Author: billkralovec

Nadia Finishes Fourth in Canal Run

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Kids At the Beach, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Yesterday we went up to Hancock, Michigan to compete in the 35th Annual Canal Run. Hancock is located in the Keweenaw Peninsula, which is the “ear” of the rabbit-shaped Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The peninsula juts out into Lake Superior and is about an 1 & 1/2 hour drive north of Caspian. The canal is a shipping route made through the peninsula to serve the former mining boom towns of Hancock and Houghton. It is a beautiful area and with two universities (Michigan Tech and Finlandia University) a place that we love to visit.

Nadia ran the 5-mile race and finished 4th in her age group with a time of 42 minutes and 46 seconds. She was the 25th woman overall. I ran the 10-mile race, but took the second bus to the starting line. The 5 of us on the bus missed the start. We estimated we left 6 minutes after the start, so my time of 1 hour 22 minutes, would be 1 hour 16 minutes. Despite the 6 minute delay, I finished 13th in my age group and 70th overall with my 1:22 time. I am waiting to see the results to see where I would have finished. Too bad Nadia didn’t get a medal.

It was a beautiful day and we took advantage of the weather and spent the afternoon at the McClain State Park beach. The water in Lake Superior was surprisingly warm and the kids loved it. Above is a video I took with my iPod of the kids having fun.

Big Catch for the Kralovecs

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Grandpa with Owen and Oliver - Plus Two Beautiful Bluegills

We had a great day of fishing today at the Indian Lake boat landing. The boys and Ocean pulled up many bluegills and one perch. Owen even caught a couple on his own. Grandpa was a champion, baiting and hooking fish for the kids to land. We had great fun with so many fish. It didn’t matter that they were small, anything on the hook was an exciting moment for the kids. A big thanks to Hoover for the fishing tips.

Ocean Caught a Fish, too.

Nadia Wins a Medal

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Nadia Sprints to the Finish

Yesterday we participated in the “Run Your Bass Off” 10 kilometer run in Crystal Falls, Michigan. The race is part of the Bass Festival in the small town located on the eastern side of Iron County. We try to run the race when we are here for the summer.

Nadia won second place in the 30-39 age group and ran a fantastic time of 54 minutes and 33 seconds. This is much faster than she has run in the past. I ran 48:15, which was 15 seconds faster than last year, but still only good for fourth place in my age group. The race made both of us wanting to train more seriously and get our times down. We’ll see if work and family committments will deter this.

Fourth of July Celebrations

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Family Photo on Fourth of July

It was a rainy afternoon and evening for the Fourth of July celebrations this year. We celebrated America’s 234th birthday by hosting a BBQ at my childhood home in my village of Caspian, Michigan. We invited my aunt and uncle, Jim and Ione, and they are pictured in the back row. It is nice to reconnect with my aunt, as she looks very much like my mother and she reminds me of her.

We had some fireworks in the back yard, ate a lot of food, and then went  downtown Iron River to watch the city fireworks.

Lake Superior

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Every year we make a visit to Lake Superior. We went up the other day when the weather was not very nice. Besides shopping in Marquette, we also stopped at the beach. Below are the pictures.

Owen and Oliver Enjoy Fighting on the Beach
Ocean

Fishing on the Paint River

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On Mac’s Bridge, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Yesterday we once again attempted to catch a fish in Iron County and were unsuccessful. It was a great day however, because we all spent time in the beautiful northwoods on one of the best trout streams in the world. We are seen above on a bridge at Don McDonald’s camp. “Mac” is a legendary fly fisherman and he was very hospitable. Grandpa Kralovec provided the poles – thank you.

We had a full day with an afternoon of swimming at Hagerman Lake and a large family BBQ at our rented log home in the Ski Brule resort.

Owen gets water from a spring

Family Journal: June 28, 2010

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Popa & Ocean, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Ocean eats some torta with her grandfather, affectionately known as “Popa.” Hermes is called Popa because that is what Owen and Sebey first called him in Bolivia. We continue to refer to him as Popa. Ocean’s paternal grandfather is known as “Timpa” also a mispronunciation by Ocean last summer.

We are enjoying a relaxing holiday with family. Below is a historic photo, it is the first time Nadia’s and my parents have met. Owen’s middle names come from both of his grandfathers and they are shown together.

I would also like to wish all of my Serbian readers a Happy Saint Vitus Day! It is a very meaningful day for Serbs, remembering the defeat at the field of the blackbirds in Kosovo to the Ottomans.

Summer Holidays Begin

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Owen , originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Owen is shown above in Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris. We had a long flight as we left our house in Serbia at 7:30 AM and finally arrived in Iron Mountain Michigan’s Ford Airport at 9:00 PM. With the time changes, it would be 4:00 AM Serbia time so that is around 21 hours of travel. It ended with me driving the last hour to my village, Caspian.

The kids were well behaved on the flight and everything went smoothly. We were all jet lagged yesterday and are recovering slowly.

The kids spent a lot of time coloring and drawing to pass the hours. Nadia and I are impressed with Ocean’s ability. For a 2 year old, to draw a human figure with that amount of detail, it amazing.

It is nice to see my brothers, my father, and old friends here in Caspian. We are looking forward to the arrival of Nadia’s family.

Buried Treasure?

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The three men in Ocean’s bedroom are not looking for a buried treasure. This week we are doing repairs on the main pipe leading away from our bathroom. The approximately 80 year old pipe broke this weekend. The result was a flooded bathroom. The pipe broke about 3 meters away from the toilet, which actually was underneath the floor in Ocean’s bedroom. As you can see below, they dug underneath the bathroom first.

Our Bathroom

We are sitting around now awaiting for the workers to finish. I don’t think too many people have basements here in Serbia to they actually have to rip up the floor to get to the pipes. In the US, there is a space between floors for pipes that is accessible.

The school was really nice in finding us alternative accomodations. We are staying at the “M” Hotel, which is the Best Western lacated in the suburb of Banjica.

Nadia’s First Art Exhibition

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On Monday Nadia gave her first art exhibition. She presented her recent work in a gallery along with the student-artists of the International School of Belgrade’s art classes. Nadia has been working with Maja , a local artist once a week this semester. She had several works and everyone liked the art. It was the first time I saw her paint in a realistic style. Her usual style of art is abstract and very colorful. Below are some photos from the evening.

Professor Maja and Nadia
One of Nadia's Works

The gallery is located in New Belgrade near Brankov’s Bridge, near the Sava River. The neighborhood is called Staro Sajmaste, which translates to Old Fairgrounds. It has a sad history, as the Germans used the fairgrounds as a concentration camp during World War II. In 1940, the area was uninhabited marsh land. The Nazis asked the Croatians, who had the left bank of the Sava under their control, to take Serbian Jewish prisoners. There is a small monument in an abandoned park near Poseydon Hall where the exhibition was held.

The Poseydon Hall