June 20, 1029

Welcome back! I apologize for the delay since my last entry. In the interim I have returned to the United States. I learned that the problem uploading photos was due to the fact that I have exhausted the space limitations of my blog on WordPress. Thus, this ends my updates of Robert’s Fulbright Award Travel and Lecture Tour Blog. Sayonara!

June 10, 2019

Hello. I’m back at Word Press hoping that my inability to add more photographs and continue adding to my blog has been solved. As you will remember, I discontinued my last session because I kept receiving messages telling me that the photos I was trying to add were two large. I had never received this message before and virtually all the photos are either 4 mb or 5 mb so I don’t understand the problem. I will attempt to take up my tour of Prague again and see whether my Word Press platform lets me do so. Well, I have made six or seven attempts to load what are normal photos taken by my camera (a Nikon S8100) and all have generated the same message: “Image is too large for site’s requirements.” I will need to investigate further.

June 8, 2019

Welcome back to more exciting adventures from Robert’s Fulbright Award Travel and Lecture Tour Blog! When I left Bucharest on May 30, 2019 I flew to Prague, Czech Republic. I took many photos in my two days there so let’s get started and see Prague.

First, however, I must tell the story – complete with photos – of the little girl at the Bucharest Airport who decided it was her responsibility to distribute catalogs of tax free items available for purchase there (under the iconic name “Best Buys”). Here is a photo of the five (?) year old as her mother – holding one of the catalogs she has just been given – smiles indulgently in the background (right).

Nearby, the Tax Free Store had conveniently installed large racks filled with its glossy catalogs of liquor, perfume, clothing, and other items. The little girl felt she would be doing everyone a service if she distributed them to each waiting traveler. There were perhaps fifty or so passengers waiting but this did not deter her in the least. She would take 6 – 8 catalogs, which were 1/2 inch thick and so this was about all she could carry, and walk calmly down one row of seats after another offering a catalog to each person. She did not speak but simply presented herself and held out a catalog and then,when the catalog was accepted, smoothly moved on to the next person. She seemed quietly thrilled when the passenger accepted – which all did at first. Soon, however, she found a person who declined. This, too, seemed to have no effect other than to please the little girl, who seemed to feel that she had done what she could and if travelers were just too self-absorbed to see that they needed a catalog, well, it was not her fault! So she did this for five to ten minutes, going back to load up on catalogs whenever she ran out. Here’s a second photo of her.

Photo of little girl in the Bucharest Airport who had been handing out Duty Free Catalogs to all the passengers. It was really cute. She just seemed to crave contact, presenting herself wide-eyed with an armful of catalogs and watching carefully as travelers accepted or declined her offer.

In Prague I broke my standard practice of staying in Airbnb’s and stayed in a renovated apartment in an older building some 150 meters off Wenceslas Square in the heart of Prague/s city center. These apartments are intended to give travelers the quality experience of a hotel without the cost of an equally nice hotel because labor costs are kept to a minimum. (There are no desk clerks, no doorman, no elevator operator, no restaurant and room service employees, and so forth.) Here are some photos:

The kitchen of the apartment I rented for two night near Wenceslas Square, Prague.

The shower. It looks nice but the “open enclosure” style left a puddle of water outside the catchment area each time I took a shower.

This is the first photo I took in Prague the evening I arrived. It is a photo of the National Museum, which is located at the head of Wenceslas Square. (Hence, the photographer is standing in Wenceslas Square, which is more of an elongated rectangle about three blocks long.

A second photo of the National Museum taken the following morning.

The National Museum annex, or new building. The original is to the right of this photo’s perspective.

The monument at the head of Wenceslas Square (and, therefore, in front of the National Museum.

A couple of the grand buildings that line either side of Wenceslas Square, Prague.

Another massive block of a building on Wenceslas Square, where the first floor corner has been remodeled into a Burger King. My apartment building was 150 meters up the side street shown next to the Burger King.

An actual bronze statue – or performance art? Your call. On Wenceslas Square, Prague.

Another great old building on Wenceslas Square, Prague.

An ornate pediment atop a building on Wenceslas Square.

Prague is filled with towers of various kinds.

These two are right across the street from one another.

A classic advertising mural sixty feet high on the side of a building in Prague.

Here I must stop today. I am experiencing difficulty uploading more photos to my Blog. I don’t know why since it is the first time I have every experienced this sort of problem. I will try and figure it out and return to add more Prague photos and commentary. Hopefully I can do so shortly.

June 4, 2019

Here’s a quick follow-up to give you a little more sense of what Bucharest is like. Initially, it is helpful to understand that Bucharest is larger than some of the cities I have visited. Bucharest is reported as having 1,836,000 people. As one comparison, Ljubljana, Slovenia has about 283,000 residents. Nicosia, Cyprus has about 61,000 in the city limits on the Greek side and 55,000 city residents on the Turkish side with another 50,000 perhaps in the Greek side suburbs. Joenssu, Finland has 76,500 residents. The best comparison to Bucharest in terms of size is Budapest with approximately 1,740,000 residents as of 2019. Like Bucharest, it is the capital of a country with a larger population than the others mentioned as well: population of Romania = 19,143,000 – about twice as large as Hungary’s 9,660,000. Moreover, both Romania and Hungary were part of Soviet communism’s eastern bloc and, unlike Czechoslovakia which has a semi-autonomous communist leader in Tito, Romania’s and Hungary’s communism was more Moscow influenced and controlled. Having said all this, here are some of my Bucharest photos.

The building in which my Airbnb was located. The photo does not do it justice in the sense that it perhaps makes the building look more respectable, newer, and well kept than it actually was in reality.

My Airbnb room in Bucharest, Romania. This photo does not reflect accurately the bare condition of the rest of the apartment – which had four bedrooms renting on Airbnb – and the condition of the kitchen and bath in particular. The refrigerator, for example, was not in the kitchen but rather was directly inside the front door! (I assume this was done because it either could not be moved down the narrow hallway to the kitchen or the kitchen’s electricity couldn’t handle it.) My room and the building it was in were in an excellent location for my trip, however: about 8 short blocks to the University of Bucharest Institute of Political Science.

A building on the main street near my Airbnb building in Bucharest. Many buildings in Bucharest were older and in poorer repair than in Budapest.

Another building on the principal street near my Airbnb building in Bucharest.

A once impressive building in the neighborhood of my Airbnb building in Bucharest, now shabby and with ample graffiti.

Some buildings in Bucharest along my route to the University of Bucharest Institute of Political Science.

Church along my route to the University of Bucharest. While some churches in Bucharest show the decades of neglect imposed by communist rule, others – like this one – have been lovingly restored and kept up. (About 80% of Romanians who identify as religious name the Romanian Orthodox Church as their preference, part of the Eastern Orthodox religion.)

The National Art Museum, a mammoth structure. This photo does not show the two substantial wings on either side of the central facing structure well.

Another example of a public building built before communism that shows the proud history of Romania that was eclipsed by most of the 20th century.

Part of the University of Bucharest, which is divided between imposing structures like this one from the 19th or very early 20th century and later structures, which are poorly built and poorly maintained. This is the principal entrance to the Carol I Library at the University. I will shortly show you the entrance to an annex to the library built much later and you will see the difference.

