Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
When walking through Sarajevo with open eyes you will recognize some ruins where nature reclaims its territory and trees growing within concrete structures. You will even find facades with plenty of bullet holes and also within cable cars the heritage of the war is still visible.
Most sights in Sarajevo can easily be reached on foot. But if you are tired or want to get a bit afar from the city center, you can use the tramway (busses are also available). The streetcars are often older models imported from other european towns. Riding the tramway is quite easy, because there is only one route through Sarajevo: Beginning in Ilidža, following the main road and the Miljacka and then turning around the city center.
If you’re about to try original bosnian dishes and in need of a more quit place, try Restoran “Pod Lipom” in Sarajevos old osman district. Set aside in a tiny street of Baščaršija the traditional Ćevapi are great and the meat balls included in Sarajevski sahan are definitly worth a detour.
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If a German – at least born in the early 1980s – travels to Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is one thing that makes him immediatly feel at home: The currency. Until 1998 there were three official currencies: The Yugoslav dinar, the Bosnian Dinar and the Croatian kuna. Unofficially one foreign currency was frequently used: The German mark (D-Mark). During the siege it was the most used within Sarajevo.
Not far from the city center of Sarajevo, next to the olympic hall and the German embassy, you’ll find Hotel Festival – a boutique hotel with friendly staff and an incredible breakfast. To reach the center, you only have to cross a street and the river Miljacka. The pedestrian area, Ferhadija, is only a five minutes walk away. Hidden on 5th floor is a staircase leading to an inconspicuous door – behind it you’ll find a really nice roof terrace. Airport shuttle available on request.
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Located 12 km outside of Sarajevo, this airport is historical ground. During the siege of Sarajevo it was held by the United Nations and was the only connection to the outside world. Lots of people tried to escape over the airfield and where shot by Bosnian Serbs. The number of killed persons was announced daily via radio. Later on, a 800 m long tunnel was built under the airport to get supplies into the city – you can visit a small part of it in Butmir, close to the airport.
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“Wherever I turn, I dream of you
All roads lead me to you
I wait with some longing for your lights
Sarajevo love of mine”
– Kemal Monteno
As I was travelling to Sarajevo, Bosnia, I got a very cheap flight which included a 15 hours layover in Beograd. Not much time for the capital city of Serbia, but enough to see the main sights of the city and to catch a bit of the atmosphere. I had to prepare well and especially to get some Serbian dinar in advance.
When walking along the pedestrian street, ulica Kneza Mihaila, you’ll arive at a place called Kalemegdan. As the name Beograd indicates, there must be somewhere a white (beo) fortress (grad) – and this is the place. The best walk is along the Sava river on the so called Sava promenade.
The Saint-Sava-Church (Hram Svetog Save) is located south-east on Vračar hill. It is a huge and impressive christian-orthodox church in Beograd, the capital of Serbia. While the massive building looks like it is finished from the outside, the inside is work in progress.
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