Stefan started a business in South America and he is now living his dream: He travels and explores its beauties, he has been in Medellin and here's what people think about Serbia (PHOTO)
A great number of people don't like https://www.telegraf.rs/teme/travel, visiting new areas and meeting new people. Today, it is more accessible to everybody then ever before, so nothing seems so far and distant, or unknown. People can visit remote destinations with very little money if they organize themselves and if they plan everything ahead, which wasn't so possible before. The best thing in a story like this is that there are people who developed their business through travels, so they combined nice and useful. One of those people is Stefan Lazic from Belgrade, who is now developing his business through travels across South America.
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He has decided to tell his story to Telegraf.rs.
He was born in the capital of Serbia where he lived for 24 years. After a secondary tourist school and economics studies, Stefan was admitted to Master studies in economics and management in tourism at the University of Bologna, Italy as their scholarship holder.
After completing the master studies, he worked in the online distribution of tourism and hotel products for one of the largest groups in the world. However, he realized that he wanted to contribute much more to the development of tourism than to be part of a distribution and sales chain, so he decided to dedicate himself to the sustainable development of this branch of the economy.
- The desire for further education at some European university was the main driver of my departure from Serbia. The idea was born during a research project in Mexico for which I received a scholarship from the University of Tecnologico from Monterrey, during the third year of basic studies - says our interlocutor.
Today, he is engaged in tourism in South America and successfully develops his own business. An opportunity to engage in what you love and to consciously contribute to the world around you is something that many people probably dream of, but only those most persistent are able to accomplish it.
- The project "Echoes of the Journey" was created in cooperation with my girlfriend Laura from Argentina. After years of experience and work in tourism and hotel management, we decided to dedicate ourselves to the development of sustainable tourism, which is based on three basic principles - social, economic and environmental sustainability. Such tourism creates positive effects for all parties involved - the local population and the community, travelers and, most importantly, the natural environment - he says.
The idea was to embark on a journey in Latin America and to collaborate with the initiatives that are developing this type of activity. During this journey, they help them in the spheres that are their specialty - certification of sustainability, application of various methods of sustainable development, online distribution and promotion and cooperation with European tour operators (especially with those who create tours of adventurous, sustainable and active tourism) and creation of tourist content.
- Some kind of consulting, for example, because these are some of the topics that are still unknown to a large number of entrepreneurs who develop rural and sustainable tourism. Practically, we apply the knowledge and experience gained in previous years for the development of "responsible" journeys that are not a mere product which is used only once but experiences which are the opposite of the idea of today's mass tourism.
On the other hand, in the course of cooperation, we learn from them how small initiatives can successfully develop with limited funds and how sustainable tourism can be an important factor in social and local development, the fight against poverty and in education.
The journey began in Uruguay, continued with participation in the Congress of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and then through Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala with the idea to reach Mexico - says Stefan.
Their clients are different types of organizations and companies that deal with tourism and environmental protection - hotels, tour operators, nature reserves, non-governmental organizations, foundations, associations and networks for the development of local tourism, academic institutions...
It was not too hard for him to get used to the new environment, but he admits that he always misses his family, especially now when he is not going home so often, like during master studies while he was living in Italy.
- Staying in Mexico during the study prepared me well to return to Latin America. Although all parts of the continent are not the same, especially since Mexico is very close to the United States and under the influence of its culture, in a way it made it easier for me to stay in Iberoamerica. Nevertheless, each departure for a longer or indefinite period of time carries with it a period of adjusting to new conditions. I find a lot of similarities between the countries here and the Balkans so I would not say that it's hard for a man to get used to it.
About the family, I always miss them. During my stay in Italy for the last five years, I had the opportunity to often return to Belgrade because the nature of the job requested it so I managed to maintain a "good connection" and contacts. It is a bit harder now, but I have no doubts that I will be back in Belgrade soon - admits Stefan.
The citizens of South America do not know Serbia as well as we might have thought. But they are therefore willing to hear something about our culture in order to get to know our customs better.
