Croatian Update #17 - Summer Vacation Part 3

August 31, 2009 - I am back at my blog again and will hopefully be able to keep this more up to date this year....sorry i was such a slacker last year.....sorry about the weird format, i will try and fix that in the coming months.....

hi there folks and happy beginning of school to all those with kids or teachers out there...i know some parents are very excited that the kids are back in and that life can get back to normal....i have been back for about a week and half now... and our first whole day of school was this past friday....we start off with three half days, followed by a whole day friday...and then we have a weekend....it's a nice ease in....

i have to say that the second year is always more comfortable...no unpacking or stressing about what the school, kids and other teachers will be like...it's nice....but the the major curiosity is missing....which is a bummer....but i am happy to be back....the kids are excited and we have some cool new teachers....plus, its great to see the returning teachers and outstanding staff folks and get back into a routine....

but, i have realized i am still behind in updates and blogs and felt the need to get something out this weekend...so this is part three of my road trip around europe....this one will cover salzburg, austria and bratislava, slovakia....two VERY different places from each other....bratislava is a city of a mixture of communism, medieval and modern day architecture....it's wild....and salzburg is like out of a fairy tale....like all of austria i have seen...it's perfect....castle on the hill included :)

bratislava first....i have to say that the roads in slovakia are horrible...EXCEPT the highway to bratislava, once you get on it....they are trying to make it go across the entire country...but it doesn't yet....so the roads are bad....bratislava has a lot of old world charm and is the ONLY place i have found in europe that actually has bagels....i was soo excited....you just don't find them....there is a chain there that was started by an american of course :) it was nice to have a taste of the states in a place that is really far removed from there....bratislava has excellent public art as you will see in my pictures, as some of their art was some of my favorite shots from summer....plus, they have some really weird architecture from the communist times....and of course they have an old town with a huge cathedral, with jewels from the monarchy of old inside and a really cool crypt you can visit....it was perfect the day i was there as it was at least 10 degrees cooler in there and there is a castle that looks over the city and the danube flowing through this city that separates old and new bratislava....its small and quaint and two days was a perfect amount of time to be there...on to the pictures....

the first shot is one of the cool art i found...just in front of a store...very cool..

the second picture is the UFO bridge (ew-f-oh)....it has a revolving restaurant and everything.... some slovakians love this, but most hate it....it is a tourist draw....i thought it was cool looking!

the shot above makes me smile just to look at it again....it is the picture used by a game i play about geography and wikipedia to represent bratislava....how cool is that i have a shot of that now too :) this is looking down over the old section of town from the castle on the hill that was under renovation :)

the next three shots are some more of the public art of this place....i like the first one because the building framed by this piece is the opera house....another beautiful building..

the next two are some of the coolest and most photographed statues in all of europe, according to the guidebook....the first is the "watcher"...and he is coming out of a man hole notice the "golder" parts...that's where you rub him for good luck....

and the next piece is my favorite public art in bratislava of them all...the "paparazzi"...this statue is actually shooting his camera around a corner over the heads of diners in a cafe....so clever....i just love it...

the last picture is one of those bizarre buildings left behind from communism in this town....this

is an upside down pyramid and is actually a radio station...it was during communist rule as well...wild huh....for those who do not know....slovakia is half of what was once czechoslovakia.... the other half is where prague is...the czech republic...and man, they are two really different places....

on to austria...the expensive land of everything that is perfect...i do have to say i was REALLY surprised at how many wind turbines there were throughout all of austria that i saw along the road...hundreds and hundreds of them....very cool....there are also quite a few sunflower fields....just like hungary...although i think they had a few less :) austria has amazing landscapes, tasty food and beer, beautiful buildings, mozart, and excellent art...and of course salzburg has the red bull headquarters and the sound of music everything...and yes, i did the tour....many folks sung along the entire time :) but i learned a lot of that was just the movies...and that the real family von trapps live in vermont!!!!! wild the things you learn....

with the pictures...as i said before...salzburg is where mozart is from...so this first shot is from the square he overlooks....every time i walked past this statue, some one was playing a piece of mozart's...either on the violin, guitar, accordion or harmonica....it was incredible....

the next shot is another cool piece of art....this was big enough that a person could walk into this sculpture and not be able to touch all of the sides...in other words, it was big...

the next three shots are from the sound of music tour...the first is the garden maria and the kids were running through singing doe a deer...you can see the castle that overlooks the city of salzburg and i went to a live chamber music performance up there one of the nights i was in town - amazing :)

the second "SOM" shot is from the cemetery of the abbey where they were hiding before walking over the alps to safety....BUT, this shot is a lie.....the one you see in the movie was shot on the movie set in california.... this is the cemetery they made that scene from though....i guess they did that a lot....for example, the front and back of the von trapps mansion....different houses!!!!! those tricky movie people....

the next shot i am sure you will all remember and start singing...i am 16 going on 17.....yep...its THE gazebo....locked though....someone fell once when they used to have it open to the public, because they were jumping from bench to bench and missed.....hahahahaha....

the next two shots utilize the castle...the first is from in front of it....more cool art, that i didn't understand...but i could actually walk under that gold ball and not even scrape my head, just to give you an idea of size..

and the second shot is from on the castle....love the rainbow....this past summer was really rainy in europe...and i did experience rain, but it usually happened when i was driving...not in salzburg though...and i got a rainbow after a HUGE storm....awesome to watch from the castle, let me tell you :)

the last shot in the set....well, probably does not need any explanation....to my right you

could have stood with the family picture and pretended to be singing with them...i thought

that was just a bot too tacky for me...anyway...it was a fun tour and salzburg was a great

town...and i stayed at a great B&B recommended by rick steves...it rocked and the owner

was really nice and very laid back....let me know if you are headed that way and i'll let

you know more....

