Rant at the tip of my tongue (but I'll talk about my vacation instead)

I feel like a rant's due, but it's just not coming out. Maybe there's too much going on in my head, and I'm fairly busy at work, so I can't even find the time to commit to it.

Sleep eludes me. It started off with jet lag and turned into long, drowsy and rainy days, sleepless nights and very, very troublesome mornings.

The other morning I slept through two alarms, until a third one went off in the living room. Needless to say, I was late for work and the whole day turned into a busy, yawning blur. I did manage to do heaps of work, but when I get home and am supposed to rest and recuperate, productivity seeps through by fingers.

My recent trip to the Middle East and Europe went well – and in a blink of an eye. Dubai was amazing! Even though it's not a place I'd visit for the sake of it, one has to be impressed by what's been raised out of the sand. Everything's nice and clean; the people are beautiful and there's not a single crease on their clothes; it's all about shopping and bling and power. There are a lot of issues with the Emirates, but I wasn't going to surround myself with that and decided to enjoy what I could.

I left my things at the hotel (Emirates paid for it as I had a 17-hour layover), took a shower and took the Metro into the city. It took me ages to get through the Dubai Mall (the largest in the world – not my cup of tea) before I went on top of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world.

After five hours up there, it was time for dinner, a swim in the pool and a bit of sleep before my flight to London, which was–as always–so much fun. I managed to meet up with some mates and even run into one (who had no idea I was there) in the streets. Walking around, having beers and getting rained on is something I'd always go for.

Croatia was...nice. I guess home always comes with everything else attached, so the feelings are always a bit mixed. It was definitely nice to spend time meeting up with family and friends, festivalling around the country, camping and running into people. I wish the weather was a bit better as I only managed to take three swims, but hey – another island ticked off the map, so I'm happy.

Portugal was fun, relaxing, intensive, hot, interesting, charming and much more. Lisbon is so cozy and narrow. Boom Festival was mind-blowing, so I'm definitely planning to go back in two years.

A short visit to Vienna to see my mate and it was time to go. It was cold and rainy, which made Australian winter a better choice (what's up with the weather, aye?!).

A flight attendant, originally from Bosnia, approached on the last, 11-hour leg of my trip and saved my day. Wherever you are, bless!

Next time I travel so far for vacation is going to be:

• a week of family and friends,
• two weeks of festivals and mates, and
• three weeks on a tiny island somewhere far away.

So, time to plan starts...now!

(I haven't even gone through all the photos, so this is only what I found on flickr. I hope you've enjoyed it...)

Let the planning begin!

My annual leave is getting closer, and it's almost a month away from now. Thirty-two days, to be exact.

I've already started planning what to do over the Croatian summer. Well, my friends have, since it's a bit harder for me to plan from so far away. Luckily, I have people around me who are equally eager, so I'm sure it'll be fun.

I still have tons to do. There are lots of small projects I need to wrap up before I go, but I also need to pre-plan some for September, when I start work again.

I'll also have to have my living room ceiling changed while I'm away, which means moving everything from the room while packing, preparing, sorting stuff out etc. It will be an interesting couple of weeks, especially since I only have a certain amount of time in between finishing work and leaving to the airport. It's plenty, of course, but the weeks before that day will be busy busy busy.

This makes it a bit easier.

Vis

This is where I'm going to this weekend.

I slowly (but steadily) started panicking about leaving in seven or so days, and realized I could really use another short break, just to keep my mind from racing.

Many people expect me to hang around here, but it just seems too hard. So I figured I could go visit D, who's gone there last week to work. Even if it's only for the weekend, it will surely be great.

I've had plans to go to Vis for years now, but being a student and usually broke, I was always denied the opportunity. This will therefore be the perfect opportunity to roam the island a bit, hang out with D and say our final third-luck-is-a-charm goodbyes.




Here's some info on the island, copied from here, just because I'm too lazy to write...

The island of Vis is the most protruding Croatian island with an area of 90.30 km2. The channel of Hvar separates it from the island of Hvar, and the Biševo channel from the island of Biševo. It is approximately 60 miles away from the Italian coast. The island has three mountains stretching across it, and between these mountains are karstic fields. Hum has the highest altitude (585 m), Sveti Duh (563 m), and Mali Hum (514 m). Here's a map of Vis.