- They often mention Tito, but since Novak Djokovic became pretty famous in recent years, he is now the main association when our country is mentioned. The older and more educated people remember the war and the fact that Serbia was once a part of the country which was called Yugoslavia. Rarely anyone knows that we were bombarded by NATO. Besides that, they know about us in Argentina after Kusturica and the and the trumpet players and that they lost the finals of the World Championship in basketball 2002 from us.
As far as the reactions are concerned, it is always interesting and unusual for them, and the surprise is even higher in the rural areas that we especially visit. They ask about culture, language, religion, customs - he says.
Since he travels often due to his work, he has traveled a large part of Latin America to date and stresses that it is difficult for him to isolate a single place because the nature of this part of the planet is incomprehensibly beautiful.
- Also, the emotions are not the same in all places. Therefore, I couldn't choose Iguazu falls without mentioning the Perito Moreno Glacier or the salt flats in Uyuni in Bolivia. On the other hand, trekking on the Ausangate mountains at the 5.100 meters of altitude in Peru is incredible and one of the best experiences I had in my life. Not so much for the beauty, but for the distance and extremity, staying in Ushuaia in the "End of the World", the most southern city on the planet, was also a good experience.
In social terms, a visit to Medellin, once the most dangerous city in the world, and the Commune 13, was also something special. As a complete contrast to the modern life and a place to completely dedicate yourself to the inner peace, I would single out the Viento Solar Nature Reserve on the Caribbean coast of Colombia - says Stefan.
He points out that food on this continent is very diverse and tasty. The biggest differences are in fruits and vegetables that do not exist in Europe.
- I do not even know if we have any "our" name for some of them. From Bolivia, soursop, guavas, pitaya, naranjilla, star fruit, yucca or cassava (which is particularly present in Argentina and Brazil), as well as more famous fruits such as papaya, passion fruit, and mangos, are available in large quantities everywhere in the north. The diversity of bananas is interesting in Ecuador and Colombia, so they do not eat only fresh but fried, salted, baked, with cheese, like chips and the like - he adds.
Often we hear in the media that this part of the planet is extremely poor and that only a small number of people have conditions for a normal life. Stefan states that the situation is exactly such, that poverty has been present for decades and that things are changing very slowly.
- So the percentage of those who lead a "good" life is much lower than those who do not even have basic health care, access to education, conditions for a normal life. Various organizations from the United States and the EU are funding projects that help the rural population, but numbers are still troubling.
The aggravating circumstance is that in the last two years a large number of people from Venezuela moved to all other countries on the continent and in doing so have increased the number of people looking for work everywhere, who do not have a roof over their heads or a safe future - he said.
It can also be heard that the safety in this continent is weak in general, so we have a large number of criminal groups, narco cartels and the like. Tourists are advised to look after themselves and their belongings when traveling to countries on this continent. However, Stefan stresses that it is the most important thing to be informed about everything before traveling.
- Before arriving at any place that we visit we inform ourselves about the actual state in it and the parts of the city or the region that are not safe. However, I must say, that we didn't have a single unpleasant situation. The hospitality and kindness of people in some of the countries we visited are incredible - he says.
Stefan admits he would like to return to Serbia one day and help develop the sector he is working on during this trip.
- I consider that Serbia has huge tourism potential, but it is not used anywhere close as it could and should be. With the application of the principles of sustainable development and the management of things in a responsible and rational way, an offer could be created that would have a significant place on the world map of sustainable tourism.
About the trip itself, I would advise that if they already decided on going, not to wait on someone else to organize and deliver everything but to make some effort themselves. If they wait for the things to solve on their own, they won't go anywhere. To those who would like to go to study, I would advise searching the possibilities and chances on their own, not to wait on someone else to inform them about what is available to them. There is a large number of fonds and scholarships for the citizens of non-EU countries, to ask around and to prepare all documents - adds Stefan.
(Telegraf.co.uk / A.Taskovic - a.taskovic@telegraf.rs)
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