Janjita travel journal

ROBBED BY A BANK

2012-04-02T07:24:00.001-07:00

I thought I have seen it all, but when it happened, I just said: “Are you kidding me?” Well, the thing is, believe it or not, I have been robbed by a bank. Yes, a bank, you heard it right. You will say, well, nothing new, we are all being robbed by banks, but no, this is a real robbery, no kidding.

It happened on 4^th November 2011, when I went to the cash dispenser at 19:21, situated at Calle Illescas 54, in Madrid, Spain to withdraw the money and go to pay a package at the post office and have the money at my disposal, not having to withdraw each time I need it: as if you are withdrawing money with a debit card of a foreign bank, than the bank accounts you 0, 47 EUR more for the operation. So, I said, well, I better withdraw more.

I put my code, the amount and the cash dispenser gave me back the card, but when I was waiting for the cash, just nothing happened. The machine started to make a strange noise, as something was hitting the door from which you get your money, but the doors didn’t open. I tried to pull the money out with my hand, but as the door was closed it was impossible. I panicked. I waited, waited, and nothing. NO MONEY, but the dammed machine registered the operation just as it was successful, but it WASN’T. You cannot imagine the panic and the deep disgust I felt in that moment. Shit, shit and double shit. Why on earth me? It couldn’t happen to some old lady that has more time to fight against banks?

symbolic photo of a cash dispenser

I was so upset that the first thing I did, I went home and called my bank 24-hours service and told them, what just happened. The lady on the phone advised me to write from my on-line bank to their office and tell them the whole story, what I did. But as it was Friday, and it was late, the bank responsible for this cash dispenser, Santander, was already closed, and I had no idea of its open hours, so I went on Monday to the bank office and told them what happened.

a symbolic photo just to see how banks of the Santander group look

I had to go there almost every day for two weeks, because they seemed just not care much about it. They tried to get rid of me at first giving me a few phone numbers to call, one of which was of the 4B service, which is responsible for the maintenance of the cash dispensers. I called all this numbers, and the result: NOTHING. Loss of time, money and energy; they couldn’t do anything they say, because I withdraw money with a debit card of a non Spanish bank. If I had had a card of a Spanish bank, different from Santander, which is the bank responsible to fulfil and take record of the money of this cash dispenser, mentioned above, there wouldn’t be a problem. I go to the Spanish bank, tell them the story, they would claim the money and in four working days the money would be on my account. But since, it was a foreign bank, the story was all different, and please read, more complicated.

I wrote to my bank to advise me what to do. But they just gave me a form to fulfil and explain the fact. Fortunately, I had a friend who is a lawyer and he advised me to go to Santander and ask them to give me a proof that their cash dispenser retained my money. I had to insist and went there a few times, because they told me, they don’t check the cash dispenser every day, but when they do, they will have the report that says the cash dispenser retained money. So, I had to go there the next day and it was the last day in two weeks. I was tired of going to this bank almost every day, but I had to insist, otherwise I wouldn't have proof of it. The last day I went to the Santander bank at almost noon, there was nobody in the office, but still I had to wait the lady to attend me. She saw me, but seemed not interested. I heard, she was talking to her husband, in the working hours and having someone waiting for her, but she just didn’t seem to care much. One of her colleagues saw me and saw that she was trying to ignore me, so the lady went to her and tapped her on the shoulder pointing at me, and I was finally attended. She gave the proof that my money was retained by this dammed cash dispenser. By the way, she said: "Oh, yes, it happens quite a lot with this cash dispenser, it seems it doesn’t work properly." It seems? Ha, and why a hack nobody repairs it? A one million question.

Of course it is a tremendous effort to do this. It is easier to rob people’s money instead.

But, here is the copy of this famous proof:

This small piece of paper has the information that the cash dispenser retained my money.

MY ADVICE: If this happens ever to you, get sure to claim this piece of paper, otherwise you have no proof of it, it is important.

But now the second part of the story: THE CLAIM AND THE RESULTS

I fulfilled the form, that my bank, NLB, gave me, and added this proof, and the scans of the card with which I withdrew the money. It is important to add the card number, because the proof above also tells the number of your card.

But, what happened?

I saw on my bank account that the bank took 110 EUR from my account. And I said, now what? I wrote to the bank, and guess what; they took me this sum of money, again, because of this entire hack story.

Where was the problem, I asked? Santander bank, sent them in January of this year the reply that they are not accepting my reclamation, as there was nothing wrong, according to them, the cash dispenser, they said, did not retained my money. HAAAAA?

You can imagine my astonishment. The same bank that gave me the proof that their cash dispenser retained my money is now saying that I made the whole story up. Are they gone nuts or what?

Believe me, I would rather have been robbed by a thief; at least I would live with the thought that the poor man or woman needed the money. But a greedy bank, please. And of course they committed felony, first because they are lying, and second because they are claiming that I am a layer. So this would be in legal terms: material and moral damage and defamation, calling me, indirectly, a lier.

So, end of the story, if you happen to be in Spain, just avoid the Santander cash dispensers, and if the same happens to you, make sure you collect as may proofs as possible and insist on it.

MY MOOD:

BEING A HOME WORKING MOM

2011-06-15T15:01:00.000-07:00

Yeah, the picture above shows perfectly what a home working mom means. Sometimes having eight hands would be a perfect solution to do all the home and working and mom tasks. But sometimes I would just need to clone myself, so one me would take care of my 20th months baby and the other me would work and do other home things: cooking, cleaning, etc.

Just working, when you are a home working mom, is a luxury that home working moms have no idea what this is. Yes, there were times when I was just working, came home and watch telenovelas. But now, I have to combine all my mom things like playing with my kid, teaching and educating her, feeding, etc. and than cooking the meals, cleaning, so the house won't look a total mess, and of course finding time to sit down and work. I work as a translator, and sometimes the due dates are killing me, and sometimes I must pass over projects just because I can't find time to do them.

I work as a freelance translator for quite some years now. I started in 2003, when I kick my job and started to study a master in anthropology and work from home. The beginnings were difficult, I had to work hard to have my list of clients and agencies to collaborate with, but in that times, I was single and I had all the time in the world to do all my work and study. Now is different, I have to calculate the time I will spend working, doing house duties and taking care of my baby. Sometimes is so stressful that I just wish I had some magic power and do all the things.

As all the works, being a home working mom has its pros and its cons.

The pros are: that you are your own boss, make your own working schedule and have the time to be with your kid, spend some quality time with her.

But the cons are that sometimes you cannot do some short projects that agencies or client want in the same day, and that if you do not have projects, you do not have money, and you have to be a hell of a good accountant to make all the numbers fit.

Yeah, working moms are really worthy gold, but unfortunately we are not appreciated as we should be.

What can a mom, that want to stay at home do to find a job. Well, think of what can she do, what kind of abilities she has. Translating is just one option, but there are others, such as selling on-line, writing, and surely many more that I am considering as well, as I am actually a little feed up with translation jobs and due dates.

And bellow: the reason I am working from home......

The time I spend with my little kid is precious, and it is really worth the effort.

THE FORTRESS OF KUELAP

2011-06-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

First of all, I would like to thank Mr. Human Quintara, who kindly sent me basic information about the Fortress of Kuelap, which is not very known among tourist, which is really a pity. It is as interesting and archeologically valuable as Machu Picchu, but this archeological site it is still being investigated.

