SARAJEVO - In Your Pocket

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10 history Sarajevo is the administrative and cultural capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Situated at the far southern end of the Dinaric Alps, it lies between the mountains of Romanija, Bjelašnica, Igman and Trebević, and through it flows the narrow, shallow Miljacka River, which rises close to Pale, five miles due east of the city. First Settlements Sarajevo is stretched across an area known as Sarajevo Field, and there are numerous archeological findings attesting to settlements in this area dating back to the Neolithic period, as well as records that point to a significant Ilyiran presence in the area. A primary Neolithic site was found at Butmir, outside Sarajevo. Ilyrian tribes flourished in the region from about 1,000 BC until their final conquest by the Romans around 9AD. For the Romans, with their aggressive, commercially-oriented and warlike policy of spreading the Pax Romana, the mountainous country that lay just next door to them became a source of mineral wealth, particularly silver. Spread of Christianity Between 6-800 AD arrived the Slavs, there was widespread conversion to Christianity, and the next five hundred years saw Bosnia at the focal point of influence through varying periods of conquest, control and administration by Serbs, Hungarians, Byzantines and Croats. The medieval town of Hodidjed was located in the vicinity of today’s Sarajevo; however, the actual name of the city, which comes from the Turkish words saray and ovasi, meaning ‘court’ and ‘field’ respectively, indicates that Sarajevo is a creation of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans Bosnia had starting emerging as an independent state since the mid-1100s, and became a kingdom under King Tvrtko the 1st in 1377, just as the Turks started their foray into the country, presaging the Ottoman invasion which took place between 1430 to 1592, when the last town in Bosnia - Bihac - fell into Turkish hands. The country was now part of the Ottoman Empire, and just in case there was any question that the country’s religious mix of Orthodox, Christianity and the indigenous Bosnian church was not sufficient, Islam joined the fray. Sarajevo became one of the most powerful cities in the Turks’ new frontier territories, and although the capital moved twice, to Banja Luka and Travnik, Sarajevo remained the nerve-centre. Sarajevo was founded in the mid 15th century by the Ottoman governor of Bosnia - Isa-bey Ishakovic - to house the area’s Ottoman government. Anyone strolling through Sarajevo will easily notice the city’s three distinct parts, each of which are reflective of the historical period in which it was built. The initial expansion of the city occurred during the first 150 years or so of Ottoman rule. Many of the city’s architectural gems were built during this period, such as Gazi Husrev Bey’s and The Emperor’s Mosques. Baščaršija - the city’s once-great bazaar - was also constructed during the same period. By the beginning of the 17th century, Sarajevo grew into a vibrant community of artisans and an important merchant trading post, as well as one of the most significant cities in the European part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1697 Sarajevo was attacked and burnt by Prince Eugene of Savoy, the final of series of unremitting attacks by the Hapsburgs and the Venetians. The Ottomans moved the capital to Travnik, and Sarajevo started to refuse to accept governors sent from Istanbul. This independent, self-determining and occasionally bloody-mindedness of spirit was to become a core feature of the city’s identity, most recently surfacing during the four-year siege of the city from 1992-1995. Austro-Hungarian Rule The city’s second architectural expansion started following the Austro-Hungarian occupation in the late 19th century and lasted until the beginning of World War I in 1914, after the 1878 treaty of Berlin gave the Austro-Hungarian Empire a mandate to administer Bosnia. The city was modernized during this period. Austro-Hungarians established the city’s first public transportation system and the first telephone lines. Many cultural and educational institutions were founded in this period as well. The National (Land) Museum, the First Sheriate Law High School and the National Theatre. Sarajevo City Hall, Ashkenazi Synagogue, and Catholic Cathedral were also added to the expanding city. The growth of Sarajevo was interrupted on June 28, 1914 when Gavrilo Princip assassinated Austro- Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophia during their visit to Sarajevo, setting off the chain of events that led to the start of World War I. Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Following the Treaty of Versailles in 1918 that ended World War I, Sarajevo, along with Bosnia and Herzegovina, became a part of the newly-formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. It remained within the later-renamed Kingdom of Yugoslavia until the beginning of World War II, when the monarchy was abolished and, following the end of the war, the new socialist Yugoslavia was created. Yugoslavia and Socialism The general plan for development of Sarajevo was adopted in 1945, and the city that suffered tremendous losses during World War II under the Germans expanded. German occupation had started in 1941, and Bosnia was assimilated into an atrocious Croatian Ustasha nationalist entity, where multiple atrocities were carried out, particularly against Serbs, many of which took place at the notorious Jasenovac concentration camp south of Zagreb where between 50-70,000 people, mainly Serbs, were slaughtered. In 1943 Josep Brod