Here I am, freshly showered and preparing myself for the long flights we have tomorrow morning. Walker and I are currently in Zagreb, hanging out and spending these final few hours with our good friend Filip. What a fantastic trip is has been! So many memories to share, and I am so grateful to have had this experience after finishing college.

We left Austria on a night train last Thursday, and first went up to Munich before heading the opposite direction to Rijeka. Met some interesting people along the way, and got some surprisingly good sleep in our cabin. Sadly I lost my favorite water bottle, but at least it had seen some amazing sights! Arrived in Rijeka Friday morning, got some coffee, and met Owen and Filip for lunch before heading back to the wonderful Crni Lug.

Now, we did something really cool after we got back. The weather was amazing, much better than the last week of rain we had. This day was the perfect day to climb Risnjak, the tallest mountain in this part of Croatia (Corski Kotar). We drove for a bit, and found parking somewhere part way up the mountain. Then, Owen, Walker, Filip, and I began our journey to summit this peak. The walk was really cool, with beautiful forest all around us, interesting rocks lining the path, and, as always, wonderful conversation the entire time.

There were certain check points along the way with signs telling a cumulative story of the mythical fairies that lived on the mountain. In short, the fairies lived in peace, only observing humans from afar. They were barred from falling in love with any man, but one eventually did with a shepard. The mother fairy noticed, and turned both into Lynx, which continue to roam the mountain to this day. Sadly, we saw no Lynx on our journey, but there definitely was something magical in the air.

We arrived at the mountain house and received a wonderful meal and beer from the couple that lived there. Then, we began the almost vertical climb to the peak of the mountain. It was a little spooky at points, but I still followed Filip up one part off the trail where we had to leap over rocks and find random points to hold onto. While maybe a little dangerous, it was amazing putting my body to the test and accomplishing this grand task. Finally, we arrived at the top and were rewarded with an amazing view all around us. In one direction, we could see trees and other mountains stretching for kilometers across the country side; in the other direction we were able to see all the way to the Adriatic Sea, with Rijeka on the coast and the island Krk in the distance. Such and amazing view, and definitely worth the journey. We took some pictures, stamped our journals, and participated in Owen’s dedication of pizza sauce to the gods of the mountain. What a great way to come back to Croatia!

The next day we celebrated Owen and their cousin Ema’s birthday the only way we know how: by having a huge party! We woke up early-ish, and already there was a lamb being prepared and roasting on a fire. We hung out for a bit, and people began to slowly trickle in. We ate a huge meal around 14:00 or 15:00, which was oh, so delicious. The lamb was probably the best I’ve ever had, and the čevapći was amazing as well. Filip grabbed his guitar, and we sang Happy Birthday as Owen and Ema blew out their candles. The party eventually moved outside, but the singing never stopped. Filip is a beautiful singer, and as the drinks kept pouring, people only became more willing to sing along. So many wonderful Croatian songs, and a few English ones I knew as well. We eventually went to the bar, where practically the whole village was having a time. We ended up staying there until 3am, but I was having so much fun I didn’t even notice. Such a wonderful day, and I was happy to have been part of this family experience.

Of course the next day was rough, but we still had a fun day driving down to Rijeka to drop Ema off, visiting an old castle, and finding our way back to Delnice to eat some amazing pizza. Fell asleep early watching cartoons, and woke up early today to pack and make our way back to Zagreb. So many great moments mixed throughout these days, there really never was a dull moment.

Ahh the things I’ve learned while abroad. Not only did I pick up a good amount of the language, but it was so cool immersing myself fully in another culture and seeing all the amazing sights this country has to offer. It will be nice to be back in the States, but I’m definitely not ready to leave. Being here has shown me how much more there is to

see not only in Croatia, but also throughout Europe. Traveling is so amazing because it really opens ones eyes to new experiences, opinions, and lifestyles that you would never be able to see by staying in only one place. I’ve had such an amazing time abroad, and I can not wait to return some day!

This is probably the last time I’ll be writing here, so expect to see me soon back home with so many stories to tell! The last picture I will post is of a wonderful group shot we took at the top of Risnjak. What a group we are!

Ahhh Austria, what a place to be! It’s weird going from a sunny Italian city into the snow capped mountains of Austria, but hey, we did it! Took a train on Monday after leaving our amazing hostel, and for the next 7 hours we sat, observing the sights all around us. Italy is a very interesting country to travel through, with mountains, valleys, and red roofs everywhere. Some day I will return to my home land and really see the sights, outside of a train.

After quickly buying groceries from some store in Jenbach, Austria, we hopped back on a train which took us 40 minutes away into Mayrhofen, a village in the Zillertal Valley. It mainly consisted of hotels, bars, and restaurants, but we had our own hotel to get to. Sadly, Uber is unavailable in this part of Austria, so we had to take a 40 Euro taxi from Mayrhofen to Madseit, where we found the Alpinhotel Berghaus, our wonderful hotel.

