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Welcome back to a new episode of the All Things Croatia podcast.
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I'm your host, Stanko Zovak.
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Born and raised in Los Angeles, I'm now living in Zagreb and studying the Croatian language.
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Before we start, just do me a favor and follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're
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listening, as well as the Facebook and Instagram page.
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In this series, I'll be talking with people both in the homeland and around the globe who
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have connections to Croatia.
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We'll hear from startups, returning to Aspora, musicians and athletes, and the biggest Croatian
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celebrities at what returned my calls.
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But enough about me.
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Ida Modalia, and let's get started.
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All right, welcome back to the podcast, everybody.
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Today our special guest is Natalie Francesca.
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Natalie is an Australian Croat who spent many summers along the Dalmatian coast as
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a kid.
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She is a children's book author who recently published a book called My Grandma Is Like
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the Sea and has a blog where she shares resources and inspiration to help families along the
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parenting journey.
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In this episode, we'll hear all about that and more, including the Croatian inspiration
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behind her book.
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Natalie, thanks for coming on the podcast.
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It's my pleasure and greetings from the land down under.
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Awesome to have you on.
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Usually I like to start with the guest giving a little bit of the Croatian background,
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just so us listeners have some base knowledge to go off of.
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Cool, no worries, Danko.
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All right, so I was born in Sydney, Australia, two parents who were born in Croatia.
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So my father Damir was born in Dubrovnik, hailing from Malistone.
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For those of you who aren't so familiar with Malistone, it's actually quite well known
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for its oysters.
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So my family have been farming oysters sustainably there for quite a long time.
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Now the Ostreja Edules Oyster from Malistone actually won the Grand Prix and Gold Medal
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at the General Trades International Exhibition in London in 1936.
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And to my knowledge, it is also the 28th Croatian product to receive the European Protected
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Designation of Origin.
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Now as for my mom, my mother's name is Yasminka.
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She was born in Puknat on the beautiful island of Kortula, which is home to the most exquisite
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beach called Puknatska Luka.
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And there's also a huge celebration there every summer for Gorspozniyga, a lady of
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snow, which is quite fun.
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You know, it's funny that you mentioned, well not that you mentioned, I guess I asked, but
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you said your dad is from Malistone and you know, you started talking about the oysters.
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Actually tomorrow I'm interviewing with the tourist board of Malistone and I wanted to
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ask them about the oysters.
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Oh, brilliant.
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Good on you.
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Yeah, so you've tried them.
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You've been over there, I'm assuming, and you've eaten them.
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Yes, yes.
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Oh, so my grandparents, most of the time pretty much lived in Malistone and they'd go back
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and forth here and there between Sydney and Malistone.
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So I'm very familiar with the oysters through my grandparents and they are pretty good.
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So you must try some while you're there.
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Yes, I'll have to this summer for sure.
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And you're very lucky to have roots from, you know, Pelyashats and Kortula, some of the
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most beautiful places in Croatia.
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Yes, exactly.
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It's beautiful.
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The whole country is gorgeous.
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But I'm, yeah, I'm very much connected with my roots there.
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And so when did your parents come to Australia?
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Yes, so my father, Damir, left for Australia in 1967 with his mother and brother on a ship
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called Angelina Laudo to reunite with his father, Ivo, and establish a new way of life
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here in Sydney, Australia.
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You know, I love hearing the stories and about their time abroad and I'm told that a lot
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of dancing occurred whilst on Angelina Laudo.
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And interestingly, the journey took longer as they had to go around the Suez Canal at
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the time because it was blocked.
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As for my mother, her story is quite similar to that of my father's.
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So my mom, Yasminka, left for Australia in 1971 with her mom and sister also reuniting
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with her father, Nicola, in Sydney.
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Wow, I want to ask about the boat ride.
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You know, actually how long that took in total?
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The boat ride was at three to six months.
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Three or six months.
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Yeah, months.
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Yeah, wow.
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That just said months.
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That's all you need to describe it.
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That sounds horrible to me.
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I know.
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I can't imagine being on a ship for months.
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No, I can't either.
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But look, I don't know, they do have some fond memories.
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On my dad's, there are some fond memories of his time on the ship.
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So.
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Yeah, well, I'm sure you've heard a lot of stories about, you know, the migration.
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Yeah, absolutely.
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Absolutely.
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And from other family members as well.
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So like cousins and great aunts, great uncles.
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Yeah.
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Do you have maybe any favorite quick stories you would like to share?
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Or maybe about the dancing.
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They explained that a little bit.
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Well, with the dancing, my father was, you know, still a young boy and, you know, they
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were on their way to see his father in Sydney and my grandmother would always get invited
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to, you know, go to these dances, say with her friend.
