Transit to Serbia

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On the way from Sarajevo to Belgrade, our shared van stopped off at a little cafe in a little non-descript town in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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Oddly enough, it was named Cafe Bar Brazil.

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The road to Serbia is a two-lane affair that winds up and through the mountains.

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Beautiful views along the way hiding the fact that a large percentage of the woods are mined.

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Getting out of the mountains and toward Croatia, and the freeway that links Zagreb with Belgrade.

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Old-fashioned hay storage methods are still in use here.

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Road construction and a horse-drawn hay cart.

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A power plant in the countryside.

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Sunset at a rest stop.

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The van that took us to Serbia.

IMG_1968On the four lane freeway near the Serbian border.

Sarajevo

IMG_1824One of the first things we saw getting into Sarajevo was a Yugo in good condition.  It is a remnant of the old days when Yugoslavia was still a going concern.

IMG_1825The river running through Sarajevo.

IMG_1826Buildings in Sarajevo still have bullet holes.

IMG_1828Kristen walking along the river.

IMG_1829A cathedral.

IMG_1830In front of the cathedral there is a very interesting bridge.

IMG_1833An old cathedral in downtown.

IMG_1835Sarajevo has come a long way since the siege.

IMG_1836The shell of a building waiting for renovation.

IMG_1842 IMG_1846Interesting graffiti.

IMG_1847An old bridge across the river.  This is the Latin Bridge where Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated.  In effect, World War I started at the approach to this bridge.

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IMG_1855The latest fashions on display.

IMG_1856A minaret poking up in town.

IMG_1859In the tourist market.

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IMG_1870A special Iftar meal.

IMG_1877The old clock tower complete with Persian numerals.

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IMG_1881An interesting statue in downtown.

IMG_1883Old men playing chess in the park.

IMG_1892Shell crater in the side of a building.

IMG_1895A peacekeeping vehicle.

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Some areas of the city are still waiting to be rebuilt.

Back at our accommodations we listened to the afternoon call to prayer.

IMG_1911An interesting collection of artwork in a garden.  This was in front of a technical institute.

IMG_1915The infamous Holiday Inn where war correspondents stayed for three years during the Siege of Sarajevo.

IMG_1917This little convenience store stand is a familiar sight to me.  They were quite common in Kosovo.

IMG_1918In the garden of the archeology institute

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IMG_1930An interesting art installation.

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IMG_1941A dentist’s office.

IMG_1943Sarajevo has some amazing and creative food.  We were very happily surprised by what we found.

IMG_19441984 was the modern high water mark for Sarajevo.  Hopefully the city will surpass the acclaim from the Olympics in the future.