As the El Comercio, the Peruvian newspaper, reported on October, 30 in 2010: “In an imposing building, located at the top of the fortress of Kuelap, built with stone slabs and fitted with various offerings, a group of archaeologists discovered last Thursday the grave of one of the most important characters that ruled the Chachapoyas society over 500 years ago.” The investigative group, leaded by Alfredo Narváez, gave the first good news on the 3rd August. They ran into a first grave containing six human burials. The tomb was found in the southern sector called Upper Town, in the residential area of the fortress.

The newspaper reports further: »In the months that followed, archaeologists were able to record nearly a hundred offerings, among which are fragments and Spondylus shell beads, quartz and ceramics, as well as stone and bone tools, gemstones and silver plates, copper and copper gold.

By continuing with the excavation, they found that under four small irregular stones and fragments of Spondylus there were three slabs of extraordinary dimensions that served to close the main tomb. They had discovered something really important. Narváez decided to clear all doubts and, on Thursday morning revealed the contents of the burial chamber.

The inside of the burial chamber was divided into two parts. In the southern sector were placed the remains of a human body that was flexed in a fetal position. In the north sector of the tomb were found three ceramic objects, including two aryballos with Inca-style tap and multicolored decorations. They also found two Spondylus shells and remains of a lama.

According to Narváez, it is impossible to establish the position of this person, but presumably he was an important leader of the Chachapoyas society during the period of Inca domination. He commented that there were offerings in the chamber brought especially from Cusco, but the person buried in the chamber was not necessarily from Cusco, he could have been a local wise man, who had a high position during the Inca administration.

The importance of this discovery is that it allows knowing a new pattern of burials, unlike the traditional Chachapoyas, involving the placement of coffins in a very steep mountain or cliff.

The tomb of the ruling elite of the Chachapoyas culture is located in the southern sector of the wall of the fortress of Kuelap, specifically in the area known as Upper Town (Pueblo Alto).

Kuelap is located 3,000 meters above the sea level in the district of El Tingo, Luya Province in the Amazonas region.

A brief description of the Fortress of Kuelap

Architectural icon of the Chachapoyas Culture, located at 3, 000 meters above the sea level in the district of El Tingo, Luya Province in the Amazonas region, surrounded by a vast wall of up to 20m at its highest point and 680m long. Apart from serving as a residence it also had the following functions: military, agricultural, funeral and religious. It is divided into the upper town (pueblo alto) and lower town (pueblo bajo); in the Fortress we can observe the Templo Mayor, the tower and over 420 round houses. The Fortress was constructed between the years 1000 to 1300 years AD.

Sources:

http://wiki.sumaqperu.com/es/Fortaleza_de_Kuelap

http://www.inkanatura.com/kuelap_chachapoyas.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuelap

http://www.wmf.org/project/kuelap-fortress

GOCTA WATERFALL (CATARATA DE GOCTA )

2010-10-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

I lived in Peru some time, and unfortunately didn't have the possibility to visit it all, but just Lima and Callao. Thanks to Mr. Huaman Quintana, a tourist guide who lives in the North part of Peru, I will present tourist sites that are as interesting as the popular Machu Picchu, Nazca lines and lake Titicaca.

First, I will start with the Gocta waterfall, situated in the Peru's province Chachapoyas in Amazonas (approx. 700 km north-east of Lima), which is the he third tallest free-leaping waterfall in the world after Angel Falls in Venezuela and Tugela Falls in South Africa.

the location of the Province Chachapoyas

According to the sources I found on the internet, some refers that the waterfall was discovered in 2002 by a German, Stefan Ziemendorff, who informed the Peruvian government of its existence, while other sources report that his discover was made public in 2005. On 11 March 2006, following his third expedition to the falls, he held a press conference, the contents of which were published by several of the world's wire services. He stated that the total height was accurately measured at 771 metres (2,530 ft).

Catarata de Gocta, photo sent by Mr. Quintana

Local people knew of its existence but they feared the curse of a beautiful blond mermaid who lived in its waters if they revealed its whereabouts. An ancient myth says that the mermaid keeps a golden bowl which in turn is guarded by a giant serpent.
The waterfall can be reached by walk, starting from Cocachimba, which is situated 6 km from it. The time of walk is of approximately 6 hours; 3 hours to reach the waterfalls and other 3 hours to return back. The other possibility is by car, starting from Chachapoyas, Lamud, which takes one hour and a half.
More detailed information can be given you by Mr. Quintana, who kindly gave me information about that wonderful places, I am describing in my blog. Mr. Quintana can be contacted by mail: kleverman_15@hotmail.com.

To present more accurately the waterfall, I added more photos found on the Internet. The waterfall is so spectacular that it deserves a more detailed presentation.
Enjoy its beauty.

CATARATA DE GOCTA

"O SOLE MIO" A LULLABY FOR MY BABY

2010-10-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

I don't remember exactly when I started to sing "O sole mio" to my daughter, but since the day I did it, she falls asleep very fast and tight. Oh, I am glad I started to sing her that song. But I sing it in Italian, and more precisely in the Neapolitan dialect (Napoli in Italian).

The song goes like this:

Che bella cosa na jurnata 'e sole,
n'aria serena doppo na tempesta!
Pe' ll'aria fresca pare gia' na festa
Che bella cosa na jurnata 'e sole.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!
'O sole, 'o sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te,
sta 'nfronte a te!

Lùcene 'e llastre d''a fenesta toia;
'na lavannara canta e se ne vanta
e pe' tramente torce, spanne e canta
lùcene 'e llastre d'a fenesta toia.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!

Quanno fa notte e 'o sole se ne scenne,
me vene quase 'na malincunia;
sotto 'a fenesta toia restarria
quanno fa notte e 'o sole se ne scenne.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!

I found also a translation of the song on the internet, which goes like this:

My sun

What a beautiful thing is a day of sun,
calm is in the air after a storm!
The air is so fresh it seems already a holiday...
What a beautiful thing is a day of sun!

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

Sparkling are the glasses of your window,
a washlady sings and boast
while she wrings, hangsout and sings.
Sparkling are the glasses of your window!

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

When evening comes and the sun sets,
I am assailed by melanchony......
I will remain under your window,
until is evening and the sun sets.

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

translated by Luisa

Webmaster: Umberto de Fabio
udf@mclink.it on Napoletanita'

Well, I sing the Neapolitan dialect version, because this is the original, and because part of my family is from Avellino, a city near Naples. It is a way to transmit to my daughter one small part of her origins as well.

This song was first published in the 1898 and since than it was interpreted by different singers. I like the version of Enrico Caruso and of course of Luciano Pavarotti.
But it is really curious that my daughter started to like that much this song. I started singing her lullabies that my grandma used to sing to me, such as "Din don dindolon Janja je padla v kanon....": The translation of this part is really difficult, how it will sound in English. But the last part says that I fell into a canon. Don't ask me, why my grandma wanted me to fell into a canon. I never asked her, if she invented this lullaby or her mum sang it to her. Well, I must ask her.

But "O sole mio" lullaby works just fine for my little kid, and besides, I like it so much, it is such a lively song, full of energy and sun, and it makes me remember Napoli and the sunny character of the people there. Well, I never were there in fact, but still are in contact with familiars. It would be nice to go and to know the cities my grandpa lived in before the war.

Naples, Italy

And here goes two links to two versions of the songs:

Enrico Caruso: O sole mio
Luciano Pavarotti: O sole mio

I guess where my daughter got this ear for the opera, but she likes it so much. She sings and dances when she hears opera. We did a small video of here listening to the opera, singing and dancing.

She likes, besides opera, all kind of music, and when there is no music, she sings herself and dances. Kids are incredible.