Another beautiful church from a bygone era.

Street mural near the University of Bucharest.

Mural on retail site of a new coffee shop that is about to open, trying to be avant garde hip.

A third, well maintained, small church. (The Radisson Hotel is across the street today. Breakfast there costs 110 ron, or $ 26 USD. I asked. I had a great breakfast next to this church for 32 ron, or$ 7.60 USD.)

The interior of the church pictured above.

The coffee served with my $ 7.60 USD breakfast.

The reading room in the Literature and Humanities Library at the University of Bucharest. The Library at the University, like many major university libraries, sprawls over many buildings in the city. the exterior of this building is old, like the reading room, but undistinguished. You would never guess a gem of a room like this was inside.

The National Theater, Bucharest, Romania. It is located on a wide, busy thoroughfare, as you can see.

Sorry about the photo above. I’ve tried to delete it and WordPress will not let me. In any event, the photo above and this photo – when viewed together – show you the hear of University Square. There are statues of four Romanians of historical significance along the street at the front of the plaza.

Another fabulous older building near University Square. This building is sort of right in between University Square and 21 December 1989 Square (which commemorates civil disturbances that led to the fall of communism in Romania after Glasnot was declared by Gorbachev in the Soviet Union.

The Central Hospital, also near University Square. The National Theater, the Central Hospital, many of the older University buildings – all are centered around University Square in Bucharest.

A more direct photograph of the central cupola of the Central Hospital, Bucharest.

A spectacularly ornate church building in Bucharest. Unfortunately it was closed.

An art deco building near the city center, Bucharest.

Side view of a historic church near city center, Bucharest.

Fresco on the portico of the church pictured above.

Facade of the “old” National Theater, now incorporated into a luxury hotel.

Banner commemorating Romania’s “modern” history as an “independent” nation. Prior to 1918, Romania was a series of related, but not unified, principalities (and, for a time, a monarchy that did not control all Romanians) The end of WWI is celebrated at the period of Great Unification.

Like many national capitals, Bucharest is strewn with statues, both historic and contemporary. This statue is on the plaza in front of the “new” National Theater.

This monument is a memorial to those who died in the revolutionary days of 1989.

One of the four statues to Romanian cultural heroes located at University Square; this one represents Spiru C. Haret, a mathematician, astronomer, and politician (1851-1912).

Another contemporary sculpture near the new National Theater.

The “broken violin” sculpture near the Metro entrance for Universitatte.

In addition to the public art and architecture that I have shown you thus far, a very visible part of Bucharest street life – more so than Budapest or Prague – is poor people. Before I took this photo I was walking behind a different man walking along this sidewalk in the opposite direction. He was inspecting each public trash receptacle, of which there are many (about one every 25 feet). He crossed paths with this man who was doing the same thing – just heading in the opposite direction.

A second photo of the same man who has now moved on to another trash bin.

A photo of the Lido Hotel Bar and Brasserie, where I ate dinner the following night, a short distance from the street side park where I photographed the man inspecting trash bins.

A second photo of the Lido Hotel Brasserie where I had dinner one night in Bucharest.

My dinner at the Lido Hotel Brasserie, Bucharest.

A photo of the homeless woman I watched out the window of the Hotel Lido Brasserie where I had dinner.

There is much more to show you but I suspect I test your patience at this point! There is, for example, a beautiful, large public park in Bucharest, called Cismigiu. I will leave you with a handful of photos taken there. Hasta luego, muchachos and muchachas!

June 3, 2019

It has only been a few days since my last entry so I am doing a better job keeping up with reporting my Fulbright experiences here on my blog. Presently, I am traveling in Europe. I completed my Fulbright posting on May 27. On May 25, 2019 I participated in the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream hosted by ZRC SAZU (Research Centre for the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts), my Fulbright host site, and the Educational Research Institute, Ljubljana. The conference was held at ZRC’s atrium Event Center in Novi Trg, Ljubljana. Here are a few photos from the event.

Dr. Mitja Sardoc, Educational Research Institute, was the principal organizer of the event and acted as the master of ceremonies.

Darko Strajn, Educational Research Institute, Ljubljana speaking at the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream.

Victor Chen, Virginia Commonwealth University, an invited speaker at the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream, by the Ljubljanica River.

Robert Hauhart, Mitja Sardoc, Victor Chen, and Darko Strajn (left to right), the four principal speakers at the Conference held on May 25, 2019.

It would be nice to report robust attendance and interest in the American Dream. That would be a substantial over-statement. Those who were there – either as speakers or attendees – were very interested in the American Dream but the attendance was modest.

Two days after the Saturday Conference I checked out of my residence apartment in Ljubljana and flew to Bucharest, Romania. The following day I spoke at the University of Bucharest’s Institute of Political Science. My colleague, Brindusa Nicolaescu, whose work Jeff Birkenstein and I published in one of our edited volumes, teaches there. Here are a few photos from that speaking engagement.

A slightly out of focus shot of my hosts (left to right): Brindusa Nicolaescu, Luciana-Alexandra Ghica, and a teaching assistant with the Department of Political Science.

Yours truly with Brindusa Nicolaescu and the Department teaching assistant at the University of Bucharest on May 28, 2019.

A photo that is far too dark of the students at the University of Bucharest who attended by talk on May 28, 2019.

Bucharest and the University there are very interesting places. I took a handful of other photos at the University, some of which are of interest. Both Bucharest and the University show more signs of their recent Communist past than Slovenia, Prague (Czech Republic), and Budapest (Hungary), all of which I visited while here in Europe. Here are photos taken in or of the University of Bucharest Institute of Political Science building.

Photo of a University of Bucharest campus building (across the street from the Institute of Political Science) showing its crumbling facade.

Gated entrance to the grounds of the Institute of Political Science, University of Bucharest, located at Spiru Haret 8. There is a small guard shack to my right where an older gentleman in modest uniform is posted. European universities that I’ve visited almost invariably have older men or women who serve as building minders in this capacity.

The building that houses the Institute for Political Science at the University of Bucharest. Note the condition of the building, the somewhat derelict information both in the yard, and the overgrown lawn. This general ambiance of physical neglect is rather obvious throughout Bucharest.

A typical classroom in the Institute of Political Science building at the University of Bucharest.

A photo showing a common area on the second floor of the Institute of Political Science building. Classrooms and offices are behind the various doors you see in the photo. There are perhaps four classrooms on this floor, a couple offices, and the faculty bathrooms. (Student bathrooms are on the first floor.) The bare walls were explained to me as “preparation for a renovation which has been promised for years.”

An innovative use of a bronze statue at the Institute of Political Science building at the University of Bucharest.

A somewhat dated Canon copier in the adjunct faculty offices at the Institute of Political Science building.

The first floor entry foyer at the Institute of Political Science at the University of Bucharest.

The elderly security guard at the Institute of Political Science building watering plants on the stairwell to the second floor.

A photo of industrial style bar of soap in the student bathroom at the Institute of Political Science building at the University of Bucharest. The bar pictures is about 6″ x 4″ and an inch thick.I did not inspect the faculty bathroom to see if faculty receive better quality soap.

