Living my life: 2012

Thursday, 27 December 2012

Year 2012

It has been a long year ahead of us. Full of new challenges, goals, parties, new friends and memories that will never be forgotten!

School

Where should I start? Well I started doing my master in banking and finance management at the end of the last year. I really wanted to learn more about finance and investing and I thought it would be important for my future. It’s nice to learn something that will come in hand one day when I’ll need it. Every course has something new to offer but I especially liked the courses that focus on investing and real estate. I actually finished most of my school activities at the end of April, all except for one exam which I did in the middle of September. I met some good friends with loads of experience and also learned many new things from them!

Work

During this time I also worked at the Faculty of Chemical technology and Chemistry (Where I graduated one year ago) on various projects under my awesome mentor Franc Požgan. My favorite project was where I was creating some compounds for a PhD student where she went on to use them to analyze same compounds in wine to determine their effects on human beings. I loved it! I would like to thank Franc Požgan and Lucija Janeš (I hope your baby boy is doing great :) Thank you for this great opportunity!

Me working in a lab

Ju Jitsu

In between I also trained Ju Jitsu where all the trainings finally paid off when I was 4^th (of 23) in an International competition in Maribor. Unfortunately I got injured in the last fight (2x) and my elbow still isn’t the same. I love Ju Jitsu and I really have to thank everyone who helped me in training sessions and all the great people in my club (Shinto)!!

Me for 3^rd place

Spring break

To celebrate my successful school year I decided to go to Kanegra (Croatia) for spring break. That really was a break I needed from all the hard work during that period and did we go crazy! It was legendary, but the best things happened with the crazy Italian (Davide), awesome Spanish girls (Beatriz, Montse and Tamy) and my friends. It was also nice meeting all of the exchange students who came to Ljubljana, where my good friend Vernes made the trip happen J

The Kanegra gang

Vernes and I

Modena (spring break after party)

Right after spring break we decided to go and visit our new friends from Italy and the crazy Spanish girls who were on the exchange in Modena. We were there from Friday till Sunday to see the city, meet some new people and to party really hard and keep the spirit and the momentum going!

Our ride in a Ferrari

Modena gang

Modena

Malta fairytale

After a couple of crazy days in Modena my friends Klemen and Blaž and I decided to go to Malta for a week to relax! Relax…haha

Before going to Malta I started chatting (on Travbuddy) with someone from Malta. His name was Franklyn and he told a couple of really nice places to visit, we also arranged a small get together in Malta. Who would have guessed that was a begging of a great friendship!

Trip on Malta was really amazing and I met Franklyn and his good friend Melissa who were so generous to take us around the island and showed us all its beauty!

Well to make the long story short…I came back home from the trip and really had the travel blues. It was a first time I went somewhere and met the locals, a really nice experience! It wasn’t more than 3 days when I received a call from Frank. At first I was a bit shocked because I thought I did something wrong, but then he asked me if I wanted to go and work at WSC (water services corporation) in Malta. I was sooo shocked I could not even reply back to him. Well it was an obvious choice….and 3 weeks later I was back on Malta where I had another amazing experience….Well you can read more about this story in my other post called MALTA, where I explain everything there is to know about this amazing island and people I met!!Here is just a short section:

“I fell in love in Malta as soon as I started working and after the first BBQ on the beach. The way of living in Malta is quite different from other EU countries in a lot of ways. Even if they are the laziest country in Europe (regarding physical activities; latest research), most of them start working at the age of 14, before ending high school or they have at least summer jobs in their field of work. Regarding their experience, they are quite mature and well trained early on. But the work alone is a lot of fun…”

Qormi feast…XADINA, XADINA, XADINA

Mel, Me, Audrey and Micq at the Isle of MTV

Qormi feast gang

My work colleagues (so awesome)

Blue grotto

Valletta

Blaž, Klemen at Valletta

My sweetie, honey, darling

From the beginning of this year I have been hitting on Anja and in June it finally paid off…got her! Well we actually met at my brothers best friends party and since then we just hit it off J. But unfortunately we didn’t have enough time since I was travelling a lot and worked on Malta and from Malta to my exchange in Reims we only had 3 weeks in the summer. The three weeks were one of the better times this year. She really is amazing and also has an amazing talent herself. She is an artist! So saying goodbye was extremely hard L. But now for the holidays we are catching up on lost time ;)

Anja at Plitvice (Croatia)

Anja trying to eat me!

Anja’s masterpieces

Exchange program at RMS

Finally we came to the exchange in Reims (RMS; Reims management school, 26^th ranked school in Europe amongst masters in management). I’m actually going to write a story on it and will post it on the blog this week. It was that good…that it deserves its own story!!Sooo amazing!!!I never thought it would be this amazing. I had everything I needed: AMAZING PEOPLE, great parties, good classes, funny friends, drama and memories for life! It actually left tears in my eyes when I left. More in the post!