Now, let me tell you, this place was dope. Full kitchen, beautiful balcony, bath robes, and, most importantly, a frickin’ SAUNA. All in the room. While this place may have been designed as a couple’s getaway, Walker and I were living it up. We quickly unpacked our snowboarding gear and proceeded to chill before a long next day.

Woke up around nine, dawned our gear, and went to check-in at the front desk. Hopped on a ski bus, and went directly to the Hintertux base. We bought tickets, picked up our rentals, drank some coffee, and before we knew it we found ourselves 3250 meters up in the air, ready to rumble.

Now, the thing about our ski trip, is that we didn’t pick the best days for good weather. While it was raining around our hotel, at the top of the glacier the sky was pumping out snow. Not only that, but we were practically in a cloud the whole time, so visibility was quite low. Nevertheless, we persevered. We had a shorter day on Tuesday, so we took most of the time to get a feel for the mountain, and make sure we were fully prepared for what lay below us. Otherwise, the snow was darn near perfect, there were few people on the glacier, and we were quite cozy in our gear.

Overall, the ski trip was a success. While there were points where we couldn’t tell where the snow stopped and the sky began, we still had a great time shredding our way down the mountain. There was one close call, where we went down a run with fresh powder up to our waists, only to discover that the run was entirely closed and led to an unreachable part of the mountain. Luckily, we were able to climb our way back to the top and continue our way down the actual runs available. Definitely a scary experience, but hey! We lived. In the end, we were able to eat some delicious food, see some wonderful scenery, and hone our skills in the art of snowboarding. What a fabulous experience!

Tomorrow, we board the night train heading up to Munich, then directly down to Rijeka. Back to Croatia once more! Some Germans we met today were sad we weren’t able to see more of Germany, so I’ll have to come back some day and see what all the fuss is about. I’ll leave you with a picture of Walker and I at the top of the mountain. While you may be able to see some fixtures behind us, if you looked behind the camera all you would see is white.

Ahhh Venice, what a place to be. And I couldn’t imagine having a better man than my boy Walker to spend time with in the City of Romance.

I’ll start at the beginning. We woke up in Rovinj around 5:45am, and quickly gathered our luggage and departed to arrive at the ferry by 6:30. After boarding the boat and greeting a nice British family next to us, we quickly fell right back asleep as the tour guide began his spheel. We woke up a little before arrival, were able to catch the last of Venice’s history, and before we knew it our boat had docked on the Venicen Island.

And what an amazing city it is! With our hiking bags on our backs, Walker and I began our trek through the city with three goals in mind: find an ATM, get a cappuccino, and, of course, see some beautiful sights. While the walk was hard, it was amazing passing over canals, seeing the colorful buildings, and some amazing architecture all around. After getting a bit lost in the maze that is Venice, we made our way to the large bus station where we found an ATM with a restaurant right next to it. All three initial goals had been accomplished!

It’s sad that I don’t know any Italian. We made our way off the island to drop our bags off at the hostel, and the man behind the front desk noticed my name (Vito Brugliera) and immediately asked if I knew Italian or if I was from Italy. All I could do was shake my head and say, “I wish!” After this, we made our way through the hostel up to the fourth floor to our room. This hostel truly was great. Pretty much all people our age, very clean rooms, and a lot of amenities for us to use. Much better than the Roundabout in Rovinj. We loaded our gear into a locker, took quick showers, and secured our plans to snowboard in Austria. Finally, we were ready to take another bus back onto the island and really do some sightseeing!

Walker had a friend that happened to be in Venice at the same time (the same friend we met up for coffee with earlier this trip), so we arranged to meet up with her and two of her friends from school. All wonderful people; we ended up getting lunch at a place right on the canal and walking throughout the city seeing everything it has to offer. I was in love with the grand buildings with intricate statues, as well as the narrow streets that didn’t seem to follow any pattern. We ate some cannolis, and eventually found ourselves in the heart of Venice: Piazza San Marco.

And what a square this was. Doge’s Palace, Saint Mark’s Basilica, and Saint Mark’s Campanile all stood before us with such power that all I could do was stand and stare. My only regret was that we arrived too late to be able to enter any of the buildings, and all we could do was appreciate their beauty from the outside. With only one day in Venice, it was hard to do it all, so I definitely plan on returning someday with more time, and probably some more money too.

We got lost a bit on the way back to the hostel, which I didn’t mind as all it meant was more time in the city. Eventually, we made it to San Lucia’s Station, and boarded a train off the island. The rest of the night we spent talking and sharing experience. It was really cool being in a hostel like this, as there were people around us from Germany, France, New Zealand, Mexico, and so many other places. And each of these people had some stories to tell. It’s amazing how the shared human experience can permeate across cultures, and I feel that this is the perfect place for it to do so. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be here, even if it was just for one night.