Thanks for joining me for today’s short session of Robert’s Fulbright Award Lecture and Travel Tour blog. I am writing from Copenhagen and need to prepare for departing to my next destination, Oslo. More to come on Bucharest in the next several days, though, so be sure to follow my adventures as I speed through several cities in Europe on my way back to the United States.

May 29, 2019

Well, campers, it has been nearly a month since I posted on my blog. That means a lot has been happening. Let’s get right to it!

First, as you know, I’ve been planning for the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream to be held Saturday, May 25, 2019. Here’s a copy of the program for the Conference.

THE GLOBAL INFLUENCE OF THE AMERICAN DREAM

A Symposium on the Status of the American Dream

Saturday, May 25, 2019 11:00 – 16:00 ZRC SAZU, 2 Novi Trg, Ljubljana

ZRC SAZU

Educational Research Institute

As a central element of American culture, the American Dream is said to represent a distilled version of basic American values and, arguably, one of the most important emancipatory ideals associated with the American ‘way of life’. In fact, both in the US and abroad, the American Dream constitutes a symbol of progress and has been synonymous with hope in general. Moreover, its progressive idealism has had a galvanizing influence on a number of emancipatory social projects, e.g. the Civil Rights movement, the Green New Deal, and others. At the same time, its promise of upward social mobility [firmly grounded in the merit-based idea of equal opportunity] encapsulates best the idea of non-discrimination and fairness that stand at the very center of controversial issues as diverse as racial desegregation, migration, the minimum wage, and the status of women.

Yet, its ‘standard’ interpretation as an idealized ‘metaphor of basic American values’ is no longer straightforward, as the American Dream has engendered resistance and disenchantment. As an archetype for achieving (material) success and consumerism in general, the American Dream has also been subjected to a number of criticisms, notably that its promise of equal opportunity and material prosperity for all has not been fulfilled. Faced with indicators and other data on increasing economic inequality [compared to other democratic countries], leading contemporary scholars and public intellectuals have questioned its emancipatory potential as well as its basic promise of upward social mobility.

The Conference aims to bring together a series of speakers whose work has addressed the American Dream either directly or indirectly through its impact on democratic societies. Speakers will discuss a wide range of issues, problems, and challenges associated with our understanding of the American Dream. Moreover, speakers will represent an international assembly whose remarks will address circumstances in several countries. In particular, speakers have been asked to consider the influence of the American Dream on China and the European Union, economic powers whose own dreams presage an increasingly interdependent global future.

Advance Registration Required by May 15, 2019: mitja.sardoc@pei.si

Invited Speakers:

Victor Tan Chen, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University. Richmond, Virginia (USA). Author of Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy (2015).

Robert C. Hauhart, Ph.D., J.D., Saint Martin’s University, Lacey, WA (USA) and author of Seeking the American Dream: A Sociological Inquiry (Palgrave Macmillan 2016) and The Lonely Quest: Constructing the Self in the 21^st Century United States (Routledge 2019)

Darko Štrajn, Ph. D., Educational Research Institute and AMEU-ISH (Graduate School for Humanities) in Ljubljana, Slovenia and author of the book From Walter Benjamin to the End of Cinema: identities, illusion and signification within mass culture, politics and aesthetics (2017).

Mitja Sardoč, Ph.D., Educational Research Institute (Slovenia). Editor of the Šolsko polje journal special issue Education and the American Dream (2017).

A photo of the Planning Committee for the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream. From the left: Dr. Oto Luthar, Director, Research Centre (ZRC SAZU) of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts; Laila, the ZRC Events Manager; and Dr. Mitja Sardoc, Educational Research Institute, Ljubljana. The photo was taken in the ZRC Atrium which was used as the Events Center.

During the last few days before the Conference on Saturday, May 25 I accompanied my friend and colleague, Mitja (pictured above) to Maribor, Slovenia’s second largest city (with about 125,000 people). Mitja had an appointment to lecture to the half dozen or so Department of Philosophy doctoral students there. I used the two hours to wander around the city taking photos. Here are some of them.

Near the City Center in Maribor, Slovenia.

Photo taken from the same place but looking down the main thoroughfare, Maribor, Slovenia.

Elaborate monument there in the Central Plaza, Maribor, Slovenia.

Another photo of the Central Plaza in Maribor.

Restored older buildings along side the Central Plaza, Maribor.

Looking down on a narrow street from a ramp to a bridge across the Drava River, Maribor, Slovenia.

Photo of the Drava River in Maribor, Slovenia.

Distance shot taken up the Dravia River in Maribor using a telephone lens.

Traffic circle, buildings in Maribor, Slovenia.

Church near the University of Maribor Medical School.

Bridge across the Drva River with partial skyline, Maribor.

Statue of the First Archbishop of Maribor in a square in front of his church. His life’s ambition, according to a plaque, was to raise the stature of the diocese – so he died a happy man.

The First Archbishop of Maribors church (not the current Cathedral).

Street scene, Maribor, with twin spires of the Cathedral in the background.

Cobblestone plaza with monument and cafe, Maribor.

Walking down to look at the river in the evening in Maribor.

Narrow, empty, cobblestone street in the old town section of Maribor.

Street Puppeteer trying to make a euro in Maribor.

Community Center for Children and Youth in Maribor.

Decorative all graffiti on the Community Center, Maribor.

Entrance to one of the University buildings, Maribor.

Contemporary theater for live stage plays in Maribor.

Graffito: “”Damn! It was a wild night!!” Garden wall, Maribor.

Bust of Herman Potocnik Noordung at the University of Maribor, a Slopvene rocket engineer and astrophysicist.

That concludes our brief travelogue for today. Presently I am in Bucharest, Romania where I traveled on Monday, May 27 to give a lecture on Tuesday, May 18 at the Institute for Political Science at the University of Bucharest. Next time I will treat you to a report – with photographs – on the Conference on the Global Status of the American Dream and share some Bucharest photos with you.

Adios, amigos!

April 30, 2019

Welcome back! It has been another ten days or so since I’ve met you here. I know many of you have wondered what I’ve been up to because of the many cards and letters I’ve received. (Foots! No one has been writing me!) Well, a lot has been happening so prepared yourselves for an information and photo-filled entry today.

Let me begin by welcoming you to Spring in Ljubljana with a beautiful photo of the Ljubljanica River.

Photo shows the Ljubljanica River several blocks south of ZRC SAZU (Research Centre for the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts) with which I am affiliated. This area is a little south of the “Center” of Ljubljana so the many bars, restaurants, and coffee shops that line the river there are less clustered here. This is more of a residential, and less of a commercial, area within the city.

