Blogs from Sarajevo, East, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Europe - page 3

Sprcha co mala byt rano sa moc nekonala. Prud vody bol uplne slabucky a uplne ladovy. Potichu som sa vyparil z izby, este tichsie som presiel okolo recepcie nech nezobudim recepcnu a smer ho zeleznicna stanica. Baba z recepcia mi vravela mini strasidelny pribeh. Nad ranom spala, okolo presiel japonec, zavrel dvere a nasledne hned za japoncom isiel dole schodmi presne ten isty japonec. Pohodovy krokom po vyprazdnenych uliciach (6/30) dopochodovane na stanicu. V okienku pytam jeden do mostaru, pre istotu sa ma pyta ci jednosmerny, to potvrdzujem. S listkom idem na peron, kde je tabula zakaz fotit, co neskor ziadny turisti nedodrziavali iba ja. Strojveduci mi este potvrdzuje smer Mostar. Vyradene svedske vozne su ciste ale vek sa neda zastavit. Vnutro je zdreva. Pri studovani listku som si vsimol,ze mi dali prvu triedu ale uz ... read more

Rano ma cakal prijemny sok. V izbe ja a dalsich 10 bab. Welcome in paradise :) Po rychlom zbaleni smer spolocenska miestnost spojena s kuchynkou. Na recepcii nikto, kukam na cas 6/30, ok pohoda, bus ma dojst az o 6/40. Kontrolujem opat cas, uz je 7/00 a nikto nikde. Mensia panika, co ak volali recepcnej na mobil a ta to nebrala. Tak vytacam cislo do gea tours (1,7€/min). Zistujem co a ako. Je mi vysvetlene, ze bus 6/40 este len vyrazal zo stanice, zavolaju mi ked budu pri hosteli. Este cakam 5. min a idem radsej na ulicu. Mensi problem som mal dostat sa von, bolo zamknute ale nastastie som na 3 pokus nasiel otvaranie dveri. Minibus resp dodavka prisla 7/15. Uplne narvana. Uslo sa mi miesto v predu. Vedla mna dost velky chlap ,tak riadne ... read more

The next leg of the global itinerary takes us to Sarajevo, a city which has essentially seen its fair share of conflicts, hardships and transitional periods. The city's origins are somewhat shaped by the Ottoman empire, and the distinct Turkish influence which runs through the city (in particular the Old Town area) has attributed Sarajevo an identity which sets it apart from your more 'exclusively European' city setting. The Old Town is indeed the one place where it is assumed most visitors' tourist itineraries will commence from, and the enclave of eateries, (mostly) souvenir stores, and prominent public buildings, most of a mosque-like appearance, is a browser's delight and an area where the sounds, sights and smells are quite possibly most likely to seduce the unsuspecting visitor who has come to Sarajevo with visions of... read more

I was trying to think of a good title for my entry about Sarajevo and they all just sounded like clichés. "The Lost Olympic City", "The War-Torn Jewel of the Balkans" (well, that could be a lot of places), "The Melting Pot of the Balkans", various crap titles referencing Frankie Ferdinand and WW1, "The Valley of Hope"... there's a tunnel of hope, so... well, all of these sounded too seedy. Valley of Clichés it is, even though touristic clichés were few and far between. Not much happened between Osijek and Sarajevo. On the Sunday after that dreadful walk I woke up late and chatted to the girl from reception at the guesthouse over a very hearty breakfast of whatever was left. I headed to the station promising myself to return to Osijek sometime, stay at Maksimilian ... read more

After Romania we did 345 kilometres to Serbia. Looking for our Pension in Zrenjanin we had a problem. According to the GPS the street did not exist. We asked a young man who stopped at a pizza shop. He looked at the address, phoned them then said follow me. He took us to the front door of the Pension at the edge of the city. Thanking him with, Australia thanks you he pointed at his shirt. It was an Aboriginal print of a kangaroo. Staring at him he said I have uncle in Australia and I luuuv Australia. What a gem of a guy. The Lady in the Pension spoke no English. An English speaking Croatian guy helped out. We told then we had not eaten since 8 a.m. It was now 5 p.m. because we ... read more