THE (UN)KNOWN HALLOWEEN

2010-10-18T06:45:00.000-07:00

As October is the month of the now well know Halloween, which is more famous for the costumes, witches, pumpkin, bewitched houses, etc, I wanted to research a little about this festivity.

Everybody knows that it comes from the United States, but very little know the real origins of this custom. I was always intrigued by this peculiar festivity and all the things that surrounded it, so I wanted to check farther and give back a little of its origins.
Halloween known also as Samhain is a Celtic festival which is one of the four major holidays celebrated by the Paleopagan Druids, referred to as "fire festivals". I am quoting this from the internet site The real origins of Halloween. Fire hat of course its importance in many cultures: to the ancient Celts fire was a symbol of divinity, holiness, truth and beauty.
Samhain was the original festival that took place from October, 31 to November, 2. These 3 days were for the Druids the time to connect with the spirit of their loved ones, who passed on the other side, because the spirit of the dead was for them a source of guidance not of fear.
With the coming of Christianity, this festival was turned into Hallowe'en.
Druids, who were a well organised and well structured society, used this three days to practically "go crazy", men dressed as women, women as men, and children knocked on neighbours houses for food and treats.
Samhain, pronounced as sow-an or sow-in, is derived from old Irish, and it means "summer's end" and the beginning of dark and winter. It is the end of one season, and the beginning of the other half of year, dark and cold. It was also the time to make stocks of food for the winter stores.
The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th Century, it is a Scottish variant of "All Hallows Even (evening) or Eve", the night before the Christian All Saints day on November, 1st.
According to Historian Nicholas Roger, men and women used to dress, wearing customs and masks, to ward of harmful spirits. It was believed that on that day, the line between the world of the alive and the dead was thin, and that time, allowed the passage of good and evil spirits.
I found on the internet that there are several theories about Halloween, and all are very interesting. But I found the theory of the internet page, I found, very fascinating. The festival was taken than to North America by the Irish immigrants in the 1846, because of the famine. They brought with them the customs of Halloween. For more details on that, I find an interesting page History.com which brings and interesting article
But I always wondered why people use pumpkins on that festival.

I found these interesting legend on Wiki answers on why people use pumpkins on Halloween:

"700,000 immigrants came to America in the 1800s during the Irish Potato Famine, bringing with them the traditions of Halloween and the use of Jack O Lanterns. Traditionally, the lantern was carved from a turnip, potato, or beet and lit with a burning lump of coal or a candle. These lanterns represented the souls of the departed loved ones and were placed in windows or set on porches to welcome the deceased. They also served as protection against malevolent spirits or goblins freed from the dead. Turnips and gourds were not as readily available in the Americas so the pumpkin was used and found to be quite an adequate replacement. The pumpkin jack o- lantern has been an essential part of Halloween celebrations since the Victorian days and today is a universal symbol of Halloween.

There are many lore's and legends surrounding the origin of the Jack O Lantern. The most popular tale is that of a Nowell Irishman name Jack. Well known for his drunken meanness, Jack got so intoxicated on a Halloween that his soul began to leave his body. The Devil saw an opportunity to claim a victim and promptly came to earth. Jack was desperate to avoid his fate so he begged the Devil to allow him one last drink. The Devil consented but stated that Jack would have to pay for his drink because the Devil carried no money. Jack claimed to only have a sixpence left and asked that the Devil assume the shape of a sixpence to pay for the drink. Then, tab paid, the Devil could change back to himself.

The Devil considered the request reasonable and changed himself into a sixpence. Jack immediately grabbed the coin and put it in his wallet, which had a cross shaped catch. The Devil was unable to get out and began ranting and cursing. They then made a deal that the Devil would be released if he agreed to let Jack alone for one year. The Devil agreed and Jack set forth to reform is behaviour over the next year. It wasn't long before Jack slipped back into his mean, drunken ways and the next All Hallows Eve the Devil appeared to Jack and demanded his soul. Once again, Jack was desperate to save himself and did so by tricking the Devil.

He suggested to the Devil that he may want one of the delicious apples hanging in a tree nearby. He offered to allow the Devil to climb on his shoulders to reach the apples. Once the Devil was in the tree, Jack pulled out a pocket knife and carved a cross in the tree trunk. The Devil could not get out of the tree. Furious and desperate, the Devil offered Jack ten years of peace in exchange for freeing him. Jack insisted that The Devil never bother him again and he would be freed. The Devil resentfully agreed. Jack then returned to his old ways but before the next Halloween, his body gave out and he passed.

He was turned away at the gates of Heaven because of the meanness in his life. The Devil refused him at the gates of hell, stating that he would never bother him again and told him to return from whence he came. To help Jack see on his journey, the Devil threw him a burning lump of coal from hell. Jack put the ember inside of a turnip and it has been Jack's light on his eternal wanderings ever since. To protect oneself from Jack on All Hallows Eve, jack o lanterns were placed on porches and in windows, in hopes that Jack would take the light if needed instead of bothering anyone."

MY DAUGHTER'S FIRST BIRTHDAY

2010-10-14T14:21:00.001-07:00

October, 11 is the day that my little sunshine was born. I still remember the day I went to do my regular monitor check at the hospital and it turned out, that my blood pressure was high, and I had to stay at the hospital the same day. It was Friday, 9 October and the weather was still nice, hot for that months. They had to induce the birth cause the doctor was afraid that the high blood pressure would affect the baby. The do me lots of checks and it resulted that the pressure stabilized and they starting giving me hormones so that the neck of the uterus would mature quickly and that would provoke contractions.

The process was so long to me, it started on Friday afternoon and on Saturday I still didn't have contractions strong enough to give birth. On Sunday morning the doctor decided that it would be the d-day because on Saturday I was too tired to go through all the process. And on Sunday morning, when I slept well, they started in the morning by giving me hormones to start contractions. I wasn't sure about the epidural, but as the contractions went stronger, I decided it would be for the best. And after the epidural, the little one started to knock very quickly so I started to push and at 5.40 p.m she was born.

My daughter right after birth

She was so tiny. My husband was present at the moment of her birth and we both got eyes wet for the great happiness to finally see her. What a day, full of the great emotions possible. It is really a magical event, to see your little baby and to take her into your arms after nine months. It was fantastic to hold her and to see her little body. The emotions that one feels at the moment of birth are indescribable, it is a moment between you, your baby and your beloved husband.
I remember each minute of it. Well, it isn't so far that moment, but still, it is a moment that mother and father remember forever.
From that day it is now one year already and our little miss is a big baby girl.

She is such a lovely kid now, very very stubborn, but very lovely. She has her own character and I can tell she will be a very brave person when grown up. The desire of the parents is that their kids will be nice human beings and will be happy. Their health and happiness are the first.

But it is not easy to be a parent, not at all. Our little miss is a very demanding little person, very curious about everything. But kids are all curious about life, about their surrounding, they are still learning about the world they were born in. Me and my husband are trying to do the best so she will grow up in a healthy and happy person.

CHINESE PAINTING AND PAINTING ON SILK

2010-09-29T14:08:00.000-07:00

When I was studying in the University I was walking every day to the Faculty where I studied Italian, and I was passing by a book shop, where I saw a book on Chinese painting. I passed the book shop by so many times that each time I promised myself that when I had the money I would buy the book. So I did. I bought the book and started to paint.

I painted a lot and I gave many of my paintings to my friends for their birthdays as a present.

Here goes some examples of my paintings.

The inspiration for this painting were the flowers
from my mother's garden. Flowers are my favourite.

The inspiration of this painting were the Slovenian Alps.