Last week, on Wednesday, April 24, 2019, ZRC SAZU (the Research Centre) was one of the organizers of what was described as “a central public forum on science.” Natural science and social sciences researchers began, three years ago, holding a public event in Spring each year to highlight the contributions made by Slovenian researchers and seek support for more direct government funding. Proclaimed as a “rally for science,” the research institutes and facilities that depend on government funding for their sustenance gathered to a hear a panel of Slovenian researchers discuss their experience with funding in Slovenia and, from one or two of the speakers, their experience in other countries where they worked on projects. The rally was held in an auditorium at Staro electrarno (the Old Power Plant) at Slomskovi ulici 18 (the address on Slomskovi street) which is near the intersection of Kotnikova ulica in the vicinity of the Ljubljana railway and bus station just north of the Center. There were about 200 people in attendance. The print and visual media were also there with a great deal of filming taking place. The event last for about 1 1/2 hours. At its conclusion, the assembled researchers marches – carrying signs that said, in effect, “Support Slovenian Science” – to two ministries (Education and Science/Technology) which are the principal sources of funding support. The Education Minister came out of his office and down to the street to meet with the group. (Earlier, he had invited them – or their representatives, at least – in to meet with him in his office but because the invitation did not come until the day of/day before the event the group voted not to meet with him there but instead to demand he come down and meet on the street, which he did. Last year, the former Education Minister refused to meet with them at all.) When I spoke with Dr. Oto Luthar, the director of ZRC SAZU and the host and spokesperson for the rally, after the event he was sanguine about the prospect of the public demonstration producing more funding. He noted that nothing happened after the two prior years. It is an interesting concept for inducing social action with respect to financing for professional work.

The other major event last week was that I received notice that my application for residency status had been approved. So last Friday I spent several exciting hours at the Office for Foreigners picking up the residency permit. Visitors to Slovenia from the United States can stay up to 90 days without a visa, just with a passport. However, to stay past 90 days one is supposed to apply for and be approved for a residency permit. I had already spent the better part of a day about six weeks ago applying for the permit; I now had to go pick it up and pay for it. (Of course, I also had to pay also just to apply, to get an approved photo (like a passport photo), and to make many copies of documents demonstrating I would not become a burden on Slovenian society!)

When I applied, I was given a letter that I was old would serve as a temporary permit. It was in Slovene and the clerk who was checking in my application that day spoke very little English. (She had to consult two other clerks to handle me. She seemed quite angry about it all.) In any event, I applied for the permit about six weeks prior on a Friday. On the following day, Saturday, I traveled to Budapest, Hungary and the following Tuesday flew from there to Joensuu, Finland (home of the well known University of Eastern Finland). (Of course, those of you reading my blog religiously already know about this trip.) I was gone for about ten days. So about a week ago I found the temporary letter I was given in Slovene but with Google Translator I decided to read it. It was very short. The first line said, “This person has applied for a resident permit and this is a temporary record of his application,” or thereabouts. The second line said, “He is entitled to live in Slovenia while his application is processed but he cannot leave the country!” Oh, okay!

In any event, I was approved and after payment of another 12 euros I was given a plastic card that serves as the residency permit.

My official residency permit to remain in Slovenia past the expiration of 90 days. Great photo! I look like a completely disreputable character!

I made the mistake of actually putting the last day of May, 2019 on my application, however. It is true that my Fulbright Award says “January – May, 2019” on the official letter but I likely could have put any date in early June and it would have been approved. As it turns out, I am thinking about not leaving Ljubljana and Slovenia until Monday, June 3. We’ll see how that turns out since I had to give a copy of my residency permit to the University housing where I live!

While the rally and the residency permit process were both a great deal of fun (No, they weren’t!) just yesterday I took a day trip to Koper, Isola, and Piran – three Slovenian towns on the Adriatic Sea coast. I was invited by my friend and colleague Mitja Sardoc, Educational Research Institute, who lives in Koper, to travel there, meet his family, and spend the day. Here are two photos of Mitja if you have forgotten what he looks like:

My friend and colleague, Mitja, in Piran, Slovenia, on the Adriatic coast, with the red tile roofs of the old town and the sea in the background.

Mitja Sardoc, left foreground, standing on a stone walkway near the Piran, Slovenia cathedral with the old city down the hill behind him and the ancient city wall atop the rise in the far background.

The trip started with a bus ride from the Ljubljana bus station to the Koper bus station. Although the distance is only about 105 km (about 63 miles) the bus, which cost 11.10 euros, took two hours and eight minutes to make the trip. It was a very nice ride through the countryside to the sea.

Slovenia has only 37 km of Adriatic coastline. (Croatia, just south of Piran, Slovenia where I visited) has a couple hundred kilometers of sea coast. Likewise, Italy, which is just north of Koper (Trieste is 15 km from Koper) has an even longer Adriatic coast.) The three towns I visited are nearly contiguous and constitute the entire Slovenian coast on the Adriatic. Koper, to the north, is the largest; Isola, the middle town of the three, is the smallest; Piran, the southernmost town, is the swankiest – a real seaside resort town.

The main square in Koper, Slovenia with clock tower. Yesterday was a gloomy, cold, rainy day on Slovenia’s Adriatic coast but Mitja said that except at the height of summer Koper is a very quiet town and the streets and squares a not very crowded even in better weather. Koper, with 25,000 people, is the sixth largest city in Slovenia after Ljubljana (283,000), Maribor (108,000), Kranj (41,000), Celje (37,500), and Nova Gorica (32,700). The bell in the Town Tower (pictures) dates from 1333.

A photo of the Praetorian Palace on one side of the main square in Koper, Slovenia. The building is from the middle 15th century. Built by he Venetians during their several hundred year control of this part of Slovenia, the building became the seat of local government following Napoleon’s rout of the Venetians in 1797. Today it remains the site of the Koper Mayor’s Office and municipal government.

Another building on the main square in Koper.

A photo showing a closer view of the Praetorian Palace facade on the main squire in Koper.

Another photo showing the main square in Koper and a building on the fourth side of the square. During the period of Slovenia’s incorporation as part of communist Yugoslavia the square was re-named Tito Square. Ljubljana also had a principal square named after Tito during the communist years but after 1991 Tito’s name was removed. Koper, which has a history of control by Venice and Italy, considered Tito its liberator. Koper’s main squire remains to this day “Tito Square.”

Inside the Koper Cathedral., the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The cathedral history goes back to the 12th century. There are many large paintings in naves, several by Vittore Carpaccio, the oldest of which dates from 15.16.

Photo of the altar in Koper Cathedral and the sarcophagus of St. Nazarius, patron saint of the town. I was unable to take a good photo of the exterior of the Cathedral because it is bounded by very narrow streets with densely built houses and shops on every side.

Photo of special altar inside the Koper Cathedral.

Exterior of small chapel attached to the Koper Cathedral.

Ancient wall and arched door (restored) near Koper Cathedral.

A stone gateway and iron gate in Koper, Slovenia.

An ancient parish church in Koper, Slovenia. And a parking lot.

A narrow streetscape in Old Town, Koper, Slovenia

Another photo of a very narrow street in Old Town, Koper.

A portion of the ancient city wall, Koper, and the one remaining city gate.

Restored and reconfigured ancient structure (to the right) in Koper. It is now used as an outdoor event space (for concerts as one example).

Palm trees and a view of the marina, Koper harbor.

Downtown promenade, Koper, with Adriatic Sea in the distant background.

Pier in Koper harbor. The small ocean craft in the center, mid-ground, moored to the pier is one of two vessels of the Slovenian Coast Guard. Hey, there’s only 37 km to cover!

Beach on the Adriatic Sea in Koper. Just around the headland pictured is Trieste, Italy.

Tiny sailing vessels, called sailfish or sailfins, in the Adriatic Sea at Koper.

