sarajevo, bosnia
September 4, 2019
The flight to Sarajevo was uneventful and only 45 minutes long. We grabbed a taxi that was probably double the usual price because the scowling, unfriendly man wouldn't answer my question about a flat rate to Old Town. Maybe he didn't speak any English, but he made no attempt to try to convey that to me. Thankfully, it was still only $16. Our Marriott Courtyard is wonderful, even if it is in a crappier area on an extremely busy road along a stinky canal.
My initial thought on Sarajevo was that it is dirty and depressing. You can see evidence of the communist era (by the style of architecture), but by far what was most impactful was the bullet and mortar-riddled buildings from the recent Balkan war. Almost every building has damage to it, unless it’s newer or was repaired.
The flight to Sarajevo was uneventful and only 45 minutes long. We grabbed a taxi that was probably double the usual price because the scowling, unfriendly man wouldn't answer my question about a flat rate to Old Town. Maybe he didn't speak any English, but he made no attempt to try to convey that to me. Thankfully, it was still only $16. Our Marriott Courtyard is wonderful, even if it is in a crappier area on an extremely busy road along a stinky canal.
My initial thought on Sarajevo was that it is dirty and depressing. You can see evidence of the communist era (by the style of architecture), but by far what was most impactful was the bullet and mortar-riddled buildings from the recent Balkan war. Almost every building has damage to it, unless it’s newer or was repaired.
This is the building we see from the window of our room. It has many bullet holes and mortar damage.
I'm not sure if this is communist era, but it sure looks like it to me.
Looks like the greenish building on the left was repaired.
Not all buildings were bad. This is the Looping Bridge in front of the Academy of Fine Arts.
However, after our walking tour I find Sarajevo to be a very interesting but complicated city. Because it originally was part of the Ottoman Empire, half of the Old Town is Turkish with some buildings in the Bascarsija (bazaar) that date back to the 15th century. The other half is very European and part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. There is literally a line where the east meets the west; it's almost as if it's two completely different cities.
Here is the line facing east. Clearly it looks more like a bazaar that you would find in a middle eastern country (more pictures below).
The main entrance to the most famous mosque in Sarajevo - Gazi Husrev-beg.
The inner courtyard of the mosque.
Some buildings are centuries old.
Saw many hookah lounges on the east side.
Now we are at that exact same spot facing west. You could be looking at Paris or some other European city.
The Sacred Heart Cathedral is a Catholic Church just down the street from the mosque.
The mortar and bullet damage to the corner of the church.
Our free walking tour was very informative. We had an enthusiastic 31-year-old Muslim man, but I never caught his name. (Sarajevo is 60% Muslim). He is a history teacher that is working on his graduate degree. He definitely was an optimistic idealist, but I agreed with many of his views, which he shared freely.
About some of the Yugoslavian history... after Tito died in 1980 old ethnic tensions arose. From 1980-1990 propaganda created fervent nationalism, mainly in Croatia and Serbia. It was the breeding ground that became fertile soil for the Bosnian war. Our guide was 4 years old when the war started, and he told us how his mother created a "Life is Beautiful" atmosphere (the 1997 Italian film that won Best Foreign Film) by telling stories and inventing games to distract him from explosions and gunfire.
Even though the war ended in 1995, ethnic tensions still exist today. Although four of these countries speak the same language, they all pretend their language is different. Our guide's opinion is that only the EU holds the tensions in the Balkans at bay today. If the EU turns away from the Balkans, he thinks war may happen again. The Bosnians feel like they are still caught in the middle between the huge tensions between Croatia and Serbia (because essentially they ARE in between them).
About some of the Yugoslavian history... after Tito died in 1980 old ethnic tensions arose. From 1980-1990 propaganda created fervent nationalism, mainly in Croatia and Serbia. It was the breeding ground that became fertile soil for the Bosnian war. Our guide was 4 years old when the war started, and he told us how his mother created a "Life is Beautiful" atmosphere (the 1997 Italian film that won Best Foreign Film) by telling stories and inventing games to distract him from explosions and gunfire.
