Hello,
After a lazy weekend spent finishing up final papers and projects I am ready for the busy week ahead.
I have one term paper to finish and then my work is done, well except for taking my exams. It is hard to believe I am in the home stretch! So much has happened this year and I am so grateful for the experiences I have had. I wrote my first blog this year, Vagabunda en Madrid, and I really enjoyed sharing my outlook on studying abroad. I am so happy I am coming back next semester to Madrid, I could not imagine being any where else. The weather in Madrid has provided me with many rainy day afternoons filled with sluggish activity and minimal interactions. After Easter break I received a massive package from my sister Emma, with two giant tubs of peanut butter. I think I will be set for protein for the next 2 semesters. Easter away from home and regular traditions was hard but the package cheered me up. I will be home soon, but I am enjoying my time away and not dwelling on homesickness.
I have recently started reading the works of Jack Kerouac which has inspired me to travel more in the United States. I have never seen the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty. I have never been to the mid-west of the United States. When I look at a map, I can really only point to 5 states I have visited, which is admittedly about the same as any tourist can say who is not a citizen of the U.S.A. I'm not going to hitch-hike like Kerouac's protagonists, but this summer I intend on visiting more of my home country.
That's all for now,
Jenny
P.S. I'm going to Italy this weekend! Florence to be specific, I am so excited!
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Lithuania! and Spring Break!
Hello,
It feels like I just came back from Lithuania and already Spring Break has started. Today I returned from Brussels, Belgium; a trip I took with two friends from school. My favorite trip of course was Lithuania. I can't think of a time I didn't wonder about Lithuania and my heritage. Lithuania seemed to me to be the least tangible part of my background. My Lithuanian grandfather had lost all contact with his relatives and knew only of a dead brother. Before the second World War my great-grandmother (Bubsha) came to The United States and kept in touch with her brother, Stasys Trakimas. During the war, Stasys told her not to write him and she obliged. His dying wish was to find out what happened to his sister in America. Stasys' family hired an investigator to locate their long-lost relatives. The investigator contacted my uncle Stanely Usovicz, named after Stasys coincidentally, and informed him of his relations. This was a great shock to my uncle, and to the rest of the family, because we thought all of our Lithuanian relatives to be deceased. A family tree was drafted which demonstrated the various relations to extended family members. Thanks to Facebook, I am now friends with most of my "cousins".
When I landed in Lithuania I was nervous I wouldn't recognize my cousin Ausra (and vice versa) but we spotted each other immediately and embraced. We left Vilnius airport for Kaunas, the city Ausra lives in, which was about an hour away. While in Lithuania I saw the two big cities (Kaunas and Vilnius) and Trakai, where Trakai Castle resides. I took plenty of photos, mainly for my father, who is in constant contact with my Lithuanian relatives. Having a British mother I always felt I was missing something by growing up in The United States; that there was part of me waiting in England. I used to imagine what growing up in England would have been like and how different my life might be. My Dad talks with pride about his Lithuanian heritage and speaks fondly of his grandmother, Bubsha. Growing up, I am sure he felt the same disenfranchisement. He tried to get his father to teach him to speak Lithuanian, to which my grandfather replied, "Who the hell would you talk to?" If my grandfather only knew how many Lithuanians my father would talk to.
Here are a few photos to summarize my experiences:
Have a great day and Happy Easter!
It feels like I just came back from Lithuania and already Spring Break has started. Today I returned from Brussels, Belgium; a trip I took with two friends from school. My favorite trip of course was Lithuania. I can't think of a time I didn't wonder about Lithuania and my heritage. Lithuania seemed to me to be the least tangible part of my background. My Lithuanian grandfather had lost all contact with his relatives and knew only of a dead brother. Before the second World War my great-grandmother (Bubsha) came to The United States and kept in touch with her brother, Stasys Trakimas. During the war, Stasys told her not to write him and she obliged. His dying wish was to find out what happened to his sister in America. Stasys' family hired an investigator to locate their long-lost relatives. The investigator contacted my uncle Stanely Usovicz, named after Stasys coincidentally, and informed him of his relations. This was a great shock to my uncle, and to the rest of the family, because we thought all of our Lithuanian relatives to be deceased. A family tree was drafted which demonstrated the various relations to extended family members. Thanks to Facebook, I am now friends with most of my "cousins".
When I landed in Lithuania I was nervous I wouldn't recognize my cousin Ausra (and vice versa) but we spotted each other immediately and embraced. We left Vilnius airport for Kaunas, the city Ausra lives in, which was about an hour away. While in Lithuania I saw the two big cities (Kaunas and Vilnius) and Trakai, where Trakai Castle resides. I took plenty of photos, mainly for my father, who is in constant contact with my Lithuanian relatives. Having a British mother I always felt I was missing something by growing up in The United States; that there was part of me waiting in England. I used to imagine what growing up in England would have been like and how different my life might be. My Dad talks with pride about his Lithuanian heritage and speaks fondly of his grandmother, Bubsha. Growing up, I am sure he felt the same disenfranchisement. He tried to get his father to teach him to speak Lithuanian, to which my grandfather replied, "Who the hell would you talk to?" If my grandfather only knew how many Lithuanians my father would talk to.
Here are a few photos to summarize my experiences:
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| Rasa and I with an old fashioned phone booth |
 |
| Easter eggs designed according to pagan ritual |
 |
| Trakai Castle |
 |
| Family |
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| Above Vilnius city |
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