Approaching Piran, Slovenia on the coast road. Public parking is to the left. Old Town Piran, like Old Town Koper, has very restricted vehicle access. Most of Old Town Piran is pedestrian only.

Seafood restaurant with small pier, edge of Piran, Slovenia.

Distance view of a portion of Piran, Slovenia from across the bay.

Small beach on the edge of Piran, Slovenia.

Steep hills surround Piran Bay and the town of Piran, Slovenia.

Partial view of the inner harbor area of Piran, Slovenia.

Photo across the marina, Piran, to the clock tower and Cathedral (left background in the photo).

A different view of the marina, Piron, looking out to the Adriatic Sea in the distant background.

A view of the main square, Piran, with the clock tower and cathedral in the background.

The “city palace” or town hall building on Tartini Square, the main piazza in Piran, Slovenia. Giuseppe Tartini was a violinist and composer from Piran. Note that he was Italian. Italy dominated this coastal area for centuries.

Another view of Tartini Square, Piran, Slovenia.

View of one side of Tartini Square, Piran, with clock tower in the background.

Statue of Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770) in Tartini Square, Piran.

View of Piran, Slovenia. The coastal area seen to the right in the mid-ground is Croatia.

Another view of Piran, Slovenia and the Adriatic Sea.

Photo of a small chapel that sits behind the Cathedral of St. George in Piran, Italy.

Cathedral of St. George, Pian, Slovenia, sits high atop a steep hill overlooking the town and the Adriatic Sea (background to the left). The cathedral was completed in 1614.

The altar, Cathedral of St. George, Piran, Slovenia.

Yours truly near the base of the clock tower, Piran, Slovenia. Adriatic Sea in the background.

Famous tourist, Piran, Slovenia with ancient city wall visible on the high rise in the background.

Small ancient aqueduct near the Cathedral of St. George, Piran, Slovenia.

View of neighborhood in Piran, Slovenia with part of ancient wall visible in upper left background.

View of Old Town, Piran, Slovenia from grounds of Cathedral of St. George.

Sea wall in Piran, Slovenia with tower and rear of ancient town church visible.

Closer view of ancient church tower near the sea wall, Piran.

Ancient local Catholic Church on the promenade, Piran, Slovenia.

Interior, ancient church near the sea wall, Piran, Slovenia.

Buildings on a small, open city square in Piran, Slovenia. The Adriatic Sea is behind the photographer.

Nice restaurants line that part of the promenade with the best view, Piran, Slovenia.

Boutique Hotel Piran. The Adriatic Sea and sea wall is to the photographer’s right.

A small, nondescript square in Piran, Slovenia.

Small craft in the inner harbor, Piran, Slovenia.

In addition to the tours of Koper, Piran, and Isola (not pictured) Mitja and his family had me to their house in a subdivision overlooking the town of Koper with beautiful views of the Adriatic Sea from the third floor. It was a wonderful day trip.

April 19, 2019

Welcome back!

Well, it has been a while – two weeks exactly – since I last visited you here. What have I been doing? Largely what I’m supposed to be doing – giving a couple of lectures and taking steps to organize what has become known as the Conference on the Global Influence of the American Dream.

Let’s start with the lectures. I gave another lecture at ZRC SAZU, the Research Centre with which I am affiliated here in Ljubljana under the terms of my Fulbright grant, on Wednesday April 3, 2019. There were only a handful (5) of people in attendance – so very modest turn-out like some of the previous lectures. This lecture was held in a different seminar room; indeed, a different building across Novi trg (Novi Square) from the building in which I use an office that is “on loan” to me (from a researcher who is away doing field research and teaching elsewhere) and where, to date, all my ZRC SAZU activities have taken place. This second building, not recently renovated and therefore giving off every indication of being older (although it may well not be older), features sculptures and buses in the stairwells and foyers, velvet covered chairs in the seminar room, elaborate moldings around doors and ceiling, and subdued, royal colors like gray-blue painted walls. Of course, massive over-size doors are de rigueur for this sort of building. By simple request to the director of the Research Centre, a projector was in place so I could show a couple of photos on a screen off my thumb drive.

A week later, on Thursday, April 11, 2019, I spoke to the Slovenian Society of International Relations at their headquarters across Parliament Square from the Slovenian Parliament. There were five (5) ambassadors to Slovenia in attendance – from Brazil, Italy, Switzerland, and two more countries I now forget. I was introduced, first, by the past president of the society, who is a former ambassador to Poland from Slovenia, and then by the current president of the society, who is a former ambassador to Poland, Argentina, and Switzerland from Slovenia. I spoke for about 30 minutes and then took questions and comments for another 40 minutes. It seemed to go well. There were about 30-35 people in attendance. Some pictures were taken but I haven’t received them yet. I will post them for you as soon as I do receive them.

There have been a few ups and downs in organizing the Conference on the Global Influence of the American Dream. One of my contacts as the U.S. Embassy here encouraged those of us organizing the Conference to invite another American scholar of the American Dream to be a part of the event and to pay for it by applying for a U.S. cultural grant. So, in early March, 2019, I spent some time preparing ZRC SAZU’s application for a cultural grant for funds to bring in an American scholar. I was able to invite, and then persuade, Katherine Newman, Ph.D., to agree to participate in the conference. She is presently Chancellor for the University of Massachusetts, Boston and have written about fifteen books on American Society. We submitted the grant application on time on March 15, 2019 but have not heard a thing. I’ve since learned that their normal time for issuing awards is about two months after submission of the applications. I was not informed of this at the time of applying. The director of ZRC SZU, Dr. Oto Luthar, authorized the acquisition of flight reservations and hotel accommodations for Dr. Newman and around April 10 or so, as I was working with Katherine to build her flight itinerary, she advised me that she had just received word of a serious illness within her immediate family and she would not be able to come to Ljubljana for the event.

Earlier, after I first contacted her, when waiting to hear back from Dr. Newman as to whether she might be willing to participate in the conference, I also invited my friend and colleague, Dennis Downey, from California State University at Channel Islands. He said it was possible that he might be able to come. I contacted Dennis again but after considering his schedule further he reneged on his initial willingness. This put me in a bit of a bind. I either needed to find another American scholar to come to the event or withdraw the application for cultural funds from the U.S. Embassy. In any event, I conferred with Katherine Newman and invited her former student at Harvard University, Victor Tan Chen, whose book, Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy (University of California Press 2015), I admired and discussed at some length in my own recent book, The Lonely Quest (Routledge 2019). Victor has agreed to participate in the conference. Just today I finished conferring with him and putting together an itinerary so that ZRC SAZU could purchase airline tickets and make a hotel reservation. Next week I need to tell the U.S. Embassy about the substitution.

In any event, here is the announcement for the conference I’ve put together with some help from my Slovenian colleague, Mitja Sardoc.

THE GLOBAL INFLUENCE OF THE AMERICAN DREAM

A Symposium on the Status of the American Dream

Saturday, May 25, 2019 10:30 – 16:00 ZRC SAZU, 2 Novi Trg, Ljubljana

ZRC ZASU

Educational Research Institute

Advance Registration Required by May 15, 2019: mitja.sardoc@pei.si

Invited Speakers: Victor Tan Chen, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University. Richmond, Virginia (USA). Author of Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy (2015).

