In a small town outside the city of Belgrade, Serbia, there is a tiny condo with a park just across the street.  This is where sophomore Gabriella Veljkovic and her family of four planned on staying. On a mildly warm day in July, Veljkovic arrived in Belgrade.

Entering the home, Veljkovic rolled in her black suitcase which had taken her a week to pack.  Hanging from the handlebar of the black suitcase was a handmade name tag her mom had created for this trip. It had taken them more than 11 hours to get to Serbia after the delay in Switzerland, but they had finally reached their destination.

In the condo waited more than 30 relatives that had only had the opportunity to see their long distance relatives from the US three times.  A language barrier wasn’t a worry for Veljkovic since her parents had raised her to be almost fluent in Serbian.

“My favorite part about going to Serbia is being able to see my family and visiting new places,” said Veljkovic.

Along with Serbia, Veljkovic was able to visit a small town in Greece known as Platamon on this month-long vacation. Veljkovic stood on the rocky beach next to the Aegean Sea staring at the dark blue waves as they crashed against the shore. She had been in Greece for almost a week and was already fond of the exciting yet peaceful culture.

“It’s good to learn about other cultures and people. I respect their culture and how they do things,” said Veljkovic.

Along with Serbia and Greece, Veljkovic hopes to one day go to Italy. Unsure of whether that will be for her Honeymoon or just for fun, she is ready to become the world traveler she knows she is destined to be.

“I like to travel, and hope that I can go to a bunch of different places,” said Veljkovic.