Sarajevo

Zlata introduced me to Sarajevo. In 5th grade my teacher had recommended the book Zlata's Diary and I read what life was like for an 11 year old girl, one who could have been my own classmate, living through a war. As I read the book to its end I'm not sure if I was more upset about her own personal accounts and experiences or the fact that Zlata's diary pages were still being written. The war in Bosnia would not end for two more years.

As I walk the streets of Sarajevo its a sobering reality. The streets are bustling with people, with noise, with vendors, with smells of local dishes, with life. There is the hopeful reconstruction of regrowth and new growth as buildings stand out with fresh new coats of paint next to those that stand as witness to the recent turmoil that emptied the streets as the sound of automatic weapons replaced the cafe' chatter.

From what I have learned, there are two things that saved many of the Bosnian people. The local brewery for its fresh source of spring water once gas, electricity and water had been cut off to the city and the Tunnel. The Tunnel, which ran underneath the airport, connecting sieged Sarajevo with neutral ground, allowed for the passage of humanitarian aid to come into the city. Today the family who owns the house has opened it as a museum.

About 20 meters of tunnel remains. Before entering I was shown a bag that was commonly worn by those who would have passed through carry supplies and aid. I think it weighed about 50 pounds. I was told that most often people would carry one on their front and one on their backs. That alone would be quite the task, let alone the fact that anyone taller than myself would most certainly not be able to stand up straight.

There's been plenty of time for play too while I've been here. Sarajevo hosted the '84 Winter Olympic Games, so we took a morning to hit the slopes. The weather has been warm, which has been great, but it didn't make for the greatest of ski conditions. I can still stay that I got some skiing in this season though!

I have truly enjoyed just walking the old town. It's quite different from the half-timbered houses of medieval Germany, but full of character with the styles of Viennese architecture and Turkish Markets. There is certainly rebuilding left to be done, but the lively atmosphere in town brings great hope for this city.

Following a morning of skiing, I enjoyed a night at the Opera. As a charity event for a local Soprano singer with breast cancer the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra, conductors, and soloist donated their time and talents to perform well known opera pieces. It was hosted in the largest venue Sarajevo could find, the Grand Hall in the Parliament building, selling out all 650 seats.

Road Trip

There are times when I am amazed at how small our world is. Like when we run into old friends in random far away places or we meet someone who knows a good friend of our own in a place where you would least expect it. Yet, as soon as I sit down to make travel plans I become overwhelmed at how grand our planet earth really is.

Right before leaving to come to Germany I got back in touch with a gal that I used to babysit for when she was 3, now she's 16 and living in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Her family has graciously invited me for a visit and is showing me around the country. We took an overnight trip to the Croatian coast, which was amazing. Enjoy the pictures!

On the road... a view from the side of the road on our way to Croatia.

Our first stop was in Pocitelj. The city is situated on a hill side with tons of staircases winding throughout the city. It's not hard to walk the whole town in such a short amount of time.

There are no signs pointing the way to castle and there were several moments where I felt as if I was walking up to someones front door. The path would continue or divert another way, and eventually I found my way to the old fortress and was able to climb its tower- all the while hoping it was indeed safe and not in danger of it collapsing on me. Each of the towns that we had visited were badly damaged during the war and there is often still a lot of evidence of the destruction. This town, however, is largely back to its old self... architecturally at least.

The destination of the trip was to the city of Dubrovnik, Croatia. The city remains surrounded by a wall. It remains such a strong presence that as the sun went down I constantly had a feeling like we needed to get back to our hotel before the gate was locked at night or else we'd be stuck in the city. Although, it wouldn't be a bad place to be stuck.

We spent the early afternoon walking the wall and I couldn't have asked for better weather. Each stretch of the wall offered a different view and vantage point of the city. They sure do have a lot packed into a little space.

I absolutely loved the harbor and wanted so badly to be out on a boat, wearing penny loafers and rowing boldly around the Adriatic Sea! The water looked incredibly inviting. I'm sure it wasn't that cold :)

What is it about narrow alley ways that are so appealing? I loved just walking up and down the streets. It's impossible to get lost as you'll either hit a wall or come back to the main street. The best part was the laundry that hung from many of house windows. I guess you'd just get used to having your intimates on display for the tourists... it gives it that at home appeal.

A view of the main street and plaza

Good Night Dubrovnik

It's pretty important to stay on paved roads. These signs serve as warnings that there are landmines in the area. I have seen some pretty outrageous before and after pictures of the war in Germany and am often amazed at how quickly things have been rebuilt. There is certainly a visible effort in the cleanup here in Bosnia, but there is also the reminder that it takes time.

On our trip back to Sarajevo we stopped in Blagaj. This is the source of the Buna River.