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And my father didn't like it because he was like, oh no, you've got to like just stay with
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me and reunite with dad.
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Like don't go dancing.
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Not that anything would happen.
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But he was quite protective of his mom.
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So it was cute.
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Oh, yeah.
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Thank you for sharing that.
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That's okay.
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What was your childhood like growing up?
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Because, you know, I saw in your biography online on your blog that you spent a lot of
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time swimming on the Dalmatian coast.
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So were you able to travel over there a lot?
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Is it good?
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Yes.
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So look, pretty much my, I always had my grandparents, my paternal grandparents lived in Marleyston
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and we would sort of go back and forth each summer to visit them.
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My mom's parents also would move between Sydney and Corsula.
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So again, we would spend many summers with them when they were there as well.
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And to be honest, my childhood was rather idyllic.
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I also obviously connecting back with my walk, my grandmas like the sea.
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I always had a great appreciation for the sea from a young age.
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The first time I went back to Croatia was towards the end of the homeland war.
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And despite any hardship, my grandparents there, my grandparents through my father's
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side made us feel very loved and really from a young age taught us to value the simple
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things in life.
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So I found the sea itself to be very calming, nurturing and freeing.
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And it was just surrounded by family really a lot of unstructured playtime.
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Yeah, I had a big imagination.
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I was very energetic.
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I felt right at home there.
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So yeah, that's really a blessing to be able to be over there, especially in those places,
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you know, along the coast.
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And yeah, I wish I wish as a kid I got to go.
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I didn't really get to go until I was, I think, 20.
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And then I, you know, went two times and then now I've been here for over a year.
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So I'm definitely blessed now.
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But yeah, as a kid, I always wanted to, you know, exactly what you described kind of be
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able to go over there, spend the summer and swim and you know, be in the sun.
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Yeah, that's really cool to have that experience growing up.
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Yeah, I found it.
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I believe like for me, it was very grounding as well.
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What was it like when you were back in Australia, in Sydney, right?
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Well, look in Sydney again, like in Croatia, I was always surrounded by family and my parents
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really allowed us to just be kids.
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Again, I played a lot with my cousins, my brother.
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I used to hear in Sydney, I used to make up plays to perform in front of my family.
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And in time, tennis also became a big part of my life.
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My mother and family loved the surf as well, the beach and so over here in Sydney, we spent
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a lot of time at the beach catching waves with my dad.
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Oh, that sounds fun.
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Yeah, you mentioned tennis.
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I saw that you were what, a competitive tennis player, right?
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Yeah.
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So as a junior, I played competitive tennis and I traveled around Australia playing tournaments.
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And so from a young age, I saw firsthand, you know, how a state of mind can affect our
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experiences in life, such as tennis.
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So tennis actually, I feel like it's taught me a lot.
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And unfortunately, I experienced burnout in my early teens, but I can now see, you know,
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how it's impacted my interest in the power of the mind, generally speaking.
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And off that, some years ago, I studied NLP.
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I don't know if you're familiar with that, neurolinguistic programming.
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It's pretty much just teaches you how perception creates experience and dives into the conscious
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and sort of subconscious mental processes to achieve sort of behavioral changes and sort
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of beneficial emotional states, that sort of thing.
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And how did you get into that through tennis during like your trainings or your games?
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You realize something in your mentality or what?
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I think based on like how like tennis is such a mind game and from my experience, you know,
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after that, I started to like really be interested in the mind pretty much.
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And it wasn't actually until some years ago, a few years ago, really, that I sort of started
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diving in a bit deeper into that.
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And then I started NLP then.
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I wish I had done it earlier, but yeah, quite interesting actually.
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If I don't know if I read correctly, I'm forgetting now, but did you get a degree in that from
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what the University of Sydney or maybe I'm mixing things up?
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So yeah, that's okay.
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No, I went to University of Technology Sydney and there I studied business, bachelor of
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business.
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So a little bit different, but I was always interested in psychology.
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That was an option that I had, but I dived down the business path instead.
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Okay, okay.
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And then, you know, back to sort of your childhood and growing up and even there now, since you're
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still in Sydney, right?
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Is there a Croatian community over there that you're involved in or growing up?
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Were you at all with your parents?
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Yeah, look, so my father here and there, he would play in a band.
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He played the guitar in a band and he would actually perform a lot, you know, Croatian
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weddings and that sort of thing.
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So there was always like a lot of family and friends through his connections there that
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would always be around us.
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We had a big family and then, you know, there was also just a lot of like community barbecues
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growing up and that sort of thing.
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So yeah, but these days I've got a younger son who's four now and I take him to the Croatian
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club.
