thank you

For all of you have donated, thank you so much.

Donations and departure dates!

I've decided to change my departure date to May 29th to allow 2 extra weeks to collect donations. All of my money is due by March 25 now.

Only $1,100 to go!

Please don't feel obligated, but If you haven't already donated and would like to, you can do so by clicking on the DONATE button below. Any amount is greatly appreciated.

some interesting information about eastern europe

Croatia
-The official name of Croatia is the 'Republic of Croatia'
-The official language is Croatian, which is written in the Latin script
-The majority of the population is Roman Catholic but there are also some Orthodox Christians
-The capital is Zagreb
-Croatia follows the system of Presidential - Parliamentary democracy
-Croatia gained independence from Austria-Hungary in October 1918 and declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991
-Croatia was founded in the first half of 7th century, on the ruins of the Roman Empire
-Dalmatia, stretching from the Kvarner Riviera in the north to Dubrovnik in the south, forms the coastal region of Croatia
-Dalmatian dog, also known as the Dubrovnik hunter, originally came from Dalmatia
-The oldest university in Croatia is the University of Zagreb, established in 1669
-Croatia's Adriatic coast is home to over 1,000 islands and numerous coastal towns
-The necktie was invented in Croatia and is locally known as ‘cravat’
-In Croatia, people can start voting at the age of 16, if they have a job, but have to wait until they turn 18 if unemployed

Romania
-The capital of Romania is Bucharest, once popularly known as 'Paris of the East'
-The population is around 22.5 million
-The official language is Romanian, but you will also find people speaking Hungarian and German
-Romania has a Republic type of government
-Gheorghe Marinescu, a professor at the Faculty of Medicine in Bucharest, was the first person to see living nervous cells with a microscope
-More than half of Romania's Jewish population died in the Second World War
-Romania joined the European Union in 2007, along with Bulgaria
-The Bran Castle, associated with Vlad Dracul, still lies in Romania and forms its most popular tourist attraction

Bosnia and Herzegovina
-Official languages are Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian
-The majority of the population are comprised of Muslims, Orthodox, Catholics, Protestants, and others
-It follows the system of Federal Democratic Republic
-Bosnia and Herzegovina form a part of the Balkan Peninsula
-Bosnia and Herzegovina was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in the second half of the 15th century. Later, it was annexed by Austria, in 1908
-Bosnia and Herzegovina gained independence from Yugoslavia in the year 1992
-Sarajevo, the largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina, hosted the 1984 Winter Olympic Games
-Inter-ethnic war erupted in Bosnia and Herzegovina after independence, in 1992, and lasted till 1995
-In March 1994, Muslims and Croats in Bosnia signed an agreement creating the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, narrowing the field of warring parties to two

My Goal Thermometer!

I will update this as I receive donations : )

For those of you who have already donated, thank you very much. It's greatly appreciated. Without you, this would not be possible.

Donations

If you would like to donate to my trip to Eastern Europe, please click on the Donate button below.

Any amount is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

A chance of a lifetime!

Dobar dan! (Hello in Croatian!),

Since I went on a mission trip to Juarez, Mexico when I was 15, I've had an itch to explore the world and to help those in need. We flew into El Paso, Texas, which is sparkling clean, busy, and rich with everything you could possibly need or want, much like the majority of the United States. From El Paso, we drove to Juarez. I remember when our bus, crammed with a dozen or more teenagers, crossed the Rio Grande, everything changed.

When I peered out of the small windows, all I could see was debris, trash, dilapidated houses, caving in roofs, and dirty, barefoot children running among the streets. I thought to myself that it wasn't fair. These people were no different from us, yet were lacking the basic necessities to live in a safe environment. I spent the next week taking care of the children, who became family to me. I played soccer and basketball with them, and while I was doing this, I realized they were just like me when I was that age. Looking around at the surroundings, I couldn't imagine growing up where they do; dirt roads, garbage everywhere, stray dogs roaming the streets, houses the size of the average American bedroom, and crime everywhere you turn.

So here I am, four years down the road, fulfilling that itch to make a positive impact. I'm getting ready for my trip to Eastern Europe through International Student Volunteers to volunteer in a community project. I will either be volunteering in Croatia, Romania, Bosnia, or Herzegovina for 4 weeks. We will be assisting in the delivery of workshops and classes - everything from dancing, music, arts, and crafts. Also, we will teach English to the children and empower the youth of Eastern Europe through games, sports, and special events. We will also share skills with the youth through organizing special, educational, and fun workshops having to do with documentary film, astronomy, health, youth empowerment, and arts. Along with this, we will do manual labor such as bricklaying, mixing concrete, and other construction activities associated with building a new school, and providing care for orphan children. If I receive the scholarship I applied for, it also means when I return from Eastern Europe, I am committed to volunteering 100 hours in my local community.

Two weeks is dedicated to our volunteer program and the last two weeks we will be taking an adventure tour, where we get to explore all of Eastern Europe through something ISV likes to call "Voluntourism". We will be caving, river kayaking, sailing, canyoning, rock climbing, and immersing ourselves in the culture of Eastern Europe through different culture tours in cities such as Zagreb, Selište Drežničko, Split, Korčula Island, and Dubrovnik. I believe the adventure tour is a really important aspect because I'll get an opportunity to live the culture, explore the different countries of Eastern Europe, and to fully appreciate the big picture.

I continuously am getting e-mails from ISV about our trip, how to prepare, and what to expect. I couldn't be more excited! I can't wait to finally step off the plane and begin my journey.

More to come ... : )

If you'd like to check out the ISV website, here is a link:

http://www.isvonline.com/easterneurope.html