Time to Catch Up

Spring arrives and time sure does fly.

Since our last post Masa and I have both worked ourselves into a regular routine of work and school, and as the academic lecture section of my program comes to a close next week, the mercury is pushing 30 degrees. Perhaps the end of lectures will not come soon enough, as it is more and me difficult to be inside when the weather is so amazing.

Earlier this spring we both suffered from a few ailments, spring colds and flu's, and unfortunately for me, one awful stomach virus. As a result, I did afford myself of the opportunity to check out one of the private clinics here in town, and to meet a hysterical, 74-yr old internal medicine specialist, who lives in our neighbourhood. I spent more then two hours with him during each appointment, in which he regaled me with stories of his life in Sarajevo, and of how "you are sick because our germs see you as a foreigner." (wink wink.) An amazing bedside manner, and confident in his English skills, even in medical terminology, he did take a few moments when it came to typing up the reports, exclaiming, "now please, you must sit in silence as I type this report. I must think in my language but type in yours." A large old man with massive hands, it was a miracle he did not smash the keyboard into tiny pieces, typing only with his index fingers.

Spring also allowed us an opportunity to hike into Lukomir, a remote mountain village that is normally cut-off from the world at least six months of the year due to the heavy snows at higher altitudes. You can check out the pictures from the Lukomir hike here. But a couple of my favourites are below.

We also did a trip to our favourite Croatian coastal city of Dubrovnik for the May 1st holiday (a traditional socialist worker's day), joining up with some colleagues and friends from Sarajevo.

Sarajevo Diaries Vol IX

So much for Winter.

The last month we kept waiting for the really cold weather to get here, perhaps conditioned by our experiences of Ottawa's notoriously bitter February winters. But with the arrival of March this week, winter is still nowhere to be seen.

The last few weeks we have been doing some celebrating with friends, as one of my schoolmates found herself invited to play violin with the Sarajevo Philharmonic; and Masa began a new job with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Spring will be a busy time of new routines and excitement as already the trees are beginning to bud and the tulips are beginning to sprout out of the ground.

Check out some photos here of our recent outings!

Sarajevo Diaries VIII

Time for a bit of Routine...maybe.

It's been funny to see the ways in which routine tries to take hold as we get into our third month here in Sarajevo, and how sometimes no matter how hard you try, you just cannot get into a rhythm.

The school schedule ebbs and flows, but the workload is steadily increasing. Hopefully in the next couple weeks I'll be able to hammer down on what my thesis topic will be, so that I can really get to work on it in advance of the inevitable spring and summer slowdown. Masa and I are both starting a Graduate Diploma program in Islamic Studies this coming week, and really looking forward to it. Two times per week in the evenings, traversing some of the history of Islam in the Balkans....and our first reading assignment? "The Koran for Dummies." Will either be the start of something fabulous, or of something altogether different, but no doubt another adventure!

I've been thinking a lot about what a "typical day" is like here for me. On days when I have class to get to, I usually make some time for an espresso at home and a little bit of internet news of events back home. On my into school I'll stop into the "Pekara" (the bakery) in front of our place to pick up a sandwich or two, or a croissant, and to practice a small bit of my Bosnian with "the ladies" at the counter. No matter how well I think I've pronounced things, or how I try to vary my delivery, they always smile nicely and have a little laugh. They are terrific though, and always friendly - and so far their initial assessment of me is about right, as they said "either he'll have to learn Bosnian or we'll have to learn English...and well, we're not learning English."

Other times we laugh at how we ought to start a counter of some kind on this blog as to the number of times I get better service as an obvious "foreigner", or when Masa gets the deal as a "local." Last week we went to the dry cleaners to drop off a bunch of our gear, and when we got our receipt, we realized why she never even asked for our name or phone number...it simply said, "foreigner." Not sure if this is a sign a great service for me, or a slight indicative of the owner's lack of desire to interact, or worse yet, were we being charged more since I'm an "international?" As it turns out, she was kind enough to tell us that she simply cannot catch up to all of the names of the foreigners she deals with in her business, and it is simply faster to always write "STRANAC" (foreigner) on the receipts....and we even got a bit of a deal. Maybe we would count this one to the local.