Tito, leading the Bosnian partisans on covert operations in the mountain fastnesses of the centre of the country, established the basis of the post-war Yugoslavia, of which Bosnia would be one of six republics. Subsequent to the war, Sarajevo was not only rebuilt but considerably expanded as well. It almost tripled in size during its third expansion which took place during the formative years of socialist Yugoslavia. By 1984, when the city hosted the 14th Winter Olympic Games, Sarajevo was a modern capital city of around 500,000 people. Looking Back Talk to Bosnians about the Tito era, and it is fondly remembered as a halcyon period set in a kind of aspic of nostalgia, of benevolent socialism, when everybody had a car, a state apartment, holidays on the coast every year, and life was a given. Yes and no, is the answer. The dream was founded on political repression and kept alive by wildly unrealistic economic planning and strategies, based on much heavy foreign borrowing. But for most people, it functioned, Tito kept nationalism at bay, and the country appeared to prosper. It was during this period that Sarajevo developed a reputation as something of a cultural centre, a party town, and acquired the rather clichéd adjective that is so often used to describe it: cosmopolitan. But it was a tougher, fiercely independent and more gutsy series of characteristics that was to carry it through the years of the 1992-1995 war. Sarajevo In Your Pocket sarajevo.inyourpocket.com
Sarajevo brims with an affordable and diverse cultural life. It is proudly host to the Sarajevo Film Festival, which in fact in one of the most important in south eastern Europe. Festivals, performances, concerts and events are happening in and around town almost all the time so be sure to keep an eye (or an ear) out for some cultural entertainment. Music events Terminal Festival - electronic music Various venues 9 - 12 October 2009 Hladno Piva Dom Mladih, Skenderija 23 October French Hardcore Night Klub AG 27 October Concierto de Aranjuez by J. Rodrigo National Theatre 30 October Halloween with Lutzenkirchen Skenderija 31 October 2009 Anouar Brahem Bosnian Cultural Centre 4 November 2009 S.A.R.S. Coloseum Club 7 November Analena OKC Abrasevic 4 December Analena Access Club 5 December Sarajevo Jazz Fest sarajevo.inyourpocket.com Culture & events Vrooom City Pub 9 December 2009 Festivals Agro Food Skenderija Centre, tel. (+387) 33 21 73 27. Sarajevo’s inaugural eco-food fair runs from 18 - 21 December, and includes tastings and competitions as well as various lectures, conferences and round-table discussion with participants from Bosnia and abroad. Baščaršijske Noći Dalmatinska 2/1, tel. (+387) 33 20 79 29/(+387) 33 20 79 72, fax (+387) 33 207 921, sarajevoart@bih.net.ba, www.bascarsijskenoci.ba. “Baščaršija Nights” is the traditional summer festival that takes place each year for the entire month of July on Sarajevo’s streets, squares, theaters, and galleries. The festival offers ballets and theater performances, exhibits, concerts of popular and classical music, and special programs for children and youth. Q Free admission. International Theater Festival (MESS) B-3, Maršala Tita 54/1, tel. (+387) 33 20 03 92/(+387) 33 21 19 72, fax (+387) 33 21 19 72, mess@mess.ba, www.mess. ba. The International Theater Festival (MESS) has been held since the 1960s. The event attracts various international theatre groups as well as some of the most prestigious names of theatre. MESS is the perfect opportunity to watch masterpieces of performing arts at a low price, and usually without advance reservations. This year it runs from 16 - 27 October, and will feature 26 performances by ensembles from 14 countries. QOpen 09:00 - 17:00. Sarajevo Film Festival B-4, Zelenih Beretki 12/I, tel. (+387) 33 22 15 16, fax (+387) 33 26 33 81, info-sff@sff.ba, www.sff.ba. The Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF) is the most prestigious film festival in south eastern Europe, and aims to support and promote the art of film within the region. The festival has a distinctly international character and seems to have increased in both scale and notoriety each year since it was first held in 1995. QOpen 09:00 - 17:00. Poštanski Pretinac 600, tel. (+387) 33 55 04 80/(+387) 61 26 71 14, fax (+387) 33 55 04 81, info@jazzfest. ba, www.jazzfest.ba. The international music festival Jazz Fest has been held since 1996. Every year Jazz Fest hosts some of the most prestigious jazz musicians from around the world. If you are in Sarajevo in November, don’t miss it. Autumn 2009 11
Page 1: Hotels Restaurants Cafés Nightlife
Page 4 and 5: 4 foreWord The heart of Bosnia and
Page 6 and 7: 6 BasiCs Learn about the facts and
Page 8 and 9: 8 BasiCs A word from the mayor Welc
Page 12 and 13: 12 Culture & events La Boheme at th
Page 14 and 15: 14 Culture & events INTERNATIONAL T
Page 16: 16 Where to stay Accommodation in S
Page 19 and 20: Gaj B-3, Skenderija 14, tel. (+387)
Page 21 and 22: Bosnia, with its beautiful, favoura
Page 23 and 24: Pravda B-3, Radićeva 4c, tel. (+38
Page 25 and 26: A night out in Sarajevo comes no be
Page 27 and 28: Clubs Aqua Disco Mali Kiseljak 8, I
Page 29 and 30: Galleries National Gallery of BiH B
Page 31 and 32: Ghazi Husrev-beg Ghazi Husrev-beg B
Page 33 and 34: Public transport Gras Public Transp
Page 35 and 36: Car travel Sarajevo’s roads are m
Page 37 and 38: The standard starting rate for taxi
Page 39 and 40: Internet To log in over a phone lin
Page 41 and 42: Grand Centar Butmirska 14, tel. (+3
Page 43 and 44: and preparatory courses for TOEFL a
Page 45: ka 9 10 1 1 1 3 SEDRENIK KOŠEVO Os
Page 51 and 52: Unique books from Ireland (and 21 o

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