las-o baltă

I am totally going to marry this girl!!

For those who I’ve seen since my return to America (and there are a lot of you!), it will come as no surprise when I say that July and August have been two of the busiest months on record. Since my return home in mid-July, I have attended two academic conferences and one wedding, visited friends and family in 6 states, met nearly all of Kymber’s extended family and introduced her to many of mine, and ridden on 15 planes crossing the country three times over!

Needless to say, I am exhausted. But life is good. So I’ve decided to continue posting on my blog, to keep friends and family up to date with what’s going on, and to share pictures and thoughts from my adventures in the U.S.A. So without further ado, I present some of the summer’s great highlights…

Of course, one of the happiest moments of the summer was my reunion with Kymber, who flew all the way to New York to visit with my family and attend Dan and Lisa’s wedding in Connecticut. Besides the wedding and a great family barbeque, we also managed to sneak in some time for a whirlwind tour of New York City, which was super fun despite the oppressive heat!

After our East Coast weekend, Kymber and I packed up my Honda and headed west for Indiana. Once we arrived in Bloomington, we unloaded the car, grabbed breakfast with my little brother Seth, and headed straight for the airport to catch a flight (in my case, several flights) to Seattle. The next batch of photos are from our wonderful visit in Washington and Oregon. In spite of my initial misgivings, one of the best parts of the trip was camping with Kymber’s family on the Oregon coast—a Jennings family tradition which I was happily invited to join this year! At the end of the camping trip, Kymber and I rode the Amtrak train from Vancouver, WA (near Portland) up the coast to Seattle, where we ate fish and chips on the wharf, went kayaking in Lake Union, visited the original Starbucks, and even had a romantic dinner atop the famous Space Needle! As if that wasn’t enough, we also got to visit with my cousin Michelle, who’s doing her Ph.D. at the University of Washington in Seattle. AND we drove across the Cascade Mountains to eastern Washington, where we visited Kymber’s family in Moses Lake, the town where she grew up. Along the way, we stopped in Ellensburg, where Kymber went to college, and the sleepy little mountain town of Roslyn, where they filmed the TV show Northern Exposure! All in all, not a bad visit!

Finally, I’ve posted a few photos from my recent trip to Boston, where I attended an enormous annual conference of political scientists. (A scary concept, I know!) More importantly, I got to visit with a couple of my best childhood friends who are now living there—Grayson, whose couch I crashed on, and Dan and his new wife Lisa, who just moved to the city two weeks ago! All of the pictures from Boston were taken on a lovely Saturday afternoon sailing on the Charles River, with Grayson as our skipper.

Sadly, now that the new school year is underway, I’ll be doing a lot less traveling and adventuring. But I suspect this will be an eventful year nonetheless. Check back from time to time and I will do my best to keep you up to date on the latest developments!

As many of you know, I have several classmates from the political science department at IU who are living overseas and conducting dissertation field research this year like I am. One of them, John, entered the PhD program with me five years ago, and has been living and working this year in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Having promised John that I would visit since before we left Indiana, and having finished the bulk of my research in Romania by early June, I decided it was high time to make good on my word!

Looking at a map of Eastern Europe, Sarajevo does not seem so far away from Bucharest. And, in fact, it’s not such a terribly long distance as the crow flies—perhaps as far as Budapest, which can be reached in about 13 hours by train, or less than one hour by plane. The difference is that Sarajevo is located in the former Yugoslavia, a country torn apart by ethnic civil war in the 1990s, and one which very clearly still bares the scars of the conflict to this day. Though fighting in most of the region ended well over a decade ago (apart from the Kosovo conflict in the late 1990s), it is still hard to escape the legacies of the war, even in the most mundane aspects of life. Which brings me to the story of my journey.

While one might logically expect that it would be possible to take a train directly from one European capital (Bucharest) to another (Sarajevo), this is not the case. In fact, the only reasonable way for me to reach Sarajevo by land was to take the overnight train to Belgrade, Serbia, where I then caught a bus to Sarajevo in the afternoon—a journey that took nearly 24 hours on the way there and about 26 hours on the way back! What’s more, the bus from Belgrade did not even go directly to Sarajevo proper, but rather to East Sarajevo, a Serbian stronghold just outside the formal city limits, because it originated in Serbia!

If this sounds confusing, that’s because it is. Perhaps a map of the Bosnian state will help to clarify. According to the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords, which ended the war in Bosnia, the territory was actually split into two ethnically based entities: (1) the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the south and west, where the majority of inhabitants are Croats or Muslims; and (2) the Republika Srpska in the north and east, where the majority population is Serbian. Having looked at the map, you can now imagine our bus ride: After crossing the border from Serbia to Bosnia, our bus never actually crossed into the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but rather stayed inside the Republika Srpska territory the whole time, ending just over the border in East Sarajevo—ostensibly because it was a “Serbian” bus.

