Thursday, 5 May 2011
Miss Sarajevo
I left after 8 am and went to the hotel reception. The cute guy manning it gave me a map and some directions. And oh my, the concentration of good-looking men in Sarajevo was too high for my own good. I fell in love every few minutes with every other man I saw. Yup, they were that gorgeous!
I walked to the Sebilj, a Moorish-style public fountain. According to the local legend, if you drink from this fountain, you would make a return trip to Sarajevo. I walked around the Sebilj area. The cobbled streets, mosques and shops selling Oriental (particularly Turkish) merchandises made me feel as if I was in Istanbul.
I changed money at the Postbank (I couldn’t locate any money changer. Postbank charged commission of only 1%. You can also change money at the Post Office near the Tourist Info but the lady behind the counter couldn’t give me change in € so I didn’t change money there) and bought the 1230 bus ticket to Mostar. A return bus ticket costs 26.50KM.
I bought tram tickets from a kiosk (only to discover a day return ticket would cost even less at 2.90KM. Oh well) and boarded tram #1 to the train station. The bus station is just nearby. You can also take the train to Mostar but there are only two services daily: at 0705 and 1820; the return services from Mostar are at 0720 and 1840. Buses are more frequent with a few services daily.
It takes 2.5 hours to Mostar and we passed some amazing landscape: rugged terrain pierced by small rivers, tunnels, aqueducts and a mighty emerald green river. We reached Mostar at 3 pm and I set off for the Stari Most (Old Bridge). This bridge, originally built by the Turks in 1566 was destroyed in 1993 but rebuilt in 2004, is the landmark in Mostar and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The bridge is 21 m high and I remember watching people diving off the bridge, no, not in a suicide attempt, but because as members of the Mostar Diving Club, that’s what they do! Unfortunately, there were no divers when I was there.
I love Mostar. I love the emerald green Neretva River flowing through the city, I love the cobbled street (I wouldn’t have loved it if I had my trolley bag with me but I didn’t have it then), I love the little shops, I love the buildings painstakingly rebuilt after the war - the city was the most heavily bombed during the war following the break up of Yugoslavia and the city lost may important buildings and structures through air strikes. Oh, and Euros are widely accepted here.
Time flew quickly and before long, I found myself hurrying back to the bus station. And I mean, really hurried. Our 1815 bus departed on time and we reached Sarajevo at 2050. I took the tram, stopped by at the hotel reception to pay for my room and went to buy some groceries.
Friday, 6 May 2011
Spent some time this morning writing. I have a long day in Sarajevo before my next bus out. I left after 10 and checked out, leaving my bag at the hotel reception. Yet another cute guy was manning the reception (and a Muslim too!). Got directions from him to the trolley bus stop and walked across the Miljacka River to find the stop. See, to get to my next destination, I have to take a bus out from a different bus station. This other bus station is located in Eastern (Serb-dominated) Sarajevo on the outskirts of the city. The fare was only 1.60KM purchased from a kiosk near the trolley bus stop. Turned out that the trolley bus stop is just across the Latin Bridge.
I rode the trolley bus for 35 minutes to its last stop. We passed mainly area after area residential blocks so the trolley bus stopped every few metres - hence why the journey took so long. Some of the apartment blocks still bore the brunt of the war - pockmarked with bullet and bombing marks.
At the last stop, I followed my instinct to get to bus station. It was a good thing I made this trip: my search on the Internet informed me that the last bus out would be at 2230, however when I got there, I was informed that the next bus services for the day would either be at 1400 or 2000. Imagine if I had arrived at the bus station at 2200 thinking the bus service at 2230 still existed! I would have to spend another sleepless night at a station, not to mention it would disrupt my subsequent plans greatly.
After purchasing the ticket for €20 (and getting 3KM return), I left and took the trolley bus back to the city. As it was Friday, the Muslim men were preparing to go for Friday prayers.