Later on we went to check out a new spa "wellness centre" that is opening near our house. The were not officially open yet when we peeked into the window, but the owner did open the door a crack to answer a couple of Masa's questions. When he heard me say "it's really nice" he opened the door wide, and said, "Oh, English, come on in!" And he proceed to give us our own little private tour of the new digs. Chalk one up for the foreigner.

Needless to say still getting used to trying to simultaneously fit in a little bit and deal with the obviously different expectations that people have depending on where you come from. Maybe now different than anywhere else...

Sarajevo Diaries VII

New Year’s 2007 in Turkey!

Masa and I had been trying to think of a unique place to go for New Year’s this year, what with our proximity to so many incredible places in Europe and abroad. We first considered going to Cairo, as a colleague of Masa’s is working there until March. We even had a friend in Vancouver who is an editor of an online travel magazine run a poll of her readers and contributors as to where we should go.

In the end the consensus became Istanbul for us, largely due to the cost savings over going to Cairo at this time of year.

We traveled first by van to Belgrade, Serbia to see Masa’s grandmother and aunt for a couple days, and then booked our flights to Istanbul in and out of Belgrade. Unfortunately I managed to catch a cold in our rickety van on the way to Belgrade as we traversed the mountains, and I struggled to shake it off for the remainder of the holiday.

We arrived in Belgrade on Christmas day, and although I was felling rather homesick and longing for some of the usual Christmas traditions that I have been used to, Masa’s grandmother and aunt went to incredible lengths to celebrate Christmas for me – even decorating their kitchen and living room, wrapping us presents (Masa’ favorite), and making a turkey! It was a magnificent feast!

Spending a few days in Belgrade we were able to tour some of the city with a school-mate of mine, Slobodan, who was home visiting his family. It was great to see some more of the city that neither of us had seen before, along with some great historical explanations of some of the landmarks.

We arrived in Istanbul on the 28th, having traveled with an organized tour from the Kon Tiki agency in Belgrade. The flight was great, although somewhat humorous for the degree of Serbian propaganda included with our tour guide, who graciously explained the history of Serbian involvement in Turkey….for example, Constantine was actually a Serb….this was news to me….and of course I then had to stick my foot in my mouth and ask her if she was from Turkey…this did not sit too well with her.

Once we arrived at our hotel and got settled, we got straight to the business of seeing the sights. Our first stop was Hagia Sophia – currently a museum, but once the largest church in Christendom, and subsequently a mosque during Ottoman times. Seeing the blend of Christian mosaics with the Arabic scriptures from the Koran was very powerful, and quite beautiful. The church would have been almost unimaginably shimmering in gold mosaics when it was in its glory.

Within the same area of Sultanahmet, the old town of Istanbul on the shores of the Bosphorus, you can find the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Basilica Cistern, and the Topkapi Palace. Over the course of our four days in Istanbul we made sure to see all of these, and without question they are each undeniably incredible, leaving us speechless at every turn. I have been remarking on how the Hagia Sophia was likely my favorite, but as I write this I am not so sure. The Basilica Cistern, which we left until our final hours in the city, was truly remarkable. The Blue Mosque was powerful and magnificent, yet also left us with such a wonderful sense of calm and quiet.

We were initially and continually struck by the gender divide in Istanbul, and often wondered about the degree of this divide across Turkish society. We found ourselves immersed in Turkish food, language, and culture, yet oddly surrounded by collections of Turkish men, yet very rarely did we encounter what we thought to be local Turkish women. Perhaps this was due simply to the neighborhoods we were in, or the sights we saw, or to the undoubtedly large preparations for the Islamic celebration of Bajram (Buy-ram), held in Turkey this year on December 31st. Overall it was an interesting and perplexing observation to have made.