Acton in USA

Jumping from Dune de Pyla

Me and Debs wine tasting

Mont st. Michele

Buy 1 get 3 pizzas in Bordeaux

No clue where but a nice pic with Raff, Pilar and Brit.

Flip cups at the piggy place in Reims

Luisa, Raff, Brit, Acton, Me, Pilar and Wei Jing at Raffs place

Last night at the club…saying our goodbyes LL…we will see each other soon!

I have so many people to thank for this amazing year. Everyone played a small role, some bigger, in my personal development. I always think that everyone taught me something and I hope many people like the people I met this year will come in my life the following year.

I also have to thank my amazing family for all the support and my BFFs Tina Likar and Edwin Garcia for taking care of my through the year! I should also mention Karmen Golob, Blaž Vončina, Luka Gorše, Nina Cigut and Luka who always give me motivation and more and many more people who also played a bigger role!

This year I met a lot of amazing people who I will always remember and will have great memories together. I just want to wish everyone and a happy new year. I hope all your wishes come true in the following year.

THANK YOU!!

Thursday, 13 September 2012

First days in Reims

Sept 18: After 13h on the train I finally arrived in Reims. The train ride was good but it tired me a bit :)

Finally when I got to Reims and I decided to walk to my faculty (RMS, which is on the outskirts of the city)instead of taking a bus and it only took me like 30 min without any GPS...which says a lot about the size of the city. After a couple of tries I finally found my residence and when I got into my flat I was quite shocked since there was no utensils inside or any other things...which meant that the first day I slept in a T-shirt, sweater, winter jacket, shorts, jeans and winter socks and I almost froze to death!After the last time I woke up it was like I survived the worst :)...but It is kinda funny now that I think about it :)

The next 2 days we had the welcoming days and basically told us everything about Reims and our school where I met 2 Austrians, Morgan and Valerie. Most of the first two days I spent in there company and had a great time. Valerie and Morgan come from Belgium and they are both crazy and always looking to have a great time. Really friendly and always ready to help. We also had a BDI (RMS buddy organisation) welcoming dinner where we had a normal French dinner (NOT A LOT ON A PLATE:S) and also met quite o lot of people but I have to to say that the Taiwanese left the best impression.I just adore them :)

I got to do a presentation now...write more later :)

Malta

The mediteranian jewel – Malta

Easily accessible from Europe and with an English-speaking population, Malta makes a superb holiday destination. Just 27 km long by 14 km wide, the best of the island can easily be seen on a very short trip. Nevertheless, the discerning tourist will find themselves longing to linger here a while longer. Malta's ancient history has left the island littered with historical attractions from various periods in history including World Heritage Sites such as the Megalithic temples, the capital city of Valletta and the Hypogeum. Culture lovers will find that there is always something going on be it a play, concert or art exhibition.

But Malta has much more to offer than history and culture. Surrounded by the glistening waters of the Meditteranean sea, Malta is a great spot for a beach or family holiday. Wrecks left over from WWII and underground caves have also made the island a favourite destination for diving. Similarly, Malta is a popular spot for sailing and kayakers will find her calm waters easy to navigate. The adventurous will also find that the island's rugged cliffs provide spectacular climbing. Tourists also visit Malta to play golf and tennis which can both be enjoyed throughout the year. Over the last 20 years, Malta has become a premier destination for English language students and there are now some 45 English schools on the island.

My Maltese experience

Enough of that bullshit, let's get down to the real stuff J. I was working in Malta for a month during the summer, as a summer student at the WSC in the laboratory doing phosfate validations. Before coming to work there, I visited Malta earlier that year in May for 1 week with my friend Klemen and his friend Blaž. Through Travelbuddy.com i met Franklyn who lives there and kindly offered me his tips on what to see and do in Malta. Once arriving we aranged a metting in the center of Paceville (Malta's party town) to hit a couple of bars but me and my friends were to tired to meet. Luckily we met the next day at the 90´s party at Numero Uno. Immediately we met and started talking in the croud and soon after we were dancing with their friends and having a great time and for the rest of the trip him and Melissa took us to see this beautiful rock. When I came home i had quite of travel blues, but it ended soon after when i got the call from Frank telling me i can get a job at the WSC, where he works at!That was one of my happiest moment till this day. I still remember being on the corrider at the FKKT jumping like a 5 year old. Since i knew Frank and Mel only for 7 days i was really looking to get to know both of them and expecially Maltese people some more and to see what they are really like, because that's what travelling is all about!I'm the tipe of guy who really likes to see what people and how they act like and to see which of theirs treits i would like the most and would do myself.

