Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > World Forums > Europe
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 05-29-2015, 12:40 PM
 
Location: Macao
16,265 posts, read 43,077,286 times
Reputation: 10231

Advertisements

Sarajevo/Mostrar - both with some well-touristed Turkish Quarters. That was one of the first impressions I had of both cities. It seemed like both cities attracted tourists from everywhere, but certainly had a healthy dose of visitors from the Islamic world. It was quite a distinction from visiting other areas of the Balkans, where anyone with Muslim garb was a rarity.

Impressions of Sarajevo. Still has bullet holes in many of the buildings. People there were a bit rough in appearance, but super kind when you actually talk and engage with them. I didn't always know how to take the people. I had one taxi driver who told me he just came back to Sarajevo after 4 years in Afghanistan. I wanted to ask what he was doing exactly in Afghanistan, but decided I better not get the discussion going in that direction. I'm sure he is passionate about something to be going there.

I think the lasting impression I have is that the city/nation still feels the presense of the war in the Balkans. This was quite unlike all the other Balkan countries I went to - i.e. Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, Macadeonia, etc. I just didn't feel it anywhere else. I mean, if you talk to the people, they will have stories. But, it kind of felt like the people in Sarajevo were still living the stories to some degree. Then again, the city of Sarajevo has so many more reminders and symbols of it, that it would be hard to forget exactly. Again, as it seemed like the other Balkan nations had visibly moved beyond those days, and those days were well behind them.

That being said, just like everywhere else in the former Yugoslavia, the people were super nice, and very friendly.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-29-2015, 01:07 PM
 
319 posts, read 393,865 times
Reputation: 251
Eeek!....the story about the taxi driver sounds a bit creepy! Did you feel any tension between the muslim and non-muslim people? The way you portray it sounds like a bleak country

So you visited Romania and all countries of former Yugoslavia? How are they different from each other? I've only driven to Romania from Hungary, but haven't explored it really...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2015, 01:39 PM
 
Location: Macao
16,265 posts, read 43,077,286 times
Reputation: 10231
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natalya_ View Post
Eeek!....the story about the taxi driver sounds a bit creepy! Did you feel any tension between the muslim and non-muslim people? The way you portray it sounds like a bleak country

So you visited Romania and all countries of former Yugoslavia? How are they different from each other? I've only driven to Romania from Hungary, but haven't explored it really...
I am unsure about the tensions actually. I mean, another Sarajevo taxi driver started telling me about the war (that was a theme, I didn't ask, they just kept voluntarily starting that same conversation). But, he was telling me that the war solved nothing, and they are still all here together.

Which, I took to imply that they have 'moved past it' in regards to the people who currently live there. That being said, I did hear a few times about the Serbians in particular, who were up in the hills, shooting down at everyone in the city.

Actually, it was quite complex for me, as unless someone had Muslim garb, I just had no idea who was who. I tried NOT to follow-up on the conversations they continually started about the war as well, as I just didn't feel comfortable enough, or knowledgeable enough, to really reply appropriately either.

I FELT like there MUST be some underlying tensions, but I couldn't really say definitely.

(I did visit plenty of other countries in the region as well, including Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro...as well as Prague, Munich, and Zurich...on this particular trip. I'll try to start a thread on each one over the next few days )

How are they different from each other? I'll try to stay country specific for this thread. Sarajevo/Mostrar was easily the most Muslim-leaning of the ones I went to - I didn't visit Albania or Kosovo though. I WANTED and INTENDED to visit both of those, but logistically, it just didn't work out for me to visit them.

But, Bosnia felt VERY strongly connected to the memories of War in the Balkans, where the other countries I went to - Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro and Macedonia (of the former Yugoslavia) seems to have moved way past it. The other ones didn't have hardly any Muslim influences either...well, I think Macedonia had a tiny bit, but not like Bosnia. I wish I would have made it to Kosovo and Albania to compare though.

I was about 20km from Albania, but oddly enough there are NO buses connecting neighboring Montenegro with Albania. ZERO, NONE, NADA. Later I learned I could have hired a minibus or taken a taxi. But, I was already quite frustrated taking a bus from Budva (where they told me to go to the capital to find that bus). And once in Podgorica, they told me there was NO bus, and had NO answer for me at all either on how people did that - well, they said 'take a taxi', which seemed ridiculous at the time - as I was trying to go to Tirare, and not just to be stranded at the Albanian border).