We loved the food in Istanbul. Our favorite was a little restaurant that we stumbled across on a street called “Peyhane Sokak”. It’s a little hole-in-the-wall sort of place with just two or three tables, and occupied by a few local workers at the end of the day. But they made the most delicious čorba soup, and an incredible Dürum (much like a rolled kebab).

The New Year itself we had hoped to spend in the main Taksim Square, in the more modern area of Istanbul – where you can find chain stores and familiar North American conveniences like Starbucks….yes, I did go in for a fix. The Taksim square was full of tens of thousands of revelers, live music, djs, and general pandemonium. But we started our evening at a pre-arranged dinner that was organized through a travel agency, which we were attending with Masa’s uncle Emir, his girlfriend, and many of their friends, as they had flown in from Sarajevo. The dinner might have been amazing…except when we got to the restaurant there was no room for us to sit, the “traditional” Turkish entertainment of belly dancers and music was already half-over, and the manager of the restaurant was content to seat our 17-member party individually at separate tables. In the end we left and ended up at another place that was cut from the same tourist-centric cloth, where we rammed down some dinner and wine at 11:30, just in time to raise a glass of bubbly for the New Year. Eventually we made it back to the Taksim square…but by about 2:00am, at which point it was populated mostly by riot police. We shared loads of laughs and had a great time though!

My overall impressions of Istanbul are tremendous. We thoroughly enjoyed the time there. For a city of 17 million people it is vibrant, welcoming, and exciting. I definitely want to make it back to explore the Grand bazaar at greater length, to return to see the Bosphorus in the summertime, and to eat more incredible food!

Sarajevo Diaries VI

First Snow!


This week we have had our first snowfall of the season, making things feel a bit more like Canada at Christmas time. Although it has not been as cold as we have been used to in Ottawa, the snow and slush of the last few days have served as ready reminders!

One last week of school in the snow, and then Masa and I will be off to Belgrade and Istanbul to ring in the New Year! Masa's 'happy ending' uncle Emir is joining us for NY's in Istanbul...maybe he will be bringing some honey.

Hopefully when we get back we'll explore some of the skiing on the Olympic mountains. Masa's cousins Namik and Edo, whom you'll remember from the hiking posts below, have promised that there are Bosnian equivalents to the beginner hill, such that someone with a frightening lack of skiing skill (me), can still get out there.

Perhaps my resolutions for the New Year will have to include practicing Bosnian everyday and learning to ski (again).

PRAHA!

Last week I was able to spend four days in Prague, in the Czech Republic, and ended up soaking up some sun and enjoying numerous Bohemian craft brews! The home of the Pilsner certainly did not disappoint, and for myself and Dan and Stew, my friends from Canada, it was an amazing time.

You can check out a slide show of some of our pictures at the link here.

From seeing the Charles Bridge, to the Castle, the Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock, Wenceslas Square, and all the points between (marked with Budvar!) Prague was rich with sensual overload! And perhaps, unbeknownst to us, we even saw a ghost!

The history of the city was all around us, from the medieval torture museum, to the Communist times, to the Velvet revolution. No question, I would return to Prague in an instant!

Sarajevo Diaries V

So, it has been almost a month since our last post. The weeks have gone by in a hurry, and oddly it feels like we have been here so much longer than just six weeks. We really have settled in marvelously to our apartment, even bringing a new member of the family into the fold! You can meet her here, her name is Gizmo!

She was a stray of only two weeks of age when we found her, and slowly we have nursed her into an adorable (albeit sometimes totally crazy) little kitten. We think she is now about 7 or 8 weeks old.

In many ways Gizmo has become the calender by which we are measuring things - depending on how much we think she has grown, or how much she is eating.