Robert C. Hauhart, Ph.D., J.D., Saint Martin’s University, Lacey, WA (USA) and author of Seeking the American Dream: A Sociological Inquiry (Palgrave Macmillan 2016) and The Lonely Quest: Constructing the Self in the 21st Century United States (Routledge 2019).

Well, that’s all for today. See you next time! Or, as we in Slovenia say, “Nasvidenje!”

April 5, 2019

Thanks for joining me again on Robert’s Fulbright Award Travel and Lecture Tour Blog. I’ve often been asked (No! I haven’t!), “How can you afford to travel to all these cities – Istanbul; Nicosia, Cyprus; Budapest, Hungary; Joensuu, Finland? The answer, in part, is economy travel. I’ve already talked about Flixbus and the inexpensive trips I’ve taken to and from Budapest on it. The same is true for accommodations. I did book an inexpensive hotel for my four night stay in Istanbul. I spent about $ 32/night for lodging there in a very nice, small hotel in a non-touristy area but near a Metro stop. However other than that brief stay, I’ve used Airbnb rooms. Here’s a breakdown of my costs with comments.

In Nicosia, Cyprus I stayed in a home in Aglantzia because, in part, it was very close to where the Airport shuttle drops off/departs and the hosts would even pick me up. Also, Aglantzia is on the Greek side of Nicosia, which is where I needed to be at the University of Cyprus and the University of Nicosia. I gave up a little bit in price because the Turkish side of Nicosia is generally less expensive. Still, I had a perfectly satisfactory room with WiFi in a house with my own bathroom for four nights for $ 86.73 – an average of about $ 21.75/night.

When I flew back to Istanbul from Cyprus I needed to stay one night due to the flight arrangements I made. I found a room with a shared bath within two stops of Ataturk International Airport on the metro. I was arriving at 10 p.m. at night and the hostess offered to walk over to the metro station to meet me. The cost of this room – which was tiny and cramped but otherwise fine (with WiFi) – was $ 12.77 for the one night.

In Budapest I stayed for three nights. Again, I wanted me be on the metro system and specifically I wanted to be on the M4 line because I was coming into Budapest via Flixbus to the Kelenfold Bus Station which has an M4 subway station next to it. I found one of five rooms attached to a central kitchen and bath – a sort of upgraded hostel where there were rooms rather than a dormitory setting – within 100 meters of an M4 subway station. Cost for three nights was $ 36.78 – or about $ 12.26/night. The room was again very trim with no extra space but the kitchen and bath were quite good and kept clean daily. I had a little trouble with the WiFi connection for one day but it didn’t completely incapacitate me.

When I came back to Budapest after my trip to Joensuu, Finland I knew more about the layout of the town. I only needed to stay overnight to make my connection from a flight into the airport to a Flixbus departure from Kelenfold the following day. I wanted to be on the M4 line again but I didn’t need to stay in the same Airbnb room or near the exact same M4 station. I found a place two subway stations closer to the Danube River and the heart of the city. It was a room with a bath in an older apartment but the location was excellent and the cost was $ 11.46 for the night. Here, I couldn’t get the Wifi to work but as I was there for less than 24 hours it was not critical. I just went to the McDonald’s nearby.

In Joensuu, Finland there were absolutely no inexpensive hotels. A hotel room there would have cost me $ 100 per night and mostly up. (Finland is the most expensive place I’ve visited.) However, I was able to get a very spacious room with a shared bath in an apartment hosted by a single mother (Russian) with three children (Matthew, about 13 years old; Nikita (Nick), 10; and Sofia, 7). Everything was entirely satisfactory: three blocks to the city center (where I could catch the shuttle bus to the airport) and a pleasant 15 minute walk to the University. Three nights cost $ 70.78 – or about $ 23.90 per night. All in all, I’ve had very good experiences with Airbnb’s. Using them effectively means carefully figuring out the transportation issues in advance and paying close attention to issues about accessing keys, key codes, and so forth. While many of the hosts/hostesses are rather distant – making the experience much like a hotel in that regard – I had a lovely time meeting Olga and her children in Joensuu. I would share a picture with you but I failed to bring my charger with me for my camera so when I ran out battery power I could not take a photo. I am going to write her and ask for a photo of she and the children, however. Here is a photo of her building:

Olga’s apartment building in Joensuu, Finland in March, 2019. It is a three block walk to the city center and a 15 minute walk to the University of Eastern Finland where I was to speak.

Photo of Joensuu, Finland taken from in front of Olga’s apartment building where I was staying. The downtown is three blocks directly up the street I am standing by to take the photo.

Photo of Joensuu, Finland looking toward the City Center – which is about two blocks directly ahead.

Street scene, Joensuu, Finland. Photo taken while walking to the University of Eastern Finland (in part to show the level of snow accumulation on March 20, 2019).

Photo of the building in which I gave my public lecture at the University of Eastern Finland. There is a coffee shop in the corner of the building visible in the photograph on the first floor.

A photo of the Humanities Library, University of Eastern Finland, where I spent a pleasant hour (and a photograph of snow).

Photo of another campus building at the University of Eastern Finland. The previous photos showing two buildings, this building, and the building depicted in the next photo create a small, irregular “quad.”

Classroom building, University of Eastern Finland.

The buildings I have shown you at the University of Eastern Finland are among the most recently built. They are located on one side of a busy street that bisects the campus. To access the other side of the campus from this “quad” area one walks through a tunnel under the roadway. The following photos show buildings and spaces in the older part of the campus closer to/built on the edge of Joensuu. None of the campus is “old” however.

New dormitory building under construction, University of Eastern Finland. Oh, and snow.

Outdoor recreation area, University of Eastern Finland. In case you wish to play basketball after class.

Sign welcoming you (in Finnish and English) to the University Teacher Training School at UEL. One of Olga’s children – Nick – attends school here. (Olga is also taking classes to obtain a business degree here.)

Outdoor children’s playground at the University Teacher Training School, University of Eastern Finland. It will be available for use in the Summer Session, I think!

Unfortunately, those are the only photos I have of Joensuu and the University of Eastern Finland because my battery was exhausted at this point. I want to tell you a little about my hostess, Olga, though.

Olga has lived in Finland for about ten years. In Russia she grew up in a small industrial city on the eastern side of the Ural mountains. The area was very flat – the town was north of Moscow and well on the way to Siberia – but you could see the mountains. (It is about 1150 miles from Moscow to the Ural Mountains, depending on where you pinpoint to measure.) Olga, probably in her late 30’s now, was a good student and could only think about getting away from the town she was born in. She was admitted to a technical university in Moscow. She became a chemical engineer and explained that she had attained the level of what would be equivalent to a “pre-Ph.D.” doing research. This is where she met her husband who was working in the same field.

Together they pioneered a new method for developing the film needed to coat solar panels. (In one telling, Olga became a little heated in her account and said, “I made invention. I made process.”) This is why they came to Finland. They were hired by a start-up firm that built a factory (in another Finnish town further north) to build solar panels with their technique. The factory was technically successful but struggled commercially. Ultimately, the firm ran out of cash and closed. They were both out of work. Their credentials were not easily transferable in Finland. Moreover, the solar industry is nascent there so it was not easy to find another position doing what they had come to Finland to do. Both she and her husband thought there would be more use for their training in solar production in the United States but they could not make a connection.