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They have, you know, the kids there, they can play soccer, do dancing and really get involved
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in the community here as well, which is nice.
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Yeah, very cool.
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Yeah, so you're able to, well, has he been able to go to Croatia yet?
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I'm assuming not with the restrictions over there lately.
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Oh yeah.
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Yeah, I took him.
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I pretty much shook him before he turned one.
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Wow.
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As soon as I could, I was like, yep, we're going, no, I took him to visit.
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I took him to visit his great-grandfather, Ivor, he's named after his great-grandfather.
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And then the year after I took him as well and then the whole onset of the COVID pandemic
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hit so unfortunately, not recently.
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But it sounds like you're trying to give him the same childhood that you guys, so that's
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pretty cool.
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Yeah, just the grounding.
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And yeah, I'm trying my best.
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Yeah.
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Well, let's get into your book now, you know, talking about all of this.
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How did you get the idea to write a book?
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And I guess you've been, you're a children's book author, so you've written books before?
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Well, actually, look, it goes back quite a while.
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So as a young child myself, I was always writing plays and lyrics for my family.
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And when I was in primary school, my mother was approached to publish a story I had written.
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So it took some time for me to actually follow this through.
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And upon having my son, I finally wrote and published my grandmothers like the Sea Children's
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book.
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So that is my first published book.
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And then since then you've come out with others?
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I'm in the process of writing the sequel.
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Yeah.
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Very cool, very cool.
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Yeah, I can't say too much right now, but I'm working with the illustrator and I hope
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to have that out towards the end of the year.
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Oh, nice.
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Okay.
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Well, we won't leak anything here.
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Yeah.
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I've tried not to.
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Talk a little about my grandma's like the Sea.
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You know, what is it about and where'd you come up with the inspiration for that?
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Well, okay.
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So firstly, what's it about?
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The story follows a little girl and her grandmother who explored the Sea and share unconditional
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love.
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So for me, I pretty much embraced the things I love most, you know, my family, the Sea,
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my culture, and naturally it came together pretty much in a nutshell.
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My grandmothers were the biggest inspiration for the story.
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So I lost my paternal grandmother, my babacheska, some weeks before giving birth to my son
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and she always encouraged me to write.
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And so the story really allows me to pay tribute to my grandmothers, you know, ancestors and
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culture as well as my love for the Sea, the Dalmatian Coast, you know, in a way that can
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be passed down to my son and current and future generations.
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Yeah, that's very cool.
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That's a very good way to, you know, pay tribute.
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Yeah.
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To thank them for, you know, everything that they've done for you.
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That's it.
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What kind of feedback have you gotten from the book?
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Have you had a lot of people saying, oh, you know, I feel the same way this really hits
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home and things like that?
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Yeah, lots.
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Well, I actually released it when we were in lockdown here in Sydney and I had mothers
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and even grandmothers come back to me and say, oh, we can't visit our grandchildren,
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you know, mom saying, oh, I can't, my child can't visit, you know, their grandmother right
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now because of the lockdown and, you know, they were reading the book over the phone.
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So it was really a nice way of connecting people together.
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So that was nice.
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Another thing for me is that in some ways it's been like a walk down memory lane.
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I've had certain people from my childhood that have come across the book and have contacted
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me in one way or another and said, are you that Natalie I used to play with, you know,
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during our summers in Croatia, you know, forgive me if I'm wrong.
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And so it's been, it's just been really nice.
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Oh, wow, people from Croatia.
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Yeah, yes, yes, from my childhood.
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And yeah, certain like, certain, you know, certain people I thought I'd never see them
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again.
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And I used to wonder, like, I wonder if they'll come back, you know, to have a play, you know,
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I used to play together, go swimming and they've come across the book and it was just like
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phenomenal.
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Wow.
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So you've really been able to reconnect with people.
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Yeah, all around the world.
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It's been really nice.
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That's really cool.
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Your illustrator, the lady who illustrated your book is Sanya Kolenko.
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Correct.
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She is Croatian as well.
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How did you get in contact with her?
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Yes.
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Sanya Kolenko, she was born in Varajdian in northern Croatia.
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Look, I wanted to settle on an illustrator that just felt right.
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Initially I joined Facebook groups, I did online research.
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I asked all the questions and then ultimately I came across her work on Instagram and we
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connected online and she was just the perfect fit and she really embraced the brief.
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So we're working together now as well on the sequel.
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But she was a teacher prior to becoming a full-time freelance illustrator.
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And so did you reach out to her before you started writing or did you already have it
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in mind, you know, I'm writing this and now I need to try and start finding an illustrator?
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Look, I wrote the book.
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The first thing was that I wrote the book and then I pretty much had a very clear vision
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in mind.