This painting was inspired by the tiger on the doors
of the Castle in Prague. If I am not wrong the tiger is of
the Slovene architect Plečnik who did various buildings
and other objects in Prague.

The paintings above are just some of the many I did. This hobby is at the moment on a standby because I am occupied with my translation jobs and with my little daughter, so it really doesn't remain much time for the art.
Besides my Chinese paintings, which technique I will explain on other occasion, I started to paint on silk, when a friend of mine who was always my neighbour in my village and also in the student house, gave me as a present, when I finished my University studies, a box for painting on silk. I never imagined than that I would like so much paint on silk. It is a wonderful hobby. You can make wonderful paintings, and not only paintings, you can paint also cloths and other things to decorate your house. What to paint? Well, there are plenty of things one can use as the inspiration. Mine is the nature. In my opinion, the nature is the best artist, just think of the wonderful things that surround us.
Here are some of my paintings on silk:

I don't need to mention that I was inspired by the sea.
I love the sea and I think it is so relaxing.
This painting makes me feel just at the seaside.
I used the window of a room where I stayed
as a frame to put on the silk and paint.

A dragon, one of my favourite subjects to paint.

And again flowers, the best subject to paint and to decorate a room.

I like to paint on silk for a simple reason that silk gave a special glow to the painting. Besides, throwing salt on the silk, but after you put the colour on the silk, makes fascinating effects, just as the one on the painting with the dragon. It is fascinating, what pieces of art can one do with just some salt. Besides, painting is the best hobby in my opinion, it is so relaxing, and one expresses oneself. Really wonderful. I hope my daughter will love painting just as much as me.

EARNING MY LIVING WITH LANGUAGES

2010-09-28T15:11:00.000-07:00

It is now almost more than 15 years that I make my living out of languages. I started at the University, when I was still a student, studying a two program studies in Italian and journalism. It was not only a two program studies, but also a two Faculties studies, since I had to ping pong myself between the two Universities. My study schedule was really all day long, and sometimes I couldn't manage to attend to all the lectures, it was really impossible, to be at two lectures at the same time or be there in ten minutes, as the bus took half an hour from one Faculty to the other. Oh, those were the days. I wanted interested studies and so it was.
Nowadays my working days are not so moved, as I work from home and I collaborate with several translation agencies. I will name all the agencies I work and worked for.
The first translation agency I worked for was Skrivanek. I started to work for the agency in the 1999, when I was finishing my studies at the University.
Then I worked as a translator for the textile company in Ljubljana, Julon, from 2001 to 2003.
In 2006 I started to work for Optimus lingua translation agency.
In 2007 I started to cooperate also with Julija translation agency and in 2008 I started to work for Alkemist translatio agency, Multilingual and Eurotranslate.
In 2010 I cooperated also with Preteks translation service.
Besides the translation agencies I translated also for private persons and for companies. I translated internet pages into Italian for Bio-pharma, and I translated Instruction manuals for Balavto d.o.o., they are both Slovene companies. I also did simultaneous translation for some Slovene companies.
I still cooperate with most of the agencies. Some of them stopped to cooperate with me, the most of them are still sending me translation projects.
I hope I will cooperate with new agencies in the future or maybe publishing houses. This would be great, to translate also books.
As for the languages I work with, the combinations are the following:
Italian-Slovene, Slovene-Italian, Spanish-Slovene, Slovene-Spanish, English-Slovene, Slovene-English.
Besides the four languages mentioned above, I speak some French and German, an a little Portuguese. I am still learning the three of them. I would like to learn Chinese, but for now I have no time left to learn a new language, maybe in the future.

Languages are great, not only because they help you in your journeys but also for work. Besides they make you understand not only different people, but also different cultures, as cultures and languages are closely linked one to the other.

And as Ludwig Wittgenstein said: "The limits of my language are the limits of my world."

RESEARCHES IN THE YEARS OF STUDIES

2010-09-24T06:31:00.000-07:00

Although I have already finished my studies in 2008 and I have obtained the title of Master of Science, I still remember those days when I was a student of social anthropology at the ISH institute in Ljubljana. I had luck because at that time we had really the best professors possible at our study program. Not only Slovene professors, but also from the United States and Croatia. It was really a great study program and in the time of my studies I had the possibility to know a lot of people to travel for research purposes and make friends.
In these years I did some researches for the subjects we were studying. I will mention below all the researches I did in the years I was still a student in social anthropology.
My researches and their titles. Some are in Slovene, some in English.

Being a tourist:Social suspension of status and social roles. (in Slovene)
Living in Casas particular in Cuba and the beginning of fictive kinship.(in Slovene)
Prekmurje in Tourist texts: the white storks and the melancholic, dreamy, mysterious, calm landscape of the forgotten region. (in English)
Travelling: In search of paradise. (in Slovene)
Slovene tourist industry from Socialism to Post-socialism: Tourism as a media to create the national image.
People in the photos of the magazine "Horizont": Camera lens as the weapon of culture/cultural power. (in Slovene)
Cuba: Female sex tourists and "jineteros": the disguised power of the "Other" over the eroticized body of the "Exotic Other".
Minorities from the Former Yugoslavia between the improper media definition and the ostrich state policy. (in Slovene)
The research method using porno videos as a fieldwork. Very interesting indeed. We were analysing the concept of racism in porn movies, especially what concerns women in the industry. Unfortunately the records of this research are saved on a diskette that are nowadays obsolete.

And finally, the greatest and most important research I did to finish my studies and get my Master, was the research I did in Colombia. Thanks to my friends in Colombia, mostly in the region Valle del Cauca, in Cali, I could carry out my research. Without their help, I would have been lost there. I could finish it in time and I hope a did a good job there. The result of that has the following title:

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AND QUALITY OF LIFE:THE CASE OF VALLE DEL CAUCA, COLOMBIA

sugar cane in the Cauca Valey (Valle del Cauca)

ARTICLES THAT WERE PUBLISHED:

In the magazine MONITOR, they published in 2007 my article in English: CONSTRUCTION OF URBAN AND NON-URBAN SPACES IN TRAVEL MAGAZINE PHOTOGRAPHS
In the magazine MONITOR, it was published in 2008 an article out of a research I did for the University. Its title is: MINORITIES FROM FORMER YUGOSLAVIA CAUGHT BETWEEN THE MEDIA AND THE POLICY OF THE STATE

29.5.2009 - It's a girl!

2009-06-17T08:01:00.000-07:00

I was in the 21. week when me and my husband had the second ultrasound in the Hospital. I was pretty excited and preoccupied if everything would be fine with the baby. This was my principal preoccupation. And of course, we were curious whether our baby is a boy or a girl. As I didn't do all the tests I was worried how would everything go. And because telling the truth I was never fond of hospitals and doctors, and now I have to do lots of exams. But the ultrasound is always the must exciting part of this exams. Me and my husband were watching every move of the baby. It was really amazing. When the doctor said that everything is ok with the baby, wow, I was relieved. And finally the question if she can see if it is a boy or a girl. The doctor said the baby is a girl. A little GIRL. We were both very excited and my husband couldn't stop smiling.
And here are some pics of our little girl.

In this photo is her little nose, her lips and her chin, than her belly and her little arms. Pretty amazing. Her belly is big, of course, she eats fine food.

Here is our little angel seen from the profile: her big head, her arms and her legs. At the ultrasound we saw that she was touching her feet with her little fingers. She is a little athlete. My husband said that he could saw how she was opening her mouth. She was practising breathing and suction.
We received several photos of our little, but we do not understand all of them. I am still studying what all this letters and measurements mean. In the following photo for example I have no idea what is seen, or is her face or is her entire body.