This led to the rather obvious question, “Where is your husband now?” Turns out he is still in Finland hoping to go to the United States but making no progress in that regard. Olgo explained, “My husboond changed. He became no good man. He not respect me. I have University degree, engineering. I have pre-Ph.D. I make process for solar panels. I not house slave. Once, I cook all meals, years and years. I not cook every day now. I’m human being. I no need his [disrespect]. What need man for ? I divorce him.” Exactly: “What need man for?” It could hardly be expressed more eloquently.

So that is Olga’s story and she is sticking to it. She is back in school at the University of Eastern Finland to improve her Finnish (she still prefers Russian and acknowledges that even after 10 years her Finnish is not spoken like a local) and obtain credentials that will be accepted in Finland. Her son, Matthew, is interested in cooking and taking a class in cooking at his school. (He showed me his cooking books.) So Olga and Matthew cook. She is doing the Airbnb – as you can well imagine – for some extra funds. She is a very good mother; the children are personable and each wanted to make contact with me, especially Matthew and Sofia. (I came into the apartment from outside and Sofia, who had just stepped out of the bathroom and a shower, wrapped in a towel under her arms, ran up and said, “Hello! You are back!” and then ran off into her mother’s room.) They study English in school but Olga admits that she speaks primarily Russian to them at home so they will learn it/not forget it in Matthew’s case. I encouraged her to speak English with them some, both to help her English and theirs. (None of the children were comfortable in speaking much English although Matthew tried to speak with me several times, awkwardly, fumbling hard for words.) In any event, a really pleasant stay. I bought eggs and cheese and made an omelet for Olga and I one morning while she talked, practicing her English (and looking up words on Google Translator when stumped).

Well, there you have it. As the Finns would say, “Nakemiisin!” (Umlaut over the “a”!)

April 4, 2019

Thank you for tuning in to today’s program and welcome back to another installment of Robert’s Fulbright Award Travel and Lecture Tour blog. Today we are going to take up a few minor matters that I have skipped over while penning Grand Narratives of my travels and Fulbright adventure. Then, another Grand Narrative.

One thing I’ve meant to mention on several occasions, but permitted to slip my mind, is the perhaps rather obvious recognition that any American might have touring abroad and that is: American rock n’ roll is not only here to stay, it is everywhere! Witness these rather culturally diverse experiences:

*I am eating lunch in Ljubljana, Slovenia the other day, one of the few times I’ve gone out for lunch since arriving. I am eating in a restaurant that specializes in Serbian cuisine so I am having the beef goulash with pasta and Union pivo (beer; Union is a local Slovenian brand). Suddenly, quietly but distinctly, I hear Roy Orbison singing “Pretty Woman.” (“Pretty woman. … Walkin’ down the street, the kind I’d like to meet. … Don’t walk on by…And make me cry…Pretty Woman”).

*I am in Istanbul near the Ataturk International Airport eating breakfast on a one day lay-over from Cyprus. Turkish breakfasts are pretty elaborate affairs, consisting of anywhere from 10 – 20+ small sampling dishes, which are being set all around on small plates on my little table for one, when I hear, “Ain’t too proud to beg, sweet darlin’ … please don’t leave me, don’t you go … Now I’ve heard a crying man is half a man, with no sense of pride, but if I have to cry to keep you, I don’t mind weeping if crying will keep you by my side … Aint’ too proud to beg, baby baby, please don’t leave me, don’t you go.”

I must say, it is a little culturally jarring each time I am bombarded with these pop and rock chestnuts. I’ve also heard: “Baby Love” by the Supremes; “Can’t Hurry Love” by the Supremes; “Losing my Religion” by U2; “Proud Mary” by Creedence Clearwater Revival; and half a dozen others I can’t even recall. Old American popular music doesn’t die – it just gets exported!

I also want to bring up the fact – which is obvious to any writer but is often missed by readers – that the narratives you are reading here on my blog are “constructed” as we in the sociology biz say. What do I mean? Well, that they are very obviously edited. First, it is impossible to tell “the whole truth and nothing but the truth” even if I was committed to doing so. But, second, I didn’t start with the intention of telling “the whole truth” in any event. Rather, without consciously giving it much thought at all I’ve tried to construct a narrative of words and photographs (and occasional links) that gives you, the reader, a sense of where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing, generally. However, as the trip wears on I’ve become increasingly aware of one unconscious form of editing that is now very conscious, so I thought I should tell you about it. And that is this: I’ve been leaving out, for the most part, many of the small mis-directions and miscues that plague any trip abroad.

For example, thinking back to my one day lay-over in Istanbul in a small, crowded, Turkish, non-touristy neighborhood two metro stops from the airport, I had made good arrangements for a very inexpensive Airbnb; I had maintained good communication with my young female hostess, name Aslihan; I had successfully gone out to breakfast and come back to Aslihan’s place; and then I went out a second time (because I had an entire day to kill before an evening flight) and when I came back to her street I was confused about which door was to her building. I went up to what I thought was the right door, felt disoriented, fumbled with the key, it seemed right away to not fit. I was suffering confusion – almost distress – thinking: “My God! I don’t know where Aslihan works (at a bank, but which bank?); I don’t have my laptop (it is inside her apartment); I’m on my own, can’t get in, don’t know which is the right door – lost!, etc., etc, etc.” It was sort of what people call an “anxiety attack,” I guess, although I was very highly conscious of my situation and didn’t dissolve into a puddle. So, I backed away from the door, trying to look inconspicuous (because as a westerner in an almost exclusively Turkish part of town I was pretty obvious and a source of interest and the streets in this busy neighborhood were very crowded) and very quietly walked around a couple of blocks trying to cool down. When I was more collected I went back to Aslihan’s street (this is her street, right? Yes, I’m pretty sure I’m right about that!) and very carefully looked at the entry doors after turning the corner on to her block. This time I found her building door. I saw there was a first door, snuggled in between two small businesses,which I had never even noticed before, and hers was the second door after turning the corner.

In my own defense I can now describe some of the details that might make anyone make the mistake I had made. The street was a very commercial street with many small businesses, one after another, built into the street level of buildings which, by and large, were apartment buildings 6 – 7 stories tall otherwise. Burrowed in between the businesses were entry doors periodically. These doors often look very much alike in neighborhoods in European cities … this is as true of Budapest as it is of Istanbul. One reason is that most of the buildings in a neighborhood will have been built in the same generation; that is, within 10 – 20 years of each other and builders of this type of building are not world famous architects. Rather, they choose from stock items that are readily available. Hence, they choose the sort of functional doors that work for these types of buildings where many people will need to use them; an intercom system can be door coordinated; so forth. Moreover, just like anywhere, sometimes the street numbers are carefully and boldly printed on residences and sometimes they are not. In this part of Istanbul there was not a lot of attention to this detail so I couldn’t rely on a number as one would often be able to in the United States. At the same time, it shows the disorientation that foreign travel (I had just finished 10 days in Istanbul and Cyprus and was on my way back “home” to Ljubljana) in different cultures can induce. I’ve had many small miscues of this nature (many of them less concerning than this one) which you haven’t heard about in my blog. Essentially, if you have not done much foreign travel and you plan on doing some, get used to making mistakes and being confused. It is part and parcel of the experience.

