently all worth it since she just got promoted (!!!!!!!!). Sorry Kim, if you stole your thunder - but I'm so happy for you!

So life here is slow, quiet, and uneventful - and for that I am grateful. I have spent the last few days doing laundry and showering regularly. Some clothes were so moldy they still had little green spots on them after two washes and had to be thrown out. My shoes have something green growing on them...

Today's spectacular events included waking up at 8:30 (courtesy of Dad), eating breakfast (toast and Marmite =) ), taking a walk down the beach with Dad, coming back to Nana's and relaxing, eating lunch (carrot soup - yum!), going to buy my Nana a new down duvet (she currently sleeps with 5 blankets on her bed - how long it takes to make and how she hasn't been crushed, I don't know), stopping for a coffee break, going to the driving range (Nana and I were excellent supporters - sorry Bill, I tried, but everything you taught me is out the window), coming home and relaxing (again), going out for dinner (practically my first non-vegetarian meal in two months), and now sitting here and updating my blog.

So, true to New Zealand style - our days revolve around food and tea breaks =).

Kim and Mum arrive on Friday night, and Saturday we celebrate my Nana's birthday. In the meantime, I have big plans to finish laundry, read a book, eat, and shower on a regular basis. Next week, back to Auckland.

=) Hope all is well!

Am I lucky or what?

So now that I am sitting in a comfy bed (yay for down duvets!) with a mac on my lap and a fast wireless connection in the air - I wanted to reflect on how lucky I have been to be able to travel like I did this summer. This will either read like a dedications page of a bad book, or an awards acceptance speech, but oh well.

Mom and Dad - thank you so so much for being so supportive of everything and helping me out in any way you could - including financially. On my trip I met so many people who were traveling to these places against their parents' wishes, because they just didn't understand why someone would want to travel like that. I don't know if I could have done this if you weren't behind me. So, thank you so much for "getting it" and being there every time I called (except that time I messed up the times and called at 3am).

Bill - thanks for updating my life each and every time we talked with normalcy. It was great to chat about what I was doing and where I was - but you have been my link to the real world the whole time. It sounds strange, and I never would have thought about that during my trip - but looking back, it was actually really a nice change to hear about life at work, and to be reminded what I have to come home to. =)

Carly - thanks for continuing to be your wonderful self by tagging and posting ridiculous things on my facebook pictures - this is why I post them =). Actually, this applies to Jenna too - who appeared to check and "like" my pictures after each post.

Kim - we didn't talk much, but my whole trip I was just so excited to come and see you - despite any assaults that may or may not have happened last year =) I'm glad I'm here now! And thanks for dealing with the current smell of mildew and mold that I have brought into your house.

The poor people at OIM to whom my dad has subjected this blog to during treatment - isn't there some insurance law about conflict of interest...? But really, I hope you liked it and know my dad loved giving them to you. Thanks.

Those of you who read my blog voluntarily. On some days I blogged since I had nothing better to do, and on others I really wanted to tell a good story - but either way, it was really nice talking to my mum and hearing that some people were actually reading it (by choice) and enjoying it. I loved logging on and reading your comments. This also applies to all of you who anonymously stalk my blog each day and are not followers and do not comment. I know you're out there.

I would like to thank United Airlines, KLM, Precision Airlines, Kenya Airways, Air India, and Malaysia Airlines for not once having lost my bags. It's a miracle really. After six weeks of traveling, numerous flights, bus rides, train rides, shady hotel rooms, etc., I have arrived in New Zealand with everything present and accounted for. Not once did I stand there at the luggage carousel thinking, "Why me?" Really, it's something to be thankful for.

Last but certainly not least, I want to thank all the students at EST. I know I've said it before and I hope you've each had a chance to read the memory book, but I had such a wonderful time there with you guys. You taught me many things - how to shower and wash my clothes at the spring, how to make momos and rip off noddles, how to slurp... You came with me to see the Dalai Lama. You put eye drops in my infectious eyes when I was sick (double thanks for that). You are all so welcoming and charming and I can't stop thinking about how I can see you guys again. I wish you would stay at EST so I would know where to come back to find you all, but for your sakes know that that isn't going to happen. For those of you who want to return to Tibet - I hope that you can soon (and that it's a better Tibet than the one you left), and for those of you who want to continue your studies at University - I wish you luck. For everyone else, I hope that you are able and free to do whatever it is you decide to do. If there is ever anything I can do to help anyone - from and English question to whatever, please please let me know. So, please stay in touch, and if I ever have the opportunity to return the hospitality - please let me know! Miss you guys!

Hello from Kuala Lumpur! (REDO)

This is the second time I have done this blog - I did it earlier from my iPhone and courtesy of Starbucks free wi-fi, but there were so many typos that I became ashamed and rushed to the nearest actual computer to restore my honor.

I arrived in Kuala Lumpur this morning at 7:00 am. Despite my tiredness I was determined to conquer Kuala Lumpur in a day. Let me tell you - this city is awesome and insanely easy to navigate (no Lonely Planet necessary)! To get around I had a choice of a monorail, multiple trains, buses, taxis, etc. This city is impressively developed and efficient.

