I am a first generation immigrant, and those far away distant lands that I may have called home in some other life became ever so nearer. The trip to Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina was enlightening.<\/p>\n
About 25 years ago stood a country called Yugoslavia, consisted of six republics (now individual, sovereign countries): Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, and Macedonia. All felt the touches of war, with Bosnia feeling the greatest of it. While history was happening 25 years ago in the small Balkan countries, I was there at a time when history again was licking at the heels of those same countries.<\/p>\n
During the past 3 months there were many Syrian (as well as other) refugees travelling from the middle east in hope of a better life somewhere in Europe. It just tended to serve as a reminder to myself to be thankful that I had an easier experience in terms of immigration, while at the same time showing deep-seated problems in a society usually used as a pinnacle for the world.<\/p>\n
It is important to recognize that this event is occurring and still occurring, leading to splits in political decisions, and the people the politicians represent;but the trip was not about this to me. To me the trip was simply to understand where it is I came from, and attain a higher level of proficiency in my language. I believe I reached both of these goals; my language capabilities rose as well as the appreciation for my situation and who I am in its entirety.<\/p>\n
Much has come to pass, and it is too much bear to write about it in a single blog post. One word of advice that I would like to pass on to future generations of study abroad is to keep a journal of interesting events that occur, or simply for thoughts separate from those events.<\/p>\n
Finally, I would like to mention that all those papers that I wrote from afar seem like they are so close now, and I was lucky to be able to get a chance to do research and write a paper from within the borders of the Former Yugoslavia. I think I come out of this experience a little wiser, and a little older (three months to be exact).<\/p>\n
~B<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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