Comments on: we just have to laugh (if we aren’t crying)

By: Betty Bone

Betty Bone — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:17:59 +0000

Wow, such frustration. I’m so glad it worked out. I can only imagine how much it would have sucked to have to come back before you were ready. You really seem to have a family of people who are willing to jump through hoops to help you live your dream. I’m sure your boss’ letter was only slightly exaggerated. I for one know how hard you work! I love the other frustrations. I can only imagine how hard they are to deal with but how great they are because they are the true experiences of living in a different culture. I laughed so hard at the blue pen comment. I get so crazy when people use blue pens! I hate them! Ha. Keep the posts coming…even the ones that aren’t as happy as others. They are part of the experience you will one day share with your kids. And then when your old, they will share with you.

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:56:12 +0000

If it makes you feel any better, I know people who have waited for years (!!!) to get a visa… Others who gave up after years (!!!) of being denied.

By: Kelly Larbes

Kelly Larbes — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:45:23 +0000

Vladimir: I like your comparison of ridiculous bureaucracy and total anarchy. I feel like so many things here are great paradoxes. I hope the paperwork situation works out soon. I hate hearing how EVERYONE has problems; at least we know we aren’t alone.

Marina: I think the sitting fee is a common “foreigners’ tax” on the coast in the summer months. We didn’t notice it much when we arrived in April and haven’t noticed it this month either.

Kim: It always feels so good to know that people enjoy reading the blog. Sometimes we feel disconnected from home and family, which is the hardest part about being here; this really helps us let everyone know what we are doing here and it is always great to hear from people.

Nomadic Neil: I agree that some of the things I see as negative can be seen as positive too (which is why I said some things belong on my frustration’s and my favorite’s list). And no matter how good I know it is for me to walk everywhere, sometimes it is hard to break old habits of just wanting to jump in a car and arrive quickly. Some days I absolutely love it though. That’ll be my next blog post: the things I love about here!

Paula: I’m so proud of us! And I definitely don’t ever forget about all the advantages of living here.

Kyky: Thanks for the shopping tips. We will definitely check out these stores when we are on a bus trek out that way some day. They are so close, yet so far away.

By: Janell

Janell — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 08:05:31 +0000

Great post. Here’s to y’all plugging on!

By: Kyky

Kyky — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:30:44 +0000

Hi Kelly, great blog – just a little heads up for you on the shopping front ….. deli style turkey has yet to be found but deli style ham is available in Lidl and makes a pretty good substitute. Cheddar cheese is often sold in Billa near the hospital and sometimes in InterSpar out in Kastela. Hope it helps !!

By: Paula Babic

Paula Babic — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:21:11 +0000

As Ive said to you both before, I honestly take my hat off to you for been brave and adventureous to come on this journey so far away from home… I grew up with the croatian culture in Australia (mum still doesnt speak english after 43 years there!) and I still get frustrated at times with my beloved homeland, but like you, the ‘good stuff’ for now still outweights the ‘not-so-good-stuff’. My ID card took 5months, not 3 weeks as it should have… the lady dealing with my application decided I was a ‘foreigner’… I have 100% croatian blood in my veins.
BUT… the good stuff… in Perth I drive everywhere… Id never run more than 10minutes… here Im running thru Marjan, uphill, for 60minutes with Kelly, thanx for the motivation ‘mate’! In Perth freinds would catch up every few weeks, everyone was always busy… here we cook each other lunch and dinner on ‘weeknites’, we pass each other onthe street during our workday and have time to stop and talk over a coffee… growing up on the Indian Ocean somehow Id never learnt to swim, but here my friend has has me swimming in the deep waters of the Adriatic, means more to me than you could know Don!…In Perth I had all the ‘things’ I wanted, beautiful house, luxury car, 42″ plasma, well paid job… but now Im very clear on what things in lie matter, and what things just collect dust… the things money can buy are indeed nice, but they do at the end of the day simply collect dust… mine are doing that in Perth now… while Im here living life in Croatia :). Kelly and Jay youre doing fantastic here, and Christmas will be a wonderful time here for us all to share together.

By: NomadicNeil

NomadicNeil — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:23:59 +0000

Hey thanks for commenting on my blog.

It’s interesting that some of the things that you find it difficult to cope with are what others would consider positive.

High taxes, but then it’s not the most indebted country in the world as the USA is.

Shops aren’t always open which means people in the service industry and retail aren’t forced to work unsocial hours.

People walk and cycle to shops and aren’t the most obese people in the world or the heaviest polluters per person.

It seems that a lot of what you have come to expect living in the US are actual unsustainable practices that most of the world does without.

Life moves at a more relaxed pace, then again people in the US take the most prescription drugs for stress, anxiety and depression.

Great blog by the way, really ambitious of you to up sticks and move to Croatia!

By: Kim Snapp

Kim Snapp — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:23:33 +0000

Thanks for sharing your stories, Kelly. I truly enjoy reading them, and I am STILL trying to figure out, how you and your husband did it. You completely picked up and changed worlds. I got nervous when I moved from Indiana to Kentucky!!! I can’t imagine what you must have been feeling when you thought Jay couldn’t stay! Even though you are frustrated and even annoyed at times, you can take comfort in knowing that you are doing something that so few of us will ever get to do in our lifetimes! I am glad you guys are doing well, and keep the postings coming! I love reading them! I actually get excited when I get notifications that you posted. I get to take a break and immerse myself into Split, Croatia!

By: Marina

Marina — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:01:00 +0000

Although, I have never been in a restaurand that charges for sitting fee, I can recognize everthing that you mention and believe me, it’s not just you, foreigners, who are upset about the situation, croatian citizens are also very frustrated and I really hope that soon we will start with some serious protesting… Regards from Zagreb 😉

By: Vladimir Tomljenovic

Vladimir Tomljenovic — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:54:34 +0000

Great post! If get so frustrated with the bureaucracy sometimes I just want to pack up and go back to LA, and I am a croatian citizen that speaks the language fluently. I really do feel your pain 🙁
It is a strange cross between ridiculous bureaucracy and total anarchy. My wife and son have been here illegally leaving and entering the country with no problems at all, and like I said I am a citizen and I still am not able to get them their papers….