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I really wanted it to, you know, I wanted the Adriatic Sea to really shine through in
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the illustrations and so I really wanted someone that would deliver upon my brief and align
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with my vision.
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And so when I found her, it just worked.
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Yeah, it just worked.
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She also loves the sea.
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She'd go, you know, like many Croatians, she'd spend the summers along the coast as well,
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even though she's from Barajdjim.
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And yeah, she just understood what I wanted to achieve and we worked in well collaboratively
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in the end.
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Yeah.
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And you know, I was reading some of the reviews on your website about the book and I saw that
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Dino Raja actually left a review.
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How did you get him to read it?
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How did you get in contact with him or was I random?
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How did that happen?
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No, so Dino Raja is my great uncle and great aunt's nephew and I grew up actually being
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given many of those, you know, those signed NBA, I think they're trading cards.
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Yeah.
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I don't know if you're into basketball.
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Yeah, yeah.
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So I would collect them all in a folder like he is and then amongst some other players
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and stuff.
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Yeah, so pretty much for me, for the book, I collected a few initial reviews.
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Dino Raja was one of them.
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And like Dino, the others that provided the initial reviews also have a connection to
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the Adriatic Sea and have found success in the world in their own unique ways.
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Wow.
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I mean, for those who don't know, which I think I'm pretty sure everyone listening will
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know, but Dino Raja, you know, basketball legend played on the Celtics a few years.
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00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:30,640
It's also, so your book is available online, but it's also available in stores in Dubrovnik,
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00:19:30,640 --> 00:19:31,640
right?
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00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:39,800
Yeah, it's available on Stradun right now, which is the main street in Old Town Dubrovnik.
328
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So it's available in both bookstores there.
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00:19:43,080 --> 00:19:49,600
And I'm currently in talks about getting it stocked elsewhere outside of Dubrovnik.
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So in Zagreb as well, for example, and in a few other cities along the coast.
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Ah, pretty cool.
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Yeah.
333
00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:07,080
One more thing about the book before I move to some other topics, but I was wondering because
334
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my mom is actually in the process of writing a book and she's never written one before,
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you know, she has no experience.
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She just sort of got inspiration one day and started writing it and she doesn't know like
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when to stop when the book is finished.
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So I was wondering if you had any, any words of wisdom you could pass on about knowing
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when it's done.
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Oh, so for me, obviously for just drags out too long and, you know, then it's like it's
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time to stop, but if she's still feeling inspired and, you know, there's still some rich contents
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there, then go for it.
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Yeah.
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Sorry to put you on the spot.
345
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That's okay.
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For me, even with this sequel, if I found myself like uninspired and not wanting to continue,
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sometimes it's just best to leave it and then come back to writing another day.
348
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There's no point pushing it.
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But if she's got it going on and she's just wanting to write and write, then put on her.
350
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I mean, I'm sure there's some good work there.
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00:21:11,120 --> 00:21:12,120
Yeah.
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00:21:12,120 --> 00:21:17,560
Yeah, I think she just keeps writing and thank you for the words of wisdom.
353
00:21:17,560 --> 00:21:18,560
Well, she needed...
354
00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:19,560
Speaking of writing.
355
00:21:19,560 --> 00:21:20,560
Yeah.
356
00:21:20,560 --> 00:21:21,560
Sorry to go ahead.
357
00:21:21,560 --> 00:21:23,760
No, she'll need like obviously an editor in the end.
358
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Yeah.
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You might be able to clean it up and all of that.
360
00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:28,440
But yeah.
361
00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:34,600
Speaking of writing, I wanted to get into an article that you wrote in Croatian Week,
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00:21:34,600 --> 00:21:41,040
not too long ago, called 20 Teachings and Words of Wisdoms from My Grandmothers, which
363
00:21:41,040 --> 00:21:47,040
is very similar to the inspiration behind My Grandma's Like to See.
364
00:21:47,040 --> 00:21:49,480
Can you talk a little about that?
365
00:21:49,480 --> 00:21:50,480
Of course.
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00:21:50,480 --> 00:21:55,400
So that article was shared during lockdown for us here in Sydney and it was a way for
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00:21:55,400 --> 00:22:01,160
me to reflect on the lives of my mothers and teachings and give the readers the space to
368
00:22:01,160 --> 00:22:05,400
apply some of the proverbs shared to their own lives and reflect upon the lives of their
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own grandparents.
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00:22:07,880 --> 00:22:14,040
And I grew up with my mothers sharing certain teachings and to be honest, many have probably
371
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been passed on for generations.
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00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:20,080
So I just wanted to embrace that and share it with others.
373
00:22:20,080 --> 00:22:24,280
Can you give a couple of those and elaborate a little on them?