I fell in love in Malta as soon as I started working and after the first BBQ on the beach. The way of living in Malta is quite different from other EU countries in a lot of ways. Even if they are the laziest country in Europe (regarding phisical activities; latest research), most of them start working at the age of 14, before ending high school or they have at least summer jobs in their field of work. Regarding their experiance, they are quite mature and well trained early on. But the work alone is alot of fun. Where i worked at we were close and always having a laugh. I'm not the type of guy that usually gets close to anyone the first time we meet. It usually take me at least two to three weeks of meeting them on daily basis to get relaxed around them, with the lab stuff it was much easier to me because:

· They are super nice
· I'm on my own
· They are in my field of work

While working, there was always some joke or gossip flying around that everyone could enjoy it and talk about it and the atmosphere was quite calm and deliteful! The two that stood out were Hillary,my sister, and David, aka BMW. Like a lot of Maltese they are so open and the first told me her life story in 2 weeks and till this day we r always talkin, and everything regarding her life. She is open and never judged and was always there if i needed something. From her great sence of humor to the openest, beauty and smarts she at 24 had experienced so much that people in their 60's haven't tried. Like many young Maltese do nowadays. David is the »BMW« of the lab who makes everyone laugh instantly by just looking at him!!

Not only at work place was it like that, even at Franks work place they regulary had smoke breaks and always talking and gossiping. But the atmosphere is a bit tense when the boss is there!But that is logical!

Aside from Pastizzi i loved J, my favorite tradition was the BBQ nights where at the coast or beach people would come out with their friends, family and all together grilled eat and by a nice conversation had a great feast. I like Maltese know how to!The sight of the BBQ by the beach and talking, looking at the lights will forever stay in my memory!

They all have tapeworms! It's not possible for people to eat that much and stay quite slim as a population!OMG do they eat a lot, from breakfast to really late snacks and dinner that usually lasts a couple of hours! At the BBQ these is never any leftovers beacause even when you're full they still find a place for a stake or a pink Maltese sausage :P,lol...but they eat gooooodd!They know how to eat and take their time, the right style and a lot of flavor. I gained about 2kg on my trip, while exercising two times a week and still don't believe it's not more from all the food intake.

Maltese personality

With two exceptions, i will explain later, they are above amazing. A whole book wouldn't be enough to write how special they are! With a couple of personal stories i hope you will grasp the reality of what they are and how they act.

1. The first time I cam to Malta me and my friends wanted to go and see Blue Grotto and by some chance we landed in Sieggiewi and I went in this small shop to ask for directions. It was really close to the church, where we 2 months lated ruled the bar ;), and there was a young pretty lady working at the counter who weirdly didn't speak English and when i asked how to get there by bus she didn't know how to tell me where to go but she called her aunt that also didn't know, so she called an old lady who looked like 70+ years and spoke good English. She was so kind and told that she also doesn't know which bus to take but took her time and asked someone who did, she phoned...and we got our answer. I also asked her about her town church and she told me the hole story of who the church protctor is and what their traditions are and also explained how come a lot of Maltese speak English and know Italian. We had a really nice conversation while she was helping in the store and also the young girl and her aunt gave us some tips J

Friends

Now this is a team that every tourist wishes to have! Only knowing them for one week from the previous trip Franklyn took his time (at that time he was also looking for a job in Scotland and was leaving in a month) to get me the job, arranged all the documents necessary, found an amazing flat really close to him, so he can also drive me to work, arranged a lot of trips and BBQ, introduced me to many of his friends,... but the most import thing was that he really showed me how Maltese live and function which is the most important for me!Also Mel, with her amazing touch for people and knew when to help me and talked to me, also both of them devoted a lot of time takeing me and my friends everywhere and showing us the true Maltese treasures and letting us see what Malta is all about! I should not forget all the parties and gatherings...amazing!Frank is the party king of the rock!I also really got close to Hilary from work and Violet (after qormi feast) with her xap pa pah, who perfectyl fits the Maltese sterotype...loud, friendly, crazy, gossipy! <3 all of them!!

I really hope we will stay friends for life cos with friends like that life is easy, fun and unforgetable! I also have to mention Audrey, my wine expert; Micquela, my cute awesome friend ;Marvic, Gabriel, Maria, Norbert,...so many, but all so amazing :)

The two things i have noticed and didn't like were that they drink and drive quite a lot (having said that, they are still good drivers when they drink as well, except for the time when we almost got in an accident)! The other would have to be all the gossiping and talking behin peoples backs. But to be really honest, i also did it when i was in Malta and it felt good, expecialy when you are in their skins. As Frank explained it's also a good, because you find out everything about someone and if someone needs help they all pitch in and help, which might change their lives!!That's also why i haven't seen any people sleeping outside.