The Radical Sabbatical: Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

July 23 through 27, 2022

We arrived in Sarajevo in time for dinner and a walk around the city. We quickly realized that this town comes alive at night! We are staying near the Old Town which has blocks and blocks of pedestrian and shopping/restaurant areas. Dinner is typically not eaten until at least 8pm so we've had to adjust (dinner time for us is usually closer to 6pm) and there is no shortage of meat offerings (I'm certain a vegetarian can find what to eat but it would be a challenge). Lamb and veal and beef are very popular, the pita and all types of bread are far superior to what I've had in the US, and Bosnian coffee is served and savored everywhere. I think my digestive system is a bit overwhelmed with so much meat so we're working on finding alternative offerings 😐 Gelato and ice cream can always substitute for a meal, amiright?

Sarajevo prides itself on its blending of cultures from east and west. In the city center you can find mosques, churches, and synagogues all within feet of one another. From what we can tell (as tourists anyway), it has resulted in an amazing city of ethnic, religious, and culinary diversity. 💗

Art's conference (the 20th Annual Fibonacci Conference) started on Monday and we have had many opportunities to mix, mingle, and dine with the participants. (I'm clearly out of my scholarly league but everyone has been very nice.) I have been going on various tours trying to take in the vibe and atmosphere as well as the culture and history. We both went on a free walking tour the first day to get the lay of the land and learned a ton about Bosnia and Herzegovina's history, especially as it related to the World Wars and the recent Bosnian war of 1992-95. Since it was so recent, our tour guides often have very personal stories to tell of their experiences and survival. It's been sobering at times.

I was fortunate to have a private tour of the Jewish history of Sarajevo and visited the only functioning synagogue in Sarajevo today. It was built in 1902 and now serves a congregation smaller than ours back in Pomona. I also had the chance to visit some farther-reaching areas in BiH, including Mostar, Kravice Falls, and Blagaj. We also got to see former Yugoslav President Tito's bunker, a Cold War era nuclear bunker designed to protect Tito and his officials. It was amazingly intricate and much more vast than we expected. So many destinations and bridges and waterfalls, and not quite enough time.

Bonus stuff: Art got to experience his first Tesla (see photo below), we both got to walk on the bobsled track from the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics (still a big point of pride for the Bosnians) and I got to see the Sarajevo hagaddah (well, a replica) and visit the second largest Jewish cemetery in Europe (opened in 1630 and second in size to Prague).

We're still in Sarajevo for a few more days and I am planning to dip into Serbia for a day trip tomorrow. Here's hoping the temps drop down from the 90's 😅

Art and Deena