okay....so part 3 has been written....i still have a few more parts in europe....three more

countries...but i think switzerland will get its own update as we, my friend candi and i,

toured all over the place there....and then of course i was in the states too....so there

you have it....the plan for the next few updates...i am hoping to have them out sooner

rather than later as my folks are coming and then i will have our trip of italy and croatia to

add to the mix....should be fun :)

i hope each of you is well and happy...feel free to drop me a line...and maybe next time i

will start the blogging idea instead of email idea...thanks to all those who offered to help

me get this organized...i know how to do it, i just have to do it...talk soon and happy

fall to those in the north and happy spring to those in the south...talk soon

catch you on the flip side :)

Ghana at Xmas - Part 1

March 15th - Beware the Ides of March - especially when you are about two months behind in your blog....this was the update from the trip to ghana this past xmas...there are two parts...enjoy and drop a line if you have any questions

************************************************************************************

hi there all and happy 2009!!!! hope you all had wonderful holiday seasons
and have started this new year off right!!!  I am back in croatia after my
trip to ghana and wowowowowowowow....what an experience....here in croatia
it's cold...we actually had a snow day this week with school, plus one day 
we started two hours late...it was a nice easy way to start work again...
one bad thing that happened this week was that i got food poisoning...not 
in ghana...but here in croatia...i think it had something to do with pork
in my meal that i didn't know was there....its been about 14 years since i
have had pork...so i don't think my system liked it....anyway...

some folks have been asking of we have gas here in croatia for heat...the 
answer is yes we do...but i am not sure how much....and the ukraine and 
russia are still not letting the gas flow....so could this become a 
problem....yep, it sure could....but someone told me the other day that
croatia has its own supply of gas...so now i am confused....i will try and
find out what the deal is so i can pass it along at some point....too bad
my croatian is still not so good....if i could understand the news reports
i would be able to tell you more....oh well...

ghana....what can i say....what a vacation....i had a few firsts...my 
first warm xmas and new years....even went swimming in the atlantic ocean
on january first....my first "black" santa...and he was a hoot...and my 
first really mellow and relaxing oriented trip....i was visiting friends
greg, di, kelsey and alysha...they have moved to ghana for teaching and 
are quickly adapting and adjusting to the way of life there...which 
seems to me to be quite mellow...i read quite a few books...six i think
and slept late, drank coffee and watched some tv....it was mellow...and
i think that stems from just how hot it is during the day in ghana and 
how you have to drive everywhere from their place....

my friends live in a teacher's compound with guards...and not necessarily
for personal protection...more for personal items protection....i have to 
say i felt very safe...and even though most houses/compounds have guards,
its to protect stuff...many people in ghana have nothing and so things 
getting stolen is common if you don't have security...the other big 
difference between ghana and here is that everyone is black....i think i 
was one of ten white folks on the plane down to ghana....its not 
necessarily a tourist oriented stop...it doesn't have big game parks and 
safari....but it does have amazing beaches...but they are working beaches
and have not been set up for tourists....but man, are the ghaneans
friendly....and everywhere we went people wanted to say hello and welcome
us to their country....

we really did stick out...which at first can be rather disconcerting...
especially if you have no idea what will happen when people are staring..
in china when people stare, they do not smile and its what they do....
in croatia when  people stare and you wave and smile they turn away 
quickly realizing they have just been caught staring....but in ghana when 
people stare and you wave and say hello, they break into huge grins and
wave back and say good afternoon sister...or  welcome uncle....its really
cool....

i have decided that when you are in a place where people have nothing, 
many times they are able to make due with what they have and seem to be 
happy....of course they want to better their situation...but they deal
with what they have been dealt....i've seen it in cambodia and ecuador
and china and tibet....and they deal...and they smile and they enjoy what
they have....if you have never been in a poor country and experienced this
it makes you truly understand the human spirit and gives you a sense of 
what humans could really do without all of the materialistc aspects of 
life...if everyone has nothing, than everyone deals with their situation..
i also think it has to do with the weather....the warmer, the easier to 
deal...that's what i think, but of course its an opinion....

okay....enough of my soapbox...let's just say i was really happy to be in 
ghana and happy to see people pleased and enjoying their lives....i did 
take lots of pictures, so this update and the next will be pictures from
ghana...i have tried to put in a mix of what life is like there....enjoy

this first set of pictures will be of accra, the capital and kumasi...
a large town north of accra where the largest market in western africa is
located....we drove there...about 5 hours one way and when we were driving
there it was also the day before the presidential election - so it was 
like a holiday...two men were running....and this was the second round....
as the first time the election was held many did not vote....they felt the 
same man would be elected again...he was, but with a very low voter 
turnout....so ghana decided to vote a second time and this time most of
the country voted....and what a race it was....

when you vote in ghana you get three days to accomplish this...one to
travel to your hometown...one to vote with your thumbprint and one to 
travel back....people were very excited....

the first shot is of a tire store on the side of the road near my friend's
house....you can buy anything....and i mean anything on the side of the 
road...clothes, furniture, food, water, cleaning supplies....anything....
i found this to be cool....whenever we were stopped in the car, there would be men and women, mostly with items on their heads, at the window to
take care of us....it amazed me how much they could hold on their heads...
a picture or two will show you....
the second shot is of a termite hill...this one is about 3m or 9ft....they are huge and found everywhere throughout the country...

the third shot is santa at the hotel we had christmas lunch at...this man, paul, who we met out of costume later in the vacation, was hilarious...and so good with
all of the kids....he loved coming to our table because we would sing the
12 days of xmas wth him....especially the 5 golden rings part :)  too 
funny....
the next bunch of pictures are from the kumasi region...the first is the 
market in kumasi....it was a very mellow day...as it was sunday and
everyone was at church and then went to vote....there are tons of 
missonaries in ghana....so religion comes in many shapes and sizes and
jesus and god is everywhere....in the names of stores, on the backs of 
buses and trucks, in names of restaurants....its wild...in the market
shot...people live in the part higher up...and the stalls are covered 
because the sellers were not there....we were the only white people in 
the market and our arrival was spread loud and clear....people really
wanted to say hi and meet us...it was wild....the cry "abruni! abruni!"
white person, white person.... could be heard everywhere we went....we 
learned how to say "black person" back and did with a smile...which put
everyone at ease and laughing....it was wild....
i loved the title of the next shot....read the fine print carefully...and then realize the store sold asian made electronics....gotta love it...

