Kristy's European Adventure: Sarajevo

This posting is a bit delayed due to technical difficulties, but still an experience worth talking about. So we last left off in Rome, where the weather was not very cooperative, but the food was delicious. From there I left and entered Eastern Europe with a stop in Sarajevo.

Riding in the van from the Sarajevo airport to the hotel, a bit of worry begin to creep into my thoughts about the 4 days that were ahead , remnants of war were ever present with bullet holes spattered on building after building and some completely destroyed with very little walls remaining. Many of the apartments were tall, grey and worn with a layer of graffiti at the bottom. As we journeyed closer into town a beautiful village like atmosphere began to emerge with Austrian architecture. On either side of the river running through the center of the city were mountains dotted with houses. It was hard to believe these were the same hills where neighbors turned on neighbors during the war and those who dared to come out of their house to forage for food were truly putting their lives at risk.

Our gracious hosts, Sevko Bajic and Edisa Kuljuh from Civil Society Promotion Center (CSPC) have gone out of their way to make this a great experience and help us all understand the conflicts of the past and present, but also the beauty of their country and the people. Our trip started with a day excursion to Visoko where we visited what they called Pyramids, but were more man-made tunnels throughout the mountains. There is currently not enough money to excavate the sites, so there is much more to learn and uncover, but note that climbing up the mountains in the midst of melting snow results in mud-caked shoes!

In the evening, the city turns into a very happening place. Music with English lyrics blasts from the bars while the Fashion Network with the latest runway shows flashes on the big screens. As we walk, we see signs of bomb blasts in the streets and walk past a beautiful memorial to the 1,600 children killed in the war- most by Serbian snipers who sat on the hills surrounding the city and shot into the streets below. The street lights reflect off the memorial so beautifully and as you step closer, you see hand and foot prints in the cement of the base – the realities of a politically contrived war are even harder to understand when children are the casualty.

We spent our Sunday traveling to Mostar. We hiked up the rocky terrain of the Medugorje mountain where it is believed three young boys were told of the war by Mary herself. None of the three boys became prophets or community leaders, but all are said to have very nice houses and cars – funny how that works I did feel like a miracle occurred when I made it up the mountain and back down safely in a pair of loafers, so maybe there is something to the hype. We had a gorgeous day to experience the beauty of Mostar which the pictures are worth more than any expressions I create.

I had the opportunity to meet with Jan Zlatan Kulenovic from the Youth Information Agency-and NGO created by George Sorros and Professor Lamija Tanovic from the University of Sarajevo. These conversations gave me both sides of the impacts to the younger generation in a city that continues to be divided and is recovering from a brutal past. The Youth Information Agency engages youth to be a part of the solution and encourages them to participate in civil society. They reward students throughout the country who work together and bring innovative ideas to life. The challenge is convincing the millennium generation to care. According to Professor Tanovic, the younger generation has been impacted by the war through the gap of education. Yugoslavia schooling was centralized with the same history and language, now everything is separate and history is spun to meet the needs of the different sects. In the war, schools were targeted and children were killed. The war children are now in their early 20s and are missing basic concepts from the lack of their primary schooling. Overall this population is disoriented, frustrated and don’t believe positive change can happen. The NGO sector is leading this country in addressing issues and is a positive force. I was glad to have seen both sides of the issue and know that there are organizations and individuals working to be a part of the change needed.

Our political meetings consisted of the Parliament and the International Criminal Court. Most interesting here was our meeting with Judge Phil Weiner from Boston, MA, talking to us about his work to apply international law and develop a court system to determine the standards and criteria when dealing with cases that have not been judged before.

I came to Bosnia and Herzegovina with trepidation and left with an understanding of the country’s beauty, underlying sadness and desire for peace. The optimism of the people has made this part of my journey an enlightening and wonderful surprise – I will miss this place.

Our team in the "Pyramids"