Sarajevo the last few weeks has been a strange mixture of weather. While normally this area might already be enjoying wintery weather, we have so far had nothing of the sort. On the whole we have had a lot of fog and smog, some wind, and some really amazingly beautiful days. Yesterday was 17 degrees celcius, but a bit of horrific wind. You can see here some recent photos in the fog - these were taken at 5:00pm.

Hopefully we wil get some snow soon before the holidays start!

This coming week I will be travelling to Prague, so will soon have some news from the Czech Republic!

Sarajevo Symphony!

Last Thursday evening we had the pleasure of attending a concert of the Sarajevo Youth Orchestra, as they welcomed a guest violinist for a performance of select pieces from Mozart. The concert took place in a former Military hall, that was originally constructed by the Austro-Hungarians, when they ruled over Sarajevo on the 19th Century. Here are a couple pictures from the evening...

Masa is here with her cousin Namik and his fiance, Zina.

Myself, Zina, and Masa as we await the second Act...

Sarajevo is a diverse and cosmopolitan cultural cultural city. I suppose that as a North American, I could describe it as "very European", and then realize how silly that sounds to say while I am sitting here. But the mixture of peoples, ethnicities, religions, and cultures is one that makes for a vibrant and exciting community.

Sarajevo Diaries Vol. III

Some things you have to learn the hard way.

Before getting to the “hard things” let us first point to some links just down the right hand side of the page that will guide you to some recent photo collections. Please check them out!

So, what have we had to learn the hard way? Tuesday morning I started my day with what was becoming a nice morning routine. A little espresso, some news, and some email at my new workstation. I chatted with my sister in Edmonton Alberta for a few minutes, and then was about to get started on the rest of the day and head to school. In the process of getting up from the desk I knocked over my delicious espresso all over the laptop…which promptly shorted out the motherboard and rendered the computer nothing more than a paperweight.

The last three days were spent scouring the city for possible computer repair shops and retailers who could either help us fix our caffeinated machine, or simply replace it. Masa’s cousin Namik was able to connect us with a Toshiba distributor, who confirmed our initial diagnosis of morbidity, but who was able to retrieve a few documents off of the desktop. That was small consolation for such a silly mistake, but was nice to get a couple of items that had not yet been backed up onto our external hard drive.

Ultimately we have purchased a new machine from a small retailer here – and for those who know me it is a sad truth, that we did purchase a Windows machine again. I was gunning for a new IBook, and there is a smashing new Mac store here in one of the University buildings, but due to this unforeseen expense, a shiny new IBook was simply not in the budget. Maybe next year…..

I must add that it was Masa’s laptop that I injected with the lethal dose of caffeine, and even though her baby was lost, she was incredibly understanding and did an amazing amount of work to locate a technician and negotiate for our new computer.

Oh yeah, you still need to get that “Check Up” done….

You may recall from an earlier post that when we had first arrived in Sarajevo we had attempted to go to the local clinic for a check up that I need to have certified for school, such that they can confirm I have not brought any lethal Canadian pathogens into the country. Well, this week the school actually arranged for a large group of us to go to the clinic together (read – please inundate the clinic staff with a large group of loud students with no translator), such that it would be a bit easier for everyone to go through the process at the same time.

Thursday morning we arrived bright and early at 8am, along with about two hundred other Sarajevans. Straight away we settled in for a long morning (read – all day.) The head nurse in the reception area was, how shall I say, one with a “rough exterior”. I offered this description to the friend of a schoolmate later on, wanting to describe her as tough and firm, yet reasonable, yet he took my Canadian euphemism as an expression of her simply being “butt ugly.” Sigh.

Our nurse-friend tersely explained (in rapid Bosnian) that we should take these forms, fill them out, and then go to one side of the building for chest x-ray, another side of the building for blood and urine analysis, the third floor for form stamping and psychology analysis (not sure why this was necessary – and for me the psychologist simply said “AH! Canadian from Edmonton Canada, but you look more Scottish. Welcome to Bosnia.), and then back to reception for overall certification of the results.