while in kumasi we went to a cultural center and were allowed to walk 
around the grounds....this was one of the many murals on the walls....its
a great shot of ghana and all that makes it up....music, artwork, beads, 
tribes...its a great representation....
kumasi is also known for its kente cloth....and we got to see the men weaving it....yes, the men are the weavers....and its amazing stuff...they make strips and then put them together as big pieces...
as you can see in the shot with one of the main weavers....cool guy....in the picture the black and red kente cloth is for funerals....it was my favorite, but not really appropriate to wear on a daily basis....at least not in ghana :)
the last two shots from kumasi show some banyon trees located at the 
largest man-made lake in ghana...

you also can see the crew i was travelin around with....and mr. thomas was our guide....all ghaneans loved luca...he is the small boy....he had a hard time with all of the attention at times....but people just loved him....and kelsey and alysha and i kept getting marriage proposals....it was interesting....

on the road back to accra we encountered some people celebrating the 
election....in the end it took a few days to call the winner, because in 
the end atta mills only won by 2% of the vote....and no...they did not 
hold a recount....it was wild....along the road we saw this guy in 
this costume celebrating the future president....
plus people were out selling food and bread and drinks....as you can see the three women selling food to make sandwiches with...on their heads...incredible...it was like the country was having one big party...even though a winner at this point had not been called in the election...it was a cool experience
the last three shots are back in accra....the first is di with the two 
little girls that come to visit my friends every night they are with 
their dad...he is one of the compound's guards....they come into the air
conditioning and watch the tv and sometimes have some dinner....its 
something very different for them and di loves to play with them....
the second shot is the aussie/african xmas tree...notice the new golden stool 
greg and di picked up while we were in kumasi....it is the style of stool
the king of each tribe sits on....the symbol of theirs is "except god"...
not really sure how to interpret that....
the final shot of this long story is me....with a ghanean beer....very light and not really good unless its really, really cold....but we were at a cool bar after shopping at a market and it was vacation....

okay...that's the first round of pictures....the next update should be
out in the next week with the second set of pictures from ghana....if you 
can't tell, i really liked it there....was even offered a job...but i am 
not the type who breaks contract....maybe something will be open in two
years....you never know....

one last thing before i sign off....it was really cool to be an american
in ghana...they are really excited about barack obama there....every time
i said where i was from people would dance and shout obama, obama....there 
was a song we heard on the radio every day about him and his picture
was everywhere....its a world wide thing this time and it made me proud
to say i was from the country that had elected him....i know some people
are not excited...& i sure hope he can work with what he has been left...
but it is cool to think that people around the world are excited for this
as well....its an exciting time....i hope tuesday goes well for the man
and his family....and i wish him well on his quest to improve and re-
vitalize america....its gonna be a tough and long road....but he's a 
strong guy....

okay....enough from me....this one was really long....sorry....next time
will just be pictures and explanations about them...again, i wish you
all the best in 2009...and thanks to those who sent me holiday greetings
its sooooooo cool to get mail...you guys rock my world :)  and i'll be 
back in the next week with some more pictures....

Croatian Update #6

February 8, 2009....hi there folks...another late blog update...i guess this is just the way..but ts only 2 behind....things here in my life have been crazy busy...plus, for some reason it just keeps raining here...which is not good for morale....anyway...here's the fifth update showing christmas in graz, austria and zagreb, croatia....fun places to be for the holidays here in europe...

as i look back across my year, it has been pretty darn amazing...12 countries..some for the first time, some for return trips....i was hoping to put together a holiday card with pictures from each stop, but it hasn't happened...maybe when i get back...it was hard year as my grandmother  passed away at the start of the year and my dad went thru lung cancer, but is now free and clear...i spent two months in the states, which i haven't done in quite a while and hung with many people on the east and west  coasts....its a pretty charmed life i get to lead and i thank each of you for your role within it :)  

okay...enough remembering...the past three weeks here in croatia it has  been raining pretty regularly....BUT today the sun is out and i hope i  get to the park to take in some sun and walk around before the flights  tomorrow to africa...three of them :)  but below are some shots of things that have been going on...hope you enjoy the story and pictures....

the day after thanksgiving me and some friends went to graz, austria to do

a little shopping...what a fun day we had...we were in IKEA forever :) 

and then went to the quaint town that was all set up for xmas....walked 

around lovin the xmas market and festivties and then it started to snow...

it was quite perfect :)

the first three shots are from austria - a huge ferris wheel....no we didn't ride it...way too cold and it made some awful creaks...didn't want to tempt the fates...instead we opted for mulled wine and pretzels...the second shot is some of the buildings all decked for the  holidays....austria just seems to be a country that has it all together.. the last shot from that day...me with a pretzel and a beer...imagine :)
back to croatia we head, the rest of the shots are from zagreb...which  has gotten quite dressed up for the holidays...they have the entire main  square, and the smaller ones as well, shining with lights and trees and  vendors selling croatian crafts and food and drinks....plus there is a big tent in the middle of town serving sausages and wine and beer....and  they have lots of live music...its been awesome....this country is about  90% catholic so this holiday is one of their biggest and they definitely have fun celebrating....

so the following shots start off with the sculpture choice this update -  zagreb actually has a full scale model of the solar system....and what you see is the sculpture of the sun...i have seen jupiter as well...but am  planning a solar system walk for the four inner planets with my 8th grade and therefore will find the others when i get back....then the holiday pictures start....the first is the main fountain in the main square that they have turned into an advent wreath....so cool...and then there follow some of the decorated buildings....
sretan bozic i nova godina - means merry xmas and happy new year....that's the main post office...the next shots come from the main square...you can see the big tent and the lights around all of the light posts and the xmas tree in the middle of it all :) there is also a shot of one of the main booths of the xmas market...i  have gotten a bit addicted to the gingerbread...am even freezing some for  when i get back....so good....