Of course, Sarajevo’s recent history makes it an absolutely fascinating, if at times slightly morbid, place to visit. This I expected. However, I did not expect it to be such a place of beauty, resting in a panoramic valley surrounded by rolling hills and green mountain peaks on all sides. As our bus approached Sarajevo in the early evening, we passed through a series of mountain tunnels before emerging on the side of large hill, the city slowly spreading out before us as the bus sputtered forward up the hillside. It was a spectacular introduction to a surprisingly beautiful and captivating city. While I could go on about the things I saw and learned with John as my tour guide, I’d prefer to let the pictures tell the story. And next time you see me, if you want to get an earful, just ask me about Sarajevo!

My last jaunt in the field was to the northeastern city of Suceava, in the region of Bucovina. The area is famous for its natural beauty and for the painted monasteries nestled in the rolling hills and mountains around Suceava. After two days of interviews at the courts, I caught a $2 minibus to the town of Gura Humorului, situated about 45 minutes west of Suceava, near the monasteries of Humor and Voroneţ.

Continuing my tradition of avoiding over-priced Romanian hotels at all costs, I was fortunate to stay with a fellow Fulbrighter, Sue Kohfeldt, in Gura Humorului. Not only did Sue put me up and show me around the monasteries, she also took me along to a barbeque at the high school where she taught English this year, and to a celebratory dinner at the home of one of her students who won first prize in the Romanian national Olympiad in English this year! It was another great trip, as you will see from the photos, and a wonderful way to finish up my research in Romania.

As my time in Romania winds down, I find myself thinking more and more about what I will do when I return home. In part, that means stressing about the not-so-distant job/postdoc hunt this fall, and how best to prepare myself. It also means beginning the rather daunting process of organizing and analyzing the piles of surveys and interview transcripts I have been collecting over the last 11 months. (Mind you, I am not complaining—it is a “problem” I am grateful to have!)

Despite my change in outlook, however, I am continuing my research until the end, while I still have the opportunity. For the month of May, that has meant two research trips to the northeastern region of Romania known as Moldavia. The region lies to the east of the Transylvanian Carpathians and west of the Republic of Moldova (an independent nation state with which it was once united). Moldavia is an important wine-making region and is known to be one of the poorer parts of the country, as evidenced by some of the worst-looking (and smelling) trains I have experienced in Romania.

My first visit at the beginning of May was to a mid-sized city called Bacău, where I met with judges at the local judecătorie (first instance court), the tribunal (second instance court), and the Bacău Court of Appeals. My second trip was to Iaşi (pronounced “Yash”), the largest city in the region, as well as the cultural, historical, and economic capitol of Moldavia. While I did not see enough of Bacău to make a fair judgment, I quite liked Iaşi, which had some great architecture and a big city feel, as well as a nice university district.

On both occasions I had to stay overnight, since the distance to Bucharest precluded taking daytrips. However, I was fortunate to stay with the parents of one of my good Romanian friends, Bogdan, who is now a colleague in my PhD program at Indiana. Bogdan is from a small city called Roman, which is conveniently (for me, at least!) located about 1-1½ hours from both Bacău and Iaşi. Most of the time I spent in Roman was with Bogdan’s mother, Mimi, who took wonderful care of me and was very patient with my mediocre Romanian. On my second visit, I also got to meet Bogdan’s father and his four-year-old niece, Dalida, who were both wonderful and made my second visit to Roman even more enjoyable than the first!

Regrettably, I don’t have many pictures from my trips, as I was quite busy with work on both occasions. However, I did manage to take some nice snapshots of the Moldavian countryside from the various trains and buses I rode, as well as a photo with Bogdan’s mother in Roman’s main city park. Finally, on my last evening in Roman, I stumbled upon a local brass band playing in the park and could not resist taking a short video. Hope you enjoy!

It wasn’t easy, but when my work required me to spend the month of April in one of the world’s most beautiful cities, I dutifully answered the call and moved to Prague. After all of my work on the Romanian justice system, I had decided it was time to get a fresh perspective by examining the development of the judiciary in another postcommunist country where things have generally gone much more quickly and smoothly since the collapse of communism. So after Kymber departed for Seattle, off I went to the Czech Republic!

Though I had done a week’s worth of preliminary research in Prague during the summer of 2006, this trip was still a bit of a gamble. There was no guarantee that I would find judges willing to talk to me (I only met with one in 2006), or that I would have enough time to accomplish anything worth writing about. However, I’m happy to say that I was extremely lucky to be aided by some very generous and Czech colleagues who went out of their way to help me. (Thank you Honza, Michal, Eva, Tomáš!!!) In fact, my research into the Czech judicial system went better than I ever could have hoped, and in many ways my three weeks there was some of the most productive time I’ve spent all year!

In less than a month, I interviewed 19 Czech judges, including two Constitutional Court justices, four Supreme Court judges (there are actually two Supreme Courts in the Czech system), and a smattering of middle- and lower-level judges from Prague, Brno, Pilsen and environs. Combined with several less formal interviews with legal “experts” like lawyers, law faculty professors, Justice Ministry representatives, etc., I’m confident that I gathered enough material for a very interesting case study. Not only are the findings interesting in their own right, but I they will significantly improve my analysis of the Romanian system by allowing me to place the Romanian experience in the broader context of transitioning legal systems throughout postcommunist Europe.