In the end, of the group of twelve of us Masa ended up translating for at least 8 throughout the process, and we eventually wrapped our day at the clinic around 2:30pm. I am apparently free of disease. Although it would be tough to say exactly whose urine ended up in my results, as at least 37 of us all left our samples on the “in tray” at the same time, each only loosely marked and identified. Oh well, at least I did not get results telling them I was pregnant.

So how did We Get here Anyway?

For those of you just joining our Balkan programming, perhaps you are wondering how Masa and I ended up here anyway. I thought maybe we ought to provide some historical context to our current situation.....

Our adventure began almost four years ago when we first started dating, and has brought us on countless escapades across North America and Europe. A good many of those have taken place all over South Eastern Europe, particularly the republics of the former Yugoslavia. I offer you these glimpes of our previous travels......

The Florida Diaries (2004):

Florida: (FLoh - ree - dah) - noun. Engine by Yugo, body by almost-Tonka. Car of the people...apparently was very well made before...but sometime in the last ten years the quality has slipped somewhat. We christened her, "the Mighty Plastic One". Our trusty steed will be taking us through Serbia and the mountains of Montenegro - elevation, 2500 meters. Arriving in Belgrade we anticipated meeting our driver, with our Florida, to take us into town and get us on our way. Apparently he never got the message. But while we were making some calls to sort things out with a few choice Yugo-sayings, "Fuck your mother", we were able to witness the locals in their finest form. Man leaves airport and crosses road - gets clipped by taxi leaving terminal...taxi stops momentarily to exchange a couple of pleasantries, and the police man standing there gestures for his ticket pad, but thinks better of the extra work and tells them both to fuck off. Welcome to Serbia. A few rules for your stay.... 1) Sidewalks....are really misnamed, these are generally reserved for driving or parking, not walking.2) Politics...are taken very seriously and are still divided in Serbia over everything. The larger than life poster of Slobodan Milosevic in the downtown district (on his political parties hq), was somewhat unexpected. 3) Coffee...is taken with every daily activity. The last seven days have been a whirlwind tour through Serbia and Montenegro. Belgrade is a fascinating city, reverberating with life. The downtown core is marked with some new developments and some buildings still damaged from the NATO bombing. The mood in the city is very mixed over the politics of the bombing and its impact on the people. We will try to get some pictures of everything online in the next few days for you to see. The people here are beyond generous and the customs surrounding hospitality for foreigners are strictly adhered to. To have a guest is to make your home their home, and everyone we have met has been extremely kind to us. IN the mountains of Montenegro we visited to village in which Masa's father was born, and the surrounding countryside where many of their relatives still reside. It is breathtaking scenery, much like the rocky mountains in western canada. Travelling in this area requires a strong stomach for the roads, and a few extra $$ to get yourself through the administrative stops along the way. "yes sir we stopped you as we saw you make an illegal pass on the highway.""what? (play dumb...) I am not from here....""I see, well this is a serious offense (that does not really exist), we would normally have to take you to the station and suspend you for three months.""I see....""but for 600 dinars, we'll get you on your way..." (approx 15 CAD). ...to be continued.....

The S4 Diaires (2004):