So unfortunately I cannot keep blogger happy and it keeps changing what i copy and paste...so i am a bit angered...this is sooooooooooooo not easy to use at the moment...i might be changing where i keep this as it makes me angry every time i use it....but for the moment this is my update...maybe blogger is against macs...i just don't know....the last shot is one of me with a beer here in croatia...but its not for you to see this time around...

i hope each of you had a great holiday season and i wish you all a happy valentines day....drop a line when you wish and if you want to be added to the update list directly, please email me at danid7@yahoo.com....

talk soon and peace out....dani

Croatian Update #5

January 11, 2009 - Okay, here's another late one....this one is from a bit later in November....including the great shots from All Soul's Day....enjoy :)

*************************************************************************************

hey there all...happy thanksgiving to those celebrating it....i am 
actually celebrating..we had a big thanksgiving dinner at school yesterday
and no...i did not have turkey...and no, they did not have tofurkey, but i 
did have some mashed potatoes, stuffing and corn....plus the families got 
together and made many different desserts...we even had pumpkin pie in the
house...many people were very excited :)  today i am headed over to a
friend's place with 12 other folks...everyone is bringing their favorite 
dish from thanksgivings past....so it should be a good time....

before i go any further...some folks have sent me emails asking for my 
mailing address this year...my folks moved so the lancaster avenue address
is no longer available...and i am not headed to the states this year...
so if you are interested in sending a card...which i am very interested in
getting, please mail it to this address in croatia

The American International School of Zagreb
Dani DiPietro
Vocarska 106
10000 Zagreb
Croatia

if you are sending anything, be sure to take it out of packaging and that
it doesn't look super new...is that possible???  if they think i am 
getting new expensive stuff in customs they charge me for it....it usually
takes a week or so for flat mail to make it....so all of you with kids and 
the traditional xmas/holday card....please send them on....as for me, it
will be an electronic xmas/new years greeting per normal....but i promise
if you send me mail, i'll send you a postcard from my journey...

so on with the update...sorry it has been a while since the last one...so 
many things....just after the last update i sent out it was halloween
and more importantly here all souls day...i have included some pictures
from both....we also had UN day in our school as well....there are  
pictures from that event as well....and i went to budapest with the middle
school speech and debate team...and they did really well :)

the pictures are as follows....the first shot is actually of street 
performer here in zagreb...he is in the main square every saturday and 
sometimes sunday with this musical instrument..an organ grinder...all he 
needs to make the picture complete is a monkey on his shoulder....he's  
great and always tips his hat to the ladies....from that picture we go to UN day...here are a few of my fellow teachers, 
who are croats...i thought you might like to see some traditional colors
and costumes of the region i am living in...the first woman is vlatka...
she is my croatian teacher as well...and she is wearing a traditional 
costume for the fall harvest celebrations here...everything she is wearing 
is hers....she has some of the strongest pride in her country of all...she
is a great teacher because of that...the next three folks are also in 
traditional dress and colors...the woman on the left - adrienne is in a 
traditional costume from the island of rab...the man in the middle is in 
a traditional dancing costume from the mountains (josef) and the woman
on the right, deana is in the croat colors for the flag and the national
soccer team....it was cool day where kids dressed in the traditional 
costumes of their native countries...i actually had red, white and blue on
and one little girl from the states came as a cowgirl...cute....

the next five shots are from the big cemetery i sent you pictures of 
before...its the biggest of zagreb and everyone in town comes to it on 
the day of all souls...plus the night...we went at night so we could see
the thousands of candles in the cemetery....i have actually never seen so
many candles in one place in my life...we were there around 9pm...and the 
place was packed with people, flowers and candles....people go to 
celebrate the lives of dead family and friends...its a very cool thing to 
experience...and its somber...i couldn't get over all of the candles there
and the one section, where there are many around the crucifix, those are
for people not buried in the cemetery...they are in rememberence of people
who have died as well...i added one for my grandmother who passed away 
this past year....a purple one...i think she would have appreciated it...

the next shot is of some of the goofy folks i hang with...this was 
halloween...it wasn't really a halloween party...it was a super hero party
and it was crazy to see some of the creative costumes....these folks 
are other teachers...and we had a blast :)

the next few shots are from budapest...and the trip i took with the middle
school debate team...they did awesome...we took 10 kids...eight of them
made it into final rounds of the competitions...out for approx 55 kids 
competing...and we had one team take second for duet acting, one girl 
take 1st for an interpretation of her own speech, another girl take 
second for her interpretation of a published piece and the debate team 
placed first....but the best of all was when the ten kids took the best
sportsmanship award....so exciting....the first shot is of the view from 
my hotel window...pretty spectacular, doncha think :) i also included a 
picture of the kids....then we took a night trip on the danube, and 
even though the pictures are a bit blurry, i think you can see just how
beautiful this city is at night....

the final two shots are back in zagreb...the first is one of my favorite
sculptures in the entire city....i think its of either a famous writer
or a famous politician...but i love that they have him leaning up against
the post...and there were roses on him for some reason this day when i
took the shot...and the final picture is me holding the candle that i 
dedicated for my grandmother on all souls day...

okay...that's all the news fit to print...i will be sending out one more
update before the holidays and am traveling to austria to get some things
and visit a xmas market...should be fun....i hope all is well with you
and drop me a line if you get the chance....

talk soon...happy thanksgiving again....

