Sarajevo, Bosnia-Hercegovina

The bus ride from Dubrovnik to Sarajevo was absolutely beautiful. Bosnia-Herzcegovina (BH) is lush and green, contrary to what I thought. The coast is more rock than green, but traveling inland, the landscape turned almost rainforest like. We drove along a dark emerald green river with mountains climbing up either side. The water was so still in some places you could see the leaves reflected. The towns are very small with white buildings and red tile roofs. Most of the stone/brick buildings were destroyed in the war, remnants of which we saw on the drive.

Sarajevo is a great city, lots of energy and a good vibe. But again with the war damaged buildings! Ten story apartment buildings that have bullet holes (still!) and in some places where something larger hit, the concrete is crumbled down to the re-bar. There is also a street called 'sniper alley' where I'm sure you can guess what happened. The Holiday Inn where all the journalists holed up covering the war is now a tourist spot and the tunnels they used to get people and goods in and out of the city is a museum.

I think being in these countries makes such an impact on me because the war started when I was in high school, so old enough to read about it, watch it on the news and understand what was happening. It's completely overwhelming to actually see the damage. But they are independent now and people love their country. It's a very welcoming and beautiful feeling when you come to a country where the people are happy just being citizens, where family and friends come first and everything else is the means to being able to spend time with those you love.