Our intrepid adventurers found themselves in Pljevlja (Puh-lyev-lee-ah) - a small mountain village in Montenegro. The Mighty Plastic One was wounded, and our heroes seemed doomed to spend an eternity drinking gasoline-based alcoholic beverages (more on that), unless some magical solution could be found to fix the Florida. The Gods were fortunate this day, or perhaps it was the sacrifice of my liver the night before that bade them to take pity on us. We joined Masa's cousin for a few cocktails in an amazingly happening little bar in Pljevlja (say it three times fast...but have seven beers first). Some rules about drinking in Montenegro: 1) You must always start with Rakja (RAK- ee-Ya) - one of three liquors made from grapes, plums, or pears. Pears = Kruska; Grapes = loza, and Plums = Slijva (Schliva). You might as well just crack open the Esso Extra, only this stuff does taste better. 2) Montenegrins make astonishingly great beer, truly. Niksicko (Nik-SHICH-Ko) - at least that's how it looked to me after a number of them, would do great in Canada. 3) Standard quantities for one adult male = grenade = 2 Litres. Per sitting. Best to go to bathroom often. 4) An outing will usually last four to five hours, and if you don't understand the language, like me, you'll not have much to say...leaving you more time to drink. This may help you comprehend the numerous slang/swear words. 5) Finish off with a Slijva, take two and you won't feel a thing in the morning. Masa's cousin's best friend came to join us. 30 seconds into the conversation we realized he and Masa were also distant cousins, maybe 3 or 4 times removed. The relations between the families are apparently somewhat strained....something about a shooting on the town's main street? Having reviewed the scene myself, and discussed the incident with other relatives, it was clearly self defense.....maybe I need another beer? Although the morning was blurry, it was not certain if this was a result of the hangover, or the coal smelter plant. Either way, it left a tough taste in the mouth. The Florida did not look likely to make it very far.... Our departure delayed by distant cousins coming to say goodbye - a mechanic across the street came to say hello.....turns out he knew Masa's grandfather - they used to go fishing. A legend the man was, apparently - and the Mighty Plastic One was road-ready again..... "Yes sir I think you were going a little fast there for this mountain road, and what is this driver's licence? You need a Montenegrin driver's licence here." "I am a tourist, I have rented this car" "I'm sorry sir, but you'll have to come to our station." "Perhaps you and your partner could take this ten Euros and go for a beer?" "Thank you and have a nice day." ...and onwards we went for Belgrade and then on to Sarajevo and through to the Croatian coast..... ...back in Belgrade we returned the Florida to the dealer, and picked up some bus tickets for Sarajevo. That evening Masa's uncle called to say that he would be driving in to town to pick us up and give us a lift. Back to the station to return the tickets, we relaxed in the smooth stylings of his Audi S4, and decided to spend our last night in Belgrade in the bohemian town centre. As two in the morning rolled around, we were singing Bosnian folk songs with the string band, and enjoying delicious Vranac - a Montenegrin wine. The next morning we made record time to Sarajevo, where we would spend one evening before continuing on to the Croatian coast via the ancient town of Mostar, and a stop for the classic Hercegovinian delicacy - frogs. Them's good. The S4, cruised through the mountain tunnels of Hercegovina, emerging into the Mediterranean climate of the Adriatic - and suddenly we were surrounded by wineries and olive trees. The sweet smell of the ocean was in the air, and new adventures await....

The Unbearable Whiteness of Being (2004):

Dubrovnik and Hvar - the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. Paradise on Earth. Really really hot. Especially when you are the Unbearable Whiteness of Being. Masa is so tanned we have started to sing Ebony & Ivory to each other. Dubrovnik, one of the most beautiful cities in the world, so rich with history and heritage. 800 year old stone walls surrounding the old city, protecting it from centuries of invaders. Sadly not protecting it from invading tourists, but despite an influx of thousands of people every week in the summer, the city is beyond beautiful. Travelling adventures have continued full force on the coast of Croatia. Some of the funniest things have been the Serbo-Croatian to English translations that are done (in complete literal fashion) for tourists like me. For example: 1) For the beaches around Hvar - "Come and visit natural nature and our virginal beaches"2) On the ferries between Hvar and the Croatian mainland - safety rules:a) In the case of emergency, bring life jacket and DON'T FORGET - take drugs if you use them.b) If you have trouble DOING life jacket, ask staff for assistance. Our ferry from Split, on the Dalmatian Coast, to Chioggia, the industrial wasteland outside of Venice, was a 14 hour time warp back to a 70's cruise ship from the north African coast. Complete with plush, crushed velvet seating in the bar area, silver mirrored dance floor, and all ABBA all the time. We cannot recommend Hvar highly enough as a destination. It was truly magical. Unfortunately our time in Venice was less than spectacular, as it was a bit of a shock to see the city in a state of such disrepair. So much garbage and graffiti everywhere, but amazing food. After a quick detour through Slovenia, having reconnected with the S4 "Balkan F1 experience", we have arrived back in Sarajevo for the remainder of our stay. Hoping this finds everyone well, and looking forward to connecting back home.

