Hello from Belgrade,
I hope that you're all well and are settling into your placements comfortably. Perhaps it was the excitement or the amazing service aboard British Airways but the trip to Belgrade felt quite short. We arrived and I quickly observed how familiar the city looked. It looks alot like Tehran where I grew up. Narrow streets, a mix of old and new buildings, Cafes by the street and of course crazy driving.
Belgrade has an instant charm to it. It is full of history and while you can see the effect that past occupations have had on this city, it has maintained its distinctiveness. That goes for the people as well.

After settling in, it was time to map out the way to work and after several wrong turns and unneccessary long walks in circles, the path to work was discovered.

Finding out our exact reponsibilities proved to be a tougher task as the UNDP office was very busy welcoming in a new Director. After a few meetings however, we were introduced to three projects, two of which will be our focus for the duration of our stay. The first project entailed gathering information in response to a questionnaire sent to us prior to our departure from Toronto. The questions regarded the Ontario Free Legal Aid program and our responses were used to help frame similar efforts in Serbia. The second project is to update the Judicial Training Centre software. Finally, the third and main project is to outline the Legal Empowerment project through a series of memos and outline, by way of comparative regional research, ways in which Serbia can adopt its 4 pillars (access to justice, property rights, labour rights, business rights).

I was surprised that no deadlines for projects were given and that the office itself is a very relaxed environment. This attitude seems to be prevalent in Belgrade. Despite social and economic problems, people spend money (often money they admittedly don't have) and thoroughly enjoy themselves.

While we have come across some strong political opinions (on the walls and from Serbians themselves), Belgrade so far has been a very welcoming city and I look forward to spending my summer here.

Waiting to read all about your experiences,

Parisa