If you are interested in experiencing beauty beyond description, friendly, intelligent people, excellent wines and cheeses, and a population consumed by futbol, look no further than Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Montenegro. As to the crime rate in these countries, I can paraphrase what several residents here tell me: there is much corruption but very little crime on the streets. The reason? People do not want to shame their families; they would rather go to jail than bring dishonor to their family name.

I am also hearing the word “crazy“ used a lot to describe us Americans. Crazy is one of several adjectives I have heard here — “confusing,” “baffling,” “ignorant” and “stupid” are a few others. You see, dear reader, as any dedicated, unpaid Daily Hampshire Gazette guest columnist would do, I’ve decided to  mix “business” with pleasure on this vacation (i.e. partially ruin a wonderful trip!) by engaging residents in conversations regarding our current president. I expected negative viewpoints but did not anticipate the almost universal vehemence I am experiencing.

The most positive comment came from a kiosk owner in the seaside town of Split, Croatia: “Trump strongman, yes? Good? Bad? We do not know. Iran war bad, but he strongman, so we never know. With strongman you never can tell.” I repeat: this was the most positive response I have received to my question, “What is your opinion of Donald Trump?” I don’t know what this gentleman was talking about exactly, but there was some nuance to his answer. (He also did a good job shortening the length of a belt I purchased and for which probably overpaid.)

In Dubrovnik, 230 kilometers down the coast from Split, I chatted with Daniel, our 22-year-old speedboat driver who was taking us on a day trip to nearby islands. He said: “In his first time period [term], Trump seem OK. Now, I think he become crazy. I am 22. Do I want to go fight in a war when I do not know why? No. Same for young Americans, I am sure. It is a total waste of human life.”

One morning along the Croatian coast our driver/guide Andrej told me about an interaction he had with several American Navy men whose ship had docked in Split harbor: (I paraphrase) “One night in a bar, I spoke with these sailors. I asked them how they are doing with the war [in Iran]. Each one of them said the same thing — they have no idea why they are here or what the war is about.”

“Do I want my son to go to war for no reason?” Adrej asked me. “For sure, no!”

At our hotel in Kotor, Montenegro, our waiter Gabriel, a politics major in college, strongly dislikes Trump because of his stance on NATO. At the desk of our hotel, an assistant manager didn’t sugarcoat his feelings: “Trump idiot. Secretary of War raving lunatic. You must be crazy people to elect this man!” Silvio, one of our tour guides in this city, expresses a more personal reaction to my question: “A rise in fuel prices means less tourists for me. Without tourists, my family is in trouble.”

In the city of Mostar, in Bosnia-Herzegovina, everyone I spoke with had extremely negative opinions of our dear leader. Sadina, an intelligent young Muslim woman at the front desk of our small hotel, described her views, in English far superior to our president’s: “He is arrogant, he lacks empathy and compassion, and he is a narcissist. He is also a racist when it comes to our people.” She added that, because homosexuality is a sin in her religion, she agrees with Trump’s position on this one issue. Croatian Catholics, 20% of the population here, voice strong objections to Trump’s verbal battles with the Pope, and the Christian Orthodox are appalled by what one person describes as his “immoral, crude and disrespectful behavior.”

One morning, at a cheese farm outside of Kotor, I observed four buffaloes as I learned that they produce excellent cheese and ice cream! The largest of the four, standing behind a flimsy wire fence, walked to within three feet of my face. He stared at me. I knew immediately what what he was thinking:

“You Americans must be crazy.”

Gene Stamell soon returns to Leverett. He can be reached at gstamell@gmail.com.