Budva, Montenegro

My dad brought me this card when he went to Budva. Im just trying to recall whether it was 2006 or 2007....it all weighs towards 2007, but i may be wrong...and actually, i just checked and its....2008! Either i have some wrong perception of time, or i dont know whats wrong with me...

Well, Budva may not be one of my favourite places to go to in summer...but as it looks on the pictures, i would really like to be there right now. Its not crowded, the beach on the top left picture is totally empty, and it feels as if thats what i need right now. To get away from everything and everyone for a couple of days and give my mind some rest...being alone, with just the sound of the sea and the waves...that feels sooo calming!
It doesnt have to be Budva, it can be just any nice place out there, as long as i can totally distract from current things for a bit...and recharge myself...and come back in a much much better mood....hopefully :)
My dad would be going to Belgrade...i wish i could go as well, but he is coming back tomorrow...and i would prefer to stay a couple of days...plus my obligations in general just dont let me.....ahh, maybe next time...maybe...
Well...its the Earth Hour today...and while writing today's update, i decided to give my support to it and turn off everything for one hour. I could survive without them....not that im gonna make an enormous overall contribution, but i just want to make some, and feel myself useful...and it would be could if people got more conscious about it, not just today, but throughout the year.
if 8:30 pm still hasnt reached your country, then think about it, and if you are not in urgent need of aplliances and all, then give your support as well!
Ill see you tomorros ;-)

Holy Meteora, Greece

I was convinced that i had bought this card myself, but just as I started making this post i figured that my mum and dad had brought it to me when they went to Greece ones...well, i was at the Meteora so hence the confusion...

I visited Meteora only once...the time i went in Athens for New Years...I just cant recall if it was 1998 or 1999...i have it written somewhere...maybe even at an earlier post here...but right now my memory is not really on my side :)
I must say that this is one of the places in Greece which are a *must*! We visited the place in January, and i recall the weather was somewhat gloomy, and it had rained before that as well...but in general it wasnt really cold....i would manage with a denim jacket during the day...which for January isnt something you can afford in Macedonia for example :)
Anyway, i recall that the road up to the monasteries apart from being very steep, is also narrow, and waaaay tooo curvy...so it was rather scary while the bus was going up, coz all the time i had this feeling it was gonna lean on one side and fall into the abyss...and i could see the abyss from the window....it was right under me...i could see no road, no asphalt....just a deep deep abyys....on a road like that, it definitely didnt feel pleasant....but as you can see, im typing this, which means, ive lived :)
I cant recall exactly which monastery or monasteries we visited...but i know they had this rule, that you HAD to wear a skirt in order to come in...thats somewhat funny coz it goes opposite to all those 'skirts' forbidden rules which im used to in churches...thing here was, i was wearing jeans, and being not a skirt-fan, i had none in my bag of course...but the people there at the monasteries had a bunch for cases like this...so i had to put a long bluish canvass skirt over my jeans...i looked ridiculous....i have a picture of it, but i dont think i will post THAT here...i have this absolutely silly expression on my face so i rather keep it private :)
As i was walking along one of the monasteries, being all curious as i can sometimes get, i was trying to lurk into the rooms which were along, and i peeked into this one, from where i actually have the photograph below...i dont know what the room actually contained, and im pretty sure it wasnt allowed to take pictures...all the rooms were locked, so what i did was, i put the lens of the camera at the something which looked like a window and pressed the button...and took the picture...i think that the room contained skulls of some monks who had lived there....hmmm well...thats a big number of monks...why would someone keep the skulls i really dont know...feels creepy...though it feels creepy that someone like me took a picture of it...but i just couldnt have resisted....i knew that if i dont do it, i would regret it eventually...so here it is...

i just hope you WILL come by this blog again...i just had to share this with you when i was already posting a Meteora postcard...im not THAT insane...just a bit...in order to manage to get by in this crazy little world :)
Im pretty sure other people have taken pictures of this too...no? :)

Munich, Germany

Some time ago I told you that I started with German classes, and i promised that with my next German card, ill give you and update of my progress...well, here we are....

I have to say for starters that i really have the desire to learn this once and for all, so thats why regardless of how tired i have been or had things to do, so far i hadnt missed a single class....coz if i do, i know it would be really difficult to catch up with it, mainly coz im still learning the basics, and what matters when learning a language is to get a good foundation...so thats why ive been trying to be as regular as possible.
Now, my improvement...well, i have to say im really pleased with myself...i know i could do even better if i was able to dedicate some more time to it....but with whati it is, i think im doing pretty well...last Friday we did a small test and i love the outcome...especially since i was drop dead tired, and since i had no idea we would have a test, so i didnt revise anything...and my teacher's comment is as its shown on the following image :))))

Yup, i had to brag a little about it and share it with you...i dont get such comments daily :))
My greatest problem in general is learning the articles, and the plural...and that is related to other grammar parts...but i think ill manage and will learn it well eventually :)
You want me to tell you something in German? Ok :)))

