The Adventures of Philip: Cultural Observations and a Self Assessment

I haven't really talked much about the cultural observations I've made these past few weeks in Croatia.

So here goes nothing!

I'll start with the positive, so first I'll talk about the Croats.

These people have lived a very tumultuous life, but that doesn't stop them from being the most friendly group of people I've ever had the pleasure to knowing. I can honestly say I have not met an unfriendly Croat yet! For example, one of my classmates (Ethan M.) stepped on a sea urchin (twice), and our landlord (Maria) took it upon herself to give him advice on how to get the spikes out of his foot, AND actually sat down and removed a few with a needle (her friend also assisted). I'm not saying that Americans are bad people, but I find it unlikely we would embrace a foreigner closely enough to remove spikes from their feet (ew, feet).

We've all been on city tours, right? BOOOORRRING... Well, not with Ivana! As I have mentioned in a previous post she is my professor's (Michael Popovic) cousin. We've been on more than a handful of museum tours, a city walk through, long car/boat rides, and two excursions with Ivana. Ivana always arrives with a smile on her face (even in the rain), a wealth of knowledge, patients for my never ending questions, and a seemingly endless supply of energy! She's picked up on what I find interesting, and directs me to things a typical tour guide wouldn't know or care to show me. She's fostered my love of a rural region south of Dubrovnik (Konavle), educating me on their traditions, history, agricultural products, and much more! Ivana is constantly going above and beyond our expectations!

We've run into entertaining and patient cashiers, friendly and informative store keepers, lively and talented restaurant owners/wait staff, and generous and kind Croats on a daily basis. The beauty of Croatia's environment is surpassed by the beauty of their people.

I've enjoyed the quirky little differences in our culture. Some of the ones that come to mind are: (1) When you get your change back from the cashier they put it on the counter rather than awkwardly putting it in your hand when you have 100 other things already occupying your hands. (2) Exact change is not important (both above and below your specified amount). (3) If you forget your bus card, it's not the end of the world, the bus driver will still let you on. (4) Do not try to help the waiter put the plates of food on the table, because they will be very confused as to why you're doing their job. (4) Meals here are more about socializing than eating (not the say the food isn't fantastic), so expect them to last 2 hours. (5) Waiters are not annoyingly coming to your table every 3 minutes, so if you want their attention, or something from them, then you had better get their attention!

Now for my only major aversion to Croatians: THEIR DRIVING! I have said more prayers in these past few weeks than I have ever said. Stop signs are optional here (yes, hypocritical... I wrecked my Mom's car at a stop sign before I came to Croatia), so often times we will just do a quick yield, then pass through. Speed limit? Who follows those? Not the Croats! The roads are very narrow, and even in residential areas people fly all over the place. I witnessed a car smash into a motorcycle with two people on it... I almost needed a new pair of underwear. Okay, I'm done bashing the driving! I'm sure the Croats are used to this, so they are probably better equipped for such conditions, but for a rural New Yorker this has been something to fear. :-)

As for my self assessment... where to start? Well, not to pat myself on the back, but I've been stepping way out of my comfort zone! Jumping off a cliff, eating SQUID, going to a club, and leaving home for a foreign country. These are big steps for me!

I was quite anxious for the first few days, but that feeling soon passed. I was expecting to be a quite homesick by this point, but I'm doing well! I generally feel homesick around bedtime, but that's probably just because I miss my heavenly bed, and a consistent 8 hour slumber. I've called home a few times to touch base with Mom, and to check up on my garden (thankfully my tomatoes are JUST ripening now). I'm excited to be back in Madrid, but at the same time I will be quite sad to leave Dubrovnik and the amazing people I've met. I am absolutely certain I will come back someday!

I constantly thank god for how blessed I was to be given to the opportunity to come to Croatia, I am incredibly grateful.

Below are random photos I've taken on my phone throughout the trip, so try to ignore the mess.

PS - This was done through my iPhone, so please excuse any mistakes!