Bosnia & Herzegovina has been the country hardest to describe so far. That’s why it took us so long to post.
It really is tough to put into words what you experience here, especially coming from the north and heading south.
First of all, you gotta understand a little bit of history to grasp a tiny bit of why things are the way they are.
The country went through a lot. They became a Muslim nation when the Turks invaded them. They were part of the Osman empire. Later they belonged to the Austro-Hungarian empire. Between the first and the second world war they were part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In those days, under Serbian rulership, the country was more or less split into Muslims, Serbians and Croatians. As it is today.
During the Bosnian war between 1992 and 1995 Bosniaks, Serbians and Croatians fought each other for leadership in the country. A brutal and exhausting battle that took place only a few years ago. The results are still evident.
The north and the south are two different worlds. The north and the east are mostly part of the Serbian province of Srpska. At first we were a little confused because we saw Russians flags hanging everywhere. We thought we missed something. But our dear friend Aida later explained to us that that’s the flag that represents the Republic of Srpska. Well, OK then… It can be described as a region of industry. From the far west to the far east, not a lot changes. The countryside stays pretty much the same all the way, nothing too spectacular. The first week, honestly, we didn’t know what to photograph.
As soon as you drive south from Tuzla towards Sarajevo though, all of a sudden, everything seems to change. Nature, People (out of the 2% that speak English probably 1,99% live in Sarajevo or south). No I’m kidding, but it certainly feels that way. It’s tough as a foreigner up north.
One day you are as frustrated as anyone can be, because no one seems to have an interest in understanding you. The next day you meet the most awesome people on the planet. It really is a country of two sides, in any aspect.
One of the main reasons we travelled through Bosnia was a good friend of Sara. We went to visit Aida and her family for a couple of days in Malešići near Gračanica, between Doboj and Tuzla. We received a really warm welcome and enjoyed spending time with them. They didn’t let us go before handing us a whole bag of potatoes, another one filled with onions and a whole chicken! Thank you so much for having us and for the good food!
In Tuzla we were being helped by an incredibly friendly young lady, Ajna. She really made our day :) She helped us to buy internet. Oh boy, that can be a mission here…
The road from Tuzla to Visoko and Sarajevo is really beautiful. Visoko was on our list because of its pyramids. They call them the largest pyramids on earth, but they are still not 100% sure if they were built or simply natural. The place is also being described as somewhat mystical and spiritual. So I guess it depends on the person whether this is something worth seeing or not.
The day after, we visited Bosnias capital Sarajevo. A city we didn’t plan to visit initially but were stunned by its beauty in the end. A wonderful, small place where cultures meet. There is a huge Arabic and Turkish influence. Tea bars, coffee places, carpet dealers… we both said Bosnia could well be bordering Turkey. Sarajevo has lots of charme, probably one of the most amazing cities we have been to so far!
Not too long after Sarajevo, heading south, you will enter the region of Herzegovina. A truly beautiful scenery makes its way to impress. Wine, rivers, lakes, small villages, mountain ranges…a little bit of Italy here ;) We spent 3 days in the region between the Prenj mountains and Jablanicka lake, swimming and hiking.
To sum it up, Bosnia & Herzegovina can be an absolutely beautiful country. They still have lots of issues to solve though, a huge one being their lack of waste disposal. Elections are coming up, so lets hope the new government tackles the right issues and starts listening to the people. A statement that would probably fit to any other country as well.