I hope I didn't portray Bosnia bleak though, as many other travelers really loved it a lot! Those were just my personal impressions, and I'm sure any other traveler would have had different interactions, experiences, observations, etc.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2015, 01:57 PM
 
Location: In a Galaxy far, far away called Germany
4,300 posts, read 4,399,432 times
Reputation: 2394
As you may remember, my wife & I visited that area from May 1 to May 14. We really loved Croatia, Bosnia/Hercegovina, and Montenegro. My wife and I would like to start a business somewhere near Dubrovnik and are exploring the possibilities. What struck me (and to your point of Bosnia still being connected to the war) was that nearly all the cyrillic names, on the road signs, were spray painted over. I definitely detected an overt hostility to all things Serbian. Looking forward to exploring that area more in the immediate future.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2015, 02:04 PM
 
Location: Macao
16,265 posts, read 43,077,286 times
Reputation: 10231
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bulldawg82 View Post
As you may remember, my wife & I visited that area from May 1 to May 14. We really loved Croatia, Bosnia/Hercegovina, and Montenegro. My wife and I would like to start a business somewhere near Dubrovnik and are exploring the possibilities. What struck me (and to your point of Bosnia still being connected to the war) was that nearly all the cyrillic names, on the road signs, were spray painted over. I definitely detected an overt hostility to all things Serbian. Looking forward to exploring that area more in the immediate future.
Yep, that was my favorite area along the coast - Dubrovnik southward.

Well, in Croatia, I only went to Split, Hvar, and Dubrovnik, and that was by ship, so I didn't even get a chance to sightsee out a bus window along the Croatian coastline roads. That being said, I saw plenty or gorgeous scenery from the ships!

To tie my thread back to the Bosnia/Sarajevo/Mostrar topic, yeah, the coastal areas had a VERY different feel from Bosnia. Croatia/Montengro coastlines were pretty geared up towards tourism full-on. Maybe if I would have stopped at a non-touristic town, it might have been different. Mostrar was quite tourist-oriented as well - and not too far from the Croatian coast either.

Interesting about the cyrillic signs being painted over!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2015, 02:47 PM
 
319 posts, read 393,865 times
Reputation: 251
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tiger Beer View Post
I am unsure about the tensions actually. I mean, another Sarajevo taxi driver started telling me about the war (that was a theme, I didn't ask, they just kept voluntarily starting that same conversation). But, he was telling me that the war solved nothing, and they are still all here together.

Which, I took to imply that they have 'moved past it' in regards to the people who currently live there. That being said, I did hear a few times about the Serbians in particular, who were up in the hills, shooting down at everyone in the city.

Actually, it was quite complex for me, as unless someone had Muslim garb, I just had no idea who was who. I tried NOT to follow-up on the conversations they continually started about the war as well, as I just didn't feel comfortable enough, or knowledgeable enough, to really reply appropriately either.

I FELT like there MUST be some underlying tensions, but I couldn't really say definitely.

(I did visit plenty of other countries in the region as well, including Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro...as well as Prague, Munich, and Zurich...on this particular trip. I'll try to start a thread on each one over the next few days )

How are they different from each other? I'll try to stay country specific for this thread. Sarajevo/Mostrar was easily the most Muslim-leaning of the ones I went to - I didn't visit Albania or Kosovo though. I WANTED and INTENDED to visit both of those, but logistically, it just didn't work out for me to visit them.

But, Bosnia felt VERY strongly connected to the memories of War in the Balkans, where the other countries I went to - Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro and Macedonia (of the former Yugoslavia) seems to have moved way past it. The other ones didn't have hardly any Muslim influences either...well, I think Macedonia had a tiny bit, but not like Bosnia. I wish I would have made it to Kosovo and Albania to compare though.
That sounds like a very nice trip! All the way from Greece to Germany! Unfortunately I'm familiar only with Greece, Bulgaria and some parts of Serbia (near Hungary), so it would be interesting to hear how they compare to other countries in the region.

It's interesting that you added Munich, Zurich and Prague to your trip. I would imagine they'd be a completely different world in comparison to Sarajevo .
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2015, 02:52 PM
 
Location: Macao
16,265 posts, read 43,077,286 times
Reputation: 10231
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natalya_ View Post
That sounds like a very nice trip! All the way from Greece to Germany! Unfortunately I'm familiar only with Greece, Bulgaria and some parts of Serbia (near Hungary), so it would be interesting to hear how they compare to other countries in the region.

It's interesting that you added Munich, Zurich and Prague to your trip. I would imagine they'd be a completely different world in comparison to Sarajevo .
Definitely!

Well, my flight into Europe was Hong Kong-Zurich roundtrip. I was able to get a Zurich-Sarajevo one-way flight. Then I traveled all around southeast Europe, and found a cheap 100 euro ticket from Bucharest-Prague. So, that's why the unusual combination

I'll start a new thread for each place It'll be better focused, I think.

Yeah, Sarajevo and pretty much ALL of southeast Europe was a much different world than Zurich/Munich. It was a culture shock when I got back up to Central Europe. Especially, as humans adjust so quickly to their new surroundings. While I was in southeast Europe, it just felt like "Europe" to me. But once I go to Prague/Munich/Zurich, it was a REALLY different "Europe".
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > World Forums > Europe
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 04:51 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top