Our final stop was Mostar, apparently the most visited city in Bosnia. The city is not that big so it doesn't take very much time to walk the town. The bridge is the heart of the city, having been built during the days of the Ottoman Empire. It made for a great lunch stop.

The Old Town has been largely rebuilt as Mostar was also badly shelled during the war. You can see off to the left sign a plague which reads, "Don't Forget".

Trip #4: Berlin

For our final hurrah we booked a hostel, The Three Little Pigs, and headed to Berlin for a few days, taking in a concert in the Philharmonic Hall our first night in town and then heading out into the city to see the sites for the remainder of our time there. On our way through town we passed by this holocaust memorial and spent some time walking its grid. I know that there were several other people who were walking through it at the same time, but it was only rarely that one actually saw the presence of another person, and even at that it was only for brief moments. One could walk through it for hours.

Since 1999 (I think) the capital of Germany has been housed in Berlin. Here the German flag flies proudly.

The famous Brandenberg gate.

We spent the afternoon in former West Berlin, being treated to panaramic views of the city from on top of the Berliner Dom and to had the good fortune of a free musuem visit spending the evening admiring Babylonian, Roman, and Islamic art and architecture.

We spent our last morning at the Holocaust museum, which one really needs a week to explore. I was amazed at how well done it was. Perhaps most interesting was the building itself. A zig zag that silently tells the stories of those who lived the holocaust. There were times when there voids of nothing, reminders of the voids left behind by those lives lost.

A view of Berlin

Friends, I am off to Bosnia-Herzegovina... more posts from there!

Day Trip #3: Heidelberg

My friend Natalie joined us a week after Dustin had arrived. Big props to her as we picked her up from the Frankfurt airport at 8:00 in the morning and traveled further South to Heidelberg, fresh off the plane and full of jetlag. I had been to this city several times as a kid, and it was always the favorite city of my childhood best friend. It's an incredibly romantic town, with a sense of academia in the air and old castle ruins to let ones imagination drift off into the past.



Stop #1: The old university library belonging to the oldest university in Germany, established in 1386. There has been a lot of thinking done in this town!

Heidelberg Castle Ruins

More of the Castle

This photo is compliments of Dustin

We had an almost 5 hour train ride home and a jet lagged friend among us, so it was important for us to catch our planned train home. The evening was beautiful, and the air crisp. We jetted back to the train station, with about 12 seconds to spare, and only time enough for quick snapshots of the picturesque view of the city.

Day Trip #2: Weimar

Day Trip #2 consisted of visiting the home town to Wolfgang Goethe and Friedrich Schiller, masters of the German language. It's a sophisitacated sort of town. No pictures were allowed, but a highlight of the trip was visiting the Anna Amalia Library, where we scuffeled among collasal and noble busts and paintings of the noblest of German writers and thinkers. We heard their stories, while wearing giant sized slippers, fitting around our shoes reminding us we were indeed on sacred ground.

Friedrich Schiller's House in the City

Goethe's Country House

Church Ruins in the Park

Alive and Well

How does one begin, after almost a month of no blog posts? Hopefully you haven't lost all hope in me. I seem to have been much more addicted to reading other people's blogs in the last few weeks than updating my own. So here's a run down of the latest happenings...

The winter semester finished at the end of January. It's funny how I'm just finishing my first semester, while my classmates back in Atlanta are well into the second (and their last) one by now. I could be deep into the stress of finding a job and graduation hoopla. I'm certainly not minding being in school for a little while longer. I still have so much to learn!

With the end of the semester comes a break until mid April. I've had visitors here from Atlanta, and it's been great to be in their company. We did a pretty good job of getting a taste of Germany while they were here as well. With their visit came many trips, so enjoy the pictures! With the break, I've got lots of hopes of places to go and visit. I'll do my best to keep things updated regularly.

Day Trip #1: Hamburg

Of course, one has to eat a hamburger when in Hamburg. We took up Let's Go: Germany's suggestion of Oma's Apotheke (Grandma's Apothecary) and found ourselves in a nice cozy hole in the wall type of joint that does the hamburger proud.

We spent most of the day just walking around the town, taking in the big city. Hamburg is known for being a port city, for giving the Beatles their start, and is the second largest city in Germany. We crossed the harbor through an underground tunnel where pedestrians, bicyclist, and automobiles take an elevetor down into its depths. I thought that pedestrians and bicyclist had their own lane and the cars must take the other. I was wrong, as shortly as we made our way through the tunnel a car came towards us down the lane. You can make out the headlights of the car in this picture.

The city skyline view from the other side of the harbor

I have actually made the trip up to Hamburg, thanks to free traveling on my semester ticket, twice in the past two weeks. The second trip up, afforded for new sights to be seen, mostly exploring the harbor and enjoying the fact that the sun was shining.

I still love the half-timbered houses. They're even more charmful along the waterways.

At day's end