It is the peak of the summer tourist season in Sarajevo. Visitors get to know Bosnian and Herzegovinian (BiH) culture, history, try traditional dishes. They enjoy the festival offerings, but also the parties that are organized every evening. Sarajevo is love, say those who are in love.
An open-air museum, these are the words tourists use to describe the capital of BiH. The streets of Sarajevo, especially in Bascarsija, preserve the traces of the Ottoman Empire and Austro-Hungary. They represent a unique window into the past, through which thousands of tourists have looked in recent days.
Apart from culture, history, and tradition, visitors were also delighted by the Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF). The films, but also the good fun on the streets of Sarajevo.
“It was very fun last night. I really like BiH pop music, it is very interesting.”
“The nightlife is very fun, in Turkey it’s not really like that, we enjoy the festival parties.”
“When I came and heard music everywhere in the city, I asked myself why? Do they have parties here even on Mondays? Then I found out that it was because of the festival that the atmosphere is like this.”
These days, traditionally, the BiH diaspora has also arrived. Only when they enter BiH, they say, is their heart in the right place. They too feel the festival fever.
“It’s always a different feeling, it’s nice, for me nicer, when our music bursts out, better than the discos in Germany.”
“We only arrived yesterday, we walked around, there are big crowds, back home there aren’t that many when we go out. It’s really different.”
“Yesterday we passed that street where it’s livelier, it was loud, but we couldn’t even find a place to sit, let alone have fun. Then we come during the day, to eat something, drink coffee, and that’s it.”
That there are crowds at every step is also noticed by guests from other BiH cities. But for many of them, coming to Sarajevo has become a tradition.
“I like it, I love these old buildings, which are our culture. (Do you go for cevapi or coffee?) I go especially to a friend’s for pizza.”
“We often come to Sarajevo, not only because it is our capital, but also because our customs attract us. When we come, I feel at home, I feel that Sarajevo is one of the cities that pays the most attention to our customs when it comes to BiH culture.”
Many get to know Sarajevo’s culture and history through love.
“We’re courting, so come on, let’s go see Sarajevo. They say ‘asik’ (courting) comes from Sarajevo.”
“Beautiful, it’s beautiful, I have no words really. (The husband asks: Who, Sarajevo or me?).”
A walk to Sebilj, drinking Bosnian coffee, photographing landmarks, sightseeing, and buying souvenirs… For this last one, the shopkeepers are the most satisfied.
“I am satisfied, one mustn’t be hungry. They buy magnets, cups, and trinkets mostly. They bargain, but they say the prices are affordable,” says Pasa Cukurija, seller.
With everything Sarajevo offers, still, the reason to return, guests say, is the hospitality of the hosts.
