Keith and Christine would love to hear from you with questions, comments, personal news and any news at all from Australia or wherever you are. We will reply to all emails! Please write to either windlechristine@gmail.com or windle.keith@gmail.com It is interesting how it takes a little while to adjust to the rhythm of life that each move brings for us, as well as to the places and people we encounter. From arrival, when we wonder how to do things, to the moment of leaving when we have just got a handle on how things run and are learning about the people, it is all too quick on this trip.
We learnt that everyone in Bosnia has a history, both long term and short term, and that the war may be over but its impact is not. People’s lives are deeply affected by losses, by acts of atrocity that they witnessed (such as the killing of a wife in front of husband and child), by wounds (such as those that resulted in plates in a head and bodily scars from being shot), and by continuing hatred and suspicion. Education deals with history selectively, according to the teller’s background. The area we were in was an ‘entity’ called the Republica Serbska. Mostly Serbs live there but politically it is part of Bosnia. No-one seemed able or willing to explain this anomaly of a border without a border, of a kind of state within a state, of allegiances that are strong but maybe not to Bosnia. Admittedly for the people here, their explanations are adequate because they have all the background knowledge but we are still very confused.
It took all our time to eat, pack and clean our room before we were farewelling Clare and T who were setting off to hitch hike, and then thanking Boro for having us before we left to catch the bus. This is a wonderful place and Boro has lived his vision, creating a heritage to share with others. He has many ideas to move forward, taking it slowly and working within the restrictions of environmental knowledge and practice in Bosnia. We gave him a donation towards the development of Zelenkovac. We would urge any readers coming this way to consider coming to visit – it was a real privilege to come here and we would be keen to come again.
Following a 400 metre walk to the road, the bus picked us up in response to our wave, and we were on the way again, this time to Banja Luka, still in Republica Serbska, in northern Bosnia, to change buses and then to Zagreb in Croatia. The wait for the bus allowed Keith to check the internet and then to use Skype to phone Vladimir, who we hoped would still be able to host us. His ‘Yes’ had been for a different date and we had not heard from him since we sent him the change of date in an email. We were thrilled that he said ‘Yes’ and agreed to meet us at the bus station.
The walk to Vladimir’s house past a park and up a row of identical looking communist era blocks of flats was not long. He is a teacher of German, and keenly interested in history and his country’s heritage. We talked about the situation for Croatia in the 1990s, when it had been attacked by Serbia after declaring its independence as a nation. The war lasted six months and ten thousand Croatian lives were lost. Serbia had been dominant in the Federation of Yugoslavia, and had asserted its control over the army to try to retain Croatia in some kind of union. Croatia had always been connected to Western Europe, having being ruled by the Hungarians since at least the ninth century, and later by Austria-Hungary. It was only in the 20th century that it became part of Yugoslavia and connected to the other Balkan states in that federation.
After a light supper and a drink, we settled in to my dream room – a whole wall devoted to a library of history books, all used and some written by Vladimir’s father who was a history professor at the university. What a pity I could not read even one word of them, but it was a décor to lull me to sleep beautifully.
Reminders of the war are still present in many parts of Bosnia.
Signs of leaving the east and entering western Europe: mowing grass near the border between Bosnia and Croatia; the first sign of parking meters since we left Australia in January; and large advertising billboards attached to city buildings
a Zagreb tram
Reminders of the war are still present in many parts of Bosnia.
Signs of leaving the east and entering western Europe: mowing grass near the border between Bosnia and Croatia; the first sign of parking meters since we left Australia in January; and large advertising billboards attached to city buildings
a Zagreb tram
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