To me looks more her face, but who knows, it can be her entire body, depends how you look at her. But the most important thing is that she is doing fine and developing normally. Hope she continues like this. My brother in law said that he dreamt that our baby was born and it was fat. Well, better than too skiny.
We also decided about the name yet, we will call her Angelica Gabriela. Hope she will like her name too. But when we call her that way, she doesn't kick me, so it means that she likes it. She kick when she doesn't like something, some sounds, some music, or when I put the laptop too close to the belly. The other day she gave strong kicks, when my husband put his ear on the belly to hear her movements. And she kicked strongly. She already has his gymnastic hours in the morning, afternoon and in the evening. Even before I go to sleep and I caress the belly, she starts to move. It is incredible, now I can fell her movements every day. Before I felt her movement only here and there. But I am happy to feel her move, so I know she is fine and healthy and does her exercises. Good job girl. Pap is proud of you too.

The surprising news and the first ultrasound of the baby

2009-06-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

It was in February this year when me and my husband were still in Peru, when we received the news that we did not expect at all. I thought I has some kind of inflammation of the urinary system and the menses did not appear. I never even thought it would be something else than the inflammation, as I had no symptoms of pregnancy. So after wondering what can be, we finally decided that is time to visit the doctor. I explained the doctors my symptoms and the fact that I have a delay in the menses. He just ask about the delay and first thing he sent me to do the blood test.
We have to wait one hour to collect the results of the blood test to see what it is. After one hour we got the results and took it to the doctor. He examined the results and said:"There is no doubt miss, you are pregnant. As you can see you are six week pregnant."
Woooooowww I thought, PREGNANT. Uhhhh, I didn't expect that, and my husband neither, so we just look at each other and said: Pregnant? Well and now what.
The doctor recommended us some examinations and of course the ultrasound to see how the baby is doing. As first time parents we had no idea what to do first, exams or ultrasound, and where to live with the baby.
I did the transvaginal ultrasound on the 16th March, when we see for the first time our little baby. Here is the first pic of our baby.
This small and fat little person above is our baby. here we can see his big head and big belly and small feet. Hehheehe, yes, it seems that it will be fat our little baby. Fortunately all was well and that ultrasound, we heard for the first time the beat of her heart. It was really a crazy experience to hear this strong heartbeat 150 times per minute. And she was 33 mm long or high. High, long, well, so to speak, 33 mm is very very small.
And the expected date of her birth is 10 ocbtober. But this is just an aproximate date they gave you according to the measurements.
But before I did the first exam to see what I had, just some days before that day, I dreamt my grandfather who I never saw in my life, because he deceased some months before my birth. I only know him from the photos my mum and my grandmother showed me. He was my mum's father, and was from Italy, from Avellino.
To return back to my incredible dream. I met him in the capital of my country, in Ljubljana, he was well dressed and was wearing a hat. He seemed seren and pleased. He invited me to to eat sweets. I asked him about his family about the Nazzaro and he wrote me a brief story of the family, but the only thing I could read was prison, 3 year and a name, Enzo. Before he left, he said to me: And don't forget to visit the doctor.
And so I did and received the incredible news. The interesting thing is that our baby will be born, according to the ultrasound, in the same month that my grandfather was born and also died.

Cerro La Regla - 1.2.2009

2009-02-09T11:24:00.000-08:00

One hot Sunday in the month of February, my husband and his friend had a great idea to show me one of the hills in the surroundings of Lima, which is also an archaeological site. I was curious to see that famous hill, because my husband told me, how bad his country treats such sites, as this place was completely robbed, and all you see, says my husband, are rests of the pre-Hispanic cemetery. He told me that some groups of people use to go to the hill Cerro la Regla to perform rituals. I was curious to see that place, so we met up with his friend, who lives just near the hill, and went together to visit the place.

I must say I was astonished to see in how bad conditions the housings were in the part before you reach the local cemetery, which is part of the Municipality Callao. I wondered why they don't construct streets in that part. Once reached the cemetery, I was astonished even more to see how the cemetery looks like. I've never seen something like that.

From the cemetery the path leads uphill. On the left you see the cemetery, and the city above, and on the right, on one top there are illegal housings, where they have no water or electricity. There are even tombs covered with stones and garbage.

The beginning of the path is unfortunately covered with garbage, and in this period of time, summer, it smells really awful. I guess why they don't clean up this path, as this site is supposed to be an archeological site, protected by Law.

Well, if this is the way, how cultural heritage is treated, I thought, this is really a shame for the country. And look at this garbage.

And on the hill near this garbage there is an illegal human settlement, which most probably is the cause of this garbage.

Passing the garbage and the sign saying this is a cultural heritage, in 20 minutes of very slow walk. Well my walk, cause it was terribly hot that day. At the top of the Cerrlo la Regla, there is a statue of Virgin Santa Rosa. People come to the hill, to thank the Virgin and to pay contribute, some come to the hill to perform strange rituals.

believers visiting the statue of Virgen Santa Rosa

rests of a ritual, performed recently on the hill Cerro la Regla

From the hill it is possible to see the sea, and the air plane landing at the nearby airport in Callao.
And the view from the Cerro la Regla of the surroundings:

My husband found some really old and well preserved cloths that should be in the museum, and studied to see from which time are they, and to whom they belonged.

Why this rests are left there and not in a museum is a question I cannot answer, and neither can the Ministry of Culture, as in Peru it does not exit yet. Maybe this is why some archaeological sites are not preserved, or worse, are robbed and destroyed, while the Peruvian government is bothering with the question to open a Ministry of Culture or not. Why bother when some items can be sold for a really high price, even from Museums. Very sad for a country that claims to have one of the oldest cultures in the world.

15.12.2008 - Callao: The Real Felipe Fortress

2009-01-25T15:06:00.000-08:00

After we finally had all the papers and we decided our wedding day on that day, my husband and I went to visit the Real Felipe Fortress, which is situated near the Offices where we were arranging all the papers. The day was nice and sunny so it was perfect for a visit to the Fortress, we passed by so many times and never had the chance to visit. But that day, we decided to spent a really nice time visiting the Fortress. There were only a small group of tourist awaiting the guide to take us around the Fortress, which takes approx. 2 hours.

The Real Felipe Fortress in Callao

The Fortress was built between the years 1747 and 1778. It has an extension of 70 thousand m2, it was made of masonry (mixture of sand, lime and guano-producing seabirds' white egg)in accordance with French Luis Godin design, to defend Callao from pirates and corsairs. The Fortress it is also known as "Castle of Callao" and it is the biggest military construction made by the Spaniards in America. In 1866, during the battle of "Dos de mayo" (May 2nd) it became the country's main defencein the armed confrontation against Spain.
The Fortress keep fascinating stories from different periods of the Peruvian military history. Inside the Fortress the guide take you to visit the Artilery Park, the Knight of Twelve Cannons, the Governor's house, the House of the Answers, the Queen's Tower and the King's Tower, it displays various objects (uniforms and weapon of the Peruvian militia). Today it is the Peruvian Army Museum.

The Artillery Park (Parque de la Artilleria)

The Artillery Park displays cannons used by the Peruvian Army in different historic periods. Amongst some of the models shown, there are 75-mm Schneider cannons (French manufacture), 20 and 30-mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft guns (Swedish), 40-mm Bofor multi-purpose artillery, 105-mm M-3 North-American howitzer, 20-mm automatic Breda cannons, etc.