And now we are here as I am pursuing a joint program at the University of Sarajevo and the University of Bologna, the European Regional Master's (ERMA) in Human Rights and Democratization in South Eastern Europe. Masa has taken the opportunity to return to the city of her birth and reconnect with her roots, her family, and her friends.

After a little over a week, we could not be more excited to be here, and looking forward to the coming year....and then, who knows....

Sarajevo Diaries Vol II

“Hurry Up! Slowly.”

The last few days have progressed at a rapid, yet oddly slow pace. While we were successful at opening a bank account eventually, we have not been able to do much else in terms of items that were on our list of things “to do.” Things such as the medical check up I need to do at a clinic here, opening a safe deposit box, and getting internet access at home may take a week or two longer to accomplish.

“Polako” is the Bosnian word for “slowly”, and I have heard it numerous times in the last 72 hours. From an old Baba talking to her grandson on her mobile, to old mountaineers using the term to describe their approach to climbing and hiking in general…or life for that matter. Everything should be done slowly, and with great thought to when you will stop for coffee.

Spending some time *slowly* meandering through the old town last week, we found ourselves in a shoe store (big surprise for me), and I thought I would try on a pair of shoes. Having my absolutely incredible translator and Sarajevo Guide (Masa), I was able to communicate with the sales girl and ask all sorts of questions about the shoe, its price, etc etc. I should mention that Masa has been incredible in terms of guiding me through the process of getting set up for life here in Sarajevo….but apparently it was a bit embarrassing for her when I had her ask the sales girl what the stores return policy was….who knew there was not such a thing here?

We spent Saturday and Sunday this last weekend on a nearby mountain range called “Bjelasnica” (bee-yell-ash-nitza), where we were taken climbing and hiking by Masa’s two cousins, Namik and Edo. These brothers are accomplished mountaineers, ski instructors and mountain rescue guides, and all-around amazing guys. They’ve spent their lives in Sarajevo, and lived in the city throughout the war. They each have an amazing sense of humor, one that also pervades much (if not all) of the community.

Namik and Edo took us on a tour through three of the remote mountain huts on Bjelasnica, each of which is open year-round. Ranging in altitude from 1350 to 1850 meters, the huts can sleep anywhere from 4 to about 20 people at a time. We spent Saturday night at Podgradina, the first hut, and were regaled with hours upon hours of stories from Ferid, the president of the local mountaineers’ society who was our host at the hut, and his gang of ragged mountaineers. See some of the pictures here.

Ferid thought it was hysterical that I would come to Bosnia to study Political Science…..”Why would you come here for that? Do you want to be an expert on how to disintegrate Canada?” Even more strange that I would not do more to put Masa in “her place” in our relationship. He was joking…I think….and did add that the lack of this sort of physicality in the relationships of Canadians must be the reason why we “..have so many homos.”

Welcome to the mountains in Bosnia.

The area around Sarajevo on Bjelasnica reminded us a lot of aspects of Gatineau Park in Quebec, and at the higher altitudes we were struck by the resemblance to pictures we have seen of New Zealand. In fact we were anticipating the arrival of Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli at any moment. Sounds crazy, I know, but if you have seen the movies, and then look at these pictures here, you will see what I mean.