Croatian Update #4

January 11, 2009 - Hi there folks...well, i have fallen behind on all of my updates here, so I am trying to bring things up to date on my last day of vacation *sniff*....so below is my update from around voting day in November....enjoy and sorry its so late :)

************************************************************************************

hey there all...how is everyone doing??? i hope those in the states are 
getting ready to vote for the big election...i am not saying which way you
should go, but i do hope everyone gets out and takes part...as for those
outside of the states, i am sure you can't wait for all of the hulabaloo 

to come to an end....i guess we'll see soon what happens...

here in croatia it has gotten chilly...the leaves are turning colors and
falling off of the trees in bunches....this weekend we "fell back" in time
and now it gets dark around 5pm....which is a bummer when you don't leave 
work before then..recently i have been staying late at school on weekdays
so i have less to do on the weekends...but this week will be a crazy one
as it is the end of the quarter and halloween all rolled into one...i 

found out i am headed to budapest next month with speech and debate (ms), 

so that should be fun...and i am headed back to austria over thanksgiving

as well...stock up on ikea things and shop at the christmas market....
should also be fun...more on my first trip to austria below...it was an 
adventure filled with many things....

the only other big news i have is that i am headed to africa over xmas 
this year to visit my friends greg, di, kelsey and alicia....they started 
living in ghana this year...so i figured it would be the perfect time 
to visit....getting my visa has been a struggle and now i have my yellow
fever vaccine up to date again....gotta love that....but everything seems 
to be coming together....wish me luck with the finalization of the visa
and my passport's safe return back to me....yep, i had to send it away to
be taken care of....a bit stressful, let me tell you...but hopefully all 
will go fine....

onto the pictures...this week i have included some shots from croatia and
some shots from my trip to vienna...it was a fast five hours up to vienna
and i know i will go back and see what i missed the first time around....

the shots from croatia include another sculpture shot, as promised....this
one is about a folk singer and is located just above the main market in
the centar of town....he was persecuted for what he sang about....imagine
that... the next shot is from a cool museum i visited recently...the 
mimara....this is shot out of one of its windows...nice groundswork...
they actually had a rembrandt, 2 degas, 2 botticellis, and a few other 
amazing pieces....with very few guards...it was crazy...plus they had a 
great photography exhibit and a modern art room....there was also some
book signing thing going on and we got to see traditional folk dancers
and singers....very cool....
the next three shots come from the main zagreb cemetery....i went to visit
on a beautiful sunday when the leaves were changing colors....it was crazy
busy...but i have been told next weekend...nov. 1st...day of the dead here
is when the cemetery will be insane...this is a very catholic country...
and everyone goes to the cemetery to visit their deceased....i hope to get
there to see all of the flowers and candles...it should be pretty 
impressive....it is a gorgeous area and very well kept up...the second
shot is a memorial to the fallen of one of the wars here....but the reason
i have included this shot is because of the cross of chestnuts in front 
of the memorial..these nuts have shown up everywhere here in zagreb, every
street corner...they even had a festival for these nuts in the past three
weeks as well...who knew....anyway....loved this cemetery...can't wait to
wander around in it again....if i make next week i will be sure to send 
out some more pictures from that visit....

onto vienna....wow...what a place...its is a beautiful city...a bit stuffy 
for me at times...and i definitely was not dressed appropriately...as
shown to me by viennese looking me up and down and shaking their heads...
whatever....it was pretty and i will go back...very clean...and very easy
to get around....its a classy place....the first shot in vienna is of the
fountain in front of the opera house....at this point we had been there 
overnight and i had already left my passport in the first restaurant we
ate at....stoooooooopid....but the owners held onto the passport/bag and
we had stolen a menu for our german teacher to use in class...so it was
very easy for me to get back an retreive it....also by this point, another 
one of the traveling crew realized she had left very important medicine
in croatia...and we had to get some for her that morning....did i tell you
it was an adventure of a trip????  we had five independent, traveling-
oriented women together...and we made some real stupid errors...it was
amazing....we stayed with friends of my director....so that was free...
which is good because vienna is expensive...although we thought we lost
one of the dogs of the houses...nope...another goofy move....anyway...

we wandered around the city center...visited two art museums...the 
albertina and the belvedere...and my director had her purse stolen, right
outside the romanian embassy...ironic doncha think....she was not feeling
well and stayed in the car outside the belvedere...and two guys pulled a 
scam on her to get her out of the car checking her tire...they grabbed her
purse, which had her passport in it....which meant she couldn't come back
with us over the border...this did mean i got to drive a very nice audi
back to croatia....very quickly....what a ride....but....as i said it was
an interesting trip....

the second vienna shot (hahahaha) is of st stephens....wowowowow...what 
a beatuiful church....it was very crowded though....so i was inside of it
for a very short period of time....the third shot is of the brahms hall
where we saw the vienna boys choir perform...a dream of mine....it was a 
small version of the boys...but very impressive none-the-less...the next 
shot is of the center of town as night is starting to fall...it was 
stunning....


the next shot was taken outside of the city....we went to this cute town
where we could go to a flea market and buy polish pottery...many of our
crew spent some dough....then it was back into town to have hot chocolate 
at demels and wander past the hapsburg....okay....if you haven't heard
there are these two places that fight over who invented the sacher torte,
a dry, tasteless chocolate cake in my opinion...we had it at both places
and i have to say i didn't like it....i also tried the hot chocolate in 
both places...much better...although demels beat out the sacher hotel by a 
landslide....demels also had amazing ice cream....demels won in my opinion
but as for the sacher torte...you can keep it :)

from demels we headed to the belvedere to see the exhibit on klimt...yep, 
i have now seen the original of the kiss....wowowowowow....simply amazing!
this palace is now an art museum...and as you can see from the shots....
this art museum is stunning...from the grounds, to the statues, to the 
smaller and larger buildings....just incredible...although this is where
my director's purse was taken....so outside of it leaves a bad taste in 
my mouth....but inside is amazing....the exhibit was very impressive as 
well...loved his style and the style of the time in austria....

the last shot of this series is of me....having a glass of sturm...which
is red sweet wine...the first picking of the grapes....they were selling
it outside that evening and we had to try it....it was quite tasty, but
also a bit sweet....needless to say...i had a fun time....it is a 
beautiful city that i will visit again....it is pricy, but doable....

okay...enough rambling...hope everyone is well and has a fun halloween...
drop a line and say hi....and don't for get to vote stateside folks....
talk soon.....

peace out...dani

ps....i dedicate this update to my dad's friend mr. melle who passed away 
this past week....he loved reading these missives and especially loved
the pictures....my sympathy to those who knew him....