The Knight of Twelve Cannons (El Caballero de los Doce Canones)

The Cannons were an element of the Real Felipe's defensive system. Like the fortified towers, it had the mission to become an impenetrable fort in case of enemy's occupation, which would be counterattacked from here.
Located on the upper part of the Governor's House, obviously for defense, it has 12 cannons, pointing to the four sides, it had three lines of retreat, each one with cannons pointing at possible invaders.

The Museum of Ancient Weapons (Oploteca)
This space used for the Museum of ancient weapons was originally known as cistern and water deposit. It stored water to satisfy the needs of the Fortress for a period of several weeks, as it had a filling-water system from the surrounding pit.

Currently the Museum keeps the collection of portable weapons of the Army Museum. In the first room , we can see handguns and revolvers which used muzzleloading and sparkling system up to the semi-automatic modern ones. In the second room we can see the development of the long weapons such as rifles and carabines and in the third room, we can see the accompanying weapons: machine guns, grenade launchers and mortars.

The Governor's House (La casa del Gobernador)

The Governor's house was destined to give accomodation to the office in comand of the Fortress. It is located beneath the Knight of Twelve Cannons; it had the Spanish kings coat of armes carved on its fromnt, but when General Don Jose de Sam Martin took over the Fortress, he ordered to erase it. Later, he decided that it was better if it remained as a memory of the job that was done.
In the Governor's house we can find references to different periods, starting with the native army of the Incas Empire; then the colony, eminent people and precurors or the independence and the heroes of the republican army, as well as the patrons of each weapon and speciality of the Peruvian Army.

the entrance in the Governor's House

the chapel inside the Governor's house

Inside the house it is possible to see also:

The House of the Answers (Casa de la Respuesta)

The House of the Answers is a replica of the front part of the existing house located in Arica (today, the Peruvian Consulate) which in the year 1880 served as a headquarters of the Peruvian troops in charge of the defence of that city. In the House we find a copy of the Board of officers called by Francisco Bolognesi in the morning of June 5th, 1880, known as the "Day of the Response": Tell your officer in command that I have a sacred duty to fulfill, Arica does not surrender, I feel proud of my men and we will fight until we burn the last round."

On one side of the House of Answers we can find the Monument to the Unknown Soldier, which pays tribute to all soldiers who have given their lives for their homeland in the various wars of our history. It is represented by a soldier of the time of the war against Ecuador (1941) and as its identity remains unknown, it does not have a face.

The Queen's and the King Tower (El Torreon de la Reina y el Torreon del Rey)

The King's Tower

The Qeens Tower was considered as part of the defensive scheme of Real Felipe, similar to the King's Tower, it was a Fortress inside a fortress. The fortified towers had two missions; they were the strong poits to the concentration of the artillery that was able to shoot at 360 degrees of direction and at the same time they could isolate from the rest of the Fortress. In case the enemies got inside the main area, the fortified towers closed their doors and lifted their access bridges, and then they were able to continue their fights against the attackers and move them out. For this purpose the Queen's tower was equipped with ammunition deposits, provisions and it even had its own water well (which contains water still nowadays).
One of the most interesting detail is the dangeon. It has a semi cirular shape, where the prisoners could hardly stand up and they had to spend all the time in utter darkness. In the middle of the semi circle there was the room of the Guards, with small holes to listen to any comment made by the prisoners and to take advantage of such information. The holes had a special round shape to avoid the entrance of the light and people could not realize that they were beign heard.
At the beginning the Queen's Tower has two levels with cannon platforms, however it was modified at the time of the war against Chile (1879 - 1883), to defend the port of Callao., so the upper level was eliminated and four platforms were prepared to host revolving cannons. On of them still exists in the Museum.

The King's tower had three levels (base, supporting pilar and baywindow), and there are cannon platforms in two of them, the first one has 24 iron cannons and the second one has 8 brass cannons.
It has all the services that made possible to resist in case the fortress was attacked. The access bridge can be raised,so that once it is lifted, it is almost impossible to reach the door. The internal construction has a labyrinth shape to confound those who tried to get inside.
At the time fo the war with Chile the tower was modified, the upper levels were eliminated, two platforms were mounted to host revolving cannons. Time and the earthquakes that took place in the past ruined it, nevertheless it has been recently restored to its original shape.
From the King's tower it is possible to see the two isles, one used as a prison, and the seaside.

Nowadays the Castle is a manor base of the Peruvian Army and a Museum. Some areas are still under construction, as they are going to extend the Museum.
The text about the Fortress was found in the leaflet about the Fortress that the visitors receive when visiting the fortress. For more information visit the page:
http://www.regioncallao.gob.pe

29.11.2008 - Visit to the center of Lima

2009-01-09T14:50:00.000-08:00

While we were arranging the papers for our marriage, me and my now spouse, were wondering around the centre of Lima and doing some tourism. After I received my papers legalized from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Lima, we visited some interesting places and buildings. I am not a church person, but churches here are architecturally very interesting, both from inside and outside.

inside of the Church of Senor de los milagros, La Nazarena

This is how the Church of Senor de los Milagros, known as la Nazarena, looks like:

It looks really great. And below is the image of the Senor de los milagros that is celebrated in the month of October.

Senor de los milagros

The month October is dedicated to the Senor de los milagros, and usually women wear a drees in dark purple colour for the entire month as a sign of devotion. People here are for the most catholics, but they are part of different churches. I saw so many churches that I cannot even count them. It is a usual practice to have in the house a corner where to put Mother Mary or the image of Jesus and to light a candle. This custom means that you show your devotion and respect to the saints and besides you ask for protection. It is also custom to light the candle near the image of someone that has passed away as I sign that you remember them and pray for them. My husband does so every night. At the beginning it looked strange to me, but I get used to it and now is something perfectly normal.
In the theme of Churches and their stories, below is the Church of Father Urraca, who is said that faught against the devil and passed threw the wall and won of course.

Church of Father Urraca

Apart from interesting churches with their particular stories, the city center is interesting also for his balconies that embellish old buildings.

I like the colours of the houses as well, they really give a different touch to the city life. The city centre is also picturesque, I like the yellow colour of the buildings near the main square, Plaza de Armas.

Near the Govern Palace there is a Train station, but it is not used. It remembers the main train station in my country in Ljubljana.

The train station in Lima

Near the train station there is the Giron Ancash, a street where you can find interesting shops with artesanal products of the country. We took a photo to make them a little publicity.

The shops look really interesting and colourful and the products are of high quality, one can find nice gifts to give back home to friends and family. I don't like the usual souvenirs, better something than one can use.
Another interesting part to visit in the city centre is the antique wall built as a defensive structure and the first housing of the city, that are visited by schools mainly, because they are part of the history of the city and of the country.

From this part where the wall stands it is possible to see the favelas near the city. They look nice because the municipality had them painted and connected the electricity, because before that they didn't have electricity.

San Cristobal seen in the background

The city is full of contrasts, from nice parts of the city to poor parts of the city, like this one.
We ended our one day trip visiting this little nice corner of the city, which captured my attention for the colours and for the history of this part of the city.

Hospicio para Mujeres Vergonzantes - Hospice for Shamefaced Women,
A ladies' hostel that the civil wars and the war with Chile impoverished.
The statue in front of the building is of the father Binthillac, the founder
of the Pontificia Universidad Católica of Perú.

Church Recoleta at the French square (Plaza Francia)
In the square it is situated also the the commemorative badge
to the French admiral Bergasse du Petit Thouars,
for his participation in the defense of Lima during
the Chilean occupation in 1880.