I crossed the Latin Bridge. Now, in case you don’t know, this bridge is the site of assassination of the Austrian-Hungarian heir, Prince Ferdinand and his wife, Sofia. His murder was what sparked off the World War I. The name was given after the Latinluk community, a colony of merchants from Dubrovnik and the Mediterranean who were present in Sarajevo for centuries. When the country was under Yugoslavia, the bridge was called Princip Bridge after the Serbian conspirator and assassin who murdered Prince Ferdinand, wife and their unborn child. Just across the street from the bridge is the Museum of the Sarajevo Assassination. I also walked over to Seher-Cehaja Bridge which dated back to the 15th century. In the vicinity of the bridge is the Hajj Mosque where Bosnian Muslims pray before going on their pilgrimage to Mecca, as well as upon their return from Hajj.
After that, I walked aimlessly around Baščaršija. I even climbed up the hill to Svrzina kuca or Svrzo house, a beautiful old Ottoman house showcasing the Bosnian Ottoman urban way of life. The entrance ticket cost 3KM.
After that, I had a late lunch at Vegehana, an organic restaurant. This was to make up for the meat I ate in Mostar the day before. By the way, Bosnians sure love their meat and cigarettes. After walking around the shops, I headed to Markale Market (this place marked the start of the NATO intervention and thereby the end of the war after a bombing which killed some 40 people). Markale was bombed twice, in February 1994 and August 1995.
To kill time, I even walked to the University of Sarajevo, the Main Post Office and National Theatre. It was a hot bright end-of-spring day and the weather was glorious. Much too glorious in fact that after all those hours of walking, I finally decided to return to the hotel and rest my weary legs. I had planned to leave around 1830 and take the trolley bus back to the bus station for my bus. I don’t want to arrive too early and kill time there.
Got back to the hotel and guess what. There was yet another cute eye candy at the reception! I’m beginning to think that the hotel only employs men and having good looks is a prerequisite to hiring.
Had tummy disorder - must be the milk I drank this morning. Oh God, please let me not have any problem in the bus later. Thank God there was no queue to the washroom. Boarded bus at 8 pm. Had to pay 1KM to store bag in luggage compartment.
Miss Sarajevo
I left after 8 am and went to the hotel reception. The cute guy manning it gave me a map and some directions. And oh my, the concentration of good-looking men in Sarajevo was too high for my own good. I fell in love every few minutes with every other man I saw. Yup, they were that gorgeous!
I walked to the Sebilj, a Moorish-style public fountain. According to the local legend, if you drink from this fountain, you would make a return trip to Sarajevo. I walked around the Sebilj area. The cobbled streets, mosques and shops selling Oriental (particularly Turkish) merchandises made me feel as if I was in Istanbul.
I changed money at the Postbank (I couldn’t locate any money changer. Postbank charged commission of only 1%. You can also change money at the Post Office near the Tourist Info but the lady behind the counter couldn’t give me change in € so I didn’t change money there) and bought the 1230 bus ticket to Mostar. A return bus ticket costs 26.50KM.
I bought tram tickets from a kiosk (only to discover a day return ticket would cost even less at 2.90KM. Oh well) and boarded tram #1 to the train station. The bus station is just nearby. You can also take the train to Mostar but there are only two services daily: at 0705 and 1820; the return services from Mostar are at 0720 and 1840. Buses are more frequent with a few services daily.
It takes 2.5 hours to Mostar and we passed some amazing landscape: rugged terrain pierced by small rivers, tunnels, aqueducts and a mighty emerald green river. We reached Mostar at 3 pm and I set off for the Stari Most (Old Bridge). This bridge, originally built by the Turks in 1566 was destroyed in 1993 but rebuilt in 2004, is the landmark in Mostar and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The bridge is 21 m high and I remember watching people diving off the bridge, no, not in a suicide attempt, but because as members of the Mostar Diving Club, that’s what they do! Unfortunately, there were no divers when I was there.
I love Mostar. I love the emerald green Neretva River flowing through the city, I love the cobbled street (I wouldn’t have loved it if I had my trolley bag with me but I didn’t have it then), I love the little shops, I love the buildings painstakingly rebuilt after the war - the city was the most heavily bombed during the war following the break up of Yugoslavia and the city lost may important buildings and structures through air strikes. Oh, and Euros are widely accepted here.
Time flew quickly and before long, I found myself hurrying back to the bus station. And I mean, really hurried. Our 1815 bus departed on time and we reached Sarajevo at 2050. I took the tram, stopped by at the hotel reception to pay for my room and went to buy some groceries.