Sunday night we went out to meet a few of my classmates from the ERMA program, in advance of classes starting this week. What we thought would be only a handful turned out to be about twenty of us, as word had spread via e-mail that there was going to be a get together. In total the group in the program will be about 35-40 people, representing Canada (me), the U.S (one), Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Croatia.

School began on Monday when we all took part in the graduation ceremony for the class of 2005-2006. From all accounts the students had an amazing year and grew to be a very closely knit group. Having spent Tuesday and Wednesday this week in some seminars to start our term, I think that things bode well for us to have a similar experience.

Sarajevo Diaries Vol I

So the first few days have passed largely without incident...either due to our own lack of activity and overcoming jet lag and the time change, or perhaps due to the inherent lack of pace at which life moves here. The flight over was nice – Austrian airlines was excellent and they almost bumped us to business class. We were warned not to expect to have our luggage make it at the same time we did, and sure enough it didn’t. This may have frustrated us, but the customs guys were overjoyed at not having to look through anything..instead they went for a coffee.

We left the airport with Masa’s uncle Emir (yes, this is the “Happy Ending” uncle), and his business partner, who were nice enough to provide BMW transport from the airport to a huge party celebrating the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Eid. Hours and hours of wine and beer and food, some dancing and singing – it was quite a welcome.

The next morning our luggage was delivered to our apartment, as expected, and was even early. The guy who dropped it off apologized for coming early and waking us up, saying “I did not mean to be early but this other guy keeps calling me ‘where’s my luggage? Where’s my luggage?’ Stupid guy. So I had to come early, but now that you have your bags…and no I won’t carry them up the stairs for you…I think I’ll go for a coffee.”

Welcome to Bosnia.

We’ve begun to do our best to get settled, both in the apartment and in terms of getting registered with the police and for me with the University. Seems you need to have “official” (i.e., certified = pay a fee to have someone sign a photocopy) copies of your passport in order to get anything from a 3 month visa, to a cell phone, to a bank account, or anything else. The last two days we have run around from the police station to the bank to the phone office to the post office, back to the police station, the university – and oh, by the way no one is working for Eid. Come back tomorrow. Has been a wonderful way to learn my way around some though! And the staff at the university has been very helpful with everything.

Tomorrow we will go to the Canadian Embassy and register there. Apparently they can also certify the thirteen copies of my passport that I now have….We’ve also found a gym nearby, “Gym ATLANTIS!” Hopefully we’ll check it out and see if we can join up.

We spent some time in the old town today – I think that if we want to fit in we may have to adjust our sense of fashion somewhat. I for one am clearly not flashy enough in terms of my style. My hair is a bit conservative, and I need really really big sunglasses. And some gold. OK and maybe a tan, even if it’s fake. It is still over 20 degrees outside here both yesterday and today. You could almost wear shorts it is so hot.

Masa was the subject of quite a few “look downs” from some women today. I don’t think they thought she was wearing enough makeup, and her clothes were altogether too pedestrian, as in she did not have knee-high boots and a miniskirt on…..

We watched some evening television last night – was fun for me to find English tv, and even to find Lost and Desperate Housewives, although other than that there has been little N. American tv. CNN is in English, and Euronews is simply excellent. But there is a complete dirth of “reality tv”, which is wonderful. The reality tv that they do have consists of political debates and analysis amongst community experts that are both well-known and well-informed. Some family friends that had us over for dessert last night were watching a debate about Serbia’s new constitution and the debate over the future of Kosovo and possible independence. These programs are taken very seriously here, as they are a main conduit for information for the masses. It was exciting to watch, even though I needed Masa to translate for me. There always seems to be lots of commentary between the tv and those in the room who are watching….things like, “Don’t lie! Ahhh, these guys are all corrupt! Shame on You!” Good times.

Overall the first few days have been fun, confusing, exciting, and very interesting. Many of the students from my program have emailed and we’ll likely get together this weekend in advance of school starting next week.