18.11.2008 - Visit to the Parque de la Exposicion and Museo de Arte italiano

2008-12-16T10:47:00.000-08:00

On my third day in Peru, me and my dear went to Lima, to the Parque de la Exposicion. The day was just perfect for wondering around that wonderful park, which is described as one of the nicest in Lima. And I can confirm that this is absolutely true. Besides it is perfect for couples, you can spend there an entire day. The Park is situated in the center of Lima, delimited by the avenues Beatriz Walked Columbus, Wilson, Paseo de la República and 28 de Julio in the quarter Santa Beatriz.
Below are some photos of the Parque de la Exposicion:

Fuente China (Chinese Fountain)

was donated by the Chinese colony in memory
of the centenary of the Chinese immigration to Peru.

Pabellón Bizantino (Byzantine pavilion)
constructed during the government of Augusto B. Leguía

Museo de la Nación (Museum of the Nation)

Pabellón morisco (Moorish pavilion)
constructed during the government of Augusto B. Leguía

The location of the park at present was occupied by the south door of the walls of Lima, known as Guadalupe's Door (Puerta de Guadalupe). When in the years 1870s the president José Balta arranged the demolition of these walls, within his plan of modernization of the city it was planned that this location would be destined for the construction of a park that would lodge the International Exhibition of Lima of 1872. This way, together with the Park, it was constructed the Palace of the Exhibition (currently the Museum of Art of Lima).

After the visit to the Park, we decided to go to the Museo de arte italiano (Museum of Italian Art), because there was an exhibition "Del mito al sueño" (From the myth to the dream) of Dali, Rodin, Degas, de Chirico, Renoir, Bourdelle.

about the exhibition

Below are some photos of the Exhibition:

The Thinker by Auguste Rodin

My favorite pieces of art, the sculptures of Salvador Dali:

Nobility Of Time by Salvador Dali

Homage to Terpsichore by Salvador Dali

Space Venus by Salvador Dali

And some facts about the museum:
The Museum of Italian arts opened its doors on the 3rd March 1924. It is situated in the second block of the Paseo de la República, in front of the Paseo de los Héroes Navales. This building was constructed and donated by the Italian colony in Peru to the country to commemorate the centenary of its independence in the 1921.
The exhibition was very impressive, in one place so many great artists' works. But my favorite artist is certainly Dali. I saw one of his exhibitions in Venezia (Venice), Italy. They exposed just his paintings. Really great peaces of art.

17.11.2008 Finally with my dear in my new home

2008-12-14T14:15:00.000-08:00

me unpacking my stuff

Finally, in our room unpacking my stuff. I put everything in small plastic bags, and push out the air, so the cloths take less space in the bags. This way of packing is also very useful when you find your luggage all wet at the end of your plane travel. That is what happened to my poor bags, but fortunately no big damage. Besides, I was too happy to be finally in me new home and with my fiance, after so long.

finally with my dear Mario

I was so happy to see him at last, after all that months that we spent apart, communicating only on the messenger. It felt great to be finally at his side in our new, small home, together with his two brothers. One of them is a cook, and one Sunday, when he was free, he cooked us a very tasty "ceviche", a typical Peruvian food, made with raw fish, marinated in lemon juice.

"ceviche" prepared by my brother-in-law, Diego

That tasty plate of ceviche looks really delicious, and you can trust me, it was delicious. Compliments to the chef de la cuisine, my brother-in-law. And below is us, all the family, tasting our delicious meal on Sunday, one day in the week that we all eat together.

eating "ceviche"

Well, that is all of the family, me, our chef Diego at the left, my darling Mario at the very right, and my other brother-in-law, sited next to me on the right. My darling took that photo in black and white. That is our living room, modest, but comfortable. It needs a little make over, but slowly. We are going to do a little make over before our wedding, which will be very modest too, we both hate the big ceremonies with hundreds of people. Small and nice is more our stile.
The first days in my new country were nice, I spent it visiting Lima and knowing better Santa Rosa, the place we stay in. In the photo below is the view of our neighborhood from our apartment.

Santa Rosa, Avenida Pacasmayo

This is what we see, when we go out. All the houses in that part look like that. Same size and same color.

the view from our living room

We have security grates on the windows to prevent robbery, you never know. The boys said they were robbed already, and the robbers took their vacuum cleaner and a few small things. Security here is so so, you must be very watchful. And the other thing bothering me is the dirt. People throw stuff away whenever, parks, roads, something that I am not used to see, because the most European cities and places are clean. Well, one can find dirty cities also in Europe, like Milan for example. Apart from that, the other thing that is a shock for me is the transportation. I am used to that small buses from Colombia, but still, I am surprised how people know which bus to take to go to places. But in the end I am just a little time here and still learning.
I was almost forgetting one member of our family, our dog Europa.

our dog Europa

This cute doggy Europa, well known as Europita, is a sweet 5-year female dog, that my darling took from the street. He found her and her sister abandoned in the street and took them home. Her sister found a new family outside the city, and this cute dog stayed with them. She is really sweet and good mannered and very obedient. I spoil her of course, because poor animal must go out very often, but the boys seems not to understand that. Shame on them. Hehehe, they are also reading my blog, so I hope they will take her out more often.

16.11.2008 - Finaly in Peru

2008-12-04T11:47:00.000-08:00

After a week, spent with my new family, well, with part of it, I took my flight to Peru. Below is me with my mother-in-law, at the time of our farewell, before leaving to Peru.

me and my mum-in-law, Rosa

I spent a wonderful weak with my new family that is way saying goodbye was so difficult for all of us. And below is my brother-in-law, who showed me around Madrid and its nice places and told me a lot about the history of the places we visited.

my brother-in-law, Fernando

After our farewell, I took the plane to my new country. That day I spent most of my travel in the sky, watching the clouds in the sky. It is fantastic to think that one is so high in the sky that can watch down on the clouds. It feels like clouds diving.

Clouds over the Atlantic Ocean

And finally after more than 9 hours of flight over the Atlantic Ocean, we saw land. In the photo below it is Venezuela. That means we are closer to my destination.

Venezuela from the sky

After more than 11 hours of flight, the airplane stopped first in Cali, where they filled the airplane with gasoline, check if it is ok, and cleaned the inside. Never had a technical stop so it was interesting to see what they do.

Cali airport

The stop in Cali made me remember my stay in Cali, in February, 2007, when I was doing a research in sustainable tourism in the Valle del Cauca region. What memories. It was a very pleasant stay, because my friends from Colombia helped me a lot with my research and my stay. I felt like at home. I was wondering, as I was near Peru, what will be like to stay there and to live there. Reading about a country is one thing, but staying there is another story. As a tourist you never see certain things of the country, certain aspects, that are not of your concern, as you only wish to have a pleasant stay and see as many interesting things as possible. So I wondered what will be the difference, how will I perceive the country, the people, and finally what will I feel staying so far from my country and my family and friends.
To returning back to my travel, after this one hour stop in Cali, we finally reached after 45 minutes, the capital of Colombia, Bogota, where I took my plane to Lima. In this four hours that I had to wait for the plane to Lima, I stayed in one restaurant at the airport remembering my stay in Colombia, the year before, and wondering how my friends are doing.
My travel was pleasant also because I met nice people, had a chat with them. Traveling always reveal a part of ourselves that we never thought we have, we open up to others, especially when travelling alone, because you need to talk to someone in your travel. And it is interesting to met new people and hear their stories. The people I met told me that they live in Europe and go back to their countires just to visit their families and to go to shopping, as dresses are cheaper in their home countries. The majority of them go to live to Europe to find a good job and send money back to their families, as in their home countries it is difficult to find a good paying job and do a good living. This is something a wanted to check out for my self, how is the situation in the country I will stay in. How is life there, how are the people, jobs, life quality. And I was just a few hours from discovering all of that, but especialy to see my fiance, who was the real reason of my travel to Peru.