Ich bin gut, aber ich arbeite viel und ich bin sehr müde...ich möchte schlafen, aber ich habe keine Zeit....ich möchte fahren aber ich habe kein Geld....mein Kater ist hübsch und ißt er Schokolade.....es ist Herbst und zu kalt....ich fühle allein...ich sammel Postkarten....das Wetter ist scheußlich....ich trinke Kaffe...ich liebe Kaffe trinken....jetzt, ich müsse arbeiten....auf wieder lesen :)

ok, dont seek for sense...I just wrote whatever came to my mind...but to be honest, i am in a phase where i LOVE making phrases/sentences in German, or trying to figure out the context of some German songs....:)))
I know grammar mistakes are inevitable, but i think that for the most part, i did it right ;-)

Montenegro

I didnt actually intend to do an update today...apart from the fact i spend way too much time at the pc due to work, i have way too much work to do as well...but I was told that the deadline which was like supposed to be tomorrow, first postponed for Tuesday, and then for Thursday...and i felt some sort of relief, coz im way too much behind with the work, and now Thursday seems somewhat i can manage...though if i keep going with this pace I doubt, esp. since while I have to work on one document, i get others in the meantime as well...plus the lessons i have to prepare for next week and all...and i really have no idea how im gonna manage it all...but at least the pressure i feel had eased a bit...of course, it doesnt mean i can just go and idle now, but at least it doesnt feel so helpless now...and i fell somewhat disappointed with some people and i just need some remedy and clearance of thoughts...and this is my refugee...

Anyway...even though this card is about Montenegro...my post has nothing to do with Montenegro..but more with the dog on the picture...now, i know some of you will know what im gonna rant about...and feel free to skip this longish post...but i just feel inspired and find it appropriate for this card...

So...whats the deal...few days ago, out of nowehere a small puppy appeared in my garden (not one bit as the one on the card, but this is like the only card I have which features a dog :)). Anyway...the puppy was the most adorable fluffy thing i had seen..small and white...well, it was soo dirty and sticky that you couldnt call it white..but it was defintiely way too adorable...i regret not having taking a single picture of it...and it was way too lively coz it wouldnt stop running and jumping and going around...way too playful...and way too hungry coz it ate whatever i had given him...the sweetest thing was when i noticed that it accomodated himself (or herself, i dont know actually...but ill go for himself) in my mum's pot flowers...and was pretending to sleep, but when i would come around, it would raise its head, start waving its tail and jump to me...if it wasnt so dirty, i would have squeezed the hell out of him of hugging...we played with small balls as well, and he would run after them, bring them back to me, or hide them again behind my mum's pot flowers...i really dont know why he so much wanted to be around those pot flowers...some feeling of safety i guess...anyway...eventually i had to leave for work and was wondering if it would be there when i come back...well, it was...in my neighbours garden actually, he found a whole in the fence to be able to move here and there, but when i called him he came to me, again all jumping, yupping, running...waving its tail....a real real sweetheart....a few hours later, he went to sleep and he even found himself a hidden place for it...i really dont know how he managed but he was managing with everything perfectly, even though he was here for the first time...an incredibly incredibly smart puppy!!  Well...the following morning i woke up really early...partially coz i had work to do, partially coz of him...but to me greatest disappointment, he was gone...and hadnt come back until now....if it wasnt for my mum and dad to see him as well, I swear i would have thought it was all a hallucination...I still hope it would come back...and frankly, im gonna do whatever it takes this time not to let him go...i know my cat wont be happy, even though the puppy wanted to play with him and was teasing him and all...but i think that with time, they will settle down together...I just hope it would come back one day soon...he made me fall for him at an instant..and then just left...its really not fair...i wonder if it would have been better if he never showed up in my life at all...I wonder why things or people you care for the most just dont stay....life...

btw, this card was sent to me by my mum and dad back in 2001 from their holiday in Budva...a funny thing my mum had written on the card is: "Today its pouring, but its great for walking". I dont get it...if its pouring, how can it be great for walking?? it not a drizzle or a light rain....its pouring...or as the British would say..its raining cats and dogs....ha...now this is an irony :)

Budva, Montenegro (04)

My dad went to Montenegro for 10 days...and when he got back, he brought me 7 postcards! Which wouldnt be surprising in general, but he brought me the cards without me even mentioning anything...

I talked him on the phone a few times while he was there, but due to the way our conversations went with 'yes...aha...no...i dont know..maybe', i never found it appropriate to bring up the issue of postcards....I really wonder why is it so impossible sometimes to make a decent conversation with my dad, esp. over the phone.. So when he got back and gave the cards to me, i was more than pleasantly surprised.... and felt somewhat guilty coz i just kept (and still do) thinking that i didnt deserve them....it really bothers me that I cant show my dad any appreaciation of the things his does due to how our relation in general is...it really sucks coz the overall impression is that i dont care one bit and am totally reckless about it all...which is toally wrong...i really hope one day he'll be able to realize that...