Even though the war ended in 1995, ethnic tensions still exist today. Although four of these countries speak the same language, they all pretend their language is different. Our guide's opinion is that only the EU holds the tensions in the Balkans at bay today. If the EU turns away from the Balkans, he thinks war may happen again. The Bosnians feel like they are still caught in the middle between the huge tensions between Croatia and Serbia (because essentially they ARE in between them).
This is the famous Latin Bridge where Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie were assassinated. This event triggered World War I.
The Eternal Flame was turned on in April 1946 to symbolize freedom from the Nazis. It was never turned off until Serbs cut the gas during the war in 1992.
The entire trip felt like we were stuck in the 1980's. This streetcar looks like it is from a bygone era. Literally, EVERY restaurant was playing Sade.
They even have Kodak!!
Throughout the entire Balkans, people were walking around eating ears of corn.
We ended up having both lunch and dinner on the east side. Lunch was at Barhana and it was excellent.
Colorful restaurant next to Barhana.
We were told we must have burek. It's phyllo dough filled with meat, cheese, spinach or potatoes.
I didn't care for it... but this entire meal cost $3.84!
We got back to the room and there were many, many bugs on the ceiling. Upon closer inspection - mosquitos! Robin left the window open and we are facing the canal. The ceiling is too high to get them so we'll just have to tough it out. (We later found out that they have a daily mosquito report in the news).
September 5, 2019
One guess who ended up with the mosquito bites - ME. Every inch of me that wasn’t covered by a blanket now has a bite, even on my face and in my eyebrows.
We had breakfast at our hotel (not included this time) before walking the 20 minutes to downtown at 8am. We wanted to get there early enough to again take photos before the huge crowds arrived. However, the weather was not conducive to photos; it was too foggy.
Because no trip to Sarajevo would be complete without learning about the 1990's war, we scheduled a 4-hour "Siege of Sarajevo" tour. Back in the early 90’s, I distinctly remember watching the nightly news about Sarajevo and seeing terrified women in dresses running across large intersections trying to dodge sniper fire. Sometimes they would even have small children with them.
The reasons for the war are complicated. Like many wars, it's never a red team versus a green team. Our guide explained it along the same lines as the other guides we'd already had (we ended up hearing it similarly throughout our trip, but also did not go to Serbia and hear their version). After Tito died in 1980, old tensions were still there. Nationalism was rampant in Serbia and Croatia. Bosnia originally wanted to remain part of Yugoslavia because they had most diverse population. But because Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia declared independence, Bosnia decided to follow suit. However, Bosnia consisted of one-third Bosnian Serbs and they had major issues with the declaration of independence. They also had issues with the large Muslim population.
The war officially started when people were protesting outside the parliament because the Serbs had surrounded the city. (Sarajevo sits in a valley that is shaped like a U. The Serbs had stationed themselves high in the hills above the valley.) The Serbs originally said they were "protecting" the Bosnians, yet their guns were aimed towards the valley. Serbian snipers were in the Holiday Inn across from parliament on the day of the large protest. They began firing on the crowd, killing six people. This is the match that lit the fire.
Our guide actually fought in the war. He was 17 years old when it started, so he was too young to be part of the Resistance. I say “Resistance” because the Yugoslav army was still the national army. Bosnia and Herzegovina did not have an independent army of their own. The Yugoslav army consisted mostly of Serbs, so they definitely held the military advantage. Our guide joined in 1992 after he turned 18 years old.
One guess who ended up with the mosquito bites - ME. Every inch of me that wasn’t covered by a blanket now has a bite, even on my face and in my eyebrows.
We had breakfast at our hotel (not included this time) before walking the 20 minutes to downtown at 8am. We wanted to get there early enough to again take photos before the huge crowds arrived. However, the weather was not conducive to photos; it was too foggy.
