Serb spice and everything nice

Athlone's cultural topography has changed to one with a vibrant diversity. For example, St Mary's NS has pupils representing more than 50 nationalities. Clearly, Ireland, and Athlone have welcomed the immigrants in a way few countries or towns would. In this new column, Home Is Where The Hearth Is, we shine the spotlight on the immigrant experience. And as a cultural exchange get them to share food recipes they hold dear. In this week's edition, meet Aleksandra Marjanovic. Since her move to Athlone, the spirited Serb has picked up languages, both human and computer, and made a life using the two.

By Navjyoti Dalal

Imagine sitting in a classroom where no one understands each other's language. What brings these students together is a desire to learn English, a language that will allow them the currency to trade in conversations in a foreign land.

One of these pupils, Aleksandra Marjanovic from Serbia, had little idea that this bunch of diverse classmates will be her safety net as she tried to begin life in a new country and city.

This group also features a couple of Croatians, a nationality she was 'supposed to hate' (thanks to the decades-old war between Serbia and Croatia). Yet, these Croatians gave her the warmth, friendship, and comfort of mother tongue that she needed to get over homesickness during her first Christmas in Ireland. Such is the magic of a neutral ground.

"That bias and the politics of hate was the primary reason I and my husband decided to move from Serbia," says Marjanovic, who came to Ireland six years ago.

Serbian Roots, Irish Dreams

Not everyone, feels Aleksandra Marjanovic, can afford to change their environment or circumstances if they are unhealthy.

"I reckon it was my privilege to be able to that," says Marjanovic whose move to Ireland was a well thought-out decision. Her homeland, Serbia, wasn't always called that.

Until 1991 it was part of Yugoslavia, which split into six independent nations. What followed were geographical conflicts and wars with new neighbours, particularly Croatia.

"I remember my father being picked up in the middle of the night from our home, only to be inducted into the army without his consent. He would be an anti-national if he didn't accede," Marjanovic reveals.

She adds, "It didn't matter if he had a family, it also didn't matter if he had a family on the other side of the border, against whom they were handing him the guns. I also remember NATO dropping a bomb on my hometown, Belgrade. It was a dark time, and I am still haunted by it."

Mother to a 12-year-old, Marjanovic finds herself dealing with this trauma even more as a parent.

"We didn't want to raise our son in such an environment. So we took the chance when my husband, Zivko (an IT professional), got a job offer in Ireland," she says before adding, "It's not that we didn't have a good life in Serbia.

"We held good jobs, had a great social life, the comfort of being around parents. But we didn't like the instability caused by politics and war.

"All around there's a narrative, amplified by the media, that wants us to hate Croatians, for the convenience of politics. We were fed up of that."

New Learnings and Unlearning

For over a decade, Marjanovic cemented her career as a pre-school teacher, leaning on regular training in education and child psychology.

"I did a four-year degree course to be a pre-school teacher. In Serbia it's a coveted job and one that requires dedication and continuous learning and upskilling. There's a sense of pride to this job," explains Marjanovic, who was hopeful of banking on her skills and experience to find a similar role.

However, being on a dependent visa (at the time) she couldn't hold a job. But she was keen on a purposeful use of her time so she enrolled in the English language course offered by LWETB.

In a couple of years the world changed irreversibly with COVID.

"There was nothing to do, nowhere to go, and I was very bored. I took up an online Java-language course from IT Academy, Belgrade, without any inkling what to do with it later. But I enjoyed the dare it posed, and overcoming that," shares Marjanovic, who went back to preschool teaching (at Busykids) once the lockdown was lifted.

But the experience was wanting. "It was very different from Serbia. I didn't find enough challenge, thrill or satisfaction here. It didn't enrich me in any way," she explains.

It was a forked-road moment for Marjanovic and she bet on her newfound love for coding. She found her fit in a computer science masters programme from TUS and spent the next year submitted to academics.

"It was the hardest, most gruelling year of my life, but I am happy to have made that choice," says Marjanovic, who is currently employed with tech giant Ericsson at their Athlone facility.

While she misses her childhood friends, the 'proper' seasons (especially summer), and her father, Marjanovic feels anchored in Athlone.

"I have made friends for life, friends with a diversity that I could not imagine back in Serbia. I have travelled to countries like Brazil, Mexico, Cuba to attend wedding ceremonies of friends I made in Athlone," says Marjanovic, a self-confessed non-cook.

She credits her husband and friends with indulging her tastebuds when she is in the mood for something Balkan.

Recipe: Pljeskavica Serbian Meat Burger

For our readers she shares the recipe for Pljeskavica, a burger-like dish relished across Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina Made with fresh pork and beef mince patties, this is a great alternative to the nutritionally dead fast-food version.

Instead of a burger bun, the traditional version uses a pita like bread called Lepinja, while the Ajvar sauce is what makes it a flavour bomb. One can lookup the Internet to make fresh Ajvar, or it can be sourced from an Eastern European grocery store like Moldova

Ingredients:

450g ground beef

450g ground pork

2 tsp salt

1 tsp sweet paprika

Half tsp black pepper

Half cup sparking water

2 tsp olive oil

2 medium onions, finely chopped

Vegetable oil for frying

For burger assembly: 4 pita bread pockets

Alvar

Kajmak (clotted cream)

Method:

In a bowl, combine together ground beef and pork, salt, sweet paprika, black pepper and sparkling water.

Brush olive oil on the surface of the meat mixture. It will help keep it moist.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

After refrigeration, take the meat mixture out. Add onions and mix well.

Divide into four balls and shape into a thin patty.

Grill or shallow fry your patties.

Take pita pockets and assemble your burgers by spreading alvar and kajmak and adding onions and pickles as desired.