Sarajevo – the Jerusalem of Europe – churches and synagogues all squeezed into the tiny center of Sarajevo are witnesses to the turbulent history of what is now Bosnia-Herzegovina. Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain had their synagogues built and so had their Ashkenazi brothers. Ottoman rule lasted till the beginning of the 20th century and then the very catholic Habsburg annexed the area. Religious and secular architecture alike reveal the varies rulership that Sarajevo suffered from and strived.
Given the century-lasting multiculturalism that defined Sarajevo it is hard to imagine how Bosnia was drawn into the atrocious war (1992-95) that meant the final disintegration of what once was Yugoslavia. A war where once friendly neighbors turned against each other and that resulted in the genocide in Srebrenica and the siege of Sarajevo. The Tunnel of Hope, Sniper Alley or the grave of Sarajevo’s Romeo and Juliet are now part of tourists’ itineraries. Being a history buff I was particularly eager to see them all.
The Siege of Sarajevo – Tunnel of Hope
The siege lasted 44 months (1,425 days) which makes it the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare, a year longer than the siege of Leningrad. A tunnel dug from underneath the airport was the sole life-line for the 200.000 people who stayed. It starts in a private house outside of Sarajevo, its owners still live there and have turned it in a small museum. About 10,000 civilians were killed in Sarajevo during the siege, mostly by snipers and mortars fired from mountains surrounding the city.
We could only crawl through a tiny bit of the tunnel near the house but I had a chance talk to some members of the family, who offered their home to establish this life-line. The guide told us during a siege a liter of gasoline could run up to $100 and when somebody managed to get a cow through the tunnel that meant a fortune to be made.
Mount Trebević – Olympic glory turned into deathtrap
During the Winter Olympic Games in 1984 this is where it all happened, the ski races, the bob sleighing and other competitions. The most impressive reminder left is the concrete track where bobsleighs raced towards the valley. Ten years later the Serbian artillery shelled the city under siege from exactly those hills. The view from Mount Trebević is breathtaking, but show that the people in Sarajevo were trapped like in a bowl. The fun part was walking down the concrete bobsleigh track, with its many curves, now adorned with graffiti that hide the decay, only hinting at former sporting glories.
Roses of Sarajevo
Even without such a tour, the traces of the war are still omnipresent in Sarajevo. Lot of buildings were scarred by shrapnel, but an even grimmer reminder are Sarajevo’s roses. Those splashes of red paint on sidewalks, squares and roads mark places where people were killed by snipers or artillery shells fired from the mountains surrounding the city. The attacks of Markale market were particular tragic ncidents, within a year twice shells hit the market killing a total of over 100 people and wounding hundreds. The monstrosity of these attacks eventually led to the NATO airstrikes, the Dayton Peace Accords and the end of the war.
Memorial for children killed during the Siege
A local told me that as a child he was not allowed to wear a red pullover because this could make him an easy target. A story I will never not forget, because this anecdote made it so clear that children were not random victims of this war but they were picked to be killed. Most of the 1601 children died due to the artillery attacks but over 50 were selected by snipers. Of all war crimes to me this is the most hideous, not only targeting civilians but small children. In a documentary that I later read a soldier boosted “Why bother waste two bullets? If I shoot the child, I kill the mother too.” For each child killed the people of Sarajevo planted a rosebush, 1,601 of them.
To the left of the green cone-shaped memorial are seven drums that can be turned. Engraved in them are the names of all 1601 children. One of so many places in Bosnia where you simply stand still and fight that chocking in your throat.
During the siege the broad boulevard running east-west through Sarajevo was named Sniper Alley. Most snipers set on the roof top of high-rises in the district of Grbavica, a part of the city that was controlled by the Serbs. Citizens on their way to work or to get food risked their lives when passing. The famous Holiday Inn was basically on the frontline. Built for the Olympics in 1984, during the war the international press put up camp there politicians negotiated deals. The video shows the boulevard, the bright yellow building is former Hotel Holiday Inn and at the end the high-rises in the Serbian controlled part of Sarajevo, Grbavica, where snipers on the roof selected their victims.
Sarajevo’s Romeo and Juliette
Admira Ismic and Bosko Brkic were slain by a sniper on 19th May 1993 when they were trying to cross Vrbanja bridge into Grbavica, the district of Sarajevo occupied by Serbs. Admira, a Muslim girl, and Bosko, a Serbian boy, had been sweethearts for eight year when they were killed aged 25. In pre-war Sarajevo mixed-couples were nothing unusual and their family for this reason reject the term Romeo and Juliet, because the two families never hated each other and are still befriended.
The plan to leave the besieged city had been arranged beforehand, neither side would shoot when they were to cross the bridge. Immediately when they entered the bridge they were gunned down and died in an embrace. For days the couple lay on the bridge, neither side dared to remove them, fearing to be shot as well. To this day nobody knows who fired the fatal shots. Eventually prisoners of war had to remove the bodies.
After the war Admira and Bosko were united in a grave on Sarajevo’s Lion Cemetery. I was so devoted to visit their grave that I walked forever to find it. Although it is a huge cemetery I found the grave and was surprised to be the only person interested in it. But I must admit I am obsessed with cemeteries, convinced to learn a lot about a country’s history by exploring places where people are to put to their final rest.
The receptionist of my hotel asked whether I had heard of Idlidza, it was where locals would go on a sunny weekend like this. No, I had not. I looked it up: a spa town outside of Sarajevo and the place where the Bosna River merges from a rock, simply take tram Nr 3. Seemed easy enough.