Up next, Walker and I will board a train in an hour heading towards Austria, where we will spend the next two days hitting the slopes of Hintertux. Who knew you can ski in May??? I’ll leave you with this wonderful picture of Walker and I enjoying our time in the wonderful city of Venice.

Well hello again! Walker and I are still alive and well, currently getting ready for bed in a hostel in Rovinj, Croatia. It’s been quite awhile since I wrote last, since I sadly was unable to connect my laptop to any WiFi. Nevertheless, I am here now to fill you in and the wonderful village of Crni Lug.

Last Friday (5/17) Walker and I met up with our good friend Borna, whom I had seen last approximately SIX years ago. Borna is an amazing man and it was wonderful to catch up and meet his family. He took us out that night in Zagreb to pregame and eventually hit the clubs, where we ended up staying until around 4AM. That may seem late, but he was saying people usually stay until six! It was, of course, a wonderful night of dancing and talking to new people, which you all know I enjoy.

We woke up the next morning at the early hour of 1PM and quickly packed out bags for the ride Southwest to Crni Lug, where Filip and Walker’s family are originally from. The drive was beautiful, lush with green trees and mountains everywhere you look. We made our way through tunnels, cities, and eventually found ourselves down a winding road near Delnice. The trees parted, and the amazingly quaint city of Crni Lug was upon us! This town has approximately 200 people, one grocery store, and one bar. Everyone knows each other, of course, and the drive through the town had Filip honking and waving at everyone we passed.

We arrived at the Apartment Ema, which is a bed and breakfast the Imširović family runs. This is a beautiful house with a beautiful view, and the family is so kind for letting us stay for the week and live in the village. The first night we were there (and practically every one after) we spent time in the villages only bar, appropriately named “the Lug”. We met Filip’s friends, I hopefully picked up some Croatian, and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly in this bar that Filip’s friend owns.

During the following days we explored the Risnjak National Park, ventured into some caves and found some old war artifacts, went to Plitvice and saw some amazingly beautiful waterfalls (and met up with an old friend), ate some amazing food, talked to some great people, and overall had ourselves a time. I could write endlessly about my time in Crni Lug, but I’ll save that for the stories I hope to tell.

Now, we plan to board a ferry tomorrow morning at 7AM that will take us to Venice. We had a slight problem with a Ferry not coming today, but it all worked out as we were able to spend our time exploring the wonderful city of Rovinj. And here I am, unshaven, barely showered, but happy as can be discovering places I never could have dreamed I’d visit. Oh the memories I am making!

I will leave you with a wonderful picture of the waterfalls we were able to see in the wonderful National Park of Plitvice

Ahhh, the beautiful city of Zagreb. Here is where Walker and I will stay for the next few days until we hitch a ride to Crni Lug, on the Adriatic Coast. It’s been a wonderful time so far, and despite a long and strenuous plane ride, we have arrived in one piece. We’re staying with Walker’s cousin, Filip, in his Dubrava apartment, which is quite a nice place. Through some miscommunication, Filip didn’t know we were actually staying with him until we met up with him at the airport, but he has been a wonderful host nonetheless. We stayed in for the first evening after arriving, talking and enjoying each others company late into the night.

On the second day, Walker and I woke up very early (7AM!) to meet his friend in the Ban Jelačić Square for some kava. Though we were a little confused as to how the tram system worked, we boarded the 11 tram as per Filips direction, and hoped to find the right spot to exit. While riding, a nice lady asked us if we knew where we were going, giving testament to our tourist nature. She gave us helpful information as to where to get off, what food is good, interesting sights to see, and other useful information. Before we knew it, the Jelačić statue stood before us, and we bid the kind woman a farewell.

After coffee with Walker’s friend, we began venturing around the city, looking at what it has to offer. We saw the amazing Cathedral of Zagreb, and even had a chance to sit in on a portion of a sermon. We walked all around the Square, looking at Walker’s old school, random places he would hang out, and an interesting art section for local people to have a place to paint the walls. We ventured to Upper Town, where we found ourselves with an amazing view of the city. We saw St. Mark’s Church (from back when Croatia was under communist control), some old painting of Mary, and incredible architecture throughout the city.

It’s interesting not knowing any of the language, and while I can get by with English, I would also feel like a full-on tourist doing so. I can say a few things, like ‘good day’ (dobar dan), ‘thank you’ (hvala), and ‘beer’ (pivo), but no where near the extent I would need to actually get by. Good thing I have Walker here, and even though his Croatian isn’t perfect, he is very much able to listen, understand, and respond with what we need. Looking forward, we’re planning on visiting some museums in the next couple of days, and having our first night out on the town! Stay tuned my friends.