374
00:22:24,280 --> 00:22:25,840
Okay.
375
00:22:25,840 --> 00:22:29,680
So I'll give you a mixture of Croatian and English.
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00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:33,960
The first one is work every day like you will live forever.
377
00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:37,000
Live every day as though it's your last.
378
00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:43,720
So this one I know for a fact that my great grandmother, my Baba Niike, used to say a lot
379
00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:45,760
and it's been passed down.
380
00:22:45,760 --> 00:22:50,600
So I guess it's self-explanatory, but I personally see it as work to build a future for your
381
00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:51,600
family.
382
00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:57,120
The purpose of working extends beyond oneself and of course make the most of each day.
383
00:22:57,120 --> 00:22:58,120
Enjoy each day.
384
00:22:58,120 --> 00:22:59,120
Get things off your chest.
385
00:22:59,120 --> 00:23:00,120
Be honest.
386
00:23:00,120 --> 00:23:01,120
Follow your passion.
387
00:23:01,120 --> 00:23:03,680
There's another one.
388
00:23:03,680 --> 00:23:05,040
Let's see.
389
00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:09,240
How about triba zaviriti usvojep patešanacim mrdvica?
390
00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:15,160
So this translates to you must look in your own pocket and there you will find a crumb.
391
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:18,320
So we all have flaws in the end.
392
00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:20,680
We are all human.
393
00:23:20,680 --> 00:23:23,680
I'll give you maybe two more.
394
00:23:23,680 --> 00:23:24,680
Yeah, sure.
395
00:23:24,680 --> 00:23:25,680
Okay.
396
00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:26,680
Let's see.
397
00:23:26,680 --> 00:23:30,800
So zernopo zernopogacca kamen po kamen palacca.
398
00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:37,120
In English this is similar to many a little makes a nickel.
399
00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:42,040
Pretty much takes small efforts day in day out and work hard to achieve your dreams.
400
00:23:42,040 --> 00:23:44,840
And of course be careful of propuh.
401
00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:51,000
So I hardly leave the back door open especially with wet hair.
402
00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:52,840
Yeah, that's a classic.
403
00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:55,640
Every Croatian is scared of propuh.
404
00:23:55,640 --> 00:24:00,040
Yeah, from a very young age.
405
00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:07,520
And were these words of wisdoms that you were writing down for a long time or one day you
406
00:24:07,520 --> 00:24:11,640
decided to go back and say, I'm going to start, I'm going to write all these down that I
407
00:24:11,640 --> 00:24:12,640
can remember.
408
00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:18,920
No, here and there I would actually jot things down that my, not just my grandmothers, my
409
00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:23,840
grandfathers would say as well or certain family members.
410
00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:31,040
You know, like another one my father would say is mogul bit gore, like it could be better,
411
00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:32,600
it could be worse.
412
00:24:32,600 --> 00:24:33,880
You know, this, yeah.
413
00:24:33,880 --> 00:24:40,680
So I just jot them all down and like, and similar to like my family tree.
414
00:24:40,680 --> 00:24:46,960
So over the years I would like compile a family tree and now it's quite extensive actually.
415
00:24:46,960 --> 00:24:50,560
So yeah, it's just something, a little hobby of mine.
416
00:24:50,560 --> 00:24:56,760
Yeah, I think that's important though, especially like the family tree because I think, you
417
00:24:56,760 --> 00:25:00,560
know, in my experience, like growing up as a kid, you know, I never really thought about
418
00:25:00,560 --> 00:25:03,960
that and, you know, I guess I wasn't interested in anything like that.
419
00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:09,200
But now I'm always asking like my dad, oh, so how am I related to this person?
420
00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:10,200
Who is this person?
421
00:25:10,200 --> 00:25:13,000
And half the time he doesn't even know.
422
00:25:13,000 --> 00:25:15,240
So my aunt's been working on a family tree.
423
00:25:15,240 --> 00:25:19,600
But I think eventually, you know, you really start to wonder about these things and wish
424
00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:22,720
you had like a map to see all the connections.
425
00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:23,720
Yeah.
426
00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:24,720
That was my experience.
427
00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:25,720
Well, that's it.
428
00:25:25,720 --> 00:25:33,440
I tried to print mine off the other day actually and it was just too much like mine's now pages
429
00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:38,480
and pages long that I just like, no, soft copy is good enough.
430
00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:44,000
But it's super interesting, especially for me to share like with my son one day when
431
00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:45,600
he starts asking the questions.
432
00:25:45,600 --> 00:25:51,000
I think it's a nice thing to, you know, at least know where we come from.
433
00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:52,000
Yeah.
434
00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:54,480
Yeah, I think that will be a huge blessing for him.