Me coming threw the door at Lima airport

After three hours of flight, waiting in the queue to get my stamp for my 90 days tourist visa. I had no problem for that and got my 90 days tourist visa. But I had to wait for my luggage for more than half an hour, and I found it a little damaged and wet, because in Bogota it was raining. Thankfully the cloths were not damaged or wet, because I always pack them in plastic bags for that reason. And after more than 19 hours of flight and waiting, I made my first step in my new country.

8.11.2008 - 15.11.2008 Wondering around Madrid - Plaza España

2008-12-02T17:33:00.000-08:00

Plaza España

Me and my mother-in-law decided, on the second day of my stay in Madrid, to visit the center of the city. This square on the picture above is one of the biggest in Madrid, and is as nice to visit by day as by night, but by night it is something spectacular because of the lights of the city. and the games of light. This Plaza is situated near the Palacio Real (Royal Palace), which I visited with my brother-in-law. He is a fan of the history and explained everything about the history of the buildings in the city and about the most famous places there.

Royal Palace

The Royal Palace or the Palacio Real de Madrid is the official residence of the King of Spain, but he does not reside in this big palace, but in the smallest Palacio de la Zarzuela, on the outskirts of Madrid. The construction of this Palace started in the 1738 and it ended in the 1755. It was built on the location of the previous Old Castle, that burnt down on Christmas Eve in the 1734.

But to return to our Plaza, on the day we visited it, there was a market place just between the Fountain in the photo and near the Monument to Cervantes. The market was represeting craftworks from different South American countries. After checking out each stand from different countries, you know women curiousity to see just everything (but we forgot to take pics, of course, too much to see), we visited the Monument to Miguel Cervantes, writer of the famous Don Quixote de la Mancha and his trusty squire, Sancho Panza. I remeber I was watching, as a small girl, a cartoon about Don Quixote and Sancho Panza and their adventures and their fights against the mills. The book is really amuzing, and now that I speak Spanish, I must take courage to read it in the original language. Well but that day we don't have to fight against mills, but just against technology to take the best pic by night.

Monument to Cervantes

And below is the photo of my mother-in-law, standing between Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. She looks worried cause it was hard to get where she stands to take a photo. But this exact point is quite famous for photo shooters, in fact a small queue was waiting to do just the same. Well, who doesn't want to appear near this two characters of the novel.

After visiting the nicest spots in Madrid, my time with part of my family in law ended and my travel continued on the 15th November to my new home country, to Peru.

8.11.2008 - 15.11.2008 Wondering around Madrid - Visit to El Retiro

2008-11-24T13:53:00.000-08:00

One nice and relaxing tour in Madrid is to visit El Retiro (Jardines del Retiro de Madrid), which is an enormous park of 118 hectares that was once owned and enjoyed just by the royalty. Nowadays this park is a really great spot, where one can spent and entire day, especially in summer. It is a Central Park of Madrid, very pleasant, also in November, with the cold, one can enjoy its beauty.

Fuente de los Galapagos - Galapagos fountin

The Galapagos fountin in the Park was constructed in 1832 to celebrate the birth of the queen Isabel II.

The statue seen at the end of this nice lagoon, situated in the Park, is the Monument to Alfonso XII, that the queen Maria Cristina had ordered to do in honor of her deceased husband. This nice lagoon can be seen also by boat, that you can rent there. Apart from countless Statues and Monuments dedicated to the kings of Spain and also Queens, as is the Galapagos fountin, there are also nice Palaces in the Park. One of them is the Velazquez Palace (Palacio de Velazquez).

Palacio de Velazquez

The Velazquez Palace was built between 1881 and 1883 as a central pavilion of the National Exhibition of of Mining, Metallurgical Arts, Ceramics, Glassware and Mineral Waters, which were celebrated in Madrid between May and November, 1883.

I was particularly fascinated by the painting of the pavilion, as you can see in the picture below.

Another really spectacular Palace in the Park is Crystal Palace (Palacio de Cristal). Really awsome, as you can see from the picture below.

Palacio de Cristal

In front of the Crystal Palace there is a wonderful fountain and trees in the warm red autumn colours, really awsome. The red trees are growing in the water. A pretty awsome view.

fountain n front of the Crystal Palace

Another amazing, but almost night view of the Crystal Palace.

Palacio de Cristal

The Crystal Palace was built in the 1887, it served as a pavilion to lodge exotic plants brought for the purpose of the General Exhibition of the Philippines, which was celebrated in that year in Madrid.

This park is amazing, and my guide, my brother-in-law was so gentle to accompany me to this wonderful place and told me a lot about its history and the monuments. A really must see place without a doubt.

8.11.2008 - 16.11.2008 On my way to Peru - Wondering around Madrid

2008-11-24T12:05:00.000-08:00

My travel to Peru started at the Italian railway station in Gorizia, where I took the train to Milan, and once in Milan another train to the Malpensa airport. Fortunately that day Italians didn't decide to strike, which is often the case, and getting somewhere is difficult, especially in Milan. But my luck I could get to the airport in time and there took the plane to Madrid.
Madrid's airport Barajas is good connected with the city, taking the metro. When I stepped out of the Terminal one, my new family was already waiting for me, my future mother and brother-in-law. It was nice to see them both there waiting for me, and to meet them finally. It was a very emotional moment. From there we took the metro to get to the apartment. I spent with them a wonderful one week, it was short to know my new family well, but good to have the possibility to know them at last, after my fiance spoke so much about them. They were both very kind with me, and took time to take me around.

With my mum-in-law we went to the Puerta del Sol in Madrid, where it is situated the statue of the bear and the tree ( "El Oso y El Madroño"), which is the symbol of Madrid. Apart from the bear, there are other two symbols of Madrid, namely PUERTA DE ALCALA is a kind of Arch of Triumph erected by Sicilian artist Francesco Sabatini in the XVIII century, and the fountain CIBELES, a Phrygian Goddess representing the fertility.

Puerta de Alcala - the second symbol of Madrid

In the Square of Puerta del Sol there is also the so called kilometer zero ("kilometro cero"), situated near the street, where is this nice building in the photo, just the opposite where the statue with the bear is situated.
In lot of countries kilometer zero is the geographic location from which start the streets, and from which one can measure the distances. It is usually situated in the center of the square. This is of course not the center of Spain, but just the place where streets start, as I was told by my mum-in-law.

kilometro cero in the Puerta del Sol Square

This inscription is not so easy to find, one must look down and where is a group of people standing in the circle and looking down, saying wooow and taking photos. Well, one must be practical :)).
The day I wondered around with my mum-in-law there were celebrations in the Plaza Mayor. They were doing folkloric Spanish dances and the Square was full with people. That day, the 9 of November, they celebrate the patron saint of Madrid, the Virgin Almudena. People get out in the streets, they put on the vests once used. It is really interesting to see olders with their vests of old days dancing in the streets with such a passion.
The streets that day were crowded. On the net you will read that the celebration take place in the Plaza de la Almudena, where is situated the Almudena Cathedral.

On the left is an image taken by night, of the Almudena Cathedral, situated near the Royal Palace. It take 100 years to construct this magnificent Cathedral, that Carlos V proposed to built in 1883. The Cathedral was finally consecrated in the 1993 by the Pope John Paul.