From the tram people walked off in all directions and I was unsure of where to go. Of course went the wrong way. After lots of pointing at my guide books and gesturing locals showed me the right way. Horse carriages waiting at the beginning of a long, long alley, they were kind of pricey and I contemplated walking.
The alley was completely straight and I could not see the end of it, so I shared a carriage with a family. Upon arrival I dove into in a beautiful park that seemed to breathe water. Water is everywhere and can be heard everywhere.
The cafés were packed with young people enjoying the first rays of spring sun. The one I picked for coffee and cake seemed a time-travel back to the days of the Austrian monarchy. The final act: tram Nr 3 brought me safely back home. Days later I heard ugly from locals that areas of the park, especially the spring of the Bosna had been sold to Arabic investors. Those are inviting heavily in Bosnia which is still trying to get back to its feet. It brings jobs but also an influence that most Bosnians do seem to want.
My visit of Srebrenica in March 2017 was an emotional rollercoaster ride. Nothing prepares you for facing over 8000 tombstones, one for each Muslim boy and man killed during a few days in July 2015. Srebrenica, this small Bosnian town, has since then become a synonym for genocide, for the single largest massacre to take place on the European continent since World War II. The same day brought incredible kindness from locals and a humorous run-in with an Austrian countryman.
. Since I have been obsessed with cemeteries since I can remember I visited many in Sarajevo. The tranquility is one reason that I find them attractive, another one is reading the names and ages of the people buried. In Argentina I once found the overgrown grave of an Austrian in the ruins of a deserted Jesuit mission.
You need to know where to look for it, but the search was well worth it. From a certain perspective the small tombstones resemble a patch of lions looking over the city, 4000 of them. After Prague, it is the second largest Jewish cemetery. Many Sephardic Jews sought refuge here after they were expelled from Spain during and after the Inquisition. Some tombstones are scarred by shrapnel, since the cemetery was at a strategic position during the war.
Bare Cemetery is one of the biggest in Bosnia and and in Europe. It is huge! I spent hours walking between the rows of graves and did not manage to see all of it. What makes it so extraordinary is that Serbian Orthodox, Jews, Catholics and Muslims are all buried here with the tombstone in Hebrew, Cyrillic and the Latin alphabet being silent witnesses. The setting is stunning, from the top I could almost see the entire cemetery with its slopes gently dropping, fading into flat terrain.
One of the most tragic stories of the Bosnian war came to end here. Admira Ismic and Bosko Brkic, the couple whose young life was ended by snipers, was buried here in the same grave after the war. Forever united like they died, embraced on Vl Bridge, Many other victims of the war are buried here and so is Kurt Schork, the American war correspondent who told their story to the world. He happened to be near the bridge where Admira and Bosko were shot. A few years later he was killed while on assignment in Sierra. Half of his ashes were buried next to the grave of Bosko and Admira.
St. Mark’s Cemetery – Gavrilo Princip last stop
At St. Marks Cemetery a mausoleum reminds of the man who shot the heir to the Habsburg throne on 28th July 1914. First he was buried in secret in an unmarked grave following his death from tuberculosis in April 1918. The reason why he survived those four years? He was too young to receive the death penalty and be executed. The Habsburg stuck to their laws even when it concerned the murder of the future emperor. In 1920 Gavrilo Princip was exhumed and buried with other conspirators.
Armenians are deeply religious, churches are packed with people of all ages during mass. Around Easter is an excellent time to visit Armenia, lots of fascinating ceremonies like the candle-lightening ceremony or the blessing of small wreaths offer great photo ops. Both of these ceremonies I did not know about, but literally ran into them. Like when I passed street vendors selling little green wreaths on a street corner near my hotel, I simply followed the buyers and ended up at a small church dating back to 1694. A week later I noticed people in the street carrying small, lit candles. I quickly walked back to this church and again I stumbled into the most moving ceremony, the lightening of candles.
Being the biggest lake in the Caucasus region makes it a very popular summer destination for Armenians. End of March was certainly not the best time to visit this lake high up at almost 2000m. Windswept, bare and snow-covered mountains in the distance did not allow any summerly feelings. Nevertheless the place was packed, mainly with Iranian tourists who literally let their hair down during those trips.
Armenia prides itself to be the first country that made Christianity its state religion. Consequently, the country is plastered with monasteries that have one thing in common: a setting with a breathtaking view. The inside of these mostly small stone buildings is usually simple: an altar without much décor, no seats, very few paintings, the omnipresent candle tray, that’s it. Those monasteries are Armenia’s main touristic attractions, although I wanted to avoid this touristic itinerary, I ended up doing exactly that, for one long day.
In 2015 Armenia commemorated the 100th anniversary of the genocide of 1915. The number of victims is incomprehensible – 1,5 million Armenians lost their lives. They were executed or marched across the Syrian desert. Many died along the way of exhaustion, exposure and starvation. In Yerevan the Genocide Museum is a stark reminder of this very dark part of Armenian history.
February 2016 I finally did it. Seeing and photographing the northern lights has been on my mind for a long time. For this photography workshop I chose http://arr.at because of the location, Senja in northern Norway. A great choice. Picturesque fjords, scenic fishing villages and majestic mountains provide great photo-ops during the day, in the evenings we chased the northern lights. Being right on the ocean had various advantages: temperatures were surprisingly mild (given that we were 400km north of the polar circle) and the weather changes rapidly, bright sunshine and heavy snowfall within an hour. Of course the northern lights are as spectacular in the interior of Lapland, but there you can easily be stuck in a storm for a week at minus 35 degree Celsius. Only the Sami people enjoy this battery-eating temperatures.