More Photos of Sarajevo

This is late afternoon in one of the oldest parts of Sarajevo.  The big building down in front was built during the Austro-Hungarian Empire (1896) as the city hall.  Later, it became the National Library.  In 1992, it was bombed with incinerator shells and burned for 3 days.  The destruction of this library, including many ancient texts, is considered the single greatest literary loss in history.
.		On the right side of the photo  you can see the National Library. On the left side you can see the  Miljacka (MEEL-yaht-skah) River which runs through the city.  In the distance you can see the high-rise  apartment buildings which were built  during the Communist area. Bosnia-Herzegovina was a republic  in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia  from 1945 until independence was  declared in 1992.
Across the Miljacka River from  the National Library is this old neighborhood which is named for Alifakovac (ah-lee-FAH-koh-vats), the ancient cemetery on the top of the hill.  You can see the many white grave markers.  The neighborhood is full of narrow winding streets and walkways, including the stairways that wind up the hillside from the river.
		This wooden drinking fountain is a  famous Sarajevo landmark in the  center of the old city.  This is the  oldest part of Sarajevo which was an  active trading center as early as the  15th century. Water flows constantly  from this and many other fountains in  Sarajevo. A famous Sarajevo saying goes  "Whoever drinks the water in Sarajevo,  never leaves Sarajevo behind."   We have not only tasted the water,  but drink it often!!
The stadium in the center of this photo was used for the opening ceremonies of the 14th Winter Olympics in 1984.  The building directly in front of the stadium, the Zetra, held the figure skating and other indoor events.  I clearly remember watching Torvell and Dean win the gold in pairs figure skating!  There are large city cemeteries in front of the Zetra.  The one closest to the Zetra and slightly to the right on a raised level, was a soccer field before the 1992-95 war.  During the war, because of lack of accessible ground for burial, the soccer field became a cemetery.  Even at that, burials happened only at night or during fog to avoid sniper fire.

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