And the best thing is...

I really need to get on a better blogging schedule. I’m not online that much at the moment as I still don’t have the high-speed hooked up yet, and the dial-up I’m using is really quite expensive... so I’m just not online all that much.

But I am writing this update from my new couch! Yeah! My couch and bed were delivered on Tuesday. All day I couldn’t stop thinking about how much I couldn’t wait to get home and go to bed - in a real bed! So, I’ve slept well the last few days and am thrilled to have more than a chair to sit on. It’s definitely the little things that make life easier.

So, can you believe I’ve been in Zagreb for more than 2 weeks? Amazing... It’s been good. I’ve started teaching English. I really enjoy my advanced class. I like the people in my beginners class a lot as well. I just feel very inadequate teaching people who don’t speak any English at all. I’ve never done it before, and it’s a definite challenge. I also have an intermediate class but it only has one or two people in it - I like them too :)

Skoobi continues to do well. We’ve changed our walking schedule. We now hit the park between 7 and 7:30. There are a lot less people and dogs there at that time, and it makes for a much more pleasant walk for me. And since I am the alpha dog (even though Skoobi would argue that point) I get to decide when we go. I really don’t think she cares when we go - she just loves being out and sniffing everything in sight!!

The apartment is slowly becoming home... now that my furniture has been delivered, I can put the final things away, and hang my pictures. The BEST thing about this apartment is the shower. Now if you look at it, you’d say... “ok... it’s a tub and a shower head with a fabulously cute shower curtain.” But what you don’t see is a boiler... aha... I don’t have one because.... I always have hot water, any time I want, for as long as I want! Oh my gosh! When I realized I could take a long, I mean LONG, hot... HOT... shower anytime of the day, even on the spur of the moment... I though I was going to cry. I love it. Never in the former Yugoslavia have I been able to take a warm shower for more than 10 minutes or so... I was in there for 45 minutes the other day, and while I’ll have to pay for the water, it was so worth it. I love my shower... you have no idea how much you appreciate instant HOT water for a shower until you don’t have it. And now that I have it again... I seriously don’t know what to do with myself.

Tomorrow I am going to go buy a yearly bus pass. I am so tired of having to buy tickets and stamping them and trying to get to the back of the crowded tram to get it stamped... uugh. Tomorrow I’m also turning in what I think are the last forms for my visa. So, tomorrow has the potential to be a very productive day. I spent 5 hours at the police station Monday for my visa. I did well - all by myself. I should have my visa in about a month, the nice lady said. It will be so great to be legal! Actually, I am legal cause I have my paper that I am in the visa process and all, but I wasn’t legal in Bosnia for a very long time and that was very very stressful. So, I’m really looking forward to having my visa and not having to worry about being thrown out of the country.

Last Friday I went with Branimir and Visnja to the night of the museums. Lots of museums in Zagreb were open for free that night. We went to one near the church. It was really fun. Then we went out for pizza, which I had been craving for a week, so it was great. It was fun to hang out.

Ok, I guess that’s it for now... I will try to be more fun in my next update :)