Croatian Update #3

hi there....i am back after a crazy three weeks since my last update....
i went to the coast with the 6th, 7th and 8th graders, and went to munich,
germany for oktoberfest....& of course i have been exploring zagreb to get 
to know it better for when all of you come to visit :)  plus, later this 
week we are on october break....and i am headed to vienna with four other 
women i teach with....my first time....i am very excited....so things over
all are going well....

i finally also started to focus a bit more on my teaching & curriculum...
i decided i needed to see the big picture of the year & now can focus 
more on all of the topics i will be covering....my trip with the kids was 
great....i got to know a lot of them better as well as the super cool middle 

school team i teach with...very excellent people....the kids
surprised me & got me birthday gifts as my birthday fell during the trip.
it was very sweet....and the coast again was amazing....it was bit too 
cold for swimming...so i am not sure if the water in istria, the coast 
area we were in, was a salty as the last place...bt it sure was as 
beautiful....and i have been told i haven't even come close to being in 
the most beautiful spots....can't wait to get there....on this trip with 
the kids we visited a school (roc) where they study the ancient croatian
language and alphabet (glagolithic alphabet), the smallest town, according
to the guiness book of world records, in the world - Hum, a coastal 
town with an ancient roman arena - pula, a great seaside town with an
ancient basilica - porec, an old mining town on a hill with an excellent
view - labine....we stayed on the coast in a quaint town known as rabat...
it was a fun filled trip with lots to see and do...the only thing that was 
tough was all of the bus riding....but i saw some amazing sites, as you 
will see in the pictures below....

then i was off to oktoberfest, where i met up with two of my friends from 
romania - kathleen and bonnie....we stayed with excellent friends of 
bonnie's right in munich and enjoyed two days of craziness....i never have
seen so much beer in my life...plus i really didn't understand the sheer
magnitude of oktoberfest....yes...thee are ten tents - which hold upwards
of 5,000 people each for beer...but outside of the beer tents there is a 
huge festival going on with rides and games & food and fun for the entire
family....one of the coolest things about oktoberfest was seeing the older
couples in their 70s and 80s, dressed in drndls and lederhosen, going to
the beer garden for a some beer and tradition...we made it into a tent on
friday....from about 3pm on....and on saturday we couldn't get in due to 
the crazy people that had started dinking at 9am....we couldn't get in a 
tent throughout the day and early evening....instead we were outside of 
one of the tents at the beer garden....and it was a beautiful sunny day 
so it was perfect....but i have to say if i go back, which i hope to do
as it was such a blast, i would try and reserve a table for the nights i
knew i would go downtown to the tents....they are where its at....the 
ooohm-pah-pah bands were great fun and the atmosphere was sooooooooooooo
darn festive....it was incredible....if you ever get the chance....do it
you'll love it....

on to the pictures....the first shot is my zagreb art shot...the cool 
thing about this shot is that it is of my friend's from the ice amy and 
stefan who stopped by for two days to say hi on their trip around the 
area eastern european trip...they are standing with one of the most 
famous croatians of all time - nikolai tesla...and his story is pretty 
cool....what a smart guy....amy and stefan enjoyed their time here in 
zagreb and i was very excited to have my first house guests....

that week another friend was in town - rick from bucharest....he came to 
the school as a consultant for outdoor education and team building...
we had a fun two days together before i hit the road with the kids...so 
good to have seen him :)
the next two shots are from the first town we stopped in called roc...in 
this town they teach their kids to use the old style croatian alphabet
as well as modern day croatian...the kids from the school worked with our
kids, which was really cool to watch...they knew how to speak english and 
they taught our kids the glagolithic alphabet....the second shot from this 
town was this cool sculpture on one of the buildings...i just really liked
it :)

from roc we went to hum (pronounced hume) - the smallest city on the 
planet and it was way quiant...the next two shots are from there...the 
first is from the bronze doors to get onto the city - if you look at the 
top set of letters you will see the glagolithic alphabet symbols and the 
bottom set are modern day croatian....the second shot from this town was
one of the houses people live in....they take great pains to make their 
town quaint and cute and very clean :)

the next shot is a view from the town we stayed in- rabatz...look at that 
crystal clear, cold, salty water....simply stunning....again you can see
how hilly croatia is....again, it was stone beach, no sand to be seen...
the next shot is from pula - where they have an ancient roman colesseum you can wander all through....we brought a rope and the kids actually played tug-o-war, and the rest of the visitors cheered them on...it was tons of fun....

from pula we headed to prosec and saw one of the oldest basilicas in this part of the world that is excellently preserved....it is an UNESCO site and quite amazing....they have a mosaic of a pregnant mary - one of the only in existence on the planet...

and the final shot from my trip wth the kids is of labine - a hilly mining town...its a pretty shot of the countryside....very hilly and quaint little town..
the next shots are from oktoberfest....the first is kathleen with ron and bonnie...all in traditional dress...nope, i did not dress in a drndl...not for me...but i wore a traditional hat that my grandfather wore when he went to oktoberfest many, many years ago...as you can see it in the next shot of me and ron and one of the HUGE pretzels they sell there....YUMMY!! the food and the beer were amazing...even for a veggie like me :) the next shot is me carrying some of the 1 liter steins....wowowowowow...it was incredible to see men and women waiters carrying between 12-18 of these at a time....talk about impressive....it blew my mind...i am holding just four and they are heavy....what a work out....the next shot shows you just how crowded the tents were...and this is what the waitstaff has to work through with the beers in their hands....it was mind blowing!!!!

