We have returned from our trip to Montenegro which was stunning (pictures are below).The mountainous landscape coupled with the coastal cities of Kotor and Budva made for a truly great weekend. It also made me realize just how amazing Dubrovnik is. Now that I have visited multiple European cities, and several in the Adriatic and Baltic regions, I have no hesitation in saying that Dubrovnik is my favorite city with the most charm.
One of the reasons that I love Dubrovnik so much is because of how hard working their people are. Since the end of August, I have walked the same path to school Monday-Friday and sometimes on the weekends. Day and night, the same people are perched at their street locations or in their shops. They perform the same duties each day that I see them. I know that if I was in that position, I would be bored, complaining, and unhappy with my job. These people are so passionate and happy to be where they are (or at least they portray that). Every morning and evening, the same craftsmen and women are out knitting or painting, hoping to make a sale that day. There is a man that stands by the big fountain literally every day, in a costume, selling tiny little hearts with “Dubrovnik 2015” written on them, for only 7 kuna, or $1 each. The same woman stands outside the Orlando restaurant, happily waiting on her tables and encouraging passing tourists to take a seat and enjoy a coffee. I have never seen such hardworking people in my life (well, except my mothers fiancé Brian, he never stops either!) But seriously, these people are so dedicated to whatever they are doing, it is so inspiring.
On the other hand, I have noticed how lazy the students in Dubrovnik are. Maybe they have better work ethic when they are actually at work and just don’t care much about school, but it really makes me wonder- Is there something wrong with my generation that we don’t (as a whole) have the same passion and hard-working habits of these people I see on the main Stradun every day? Students and classmates in Dubrovnik are constantly asking for extensions on projects and assignments on the same day they are due, proving they have waited to the last minute to start anything. Most of them hand in poor quality work because they just don’t care. In group projects they like to try and do as little as possible. It is quite frustrating.
One of my upcoming blog posts will be a list of reasons why Dubrovnik is the best city to visit. I keep hesitating writing it because I feel like I will learn another thing great about the city, so I don’t want to write it prematurely.
I wanted to remind everyone reading my blog, students especially, one of the reasons my study abroad trip was possible was because of many generous organizations, such as Constellation Brands, the Benjamin A Gilman Foundation, the Statler Foundation, AH&LEF, among many others. I encourage all of you to look into the scholarships that these foundations offer, even if you are not looking to study abroad, they offer other general scholarships (mostly for hospitality students).
Thank you all so much for taking this journey with me! I will be back again next week!
XOXO Sarah
Sarah Studying Abroad 