Grace in Bosnia & Herzegovina 2019

My boss informed me at 4pm on Friday that we would have vacation the next week, so I did not need to come in for work. I had already been planning weekend trips to various countries, so this was my chance to visit all the places that I wanted to. At 5pm that day, I went to a nearby coffee shop for 4 hours to plan all the bus tickets, hostel reservations, and anything else I might need because all tickets need to be printed in the Balkans. This was my tentative plan:  I left the next morning at 6am and arrived in Belgrade at 2pm. First I checked into my hostel Beogradjanka and the staff was incredible. I went to Mala Fabrika Ukusa for the 2nd best meal of my life (After the Bazaar in LA). My Georgetown friend from Belgrade recommended it, and he was right to recommend it. I then walked to the Temple of Saint Sava and lit a candle for my family. Afterwards I walked to the fortress for the sunset and it was spectacular. The view was breathtaking.  My favorite part abo...

Blind Tiger Wednesdays are an exchange of cultures, languages, drinks, and stories. I found this group through the Facebook Sarajevo Expats Group and I am so glad that I did. This Wednesday when I went, I met American diplomats, interns at the Norwegian embassy, an American German translator, Bosnians, and more! It was so much fun to talk to such a diverse group of people and to listen to the stories that they have accumulated throughout their time in Sarajevo. This group of Bosnians and ExPats meet every Wednesday and are constantly inviting new people to their group :) This gathering of people reminded me how interesting it has been to meet people here. As I previously mentioned, Couch Surfing has been an interesting platform for meeting people in this city, and I have found people very eager to make new friends which is helpful when one is new in a city. I have also found community among my coworkers; I have come to see my coworkers as sisters and sometimes mother who I love so...

Hello and welcome to my blog summarizing the experiences that I have and the things that I learn throughout this summer 2019. This summer I will be working for Women for Women International as a storytelling intern in addition to supporting the organization with fundraising and marketing. I am grateful to the  Beeck Center  for choosing me as one of their GU Impact Fellows this year. The GU Impacts program through the Beeck Center for Social Impact allows a cohort of around 20 students annually to take part in a sustainable internship domestically or abroad that focuses on social impact. The aspect about this fellowship that I appreciate the most is their emphasis on sustainability and also their intentional recruitment of partners who are looking for non-locals (i.e. Americans) for their associated skills not due to gaining a reputation. The GU Impacts Coordinator who set up most of these partnerships asked the organizations if this was a job that a local could take and if ...