Because no trip to Sarajevo would be complete without learning about the 1990's war, we scheduled a 4-hour "Siege of Sarajevo" tour. Back in the early 90’s, I distinctly remember watching the nightly news about Sarajevo and seeing terrified women in dresses running across large intersections trying to dodge sniper fire. Sometimes they would even have small children with them.
The reasons for the war are complicated. Like many wars, it's never a red team versus a green team. Our guide explained it along the same lines as the other guides we'd already had (we ended up hearing it similarly throughout our trip, but also did not go to Serbia and hear their version). After Tito died in 1980, old tensions were still there. Nationalism was rampant in Serbia and Croatia. Bosnia originally wanted to remain part of Yugoslavia because they had most diverse population. But because Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia declared independence, Bosnia decided to follow suit. However, Bosnia consisted of one-third Bosnian Serbs and they had major issues with the declaration of independence. They also had issues with the large Muslim population.
The war officially started when people were protesting outside the parliament because the Serbs had surrounded the city. (Sarajevo sits in a valley that is shaped like a U. The Serbs had stationed themselves high in the hills above the valley.) The Serbs originally said they were "protecting" the Bosnians, yet their guns were aimed towards the valley. Serbian snipers were in the Holiday Inn across from parliament on the day of the large protest. They began firing on the crowd, killing six people. This is the match that lit the fire.
Our guide actually fought in the war. He was 17 years old when it started, so he was too young to be part of the Resistance. I say “Resistance” because the Yugoslav army was still the national army. Bosnia and Herzegovina did not have an independent army of their own. The Yugoslav army consisted mostly of Serbs, so they definitely held the military advantage. Our guide joined in 1992 after he turned 18 years old.
This is the wide road that became known as Sniper Alley.
Some of the high-rise buildings the snipers used.
Sarajevo's iconic Holiday Inn hotel was originally built for the 1984 Olympics. Then on April 5, 1992, a hundred thousand people of all nationalities turned out for a peace rally in Sarajevo in response to events happening throughout Bosnia Herzegovina. Serb snipers in the Holiday Inn hotel opened fire on the crowd, killing six people and wounding several more.
The hotel remains familiar to many around the world who remember the news reports filed from the hotel at the height of the 1990s Bosnian war, when reporters used it as their home base. It was shelled regularly.
Our guide in front of an exhibit at the Sarajevo Tunnel Museum.
While the Serbian army had uniforms, bulletproof body armor, guns, mortars, and all the ammunition they needed, the ragtag resistance army actually fought in jeans and tennis shoes. This exhibit shows a typical Bosnian military uniform in the early days, as well as the homemade and inferior guns they used. Our guide said it was often "four guys and a gun"... when one fell over the next guy grabbed the gun and started shooting!
Dotted along many streets we came across the "Sarajevo rose". This is to mark the mortar holes in the street to show where a shell killed at least 3 people. On average, 329 mortar shells fell each day. One day alone saw more than 3,700 mortar attacks! In the end, over 11,500 people died in Sarajevo; 1061 of them were children.
We saw many of these as we walked around Sarajevo. In fact, there were several "roses" outside the Sacred Heart Cathedral. It was quite sobering to think that at least three people lost their life in that exact spot.
This was the house that had the entrance to the secret tunnel. The tunnel went under the airport to a neutral area that was controlled by the United Nations. It measured over 3,000 feet long. During the time it was used, it is estimated that 20 million tons of food entered the city, and one million people passed in and out of it. The Serbs knew the entrance was at this house, so you can see that the wall absorbed heavy shelling.
Some personal stories from our guide:
- They had no electric, water, or gas for a couple years. They would burn furniture for heat because firewood was extremely hard to come by. They also burned boots and shoes because they retained their heat for a long time.
- The US sent army rations. Because all meat was scarce, our guide was so happy when he received a can of minced meat. But when they tried to give the cat some, she refused to eat it. The US also sent tins of cookies, but eventually they realized that the expiration date was 1968!
- Treviska was beautiful mountain that our guide loved because he was a mountaineer. He remembers beautiful nature and playing futbol on a frozen lake as a teenager, as well as many other fond memories when he was a kid. But he has never gone back to Treviska since 1991 because of the land mines.