The first people settled in Vis in 3000 B.C. They were of Mediterranean background. In 2000 B.C. they were pushed aside by the Illyrians which formed their own government in the fifth and sixth century B.C. The Sirakuski tyrant of Dimitrij the Elder in approximately 397 years B.C. established his colony on Vis and its settlers expanded their influence towards the central-Dalmatian islands. The Illyrian king Agron I and queen Teuta, who where defeated by the Romans in 219 B.C., threatened the authority of Vis (Issa). Since then Issa has acknowledged the authority of Rome.

After the downfall of the Western Roman Empire (year 476), Vis at one time acknowledged the authority of the Goths and then the Byzantines. The Croats started settling in Vis in the seventh century. Vis was occupied and destroyed by the Venetians and under Venetian authority from 1420. With peace in Campoformio in 1797, Venice hands it over to Austria, and after peace in Požun in 1805 it comes under the French who fortify it. In March 1811, the English fleet struck a hard defeat to the French-Italian fleet and occupied Vis.

By Regulations of the Vienna Congress of 1814, it was returned to Austria till 1918 when it was occupied by the Italians. In 1921, by the Rapal Contract, it belonged to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians. In 1941 it was occupied by the Italians under whose government it stayed until the capitulation of Italy in 1943. After this it became the military-navy base of the Partisan army in socialistic Yugoslavia, Vis was closed to outsiders because of its strategic position (this regulation was terminated in 1989) and the entire island was turned into a large military fort.

But this isolation, however difficult it was for the inhabitants of the island of Vis, placed Vis among the favorite destinations of the entire Mediterranean when Croatia became independent. Beautiful beaches, preserved nature, ecological agriculture and preserved traditional architecture are unique advantages of thisunique island.
The locals are into agriculture, fishing and tourism. The coasts of the island are sloped and separated. To the west of the island is the Komiža bay and to the north is the Vis harbor. Vis has always been an island of fishermen and winegrowers. Komiža on the island of Vis is considered the cradle of fishing in the Adriatic, and in times gone by, the Komiža fishermen where well known in all Mediterranean harbors as experts in their field. Today the Fishing Museum in Komiža shows the famous history of the Vis fishermen.

Monastery in Vis town is said that the first grape vine in Dalmatia was planted by the ancient Greeks and that it was planted on a Vis field. The most famous authentic white wineis definitely the famed Vis Vugava, which you can try in numerous restaurants and cellars on the island. The Greek writer Agatarhid said that the wine from Vis was, compared to all others, better.

If we add to this unique historical, cultural, and natural heritage the beautiful crystal clear sea, stunning hidden beaches, bays and islands, kind hosts and comfortable accommodation in private houses and apartments, it is clear why Vis is the favorite tourist destination for those visitors who want to try the unique and almost gone authentic Mediterranean environment and way of life.

We invite you to visit Vis island, and we are sure you will never forget it!

Flooded

Last night, as I was going through some photos and trying to decide what to pack, what to throw into the trash and what to leave behind, all of a sudden I was struck by emotions.


Maybe I wasn't expecting it, or I was hoping it to hit me later on, but it's happened. I was talking to my mum and she asked me who I was meeting (as I was heading out). Probably caused by her question (which was, by the way, dangerously lingering between annoying and nosy), images of those people started rushing through my head.


And before I could figure out what was going on and get my grip, I was flushed with memories, images, funny stories, emotions and what not. And for the first time, there was a hot potato - not in my hands, but in my throat.


I'm starting to wonder why goodbyes are so hard. Why does everything get changed all of a sudden? How come all those kilometres all of a sudden make a difference?


I know they do, don't get me wrong. But the date seems to influence emotions much more than the kilometres. As the date's getting closer, everyone's more sensitive than the other. Emotions swell up, memories keep popping up and it's all a lot more messy.


Who knows how it'll end. Maybe I'll be weeping for my country, for the nation that annoys me, for the transportation that can make everyone go berserk. Maybe I'll miss avoiding eye contact in the tram, or crossing the street, trying not to get run over.


I'm completely clueless.

photo fun.

i've been playing a bit and here's the result.

Okić, outside Zagreb, Croatia


A view of Zagreb from Medvednica, the mountain north of the city
Note: please click the photos for better quality.