So I got off my flight and booked it to customs where they issued me a "visitors visa" without a hassle - and my bags are checked all the way through to Auckland - so what a breeze! Within 30 minutes of landing I was getting a bus ticket for the airport/city shuttle. So I hopped on and it took me straight to KL Central. KL Central is the equivalent of Union Station - the main hub off taxis, monorail, trains, commuter trains, and whatever other transportation your heart desires. So I did the most important things first - strapped my money belt in my pants and headed to the first coffee shop I saw.

After being sufficiently caffeinated, I took the LRT (an acronym meaning some sort of train) to KLCC (an acronym meaning some important area of downtown). I got off and was in the middle of the nicest mall I've ever seen - it puts King of Prussia to shame. So I wandered outside away from the expensive clothing to find the Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur's big landmark. I walked around the mall twice before I looked up and realized I was IN one of the towers already. =) . So naturally I crossed the street to take a picture. Then I realized that everyone was actually dressed nicely and that I looked like I'd just spent 6 weeks in the outback....so I got my haircut.

BEST HAIRCUT EVER. I have no idea how it looks, nor do I care, but I may fly here every 6 weeks just so they can shampoo my hair and massage my scalp while talking in soothing voices with Michael Buble playing overhead. Mmmmm.

Once they woke me up, I headed for some food - what else - sushi. As soon as I saw one of those places where the sushi tempts you from cute little colored plates on a conveyor belt I knew I had to eat there. I had four mystery plates of goodness but I already miss the dirt-cheap prices I've become accustomed to. I haven't spent more than $3.00 on a meal since I left home!

Next, I got a taxi to China Town where there is a big market - Mum I looked high and low for some fabric but came up short - so I got you a knock-off Louis Vuitton instead. =). In the market they had a little spa where you can stick your feet in a little pool of water for a "fishicure" where these little fish eat the dead skin off your feet. I was really embarrassed when I stuck my feet in and all the fish ditched everyone else's tootsies and began a frenzy on my 6-week dirty feet. Afterwards, I fruit from a roadside stand (not the one with the dead chickens) and got the train back to KL Central.

I then sat at Starbucks for a while waiting for the bus and attempting to blog from my iPhone.

Which brings me to the Plaza Premium Lounge - a nice little lounge inside the Kuala Lumpur Airport where you pay a flat fee to get in and it has showers, free internet, massaging chairs, and all your food and drink is included - as well as a 15-minute massage. What could be better?

Only 5 hours to wait...

See you soon Kimbo!

My love-hate relationship with India.

As I've heard is normal when traveling to such ... um ... unique (?) places, I have developed a love-hate relationship with India.

I love the fact that you can get anywhere in India via cheap public transportation. For example, a 12-hour bus ride from Delhi to Dharamsala costs Rs250/$5.00. In America, if I don't feel like driving to Detroit, I have to pay $300 for a flight. Why can't we have an efficient bus and train system connecting all the states? Oh wait, that brings me to my hate of public transportation - efficiency. I have yet to be in a taxi/bus/or rickshaw for over 4 hours without a break-down or a flat tire. Trips that should take 6 hours take a whole day - and then you have to argue with the driver over the fare at the end.

I love the food. My dinner tonight - paneer butter masala with mixed vegetable raita and rice - served with fresh lime soda. Yum! The fresh lime (or as they call it, lemon) soda is fresh lime juice and sugar in the bottom of a glass which you then pour a bottle of soda water over. So refereshing! No lie - there isn't really a hate side to the food except perhaps the constant fear of Delhi Belly.

I love the fact that I can always find an internet cafe but hate the fact that you never know when the power will go out or the connection will just stop.

I love the fact that people here won't steal your stuff - but hate the fact that they might cheat you. There is a difference. That being said, the other day a man in Dharamsala came up to me after chasing me for a block in order to give me the Rs200/$4.00 that had fallen out of my pocket. He didn't even wait for me to give him any of it as thanks. I know $4.00 doesn't sound like much - but here it can buy me (and consequently him) two meals.

Which brings me to another love - the fact that the dinner I just had was Rs120/$2.50 (and I consider that pretty expensive).

I hate motorcycles. They're loud an obnoxious and people drive them like idiots. I have a video of a man and his wife driving a motorcycle down the "highway" with their 5-year-old (?) child propped up on the handlebars - it wasn't until the bike passed me that I saw the other child squeezed in front of the mother. Oh and no helmets. Come on people! But, I have to admit that I love the fact that when I'm stuck in a taxi in Delhi traffic, at least someone is getting somewhere!

I hate the weather at this time of year. How can one place be so damn hot and so damn wet all at the same time? However, I did come at the worst time of year (summer/monsoon), and so have to accept that it's largely my fault. That being said - when there is a mild, sunny day it is much appreciated and I love it. My last two days at the Tibetan school had great weather and you can't imagine how different everything seemed. You know that feeling you used to get (or still do) on the last day of school before summer break? It was like that. But I was in India, and it was just time for tea break.

I love the feeling of independence that comes with traveling alone (somewhat), but hate the fact that by definition it is impossible to share that feeling with others.

And so, I leave India tomorrow night with mixed emotions.

In the words of Heather - "Thank you for having me, India. You've been grand."