435
00:25:54,480 --> 00:25:55,480
Yeah.
436
00:25:55,480 --> 00:26:00,600
I think it's funny that only like these generations now seem to be doing that.
437
00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:04,760
And before, you know, for the last however many hundreds of years, thousands of years,
438
00:26:04,760 --> 00:26:06,920
you know, there's really been nothing.
439
00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:10,680
I think for most families, you know, I think it's weird that I've sort of been hearing
440
00:26:10,680 --> 00:26:15,240
lately like this current generation or, you know, the generation above us is sort of the
441
00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:18,560
first one to start, you know, mapping this and passing it down.
442
00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:20,760
I guess it's easier with technology and stuff.
443
00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:21,760
That's right.
444
00:26:21,760 --> 00:26:23,760
And having something more in concrete, you're right.
445
00:26:23,760 --> 00:26:28,480
Yeah, I don't know why just, yeah, the circle of life.
446
00:26:28,480 --> 00:26:29,480
Yeah.
447
00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:30,480
Interesting.
448
00:26:30,480 --> 00:26:31,480
Yeah.
449
00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:35,880
When, you know, we've been talking about writing this whole time and we'll talk a little bit
450
00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:40,520
more because I want to ask you about your blog, Nala's Den.
451
00:26:40,520 --> 00:26:41,520
When did you start that?
452
00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:43,240
And what's the story behind that?
453
00:26:43,240 --> 00:26:48,760
Look, I started Nala's Den a few years ago.
454
00:26:48,760 --> 00:26:51,360
Purely as a creative outlet, you know, a space to write.
455
00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:52,960
I love to write.
456
00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:59,600
And yeah, so Nala's Den's space to write out any ideas on navigating the journey of motherhood.
457
00:26:59,600 --> 00:27:04,920
And now it's also a platform to share my children's picture book, My Grandmothers Like
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00:27:04,920 --> 00:27:07,320
the Sea.
459
00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:10,320
And as for the name, Nala is my nickname.
460
00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:12,600
So certain family members call me that.
461
00:27:12,600 --> 00:27:19,000
I also really liked the Lion King growing up and Den is symbolic for home.
462
00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:22,840
Yeah, good symbolism there.
463
00:27:22,840 --> 00:27:26,960
I noticed you also had some construction projects on there.
464
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:27,960
Yeah.
465
00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:33,280
So for the last 10 or so years I've been working in construction.
466
00:27:33,280 --> 00:27:39,360
So in commercial construction, so commercial construction projects.
467
00:27:39,360 --> 00:27:45,800
And so I always like, you know, coming up with crafty solutions and DIY sort of projects
468
00:27:45,800 --> 00:27:46,800
around the home.
469
00:27:46,800 --> 00:27:51,200
So again, it's just an outlet for me to write and share.
470
00:27:51,200 --> 00:27:56,320
And some of those are, well, I guess those projects, all those projects are sort of construction
471
00:27:56,320 --> 00:28:00,720
projects for, you know, families to do together or parents and their kids.
472
00:28:00,720 --> 00:28:01,720
Yeah.
473
00:28:01,720 --> 00:28:08,760
So on the blog, on the blog itself, what I shared, it's more like, you know, build your
474
00:28:08,760 --> 00:28:11,400
own mud kitchen with your child if you can.
475
00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:18,640
And then there's like, on another scale, you know, make your own Play Doh with your kids,
476
00:28:18,640 --> 00:28:20,880
you know, like that sort of thing.
477
00:28:20,880 --> 00:28:25,080
So just crafty sort of solutions if people are interested.
478
00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:27,360
It sounds like you have the entry level and the...
479
00:28:27,360 --> 00:28:28,360
Yeah.
480
00:28:28,360 --> 00:28:29,360
...level experience.
481
00:28:29,360 --> 00:28:34,640
Yeah, different skills level.
482
00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:38,040
What sort of future plans do you have with Nala's Den?
483
00:28:38,040 --> 00:28:44,560
Look, I'd like to use it as a platform for my sequel to be available on as well.
484
00:28:44,560 --> 00:28:50,880
Some more, a combination of both Croatian and English articles.
485
00:28:50,880 --> 00:28:56,400
So it's a good way for me to sort of keep up and practice my Croatian as well.
486
00:28:56,400 --> 00:29:01,240
It's in honour of my grandmothers like the Sea Children's book, share some more, which
487
00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:06,880
I've just started site C, Croatian articles covering some hidden gems and treasures in
488
00:29:06,880 --> 00:29:08,640
Croatian.
489
00:29:08,640 --> 00:29:12,720
And yeah, I'd say that's the direction.
490
00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:14,760
And how good is your Croatian right now?
