Venice!

Hope 

We spent the day in Venice! It was great! We got a quick tour of the city and then had free time to explore the city. I got to walk around and shop at different stores all around. We all got pasta to go- which was absolutely delicious. I also had two different cups of gelato, which was amazing. Then, I ended the day with some pizza. I am just living my best life since it’s my last day away from home. Now we are going back to Slovenia to pack and eat some dinner. Tomorrow is a day full if travel! I love it here, but I am ready to go home, see my puppy (and family), and to have some alone time which I have been missing so much. 

Last day... VENICE!

I am completely in love with Venice! I think this was a great way to end our trip, on a beautiful floating city. Learning about its history and all of its beautiful landmarks was so much fun. Seeing St. Mark Piazza was literally breathtaking, I wish I could have had more time to go inside the cathedral. One of my favorite things from this trip was the gondola ride. It was nice seeing the city from a different view, in the canals.

Venice

Stephanie:

I am so happy we spent our last day of this trip in Venice! This experience was one of a kind. My favorite part was the gondola ride. I have always wanted to visit Italy and go for a gondola ride. One more check to add to my list!

I am also amazed at all of the glass products in Venice. I am so happy that I found so many gifts for my family! I am already wanting to go back to Venice and explore more of Italy!

Venice!!

Jessica D.

Venice, or technically Venezia, is absolutely the most beautiful city we’ve seen on this trip. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely adore Ljubljana but there’s a charm to Venice that can’t be denied. The old cathedrals, ancient architecture, and tiny little shops make it obvious why this city has become such a huge tourist destination. We toured the city with our guides who provided us with helpful tips and hints such as where to find the best “walking pasta” and honestly it surpassed my expectations! The pasta and sauce from my Chicken Alfredo were fresh, tasty, and covered with mozzarella cheese...YUM! We adventured through St. Mark Square and many of the little shops before stopping for some gelato (there is literally a flavor for everyone, so many to choose from) and finishing the trip with a water taxi ride. I can’t wait to come back to this magical city!

Invisible Ljubljana Tour

The tour we took today with a woman who is actually experiencing homelessness was a huge eye opener. She showed us an underground homeless shelter where people can live for up to one year, eat breakfast and dinner, and wash their clothes. She told us of the many hardships she has faced other than homelessness such as her addiction to drugs and alcohol. It was great to hear that she is now sober and in a better place mentally and physically. Although it may be cliche to say, but going on this tour really made me stop and take a moment to truly appreciate everything I have.

Thanks for reading!
Jess White

Presentations at the University of Ljubljana

I am happy to say that I did a great job presenting today at the University of Ljubljana. I felt nerves leading up to today, especially when we walked into the room packed full of students who I would be presenting to. My presentation was over the topic of immigration and the positive effect it has on education in the United States. We also listened to the University students' presentations over topics such as poverty, school psychology, and fact of women being the dominant figure in the field of early education. These presentations were very interesting to me and I learned how these topics differ in Slovenia and the United States.

Thanks for reading!
Jess White

Invisible people tour

After eating lunch and taking a small break at the hotel, we headed over for our invisible people tour. This was definitely one of my favorite site visits, I can completely agree with the name invisible people because I would have had no idea homelessness existed in Slovenia. During our stay, I assumed there may be a few homeless people but i hadn’t seen one. During the tour they showed us a shelter, which was under a bridge that we crossed every time we walked to the university. It was nice seeing the shelter  and hearing all of the cool things they offer the homeless. It was a humbling experience and made me appreciative of what I have!

Presentations

Last work day, wooo! So today we headed over to the University of Ljubljana for the last time. Today is our presentation day, and I Presented  twice, my second language learners slide and my reflection presentation. I was definitely not expecting sooo many students to show up, but we had a full room for my first presentation. I enjoyed hearing all of our reflection presentations but it was also sad because it started hitting that we’re almost leaving. Later today we will be taking an invisible tour and I’m excited for that!

The Invisible People Tour

Stephanie:

Going on the Invisible People Tour was incredible. It is amazing that there is so many homeless people in Ljubljana and I would never even guess. I understand what they mean when they say the invisible people of Ljubljana.

It’s nice that there is so many organizations and groups that will help the homeless in the city.

I am amazed at the woman who took us on our tour. She completely turned her life around and it is incredible!

Stephanie 💜

University

Stephanie:

This morning was spent at the Univeristy of Ljubljana presenting to the students we have been working with. I believe they enjoyed hearing about our experiences here in Slovenia.

I enjoyed listening to their presentations about various topics. This whole experience working with the University has been amazing! I hope that the Univeristy of Ljubljana makes a trip out to Chicago one day!

Stephanie 💜

Invisible Ljubljana

~Caitlin~

Today we went on a tour to learn more about the homeless system here in Ljubljana. It was really informative and eyeopening to see how they operate it here. It was nice because someone that goes/went through the process was the one that led the tour. It was nice to hear first hand experiences from what she went through. We got to observe the place where the homeless can be provided shelter, food, clothes, etc. There was only seven beds provided in one room so there was rules that people had to follow. In order to be granted a bed that had to pray before every meal and be willing to help clean.

Furthermore, the ladies took us to a place on the river called Stigma. This place was for people that had drug addiction problems. In order to be provided a place to stay through what is called safehouse the individual had to have an addictions problem and prove they were being harassed in some way or another.

The last place they took us to was the homeless shelter. We did not get to go inside because it was closed, but I got to see that part of town that I didn't think existed. One of the ladies mentioned that most people that are homeless lie on the grasses outside the shelter in the park. People tend to avoid that side of town especially if they have children. Her analogy was that it looked like a party because the grass had alcohol bottles everywhere and needles as well.  Just overall a really sad situation for a lot of individuals and families, but it's the reality of it.

Invisible Ljubljana

Jessica D.

The second part of today, our last day in Ljubljana, was a tour of the "Invisible Ljubljana." It's absolutely shocking the sights that can be seen on the streets of such a wonderful city. We were guided through the streets and a hidden underground where the homeless population of Ljubljana gather to find shelter, warmth, food, and basic supplies. Our guide was very aware of this reality because she herself was once a homeless addict living day-to-day. I loved the experience because it allowed me to really understand the realities that many homeless children and families face. I also hated the experience because it is horrible to truly see with the dangerous situations thousands of people face on a daily basis. It is called "Invisible Ljubljana" because it is a side of the city, and the world, that many people ignore. Fortunately, many people and organizations are working hard to improve their circumstances and I can only hope that kind souls will continue to donate their time, clothing, food, and money to assist those in desperate need.