SARAJEVO - In Your Pocket

Galleries
National Gallery of BiH B-4, Zelenih Beretki 8,
tel. (+387) 33 26 65 50. Located near the Orthodox
Cathedral, the nation’s national gallery provides a fine
introduction to the eclectic work of Bosnia’s artists, both
contemporary and those representing the country’s rich
artistic traditions from the past. Photography, sculpture,
paintings and installations are all represented in a
collection that has been curated around color themes and
schemes. Entry to the gallery is free but some coins or a
note dropped into the collection boxes dotted throughout
will help the gallery continue to operate, and also acquire
and exhibit the artworks of a country well-known for its
artists. QOpen 12:00 - 20:00. Closed Mon. Tue-Sat
12:00-20:00, closed Sun & Mon
Museums
Brusa Bezistan B-4, Baščaršija, tel. (+387) 33
239 590, www.muzejsarajeva.ba. This Ottomanera
covered market with its six large domes is one of
Baščaršija’s most recognisable buildings. Designed by
Rustem Pasha, Grand Vizier to Suleiman the Great, in
1551 the structure long served as the city’s centre of
trade and commerce. It was heavily damaged during the
siege, but has since been restored and today it’s part
of the Museum of Sarajevo with a permanent exhibition
spanning all the way from antiquity through to the end of
the Austro-Hungarian empire. QOpen 10:00 - 18:00, Sat
10:00 - 15:00. Closed Sun.
Despić House (Despića Kuća) B-4, Despićeva
2, tel. (+387) 33 475 740, www.muzejsarajeva.ba.
Originally built during the 17th century, the house belonged
to a wealthy Orthodox family of traders and art patrons
who are credited with organising Sarajevo’s first theatre
performances. Nowadays the quaint pink and white building
along Obala Kulina Bana is part of the Museum of Sarajevo
and serves as a well-preserved cultural museum whose
friendly staff seem more than happy to give impromptu
history lesson or even tours. QOpen 10:00 - 18:00, Sat
10:00 - 15:00. Closed Sun.
Historical Museum of BiH B-1; B-2, Zmaja od
Bosne 5, tel. (+387) 33 21 04 18, histmuz@bih.net.
ba. It is horribly ironic but also authentic that a museum
such as this, badly damaged during the siege, should now
house the permanent exhibtion ‘Surrounded Sarajevo’
which looks at the impact of the nearly four years of
war on the city’s citizens.Downstairs is an exhibition on
the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina from the earliest
recorded mentions through to the Communist era but it
is the upstairs that is most likely to attract and repel,
move and educate the visitor to Sarajevo. Here, in a
non-partisan or judgemental fashion, the story of the
siege is told through photographs and artefacts, from
hand-made heating, cooking and fighting implements
to aid items that came in from abroad. Most harrowing
perhaps are the images of and by children, trying to live
a normal childhood in the most abnormal of conditions
- few visitors could fail to be moved by the bloodstained
school satchels and workbooks that are the legacy of a
shell-strike on a lesson in progress. Like many cultural
institutions in BiH the museum struggles for funds so the
modest 4 KM entry fee you pay will do a little to help and
in return provide an experience you are not likely to forget.
Permanent Exhibits: ‘Sarajevo under Siege, B&H Through
Centuries’. Q Tue-Fri 09:00-16:00, Sat-Sun 09:00-13:00,
closed Mon 4 KM.
sarajevo.inyourpocket.com
What to see
National Museum B-1; B-2, Zmaja od Bosne 3, tel.
(+387) 33 66 80 26/(+387) 33 66 80 27, fax (+387)
33 26 27 10, z.muzej@zemaljskimuzej.ba, www.
zemaljskimuzej.ba. Located next to the Historical Museum
and old-fashioned in the nicest possible way, the National
Museum covers a lot of ground in the three buildings open
to the public. Permanent exhibitions examine the life and
history of Bosnia’s inhabitants - animal, vegetable and
mineral - under the Departments of Archaeology, Ethnology
and Natural History. The oldest cultural institution in BiH,
the museum has its fair share of dioramas and insects in
cases but these seem to add to its charm. And, temporary
exhibitions such as the one on hand-made Bosnian women’s
shirts that was showing at the time of writing demonstrate
that the museum is also able to mount contemporary,
atmospheric and well thought out exhibitions that would not
be out of place in any of the world’s leading institutions. When
you add in treasures such as some beautiful Roman mosaics
and the world famous 14th century Sarajevo Haggadah you
have a museum well worth a visit and where your small entry
fee (5 KM) will help to keep it operating. If the stuffed bears
and skewered bugs start to get to you, escape out into the
Botanical Gardens where the hundreds of trees and other
plants from around the globe provide a living, breathing lung
in the centre of the complex. Q Tue-Fri 10:00-15:00, Sun
10:00-14:00, closed Mon & Sat Admission: 5 KM.
Around Sarajevo
Lukomir The inhabitants of Lukomir, a stone built
village on the slopes of Bjelasnica mountain, live the
high life - located at nearly 1500 metres the town
is the highest inhabited settlement in Bosnia. Cut
off for much of the winter, Lukomir boasts a newly
built lodge for those wanting to spend a few days
exploring nearby sights such as the 800-metre deep
Rakitnica Canyon and the Studeno Polje Valley. But it
is age that makes Lukomir of most interest, for here
you can get a glimpse into life as it was largely lived
hundreds of years ago. Situated about 90 minutes
drive away from Sarajevo, Lukomir can be reached
by car, organised tour or bus.
Visoko Pyramids A worldwide jury of archaeologists
is still out when it comes to the question of whether
these large mounds of mystery in the countryside some
30km north of Sarajevo were made by the hands of man
or constructed by mother nature - although nature is
currently dominating the debate. Either way, the Visoko
pyramids make for an interesting day trip. Visoko means
‘high place’ and visitors can enjoy the alpine scenery of
the region while pondering the pyramid puzzle.
Autumn 2009
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