the last shot in this series is me on the second day outside at the beer garden....we had a blast and met some cool folks to drink and "cheers" with....all in all i am sooooooo glad i went...i loved it :)
okay...another update has been told....thanks to those who have emailed
to answer one question....someone wanted to know if i am missing anything
from home they can send me....what's really interesting this time is that
they have just about everything i need - i have found tabasco, tortillas,
tofu in many flavors and even black beans....plain black tea is missing, 
but i am picking some up in austria this week...i even found some peanut
butter here....in many ways the stores have more for me than romania...so 
i am not missing anything as of yet....

i hope all of you are well and enjoyed this installment...happy fall and 
here's to the changing of the colors...the trees are incredible...drop
a line if you wish and more will come your way in the next two or three
weeks...peace out...dani

Croatian Update #2

September 14th, 2008 - here is me and my new car...nope, i haven't named her yet...but i will soon....below you will find my latest update from croatia...enjoy :)

hey there folks...how are you all doing today??? i have been exploring parts of croatia since i last checked in...and what a cool place it is...its been a busy few weeks...i am still getting used to the school...my apartment is coming together slowly but surely and i bought a car...that's the big purchase of the month...i have been shopping at the open air markets and testing my horrible croatian....its a hard language, but i seem to be improving and can now be polite when i ask for things and use the correct words for numbers....i also now how to ask for things without meat...which has come in handy for a veggie like me in a town that is very meat oriented

school is moving along...we had a picnic this weekend...even though its rainy and chilly....the parents all cooked homemade style foods from around the world....YUMMY!!!!! this week is back to school night...should be interesting....i have almost 80 kids...which is the most people can have....so it should be fun :) my room is coming along and so is my curriculum...although the kids work a bit slower than my last group and the schedule is a bit confusing....1.5 hour long classes for middle schoolers is really long....i have to change what we are doing every 20 minutes or so....its crazy....but i like it so far and the kids seem to like me...we have just started more difficult labs, so we'll see what happens when they have to write their first conclusion....the first bunch of pictures are from zagreb...the first is from this amaizng bakery around the corner from my house...that's a cake of a party animal...too funny and so excellent looking....this bakery has quite possibly the best gelato i have ever had....

the second shot is the house of croatian artists...its a gallery these days, but at one point before the war, it was a mosque...now there aren't many of those in this country, as serbia is where most muslims choose to live in the balklans

the next three shots are of my apartment - the first is the kitchen, the second is of my HUGE tub which would fit 6 comfortably....no, i don't know this for a fact....BUT its HUGE!!!! and the last is of my dining room and living room....i also have a balcony...office...bedroom and spare bedroom so come visit if you wish :)

all around zagreb there is tons of interesting sculpture...so i think i will be including a piece in every update of croatia....this one is of a woman taking her wares to the market and is at the dolac...which is the large outdoor market of zagreb...fun to go shopping there...i have a smaller market closer to me and there is one woman vendor who is a trip...she talks italian/spanish/croatian to me...its hilarious....

the next shot is a popular tourist restaurant in zagreb...called hansel and gretel...in croatian of course...very cute and they have excellent strudel...

last weekend i went out of town to the coast...to a town just above crikvenica (crick-ven-itza)...6 of us headed down to another teacher's place...lots of croatians here have a cottage somewhere...usually along the coast...this place was amazing....we got to go to the beach...although no sand was to be found....plus, we got to experience seeing some of the nude beaches from a distance...you had to climb down rocky paths...but the water was divine as was the view...absolutely amazing!!! the water was REALLY salty...floating was easy and you could see the bottom no matter how far you were out....it was just incredible....we went to an island for dinner one night....the town we went to was vrbnik....very quaint, really tiny cobblestone streets with an excellent view of the kvarner gulf...and had this delicious meal...homemade pasta....everyone in the town spoke croatian and italian....it was incredible....

the next shots are from the coast...the first is the view from the "cottage" stayed at...the second is a shot from the water looking back up the hill where the "cottage" is and the last is the place itself, with my cute car in front of it....i am driving a two door, black renault clio

it gets good gas mileage and moves pretty quick...and its easy to get around the city with it....the last shot in this set is from the town of vrbnik...its a place near the church where people can stop and pray and the building is considered to be a protector of the town itself..

this weekend i was in a small town just outside of zagreb for lunch...called samobor...on sundays its a big deal here to go to relatives or out for dinner around 1 or 2pm....because this country is so religious most places, except restaurants are closed on sundays...even markets are only open until around noon....blue laws are definitely in effect here...the town we were in was really cute...and all of the buildings had lights on them...so we need to go back and see them at night...plus, there was a ruined castle up on the hill overlooking the town, which we want to hike up to...today was too rainy and chilly...so sitting inside, eating a terrific meal and having a belgian beer was perfect...but i know i will get back there soon....

the last three shots are from the town samobor...such a cute centar section of town...cobblestones...pedestrian parts and a beautiful church..there is a stream that runs thru the center with walking bridges over it...there was even one covered bridge you could drive over...very quaint...the stork is a piece of art...i think they consider storks good luck, just

like in romania....so even though this one was fake i think it was good luck anyway :)

the last shot is of me...at my boss's place...she hosted a TGIF for the folks of the school and she has an amazing place with an amazing view of the entire city....we had a blast...