Of course, my time was not only spent interviewing judges. In addition to my work, I was fortunate to meet some great people and have quite a bit of fun as well. The whole time I was in the Czech Republic, I stayed with my friend Miri in Prague, who selflessly gave up the sitting room in her one-bedroom apartment so that I could have a temporary bedroom/office during my stay. Given the fact that I was still paying rent on my apartment back in Bucharest, and that Prague has gotten much more expensive in recent years, I really could not have made the trip without Miri’s help.

Moreover, she not only gave me a great place to stay, but got me free passes to her gym, took me out to dinner on multiple occasions (always refusing to let me pay, asserting that she is a lawyer and I am a student), and introduced me to a number of her friends in Prague who made me feel immediately welcome. I did my best to repay her by washing dishes, cooking a few dinners, and generally trying to be as unobtrusive as possible. But Miri was not looking for repayment, and sometimes I think it’s best to simply appreciate what someone has done for you and say thank you. So, one last time, thank you Miri!

The rest I will leave to the pictures to explain. However, some of the non-work highlights of my trip were as follows: professional Czech baseball game with Miri and Grace; a Czech soccer match with Tomáš and his friends (between the Bohemians from Prague and the Brno Football Club); dinner party at Grace’s house (more-or-less in my honor); and a tour of the Pilsner Urquell brewery in Pilsen, birthplace of the pilsner style of beer. Not bad for three weeks!

Sadly, Kymber’s time in Romania came to an end last month, and she returned to Seattle to look for a “real job” at the beginning of April. However, before she left, we were fortunate to spend nearly a week together in Vienna and Budapest. Seeing that Kymber is a former resident of Vienna (where she studied abroad in college) and a self-proclaimed lover of the “Central European lifestyle,” it seemed a natural choice. As you will see from the pictures, it was a wonderful trip and a great way to bid farewell for now.

While you may be forgiven for thinking, “Hasn’t this kid had enough vacations already?!?” the answer is clearly no. So, in a hopelessly romantic fit earlier this winter, I booked two tickets for Kymber and I to spend Valentine’s Day weekend in Rome. Sounds swanky, I know. But before you get too carried away, the tickets were super cheap (Thank you low-cost airlines!!!), and instead of staying in a hotel, we crashed with my good friend Sibyl and her Italian husband Andrea—on a fold-out couch in their one-room apartment! So, not the most romantic or extravagant of arrangements, but we really couldn’t have asked for a better time, or more gracious hosts!

Naturally, we saw a lot of the requisite tourist sites, including the Coliseum, the Forum, Circus Maximus, and the Pantheon. (Unfortunately, we missed the Vatican this time around, but I’m confident there will be future trips to Rome!) However, some of the real highlights of the trip—as is often the case—were unexpected, unplanned things. It’s probably no surprise that the food was far and away one of the best parts of the trip. But one thing we hadn’t counted on was having Sibyl and Andrea cook two delicious Tuscan-style meals for us at their apartment. Nor did we expect that Andrea would teach us the basic principles of Tuscan cooking (his family is from Tuscany), which we’ve been enthusiastically applying ever since in Bucharest, with the aid of a really good bottle of Italian olive oil that we smuggled back in our luggage!

Another great impromptu moment was a picnic with Sibyl and Andrea—right in the middle of Circus Maximus! Apart from its oblong elliptical shape, the old Roman racing arena is all but unrecognizable these days, as the main area has grown into a grassy field that locals now use as a park. (There are even joggers who dot the track where Roman chariots used to race! What a great spot to run!) But there we were, soaking in the beautiful sun, while noshing on great Italian prosciutto, chunks of fresh parmesan cheese, and amazing blood oranges from Sicily. I could get used to this kind of thing!

Finally, on our last full day, Kymber and I decided that we wanted to get out of the big city and into the countryside. So, despite Sibyl and Andrea’s diplomatic attempts to dissuade us, we concluded that the best solution was to rent a car. In Rome! Long story short, it was an eventful, expensive, at-times harrowing experience that we will not soon forget. In a little less than 15 hours, we drove through miles of gorgeous Umbrian countryside, visited several spectacular walled cities, turned the car around full-stop on the side of the road more times than I could count, had a less-than-pleasant run-in with the Italian highway police,* and even bore witness to an Italian funeral procession. Needless to say, by the time we made it back to Sibyl and Andrea’s place in Rome (that is, after 30 minutes of trying to figure out how to get off the #$%& highway, and after spending $60 on one ludicrously small tank of gas), we were completely exhausted, and less than sure that the whole “renting a car thing” is really all it’s cracked up to be. However, in retrospect, I’m glad we did it. I even remember it as one of the trip highlights!

*For the record, I was not speeding. I failed to turn my headlights on when driving through a mountain tunnel—an offense that apparently warranted a 36-Euro ticket and a ridiculous verbal reprimand containing the phrases, “I police. You…come with me!” and “You have no police in America? You don’t know what are police?”