491
00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:15,760
Was it better before?
492
00:29:15,760 --> 00:29:17,880
Is it the best it's been right now?
493
00:29:17,880 --> 00:29:21,000
It always improves upon actually going to Croatia.
494
00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:28,080
For me, it's like nothing quite like immersing yourself like in the actual...
495
00:29:28,080 --> 00:29:33,200
In Croatia, you know, with people and all of that and speaking there as for here at
496
00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:39,840
home, I'd predominantly speak with both sets of grandparents, you know, growing up.
497
00:29:39,840 --> 00:29:45,760
And but for me, I'd have like my mom's family are from Cortula.
498
00:29:45,760 --> 00:29:52,920
And so their dialect is more from sort of from there and then my dad's side coming from
499
00:29:52,920 --> 00:29:56,080
that like Peliša Stukrovnik sort of region.
500
00:29:56,080 --> 00:30:00,760
I sort of change words, if you know what I mean, like for my mom, yeah, there's a bit
501
00:30:00,760 --> 00:30:02,040
of an Italian influence.
502
00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:10,920
Like for window, she'd say like Punezra, which is like finestra, I believe in Italian.
503
00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:13,040
And then my dad would say prosor.
504
00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:15,000
So like certain differences.
505
00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:16,000
Yeah.
506
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:17,000
How do you say plate?
507
00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:18,000
You say piat?
508
00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:19,000
Piat.
509
00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:20,000
Yeah.
510
00:30:20,000 --> 00:30:25,360
And I think it's proper, I don't know if I could, if it's right to say proper Croatian,
511
00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:28,160
but they say something different.
512
00:30:28,160 --> 00:30:29,160
I know that.
513
00:30:29,160 --> 00:30:30,160
Yeah.
514
00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:31,160
I guess standard Croatian.
515
00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:32,160
Is it Tanjur?
516
00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:33,160
Tanjur?
517
00:30:33,160 --> 00:30:34,160
Yeah, Tanjur.
518
00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:35,160
Yeah, I believe so.
519
00:30:35,160 --> 00:30:36,160
Yeah.
520
00:30:36,160 --> 00:30:37,160
Yeah.
521
00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:38,160
So yeah.
522
00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:39,160
Yeah.
523
00:30:39,160 --> 00:30:40,160
Oh, I've got a horrible time with the dialects.
524
00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:42,360
Well, you're up in Zagreb, right?
525
00:30:42,360 --> 00:30:50,320
So you're picking up that sort of dialect up there, yeah?
526
00:30:50,320 --> 00:30:55,000
But I'm learning, I'm in a classroom learning and we're learning like the standard.
527
00:30:55,000 --> 00:30:58,280
And then when I'm like out in the streets, you know, they're saying all this slang,
528
00:30:58,280 --> 00:31:00,360
Kai and all that kind of stuff.
529
00:31:00,360 --> 00:31:01,360
Oh, Kai, yeah.
530
00:31:01,360 --> 00:31:05,000
And so for me, it's like really hard to wrap my mind around the differences.
531
00:31:05,000 --> 00:31:08,360
And then, you know, I feel like I have to learn a different word for every dialect.
532
00:31:08,360 --> 00:31:11,360
So it's hard for me to have conversations.
533
00:31:11,360 --> 00:31:13,760
But I've got the ordering down at restaurants.
534
00:31:13,760 --> 00:31:15,720
So that I'm pretty good at.
535
00:31:15,720 --> 00:31:18,320
I think like confidence is a big thing as well.
536
00:31:18,320 --> 00:31:22,720
Just actually just giving it a go and it is what it is like, you know, you get there in
537
00:31:22,720 --> 00:31:23,720
the end.
538
00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:25,640
But if you hold yourself back then it's hard.
539
00:31:25,640 --> 00:31:26,640
It's harder to learn.
540
00:31:26,640 --> 00:31:27,920
Yeah, that's true.
541
00:31:27,920 --> 00:31:32,240
I think one problem for me is that like since I'm learning in a classroom, when I try to
542
00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:36,640
talk I'm always thinking about like the grammar and making sure I'm, you know, ending on the
543
00:31:36,640 --> 00:31:40,240
right letter, depending on what case I'm using.
544
00:31:40,240 --> 00:31:43,520
So instead of like thinking about what words I should be using next or how to actually
545
00:31:43,520 --> 00:31:48,320
say like say a sentence, I'm thinking about the grammar and then I get all mixed up.
546
00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:49,320
Yeah, flustered.
547
00:31:49,320 --> 00:31:50,720
The grammar is tricky though.
548
00:31:50,720 --> 00:31:51,720
Yeah.
549
00:31:51,720 --> 00:31:52,720
It's super tricky.