Finally, I’ve been reminded by many of my readers (No, I haven’t! No one is reading this! Are you crazy?), that I fail to bring you up-to-date on my actual, scholarly and academic activities that are the (purported) reason for me being here. Thus, I will rectify that oversight now.

I gave a second lecture at the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of the Sciences and Arts here in Ljubljana yesterday. I could say it was well attended but it really wasn’t. The director of the Research Centre, a wonderful man named Oto Luthar, has essentially invited me to speak to one of his graduate classes and then sent out a short notice to everyone affiliated with the Research Centre letting them know about the lecture. This has had the following effects. First, the postgraduate school at the Research Centre is very small so the enrollment in the class is very small. Second, student attendance – like at many European universities – seems to be pretty casual. Students come and go as they please; don’t seem to bother taking notes; and don’t interact with the faculty. Finally, with respect to the professional researchers at the Centre (of which there are multiple dozens) they know which side their bread is buttered on: the game at the Research Centre is to do research that someone (usually a Slovenian or European Union entity or a foundation) will fund because only about 20% of the Centre’s funding is guaranteed. Thus, listening to me will get you nothing but a headache! And it will waste time you could otherwise be putting to better use in a grant application. No matter to me! I’m here on a Fulbright Award!

Next week, moreover, I have been invited to speak to the Slovenian equivalent of the Council on Foreign Relations, whose offices are located across the square from the Slovenian Parliament. I will be introduced by two former ambassadors: one was a Slovenian ambassador to Poland; the other was the Slovenian ambassador to Argentina and Switzerland. Here is the invitation that has gone out to the society’s members. (I hope you have been working on your Slovene language studies at home!)

Spoštovana, spoštovani !

Vabimo Vas na predavanje

Invitation to a Lecture

TRUMP’S ”AMERICA FIRST” AND THE AMERICAN DREAM

predaval bo/lecture by

Prof. Robert Hauhart

“Robert Hauhart is a professor in the Department of Society and Social Justice at Saint Martin’s University, Lacey, Washington (USA). He is the recipient of the Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Virginia and a J.D. in law from the University of Baltimore. He is the author of Seeking the American Dream: A Sociological Inquiry (Palgrave Macmillan 2016) and The Lonely Quest: Constructing the Self in the Twenty-First Century United States (Routledge 2019). He is currently in Slovenia on a Fulbright Award from the U.S. State Department and affiliated with ZRC SAZU.”

predavanje v angleščini bo

lecture will be

v četrtek, 11. aprila 2019 ob 17.00 / onThursday11Aprilat 5 p.m.

v konferenčni dvorani v pritličju poslovne stolpnice TR3

Conference Hall TR3

Trg Republike 3, Ljubljana

Vljudno vabljeni!

Mag. Marjan Šetinc

Veleposlanik/Ambassador

SDMO predsednik/president

Predsednik SDMO

Sorry that it doesn’t look as fancy as it does on the actual invitation but it would not transfer properly. (Sigh.) However, let’s move on to better things – like a continuation of our tour of Budapest.

As you will recall I was going to show you some of the other venues near Buda’s “Castle Hill” so that is what we will do now.

Here, in a photo taken from the Pest side of the Danube River, are the President’s residence and offices (to the left as you view the photo) and a related building that since 2014 includes the Prime Minister’s office (to the right).

This photo, also taken from the Pest side of the Danube with a telephoto lens, is Matthias Church, one of the most photographed sights in the capital. Mathias Church would be just to the right of the President’s and Prime Minister’s suite of buildings shown in the previous photo.

On the day I visited these two sites I just missed the elaborate ceremony of the “changing of the guard” outside the entrance to the President’s residence and offices. Here are some photos of the guard taken just after the ceremony concluded.

Hungarian elite forces who act as guards to the Presidential residence and offices concluding the changing of the guard ceremony.

Elite forces of the Hungarian military in marching order for the transfer of weapons that marks the end of the changing of the guards ceremony at the Presidential residence and offices.

The new guard on duty at his post, parade rest. The Hungarian elite forces have a lot of big, solid boys in them!

Photo of the Hungarian Presidential residence and offices, Buda, near Castle Hill.

Photo of the approach to the Presidential residence and offices from the National Gallery wing of Buda Castle. The statue, to the right, is a “turul,” a mythical bird that resembles an eagle or falcon which is celebrated in Hungarian history because of its association with the House of Arpad that ruled Hungary in the 9th and 10th centuries and due to a mythic tale in which it appeared in a dream to Hungarian military leader and then came and saved his men’s horses when they were attacked by eagles. (In other words, a fierce protector of all that is Hungarian.)

Side view of the building that house the President’s residence and offices, Buda, Hungary, near Castle Hill.

Photo showing entry to that part of the nearby structure which since 2014 houses the Prime Minister’s offices, Buda, Hungary, near Castle Hill.

Another of the many bronze statues dedicated to military leaders in Budapest, near the Presidential-Prime Minister buildings in Buda, near Castle Hill.

Photo of Matthias Church in Buda, just one block north of the Presidential residence and offices.

Photo of the statue of St. Stephen, the first Hungarian king, who ruled from 1000 – 1038. The statue is in the plaza between Matthias Church (behind the photographer) and the Fisherman’s Bastion (the neo-Romanesque arcade and small towers behind the statue in the photo). More on the Fisherman’s Bastion to come.

A photo of the spire of Matthias Church, Buda.

Photo showing some of the detail and statuary around one of the doors of Matthias Church (not the main entrance).

Photo showing section of the Fisherman’s Bastion, near the Matthias Church, Buda. The Bastion was built between 1895-1906 purely for the purpose of providing an outdoor space for the people of Budapest to gather where they could have a panoramic view of the Danube River and as a showcase for the newly renovated (at that time) Matthias Church. The architect who did the Church renovation conceived of the project which was built as part of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the founding of Hungary, which is dated from 895 A.D. (hence the 1895 construction date). The Bastion has seven of the towers (of which you see three) to represent the seven Hungarian chieftains who, according to historical legend, formed an alliance and persuaded their otherwise nomadic tribes to settle here in the Danube valley in 895. Also, there’s a Starbucks just off camera to the left. I had a coffee there.

Photo taken looking through an arch in the Fisherman’s Bastion, Buda, that gives the viewer a sense of the grand vista that can be seen from the site. Danube River is in the background. Photo shows the grand staircase entrance up the hill as well.

On one part of the grand staircase leading to the Fisherman’s Bastion (glimpsed in the background) and Matthias Church (also seen, more clearly, in the background). Photo is also evidence of the fact that in Budapest there are never too many bronze statues.

Rather monumental entrance to a tunnel that burrows through Castle Hill to permit modern transit. The Hungarians don’t do dainty!

Celebratory tile mural dated 1880 on an otherwise purely functional structure. (I think it has to do with the water system.)

One last view of the Danube River, from the Buda side, showing Chain Bridge.

As always, its been a pleasure to spend this time with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit to Robert’s Fulbright Award Travel and Lecture Tour blog. Auf wiedersehen!