Planning. Apparently Bosnians don't make plans and for those of you who know me, I like to plan. I like to plan even when I know that no one else wants a plan. I like ideas of where we are going, how to get there and most importantly, what time. Now, I haven't really had a situation so far where I have tried to plan and it failed or was rebuffed but I am aware that I need to recognize that this particular character trait may need to fall by the wayside, or rather off of a Bosnian cliff. It will be interesting to see how, or if, I adapt to this new mentality. I will keep you posted.
Jaywalking. If you have visited Boston you know that pedestrians do as they please (much like the cars) and if you have walked with me in Boston you know that I am (apparently) a risky street crosser. But you see, I fit in there, everyone is, or mostly everyone and on top of that, the penalty in Boston for jaywalking is whopping fee of one dollar. A risk I am willing to take if a cop should be so bored as to cite me. Well, things are not the same in Bosnia. While walking to work on Monday I crossed the street at, while it may not have been a designated crosswalk but it was, a reasonable place to make my way across the street. In fact, not only did another man do the same but I have seen many people cross at that point at other times. Well, once I got to the sidewalk on the other side there were two police officers standing there. They motioned to me and the other man who committed the same "crime" and spoke to us individually. I noticed that the other cop had notepad out to write a ticket for my fellow felon. Well, luckily, I couldn't understand the officer who was reprimanding me (well, I knew what he was saying but not the words...) and kept saying sorry and English and to my luck, he not only did not speak English but seemed to get annoyed with me and waved me on. I laughed and continued to work, thinking how ridiculous it was that Bosnia has so many problems yet it can have two policemen waiting to ticket someone for crossing the street at a place that did not have white lines painted on it. Later, I told Adnan about it and he said that the fine is 40 km for jaywalking. 40! But I also think that since the police are so corrupt here, they were looking to either pocket the money or make a deal, an easy 20 km to their benefit to keep them from writing a ticket. Anyway, my first run-in with the law! I will have to remember to use this language barrier trick even after I learn to communicate...
Frizz. Well, this is a purely superficial part but still, I am having trouble maintaining the mane of hair I have. And it's not even humid in Bosnia but nevertheless, my hair is rebellious and I have yet to master the art of keeping it under control in this new environment. Sooner or later I will find the necessary tools to win this war, until then: frizz 1, liz 0.
As per request I will put a link to a map of Sarajevo and explain where my destinations are. Sarajevo is broken into different regions I guess I would say: Centar (Center), Novi Grad (New City), Novo Sarajevo (New Sarajevo) and Stari Grad (Old City). But more importantly than these divisions are the neighborhoods, which are a better indicator of where you live. I of course, don't know them yet but I can point to the ones of interest to me on this map (generously found by my father). My neighborhood is Koševsko Brdo, at the top right. It means Kosevo Hill (I just found that out yesterday!). Gariwo is Kovačići and the Pidros (Adnan's family) live in Hrasno. Just as a reference for where I go in the city. Mostly I find that I walk from my apartment to work, then to the Pidros after I get out and then from there back to my place. It's a long walk but really good for me to get my bearings. I try to walk different routes to get a feel for the area and also try to walk by the river, just for some scenery. Baščaršija (far right) is the old Ottoman part of Sarajevo that, at least to me, seems to be the downtown. It's beautiful and has (slippery) stone streets, cafes, shops, mosques, churches and people are always out. It seems to be the place where everyone ends up and is usually part of my walks around the city. Also, I am aware that I need to put up pictures of Sarajevo and have held out on account of not wanting to appear too touristy, but I know that is unfair of me, so I will make sure to tote my camera along and take some photos of the city and of places in my life. Thanks for being so patient.
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