okay...there you have it...a second update...thanks to those who emailed me...if you have any questions, please be sure to send them along...someone asked about food....well, a lot of meat....but along the coast you can get fish and shellfish and i had some of the best calamari i ever tasted...plus, there is a bakery or three in every block of every city i have been in...lots of folks stop and grab a breakfast treat...luckily i don't have any on my route to school...if so, it could be deadly...also there is a dish called struckli which a crew of us are trying everywhere...noodles baked with cheese...its incredible...plus people drink lots of coffee and beer...its a cafe oriented culture....another person asked if zagreb looks ruined in places because of the war...i asked a few croatians about this and they said that zagreb was never really hit hard by the war...they said i can find places that are still in ruins, but that is not zagreb....thanks for the questions....feel free to email and say hi i will try to answer in a timely manner...but seriously...write.... hope all is well and happy fall :) peace out...dani

Croatia Update #1

August 31, 2008-

hey there all....well, i have now been in croatia for two full weeks...today is a beautiful day and

i am prepping for my first full week of school...no labor day here....below you will find my update from yahoo...with some added info and pictures...so if you get the updates, most of this will be the same....but in places there will be more...

for instance...the first shot below was taken this past summer in seattle, by my friend steven...we were on the way to whitby island to have dinner with his wife and daughter at our good friend gordon's restaurant...and per normal gordon did NOT disappoint....wowowowow....i did realize on that trip how much i miss living on the water....and although i am closer this time, next place i go i need to be on water i think...we'll see....

while i was in the states this summer my mom and i went to longwood gardens near where we live...it was stunning and definitely not crowded...we saw fountains and trees and amazing lily pad with dragon flies...this is shot is of the main greenhouse, beautiful....

during one of my first days in croatia we took a walking tour with one of the croatian teachers from school...jasna (pronounced "yaz-na" - the j in croatia sounds like a y)...it was great and that is where i got my first glipse of what a cafe town this truly is...although, unlike in many places, here you can only get drinks...no food....its wild...and people sit outside for long periods of time watching people and the day go by....talk about mellow....the "outfits" here are not as 80s as in romania...but its fun to watch folks none-the-less...and someday soon i will know what to ask for if i am looking for a latte...as they are not called that here.... below is one of the main cafe streets in zagreb....

here are some of the pictures from the update i sent out...the first two are of the school....we rent space from a seminary....and i guess they charge a lot of money from the school...the first shot is of the school from the front...

this next shot is of the courtyard of the school....its a mostly vertical school...which means lots of steps...and in order to get to school i hop a tram (2-5 min) and then walk up a HUGE hill...its good exercise and really beats sitting in traffic like in bucharest...although i am buying a car this week...so i can get out of town easier than relying on a bus or train....

the shot below was taken at the main square in zagreb...trg bana jelacica...i have not really figured out how to speak and read croatian thus far...its crazy...trg - no vowels...and its a real word...crazy...but i will start taking croatian classe son wednesdays after school with the other teachers who are interested, we'll see if it goes better than my romanian...although in the end i was doing okay...sort of :)

the next few shots come from the old part of town in zagreb...the first is what is left from the burning of a bridge that connected the old part of town to the new town...the only thing left was the madonna which is still seen here...

then there's st. marks church....isn't it pretty...i love the tiled roof...i guess they have renovating the building for the better part of two years....i'll keep my eyes peeled to see if they finish anytime soon :)

the next shot is a tower where a cannon is set off every day at noon...called the burglar's tower...we were actually on it when the cannon went off...freaked out this guy that was there and didn't know it was going to go off...it was waaaaaaay loud and made the building shake...but it was cool :)

this is the view from the top portion...and this is actually facing the school...you can see the silver domed building and then to the right, farther in the distance, you can see a greenish dome...that's the school...on a different hill....
i have already traveled outside of the country...to slovenia, its capital ljublijana...what a cute town...has a river running thru it where we had 

lunch...the reason i had to go was because i applied for my visa outside of the country...in romania....and it was approved...but i left the country before it was ready...it was not allowed to be sent to croatia...talk about crazy.... however...slovenia is an hour and a half away...and it was easy...and i am glad i went...i will go back for a weekend of fun...that much is true :) the next three shots are some of the pretty views of ljublijana...(lube-bli-anna)...love the water down the middle :)

i think this building was quite pretty with the river running in front of it...plus, if you look closely you can see a fountain going in front of it

this building was amazing...look at the tiles it is made from....so colorful and striking... definitely made the other buildings pale in comparison....i loved it :)

back in croatia...the next shot shows you how there are some amazing looking bldgs right next door to ones that are following apart...everyone in bldg has to agree to fix it up...and in many places there could be upwards of 40 different owners in the bldg...hard to make everyone agree

then the next shot shows a woman i bought some veggies from...check out her scale..
old timer...love it :) there is an amazing market just off of the main square called the dolac....i hope to get there more frequently, but its not really near where i live or where i have to go for school...there is a fresh fruit and veggie market around the corner from where i live, which i am excited about :)

the next two bldgs are to show you the graffiti and what my apartment bldg looks like...i am on the first floor...not the ground floor, but the first...more pictures of the place next time...

the last shot is of me...there was a beer festival here in croatia last 
weekend...piva means beer...and notice...my name is on the poster...just
too perfect i think...i didn't make it to the festival...but i have had 
some of the beer here...and like it so far....

okay...enough rambling....but i guess it has been a while since i updated the blog...per normal...feel free to send pictures and get in touch....please note....my parents have moved...so you cannot mail things to them and have them get to me from the paoli address in pennsylvania....please mail things for me to the school

the address is as follows:

The American International School of Zagreb
Dani DiPietro
Vocarska 106
10000 Zagreb
Croatia

you can also call my skype name danid769 if you have skype
and if you don't, you can call the following number of skype from
any style phone - 610-624-3727

there is a voicemail set up....so you can leave me a message and if my 
computer is on, i might even pick up :) that's from any phone....i am 
six hours ahead of anyone on the east coast of the states...

okay...hope all is well and good luck to those starting a school year...
drop a line when you can and keep me posted on your life :)