- Another time, he and his brother ventured out on the street where snipers lurked in the high-rise buildings. As they were running through the streets, and while his parents watched from a window, they came under machine gunfire. The bullets literally went between his legs as he sprinted across. His parents were horrified as the sparks from the bullets were beneath his feet. They made it across that day alive. His brother ended up being wounded twice at other times but is still alive today.
This was a mock exhibit to show how people lived during this time. They had no water, electricity or gas. They used homemade heaters... you can see the tennis shoe along with the wood used for burning.
The brown can on the table is the minced meat sent by the US army.
The other highlight of the tour was going way, way up the hill to the abandoned and graffiti-filled bobsled run that was originally part of the 1984 Winter Olympics. The Serbs used it as another vantage point to shoot at the city below. It's always been amazing to me that cities spend millions and millions of dollars on Olympic infrastructure only to have it be abandoned and overgrown shells years later. It's now become a popular tourist attraction.
Although Sarajevo has a violent history, it is still quite fascinating. I would never call it a destination city like Prague or Budapest. The buildings look like they have a hundred years of soot and dirt and war and communism written all over them. They are not pretty. I'm glad we visited here... but it's a place that I would not return.
September 6, 2019
An awesome day! Got up at 5am, ate breakfast, took a quick taxi ride over to the communist-era train station, and then did the 2-hour train ride to Mostar. It was supposed to be this beautiful scenery, but the scenery was only the last 30 minutes or so. Amongst the scenery were numerous bombed-out buildings that have been abandoned since the war. Unfortunately, the windows of the train were so filthy that I’ve deleted most of the pictures I took.
An awesome day! Got up at 5am, ate breakfast, took a quick taxi ride over to the communist-era train station, and then did the 2-hour train ride to Mostar. It was supposed to be this beautiful scenery, but the scenery was only the last 30 minutes or so. Amongst the scenery were numerous bombed-out buildings that have been abandoned since the war. Unfortunately, the windows of the train were so filthy that I’ve deleted most of the pictures I took.
Our guide met us at the train station. His name was Vedad and he and his brother own the tour company called Discover Herzegovina. He was very well informed on world politics and geography. On the tour were six women: two from Hong Kong, two from Turkey and the two of us.
Our first stop was to a Sufi monastery in a town called Blagaj. The main attraction is a dervish house that dates back to the 15th century. To enter the house, we had to wear a scarf to use as a hijab. However, neither of us wore it well. Robin tied hers to look like a present. Mine didn't look much better; I looked like I had a compress on because I have the mumps.
Our first stop was to a Sufi monastery in a town called Blagaj. The main attraction is a dervish house that dates back to the 15th century. To enter the house, we had to wear a scarf to use as a hijab. However, neither of us wore it well. Robin tied hers to look like a present. Mine didn't look much better; I looked like I had a compress on because I have the mumps.
The area surrounding the dervish house was beautiful. There were many restaurants along the river. The river leads to a cave where a zodiac was taking people in and out. We had a wonderful breakfast overlooking the cave except that many bees decided to join us.
While we rode from one place to another, we learned more about Mostar and Bosnia overall. The town of Mostar is all about the bridge (including the name, since "Most” means bridge.) It has been a UNESCO site since 2005. Mostar was the most bombed city in all of Bosnia during the 1990's war. It’s still a very divided city, consisting of Bosnian Muslims, Bosnian Serbs, and Bosnian Croats. Surprisingly, the largest population of Bosnians outside of Bosnia is in the US - St. Louis, MO. Unemployment is very high throughout the whole country, at nearly 40%. Many young people leave to find work. The highest priority for Bosnia right now is to become part of the EU; unfortunately, that is quite difficult because the criterion includes a list of nearly five hundred requirements.
