"Or Cambodia and Vietnam. Cambodians really hate Vietnamese."
"Why?"
"Vietnam invaded Cambodia, took a lot of their land."
He tried to go to the US, but couldn't get a visa, so with much regret, he hasn't had a chance to frolic on Waikiki Beach, Sunset Boulevard, the Magnificent Mile, Vegas Strip, Route 66, Times Square or Fifth Avenue, etc., but at America's current rate of self-destruction, these hyped icons will be no more than desolate, smoldering ruins by the time he gets there, even if it's next year.
*
I waited for Novak "by the horse," what locals call the equestrian statue of Knjaz Mihailo. Amazingly, he had no problem singling me out. Disregarding social distancing guidelines, we shook hands, then went around the corner to a microbrew pub.
Sixty-years-old, Novak grew up just around the corner. "I was a poor kid in a rich neighborhood. That affected me. During Christmas break, my friends would go skiing. During summer vacation, they'd go to the seaside or overseas. When they asked me what I did, I said, 'I fished on the Danube.'" Novak laughed. "My girlfriend asked, 'Why do you keep wearing these old pants?' She didn't know we had no money to buy new clothes."
A top math student, Novak studied electrical engineering in college, then got a pretty good job. Still, "I'd see someone driving around in a Porsche or a Mercedes Benz. Even with my high salary, by local standards, it would have taken me two years just to buy a Yugo!"
He had already visited the US in 1977. "I had two half sisters in New Jersey, in Netcong. It's about an hour west of New York. One worked at a supermarket, and her husband was a schoolbus driver. When I was there, they had a huge barbecue and invited all their coworkers. My brother-in-law said to me, 'Look at all this meat! Isn't America a paradise?' It's nice enough, I thought, but I could never, ever live here."
With his career at an impass and war impending, Novak returned to the US in 1989. "My sister suggested I pay two thousand bucks to marry this 'nice' Mexican woman with four kids, but I pointed to my forehead and said, 'If I can't use this head to stay, I'm not going to use the other one.'"
Advised by an immigration lawyer, Novak then sent out hundreds of resumes. "I had never done this before. It was a big shock for my vanity. Many places doubted my qualifications. Some asked: "Did you have real computers in" what is that country again?"
Finally, Novak got hired by a Manhattan consultancy. "I started at $34K, then moved up to 40K. Although they treated me well, they also got a great deal because they were pimping me out at $117 an hour!"
Novak would then work for a handful of Fortune 500 companies. He married a Serbian in New York, and they had two daughters. In 2006, Novak was sent to Paris, where he stayed until 2013. His marriage collapsed.
Ending up in North Carolina for work, Novak dated a black Army veteran. "She often used military slogans in her speech, such as, 'Lead, follow or get out the way.'" Worse, her relatives didn't exactly warm up to Novak. "They liked the 'weird Serb part,' but not the 'white' part."
The South had its comforts. Novak loved the food, "Nice and greasy, works for me every time," and he shared the North Carolinian's fondness for beer.
In 2016, Novak returned to Belgrade, to the very apartment he grew up in. As we walked around, he evoked memories and associations everywhere.
"Why?"
"Vietnam invaded Cambodia, took a lot of their land."
He tried to go to the US, but couldn't get a visa, so with much regret, he hasn't had a chance to frolic on Waikiki Beach, Sunset Boulevard, the Magnificent Mile, Vegas Strip, Route 66, Times Square or Fifth Avenue, etc., but at America's current rate of self-destruction, these hyped icons will be no more than desolate, smoldering ruins by the time he gets there, even if it's next year.
I waited for Novak "by the horse," what locals call the equestrian statue of Knjaz Mihailo. Amazingly, he had no problem singling me out. Disregarding social distancing guidelines, we shook hands, then went around the corner to a microbrew pub.
Sixty-years-old, Novak grew up just around the corner. "I was a poor kid in a rich neighborhood. That affected me. During Christmas break, my friends would go skiing. During summer vacation, they'd go to the seaside or overseas. When they asked me what I did, I said, 'I fished on the Danube.'" Novak laughed. "My girlfriend asked, 'Why do you keep wearing these old pants?' She didn't know we had no money to buy new clothes."
A top math student, Novak studied electrical engineering in college, then got a pretty good job. Still, "I'd see someone driving around in a Porsche or a Mercedes Benz. Even with my high salary, by local standards, it would have taken me two years just to buy a Yugo!"
He had already visited the US in 1977. "I had two half sisters in New Jersey, in Netcong. It's about an hour west of New York. One worked at a supermarket, and her husband was a schoolbus driver. When I was there, they had a huge barbecue and invited all their coworkers. My brother-in-law said to me, 'Look at all this meat! Isn't America a paradise?' It's nice enough, I thought, but I could never, ever live here."
With his career at an impass and war impending, Novak returned to the US in 1989. "My sister suggested I pay two thousand bucks to marry this 'nice' Mexican woman with four kids, but I pointed to my forehead and said, 'If I can't use this head to stay, I'm not going to use the other one.'"
Advised by an immigration lawyer, Novak then sent out hundreds of resumes. "I had never done this before. It was a big shock for my vanity. Many places doubted my qualifications. Some asked: "Did you have real computers in" what is that country again?"
Finally, Novak got hired by a Manhattan consultancy. "I started at $34K, then moved up to 40K. Although they treated me well, they also got a great deal because they were pimping me out at $117 an hour!"
Novak would then work for a handful of Fortune 500 companies. He married a Serbian in New York, and they had two daughters. In 2006, Novak was sent to Paris, where he stayed until 2013. His marriage collapsed.
Ending up in North Carolina for work, Novak dated a black Army veteran. "She often used military slogans in her speech, such as, 'Lead, follow or get out the way.'" Worse, her relatives didn't exactly warm up to Novak. "They liked the 'weird Serb part,' but not the 'white' part."
The South had its comforts. Novak loved the food, "Nice and greasy, works for me every time," and he shared the North Carolinian's fondness for beer.
In 2016, Novak returned to Belgrade, to the very apartment he grew up in. As we walked around, he evoked memories and associations everywhere.
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