Small talk with the columnist: DO PEOPLE M A K E P L AC E S , OR IS IT THE OTHER WAY A RO U N D?
In November, our team had the pleasure of hosting Buro247 from Belgrade, Serbia. Iva Chuljak, the columnist, and Jelena Karakas, editor in chief, enjoyed our Maslina apartments, testing the November weather and marvelling at the stormy sea. Following her visit, Iva Chuljak wrote an impressive article for the Buro247 portal, which we couldn’t resist sharing with our magazine readers. Join us while we sail through Iva’s impressions from a stormy autumn weekend. Get cosy, grab a glass of your favourite drink and enjoy this little insight.
LB: What does the sea represent to you? Iva: When I was in high school, after one summer holiday spent on the coast, I told my parents that I was going to marry a Dalmatian guy. When they asked why, I replied – so that I could hear that sweet talk every day and be close to the sea all year round. As time passed and I grew up, I experienced and lived through enough failed and sad Dalmatian romances, gave up on the idea of marrying anyone, and as my career advanced, I realised that my dreams should not be fulfilled by a husband. The sea, however, remained the object of my worship. LB: Still, you live and work in a big continental city. How does that feel like? Iva: Recently, one Tuesday, I found myself in a typical Belgrade traffic jam. It is five in the afternoon, and it is raining. There are three
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hundred trumpeters around me, but no single
to me. And the water that flows through the
tin instrument in sight. Anger blows in every
shower is as holy to me as the bottle with a
lane, and when you look at another vehicle,
sticker of St. Anthony is to my grandmother
first you notice the tension, and then you see
that she brings home after church rites. My
the driver. On the red traffic light, I pick up
grandma is of the belief that what the pope
the phone and record my ritual video diary. I
consecrates is healing. “Your faith is your
am tired of the energy of the little quartz; I tell
healing, Grandma! Not religion and that plastic
myself in the reflection on my front camera. I
bottle”, I shout inside. However, there is no point
am tired of this tension, tired of proving, tired of
in telling this to Blanka, my grandma. Everyone
neurotic behaviour, and tired of rushing. I feel a
has their established ways .
strong urge for peace. I want to be idle, not in sixth gear. I found myself at the airport the next day. After thirty-five minutes up in the clouds, I arrived to heaven. To you! LB: Dealing with stress is never easy, and big cities indeed create a sort of tension as soon as you place your foot on the ground. Do you have any rituals that help you recharge? Iva: The shower stall is something like a temple
W E E KE ND E RS: L uštic a’s sto r y thro ugh the eye s of two colu m nists
“All that beautiful architecture, fairy-tale houses, all the fragrant Mediterranean plants, and the impressive vessels that are anchored and waiting for summer, are just a perfect front cover of a book that awaits you.“
