Tips for Indian Travelers to Sarajevo
A small city, Sarajevo has played many major roles throughout its history. It was the first city in Europe to have electric trams. In 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria led to the first Great War (WWI). During the Balkans War, the city was under siege from 1992 to 1996; the longest siege in modern history.
Sarajevo is also one of the few cities where you can find a Mosque, Orthodox Church, Synagogue and a Catholic Church in close proximity and it’s often called the ‘Jerusalem of Europe’.
Tunnel Museum is all about the 1992–95 siege of Sarajevo and how the city survived. The only place linked to the world at large was Butmir, and separating it from Sarajevo was the airport runway. The defenders built an 800m long tunnel to Butmir going under the runway and this proved to be their lifeline.
Bascarsija is the main tourist hub and famous internationally amongst the tourists as the ‘Pigeon Square’. This is the heart of the city with alleys leading to coppersmiths and old Ottoman Mosques. It has a lot of small cafes and restaurants that serve ćevapi, a dish of chopped sausages.
Vratnik citadel was built in the 1720’s and originally enclosed the whole upper town. The reinforced walls and the guardhouses have all but disappeared. The place has tiled roofed houses and a few mosques and remains unaffected by tourism.
History Museum of BiH is a small but engrossing museum. Consisting of just 3 halls, two of which exhibit temporary shows, the third hall has the life and death struggle of the city from 1992 to 95 as the theme. Jim Marshall’s photo’s of before and after the is noteworthy as is a visit to Tito Café behind the museum building.
Ars Aevi is a contemporary art gallery and most works were donated after the 1990’s war. The highlights are Anish Kapoor’s Velvet Vortex and Marina Abramovic's video installation called ‘Cleaning the Mirror’. Nearby are two other galleries ‘Charlama’ and ‘Collegium Artisticum’.
National Museum is about ancient and natural history, housed in a large neo-classical building. It contains a priceless ‘Haggadah’, the Jewish book that made in Barcelona but brought to Sarajevo when the Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492.
Some other interesting facts about Sarajevo are that the city hosts’ about 50 festivals a year and in 1984, was the winter Olympic host. Bjelasnica and Jahorina, just 30 km away are well-known skiing resorts in Europe.
To visit Sarajevo you should book as early as possible, as it’s a very popular destination. You can carry Euros or US $ with your EbixCash World Money card and use it at ATMs. Change some Euros or US $ at the airport to local currency for the taxi. Don’t forget to get travel insurance before you set out.