We also learned some of the stereotypes that the countries use against each other:
We also learned some of the stereotypes that the countries use against each other:
- Slovenians are tight with their money
- Serbs are violent
- Croatians think they are superior
- Bosnians are dim-witted
- Montenegrins are lazy
On these all-day tours, one of my favorite things is driving through the countryside. Since Robin and I were picked up last, we ended up in the front seat with the best view. It took me a while to figure out that the red car next to black car means we are in a no passing zone.
I wasn’t able to go up to the top of Pocitelj because it was now 90 degrees out. So I sat in the only air-conditioned place I could find and waited for Robin and the others to come back down.
I wasn’t able to go up to the top of Pocitelj because it was now 90 degrees out. So I sat in the only air-conditioned place I could find and waited for Robin and the others to come back down.
No passing zone.
The historic settlement of Pocitelj dates back to the 13-16th centuries. The climb up doesn't look that daunting.
However, this is where I turned back on the 90-degree day.
We heard the noontime Call to Prayer.
This view shows how high up it really was!
Sorry... No drinks for the thirsty along the path!
Our next stop was Kravice waterfalls.
Although the views were pretty spectacular....
We did see a little bit of everything...
Including people in the water with their iPads taking selfies.
This was one of the walkways. It wasn't so difficult, unless you met some large person coming from the other direction!
Towards sunset, we ended up high above the city of Mostar for what Vedad called "school". He sat on the ground with a whiteboard and proceeded to explain the war better than anyone we’ve had yet. However, it wasn’t anything different than what we had already heard…. so no need to go into it here.
We had a fabulous day and I would highly recommend the Discover Herzegovina tour out of Mostar!
We had a fabulous day and I would highly recommend the Discover Herzegovina tour out of Mostar!
Finally got to Villa Anri at nearly 7pm. We had an okay dinner at the very touristy restaurant Sadrvan. We then walked around for a while at night... what a charming old city! Hard to believe it was so destroyed a mere 25 years ago.
This cat came from the street through the open-air window to join us. Of course we fed it... I'm sure it has done this a thousand times!
First of a couple dozen times that we would walk over the famous bridge.
The view from the start of the bridge.
September 7, 2019
I'm lying on the bed at Villa Anri with thunder and lightning crackling all around us. We lost power about 15 minutes ago while Robin was washing some clothes in the bathroom. If the weather pattern follows what it's recently been, it will be hot and sunny within the hour. I'm glad we are having the storms since it would be excruciatingly hot if not. Our guide told us yesterday that there is a joke about Mostar being hotter than actual HELL; in fact, it is the hottest city in all of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Just a few weeks ago, it was 111 degrees!
We are having a lazy day today. We walked around, Robin went up in a claustrophobic minaret for $7 to take even more pictures of the bridge, and after it started to rain we went to the Museum of Genocide. One more time, I'm shocked at the violence of men. The things that humans can do to other humans is beyond belief. One of the "games" that the Serbs did at one of the concentration camps was to have the detainees run around a car until some event happened (can’t remember what the event was) and then shoot the one that was the closest to the front of the car. Women were raped so often that they can't even guess at how many times. For the first time ever, the international courts made rape a weapon of war after the Balkans conflict. Approximately 40k women reported being raped; most of them were educated and considered “uppity”. Another practice was to dress prisoners in Serbian military uniforms and give them toy guns and send them out to see which directions the Bosnian snipers were shooting from.
I think we are war weary at this point. I can't imagine ever being in one and hope that it never happens. I also think that that was our last war tour on this trip. However, I certainly know more about the 1991-1995 wars in the Balkans than I ever did. As with many things, there is no simple cause or solution.
I'm lying on the bed at Villa Anri with thunder and lightning crackling all around us. We lost power about 15 minutes ago while Robin was washing some clothes in the bathroom. If the weather pattern follows what it's recently been, it will be hot and sunny within the hour. I'm glad we are having the storms since it would be excruciatingly hot if not. Our guide told us yesterday that there is a joke about Mostar being hotter than actual HELL; in fact, it is the hottest city in all of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Just a few weeks ago, it was 111 degrees!
