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Bosnia and Herzegovina: Sarajevo

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This was the last leg of ny B&H trip. The hotel I booked was just opposite to the pigeon square. It was fairly cheap but comfortable. I arrived from Mostar in the morning by Talgo train. There are two daily trains depart from ฤŒapljina , I took the morning train which departs about 6.30 AM. Sarajevo is about 2.5 hours but it took little longer. With the help of my host , I took a local tram to the pigeon square and deposited my luggage .

Sarajevo old town square is place where you can just sip your coffie and watch time passing by. I had one and half days in Sarajevo. I went for a local walking tour in the town.ย  It`s a 2 hr tour , you are expected to tip the guide .

First we saw the Old Orthodox Church, one of the oldest religious objects in Sarajevo. Above all, the most recognizable landmark of Sarajevo isย Sebilj, a wooden fountain located on Baลกฤarลกija Square. The legend says that drinking water from here means that you will certainly come back to this city in the future. Then we went to theย  Kazandziluk Street and walked through Baลกฤarลกija, the liveliest part of the city.

 

Later on, we visited old Caravan Sarayย โ€“ Moriฤ‡a Han, which had a strong feeling of going centuries back in time. Moriฤ‡a Han is considered a true caravanseraiย because, when operational, it could accommodate about 300 passengers and 70 horses.ย Evliya ร‡elebi, an Ottoman traveller, wrote about his visit to Sarajevo in 1659 and described Moriฤ‡a Han as Hadลพi-Beลกirโ€™s han, because Hadลพi-Beลกir was the landlord of the han then.ย The modern name probably comes from the surname of the hanโ€™s tenants at the beginning of the 19th century, Mustafa-aga Moriฤ‡ and his son Ibrahim-aga Moriฤ‡.

We saw the famous Gazi Husrev-bey Mosque. Nearby this extraordinary beautiful mosque there is a unique clock tower famous for showing a very unusual time for the modern world. We will walked the nearby the oldest shopping centre of Sarajevo, the โ€œBezistanโ€ โ€“ an old bazaar from the Ottoman period.

After the old town stroll through the modern streets of Sarajevo in our Sarajevo Free Walking Tour

Theย Sarajevo City Hall is the most recognizable Austro-Hungarian-era building in Bosnia. Since 1949 it served as the National and University Library and now it is the seat of the city council once again. ย Sarajevo Jewish community existing for almost five centuries. Theย Old Jewish Templeย is within the walking distance of Christian and Muslim religious objects. Today it is an important museum related to Balkanย Jewish traditionsย and customs.

After the spot that says โ€œSarajevo Meeting of Culturesโ€ tour continues westward. Ferhadija streetย is related to the arrival of the Habsburg monarchy. For instance, one of the iconic buildings on Ferhadija street is theย Catholic Cathedral nearby which has the statue of Pope John Paul II.

We will saw the first modern hotel in Sarajevo and hear the stories of the first Waltz dance and celebrities that stayed here. I was recomended to drink Bosnian coffee and eat Sacher cake in this place where East meets West. Then the tour continues to the famous Latin Bridge, Franz-Ferdinandโ€™s assassination site. If you are interested to learn more about the assassination, check out ourย Gavrilo Princip โ€“ Shoot that changed the world tour.

In the evening I roamed in the old square and happend to bump intp Allen Huskic my guide to Mount Maglic and his wife . We had coffie together.

I wanted to do some hiking next day but weather was not good .. so I went out to visit vrelo bosne (Spring of the Bosna) .ย I took the tram to Ilidza and from there walking route starts . The path , Velika Aleja is an attractive tree-lined promenade which runs from the thermal bath complexes in Ilidลพa to Vrelo Bosne. Ilidลพa is 10 km from Sarajovo and can be easily reached by public transport. The 3.5 km path is lined with around 3,000 chestnut and plane trees that are over 100 years old. On both sides of the lane are luxurious villas which were built during the period of Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The path can be especially magical in fog. Vrelo Bosneย (Spring of the Bosna River), at the western end of Velika aleja,ย is a scenic woodland park with springs and a pool. Itโ€™s a popular picnic spot. Velika aleja can be easily reached by public transport from Sarajevo.ย  Here, runners will find a variety of scenic trails, from paved and gravel walkways to gentle woodland paths. From several points throughout the park, visitors can enjoy picturesque bridges and stunning views of the branching river.

Last but not not the least is food in Sarajevo. I got tons of recomendations frol locals , even with two lunch and 2 dinners there is no possible way to cover all of them in twodays . In old town Badem is must for deserts and sweets , Bosna for Staklo and Pies and ลฝeljo for ฤ†evapi.