06/24/2012 1250

I am starving right now and have completely wasted, no, read my entire morning away, changed my mind about working out (it’s a weekend—the gym will be completely crowded), and am about to head out into town to find a ginormous platter of grilled meat.  But I just wanted to take a quick second to check in and update on yesterday.  I went and got a Serbian hair cut yesterday.  Not that it looks any different from any other hair cut, but it was done in Serbia and that is way cool to me.  For approximately $10, I had my hair washed, cut, and blow dried in a way that was infinitely better than my last cut in the states.  Seriously, that woman messed up my hair, but it’s all fixed now and I feel just as cute as can be.  I also went and bought some nail polish yesterday and a new sun block.  Krema za sunce.  My other one was too good.  That purchase was a fun experience all on its own.  I left the salon then decided to check out the nail polish then changed my mind (again) then rechanged it for the last time.  I went in just to look around and accidentally answered the woman in English when she asked if she could help.  I’ve really been trying not to, as much as possible.  She answered back in English.  She was under the impression that she doesn’t speak it well but she understands everything I’m saying.  I was under the impression that she speaks it better than most of the people I’ve encountered thus far.  I asked her how to say a few things in Serbian that I’d be wondering about.  We had a discussion about numbers.  She helped me find the nail polish I was hoping to find.  She pointed out that we say “Nivea” funny.  I think that would be the American accent…  After all was said & done, and she fought with the calculator along with the help of another woman who worked there, I was on my way and left pondering a few things.  Namely, what is it like to be a tourist in America?  I mean a total tourist.  Like one who speaks so little English that they can hardly manage most interactions or transactions?  Would they be ridiculed for not speaking the language, or would there be so many people willing to help them out with whatever they needed as there have been with me?  Would the guests in the hotel avoid eye-contact, or would they be all smiles, even while knowing that we didn’t speak the same language?  I seriously want to live like a true foreigner in Cali the next time I go back.  I want to walk in to a restaurant and tell them that I don’t speak much English and see what they do.  As it stands now, most of the time when I go somewhere, they speak some English, and if they don’t, they will quickly try to find someone that does.  A few times I’ve encountered people who only speak Serbian and will continue to talk to me in Serbian until I’m satisfied with the answer.  That cracks me up.  Partly because I do end up understanding them, and partly because they look at me like they don’t give a rip what language I speak—they’re just going to be friendly and talk to me.  I love that!  Nobody makes me feel awkward, regardless of what they speak.  This whole time here has been amusing with the staff in the hotel.  I’ll greet them with a “dobro jutro” and they respond back with “good morning.”  If I forget to speak Serbian and greet them in an English fashion, they’ll often respond back with Serbian.  It’s almost rare that we all have the same little formalities in the same language!  But it’s very cute.  They are trying really hard.  Even the one lady who doesn’t speak any English, and looks like a deer in headlights when she sees me approaching, has been trying to speak English with me as much as I’m trying to speak Serbian with her.  It’s fun.  Really fun, actually.  As I was leaving after my nail polish purchase yesterday (and, for the record, the colors are way cool!), the lady told me that her English will be better the next time I come back.  I assured her that my Serbian will be better as well.  I know I’ve learned a lot here.  Constant exposure can do that.  I’m starting to grasp some of the past tenses for verbs.  Those have been a little tricky for me, mainly because I haven’t covered them in my lessons yet.  The reactions of people when they hear I’m learning the language have been awesome.  Some look at me like I’m crazy, some sympathize and tell me how tough it is (these people speak English… isn’t that as bad and unregulated as it gets?), and some just look completely thrilled that I am making the effort.  I wanted to have an entire day where I speak no English at all, but I don’t know if I have that in me yet.  Though I am able to survive, for sure, I still don’t have enough of a grasp on it to have a normal conversation.  But the good news is I have nowhere to go from here but better.  Bolje.  I know enough random Serbian words to have totally Serblish conversation.  That much I know for sure. 

Okay, that’s enough cultural ponderings for right now.  I am really hungry and some grilled meso is calling me!