We are having a lazy day today. We walked around, Robin went up in a claustrophobic minaret for $7 to take even more pictures of the bridge, and after it started to rain we went to the Museum of Genocide. One more time, I'm shocked at the violence of men. The things that humans can do to other humans is beyond belief. One of the "games" that the Serbs did at one of the concentration camps was to have the detainees run around a car until some event happened (can’t remember what the event was) and then shoot the one that was the closest to the front of the car. Women were raped so often that they can't even guess at how many times. For the first time ever, the international courts made rape a weapon of war after the Balkans conflict. Approximately 40k women reported being raped; most of them were educated and considered “uppity”. Another practice was to dress prisoners in Serbian military uniforms and give them toy guns and send them out to see which directions the Bosnian snipers were shooting from.
I think we are war weary at this point. I can't imagine ever being in one and hope that it never happens. I also think that that was our last war tour on this trip. However, I certainly know more about the 1991-1995 wars in the Balkans than I ever did. As with many things, there is no simple cause or solution.
The breakfast in the basement of the guesthouse.
Inside the $7 mosque.
The stairs in the minerat.
Robin waving to me.
The view of the bridge from the minaret.
Inside the War and Genocide Museum.
Not a great photo because of the glare, but this was the bridge before intense shelling caused the entire thing to collapse.
We walked those same narrow five streets of Mostar after the storm passed through. Fortunately, it dropped the temperature by about 15 degrees. We watched one of the bridge jumpers jump the 75 feet from the bridge; supposedly someone dies every few years. They hit the water wrong and break their neck, they aren't expecting how cold it is, or they drown because of the whirlpools.
View of the bridge from the water level.
Pretty sure they don't have OSHA.
The crazy walkway leading over the bridge.
Maybe it's to prevent the dogs from sliding down.
The bridge jumpers will stand for a long time before they jump. We waited 15 minutes for this guy to jump before walking away. Never did see him go.
I'm not sure if he was a jumper or not. Maybe he just takes photos for tourists?
Although we ended up with a ton of bridge photos, this one was my favorite.
Chicken cordon bleu... again!
Literally this ENTIRE cemetery...
...consisted of people who died between 1991-1995.
So many buildings looked like this.
Cars were parked underneath this sign.
At least half the building has been redone.
Yugos are alive and well in the former Yugoslavia!
Unfortunately, so are squat toilets.
As well as a LOT of garbage.
For some reason, we came across a lot of dolls.
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One last walk through...!
We wanted to buy t-shirts, but they were uninspiring. We also didn't want that same exact meal that we've been eating throughout the Balkans, so we ate a few crackers on our beautiful terrace. I can see why many of the travel sites state that Mostar can be done as a day trip. If it hadn't been for the fabulous Discover Herzegovina tour that we did yesterday, this city can be done in several hours.
The place we are staying is the only place I didn't book on points, so we are actually paying $213 for the two nights. Ironically, it's been my least favorite lodging so far. While the location is excellent (view of the bridge!) and it has this wonderful terrace, there are several issues with the place. One of the beds is literally just the box springs; it has no mattress on top. The sheets are made out of a material that honestly feels like burlap bags, the towels are frayed and quite rough, and the soap dispensers issue soap that is so watery it doesn't have the ability make suds. But sometimes you sacrifice many things for the location. (As I'm typing right now, they are doing the sunset call to prayer. I like being able to hear it. Again, to my point about location!)
The place we are staying is the only place I didn't book on points, so we are actually paying $213 for the two nights. Ironically, it's been my least favorite lodging so far. While the location is excellent (view of the bridge!) and it has this wonderful terrace, there are several issues with the place. One of the beds is literally just the box springs; it has no mattress on top. The sheets are made out of a material that honestly feels like burlap bags, the towels are frayed and quite rough, and the soap dispensers issue soap that is so watery it doesn't have the ability make suds. But sometimes you sacrifice many things for the location. (As I'm typing right now, they are doing the sunset call to prayer. I like being able to hear it. Again, to my point about location!)
Thank God for the pictures on the box!
On to Montenegro!