Mountains and Mines

I meant to mention it in my history post, alonside the picture there, but my absolute favorite thing about Sarajevo is that one can look up from anywhere in the city and see green, largely undeveloped hills above. The picture in the history post is the view from half-way up a hill (near the music school, I think, where one can always hear the sounds of a piano), looking across the old part of the city (not visible) toward a lovely green hill on the other side. Imagine the people who live in those little houses ... they're surrounded by the countryside but their view is of the whole city below them, twinkling at night. I know that it was these hills that made the long siege of Sarajevo possible, and I have been told that one of the reasons that they have remained undeveloped is that they may still be mined (some are obviously being used for agriculture though, so they must be safe ... I think to a degree it is just easier for the city to expand down the valley than up the steep sides of these hills).

I got a chance to go hiking with a member of Pontanima, the choir that I am visiting. It was a chance to see the countryside around Sarajevo and a chance to really talk with him (gotta love being able to do interviews in a big field of wildflowers with fresh air and an amazing view). The picture above is from that trip, as are the ones below.


He shared amazing stories ... from heart breaking to hilarious. He is an experienced hiker and was a member of the army protecting Bosnia during the war, so I felt fairly certain that he wasn't going to lead me through any mine fields. That said, we had seen a (clearly marked) mined area on our way to the mountain, and, as we were wandering back out of the big field where we'd eaten lunch he said 'Careful, mine!' and pointed at the ground ahead of me .... my heart nearly stopped and I stood rooted to the spot while he chuckled. What he was pointing to was a cow pie; it was the same joke I might make in a field in Vermont ...