550
00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:53,720
It's so tricky.
551
00:31:53,720 --> 00:31:54,720
So good luck.
552
00:31:54,720 --> 00:31:56,200
Good on you for trying.
553
00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:57,200
Yeah, I'm trying.
554
00:31:57,200 --> 00:31:58,200
Yeah, I'm trying.
555
00:31:58,200 --> 00:31:59,200
Yeah.
556
00:31:59,200 --> 00:32:03,240
I wanted to get back to Nala's then just one more time.
557
00:32:03,240 --> 00:32:06,080
You had 30 fun facts about you on there.
558
00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:10,480
And I was wondering if you could just give us maybe two or three of your favorites.
559
00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:11,480
Oh, okay.
560
00:32:11,480 --> 00:32:14,760
If you wind down towards the end here.
561
00:32:14,760 --> 00:32:18,160
Okay, let me think.
562
00:32:18,160 --> 00:32:27,320
Well, tying back to the whole Croatian roots and that, I absolutely love a type of homemade
563
00:32:27,320 --> 00:32:32,080
pasta called žernovski makaroni, which is from Kortula.
564
00:32:32,080 --> 00:32:37,160
So that's one fact and you've cooked it before.
565
00:32:37,160 --> 00:32:39,440
Have you made it?
566
00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:41,880
I haven't actually made žernovski makaroni.
567
00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:43,920
It's just a whole different ball game.
568
00:32:43,920 --> 00:32:45,360
You've got to really do it from scratch.
569
00:32:45,360 --> 00:32:50,280
And I've just, I think it's the confidence thing because I don't know if I'll ever be
570
00:32:50,280 --> 00:32:54,360
as good as like my grandmother or my great aunt.
571
00:32:54,360 --> 00:32:57,360
So I've just got to put myself out there and give it a go.
572
00:32:57,360 --> 00:32:59,360
Yeah, you got to try.
573
00:32:59,360 --> 00:33:02,360
No one's cooking will be as good as your father.
574
00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:05,440
Yeah, that's the thing.
575
00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:07,960
So there's that.
576
00:33:07,960 --> 00:33:08,960
What else?
577
00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:16,280
Yeah, I also love dramatic arts and theater.
578
00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:21,880
So I started a bit at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts here in Sydney.
579
00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:24,960
It's just, yeah, that's the fact.
580
00:33:24,960 --> 00:33:32,440
And maybe three you said, so the third fact would be that I was actually named Natalie
581
00:33:32,440 --> 00:33:38,280
after the actress Natalie Wood, which is like a classic Hollywood actress.
582
00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:41,480
Yeah, maybe that's before my time.
583
00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:47,600
I know, I know, I'm a bit into like the old, old films.
584
00:33:47,600 --> 00:33:49,880
So excuse me.
585
00:33:49,880 --> 00:33:50,880
Yeah.
586
00:33:50,880 --> 00:33:51,880
Yeah.
587
00:33:51,880 --> 00:33:53,640
So that's that.
588
00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:55,200
Very cool.
589
00:33:55,200 --> 00:33:57,000
Yeah, thank you for that.
590
00:33:57,000 --> 00:34:00,280
And you know, Natalie, thank you again for coming on the podcast.
591
00:34:00,280 --> 00:34:03,920
I'll have to check out your book, My Grandma is Like the Sea.
592
00:34:03,920 --> 00:34:07,520
And of course, you know, we're going to wait for the sequel there.
593
00:34:07,520 --> 00:34:11,640
You have your blog, you have the article on Pro-Aishu Week, 20 teachings and words of
594
00:34:11,640 --> 00:34:13,480
wisdom from my grandmothers.
595
00:34:13,480 --> 00:34:17,360
So for those listening, there's a lot to read.
596
00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:19,880
And you know, thanks again for coming on.
597
00:34:19,880 --> 00:34:21,160
No worries at all.
598
00:34:21,160 --> 00:34:22,160
Thank you for your time, Stankel.
599
00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:25,960
I very much appreciate it.
600
00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:29,440
That's it for today's episode of the All Things Croatia podcast.
601
00:34:29,440 --> 00:34:31,800
Thanks for tuning in and I hope you all enjoyed it.
602
00:34:31,800 --> 00:34:35,880
You can subscribe to the Patreon and check out the All Things Croatia Instagram page
603
00:34:35,880 --> 00:34:37,400
to stay updated.
604
00:34:37,400 --> 00:34:41,880
Feel free to reach out to me with any questions, tips or ideas and make sure to tune back into
605
00:34:41,880 --> 00:34:43,400
the next episode.
606
00:34:43,400 --> 00:34:53,560
Thanks again and vidimosen.