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

My dad brought me this card from one of his trips to Germany..

It shows the Neuschwanstein Castle which is a 19th century Bavarian palace on a rugged hill near Hohenschwangau in southwest Bavaria, Germany.
he palace was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as a homage to Richard Wagner  the King's inspiring muse. Although public photography of the interior is not permitted it is the most photographed building in Germany and is one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.
Ludwig did not allow visitors to his castles, but since its opening in 1886, over 50 million people have visited the Neuschwanstein Castle.
The palace has appeared in several movies, and was the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty castle at the Disneyland Park.

Ostrog, Montenegro

Well, not a newly received card actually....not that im out of cards...i have like over 20 pending....but i got this insane idea that i need to mingle my older ones as well...i mean, i barely manage to keep up with the newly received ones, so i dont know how i will with these ones added on top of that...but i was thinking...and the moment i started uploading my newly received cards, i had like hundreds of the previous ones which i had put on stand by...and at this rate, turns out ill never upload them...or i will in some distant future....so i decided to do it now, and mingle them with the new cards.....another reason for this is that i like having a variety here...and by that, i mean, cards from different countries....if you have noticed, i barely post 2 cards of the same country on a same day even if i have like 5 to post from that particular country....and by including these old cards, ill increase the variety, since most of those are from places ill most probably wont get a card now (both officials and swaps), so it really will bring some difference here....plus youll get to see more different stuff.....well, i personally like the idea...i hope you as well....and if we get realistic...the chances i get an official card from Montenegro are scarce....the chances for me to ask for a swap are even lesser, mainly coz i have too many cards from there.....so...there we go.....:))))

This card here was sent to me by my mum and dad in 2001 during their stay there......with a simple and concise message on the back: "Something very beautiful".

Well, it surely is, no?
The Monastery of Ostrog is of the Serb Orthodox Church placed against an almost vertical background, high up in the large rock of Ostroška Greda, in Montenegro, dedicated to Sveti Vasilije Ostroški (Saint Basil of Ostrog).

It is the most popular pilgrimage place in Montenegro, visited by believers from all parts of the world, representing the meeting place of all religions: Orthodox, Catholics, Muslims. According to the stories of pilgrims, by praying by his body, many have been cured and helped in lessening the difficulties in their lives.

(Maybe I should give it a try....)

Munich, Germany

Rüsselsheim, Germany

Sveti Stefan, Montenegro

Montenegro

Munich, Germany

Montenegro

Zlatibor, Serbia

Munich, Germany

Ancona, Italy

A card my dad brought me

He actually went to Germany, but he and his friend went through Italy instead the regular way through the ex-Yugoslav republics. I know they took a ferry from either somewhere in Greece or Albania....then drove through Italy and arrived in Germany....and while there, he picked up this card for me...yup, just one from Italy, but im not ungrateful and im thankful for it...there were more German cards ;-)

there is some verse written in Italian on the back:

"Gli occhi amano le forme belle e varie,
i colori nitidi e ridenti
e la regina stessa dei colori la luce,
inonda tutto cio che si vede."

- S.Agostino, Confessioni


i only know that its about eyes and their colour and maybe shape....if anyone can translate this for me, would be thankful

Munich, Germany

My dad brought me this one from one of the times he went to Germany....cant recall which year though....my dad never sends the cards, but he is always thoughtful to buy me and bring me some

This card here shows Marienplatz, the Townhall with Carillon.....hmmm, ok, Townhall, thats clear....im puzzled what Carillon is....hope i wont drown in shame for my ignorance once i google this...
Ok...here is what i got...

Marienplatz actually means St. Mary's Square....it is the heart of the city of Munich. In the Middle Ages, the square used to be a market place as well as the place where tournaments and festivities took place.
In 1807 Marienplatz's market moved to the nearby Viktualienmarkt, but the square still continued to be the city's focal point. Important public events such as tournaments or executions were still held here.
The square was originally known as Schrannen but it was renamed Marienplatz as a way to ask Virgin Mary to protect the town from a cholera epidemic.

now thats an interesting info...

The square is dominated by the new Townhall. The monumental, 79 meters high Townhall was built between 1867 and 1909 by Georg Joseph Hauberrisser in Flemish Gothic style to alleviate the overcrowded Altes Rathaus nearby.

and here is what i was looking for....its also interesting :)

At 11, 12 and 17 o'clock each day, visitors can watch the famous Glockenspiel or carillon. The figures perform the Schläffertanz or cooper's dance, which was originally performed in 1517 at the Marienplatz to commemorate the end of the plague.

ok, either im blind or those figures actually arent shown on the card....probably they are just mentioned since this is the place where they perform....