Friday, 6 May 2011
Spent some time this morning writing. I have a long day in Sarajevo before my next bus out. I left after 10 and checked out, leaving my bag at the hotel reception. Yet another cute guy was manning the reception (and a Muslim too!). Got directions from him to the trolley bus stop and walked across the Miljacka River to find the stop. See, to get to my next destination, I have to take a bus out from a different bus station. This other bus station is located in Eastern (Serb-dominated) Sarajevo on the outskirts of the city. The fare was only 1.60KM purchased from a kiosk near the trolley bus stop. Turned out that the trolley bus stop is just across the Latin Bridge.
I rode the trolley bus for 35 minutes to its last stop. We passed mainly area after area residential blocks so the trolley bus stopped every few metres - hence why the journey took so long. Some of the apartment blocks still bore the brunt of the war - pockmarked with bullet and bombing marks.
At the last stop, I followed my instinct to get to bus station. It was a good thing I made this trip: my search on the Internet informed me that the last bus out would be at 2230, however when I got there, I was informed that the next bus services for the day would either be at 1400 or 2000. Imagine if I had arrived at the bus station at 2200 thinking the bus service at 2230 still existed! I would have to spend another sleepless night at a station, not to mention it would disrupt my subsequent plans greatly.
After purchasing the ticket for €20 (and getting 3KM return), I left and took the trolley bus back to the city. As it was Friday, the Muslim men were preparing to go for Friday prayers.
I crossed the Latin Bridge. Now, in case you don’t know, this bridge is the site of assassination of the Austrian-Hungarian heir, Prince Ferdinand and his wife, Sofia. His murder was what sparked off the World War I. The name was given after the Latinluk community, a colony of merchants from Dubrovnik and the Mediterranean who were present in Sarajevo for centuries. When the country was under Yugoslavia, the bridge was called Princip Bridge after the Serbian conspirator and assassin who murdered Prince Ferdinand, wife and their unborn child. Just across the street from the bridge is the Museum of the Sarajevo Assassination. I also walked over to Seher-Cehaja Bridge which dated back to the 15th century. In the vicinity of the bridge is the Hajj Mosque where Bosnian Muslims pray before going on their pilgrimage to Mecca, as well as upon their return from Hajj.
After that, I walked aimlessly around Baščaršija. I even climbed up the hill to Svrzina kuca or Svrzo house, a beautiful old Ottoman house showcasing the Bosnian Ottoman urban way of life. The entrance ticket cost 3KM.
After that, I had a late lunch at Vegehana, an organic restaurant. This was to make up for the meat I ate in Mostar the day before. By the way, Bosnians sure love their meat and cigarettes. After walking around the shops, I headed to Markale Market (this place marked the start of the NATO intervention and thereby the end of the war after a bombing which killed some 40 people). Markale was bombed twice, in February 1994 and August 1995.
To kill time, I even walked to the University of Sarajevo, the Main Post Office and National Theatre. It was a hot bright end-of-spring day and the weather was glorious. Much too glorious in fact that after all those hours of walking, I finally decided to return to the hotel and rest my weary legs. I had planned to leave around 1830 and take the trolley bus back to the bus station for my bus. I don’t want to arrive too early and kill time there.
Got back to the hotel and guess what. There was yet another cute eye candy at the reception! I’m beginning to think that the hotel only employs men and having good looks is a prerequisite to hiring.
Had tummy disorder - must be the milk I drank this morning. Oh God, please let me not have any problem in the bus later. Thank God there was no queue to the washroom. Boarded bus at 8 pm. Had to pay 1KM to store bag in luggage compartment.
* I’d like to give a special mention here to Hotel Konak, which was one of the four hotels/hostels I contacted in Sarajevo. Only Hotel Konak patiently replied my emails and answered my queries. And when I informed that their hotel rate was beyond my budget, they immediately offered me another room in a hostel which was within my budget. Their kind understanding and accommodating hospitality really touched me. Even when I waited at the lobby before embarking on my next trip, the chap at the counter was courteous, bringing my bag up from the storage room at the basement and offering me tea/coffee. And of course, they have the best-looking men manning the reception too.
To be continued
To be continued
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