This is Bosnia.
This is in Bosnia. Lots of mountains, covered with big trees and grass.
Most pieces about Bosnia insist on going right into politics and history and war.
This is not that. If that’s what you want, go here. This is about Bosnia — my Bosnia. This is a beautiful and usually overlooked country with amazing people, great food, and unmatched nature. That’s what I want you to know about Bosnia, along with the stories of my own little experiences there.
This is also in Bosnia. It’s really green.
First, the name. It’s Bosnia AND HERZEGOVINA.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is complex, but I’ll try to make it simpler. Basically, there’s a region in the south that is pretty distinct — it is called Herzegovina. It’s distinct mostly because it’s really hot 5 or 6 months out of the year. And because of its beautiful mountains and rivers. It resembles Greece or Montenegro — think bare, rocky mountains with small shrubs on them.
This is the Old Bridge, in Mostar, which is actually in Herzegovina. Not Bosnia. Same country.
Bosnia is more like… North Georgia.
I’m from North Georgia, so that’s what I’ll compare it to. Bosnia is the rest of the country, to the north of Herzegovina. I lived in Sarajevo, Bosnia, from 2003 to 2005, and again from 2010 to 2015.
Think big, green mountains with big, tall deciduous trees and grass everywhere. Then there’s other parts with forests full of giant spruce and fir trees. And water — everywhere. Lots of Bosnians will tell you that the water is really important — it’s the cleanest, it’s the best. Whatever. It is beautiful though.
The bridge over the river Drina, in Bosnia, the subject of the novel by Nobel laureate Ivo Andric, a Bosnia native.
I live in Mostar, the biggest city in Herzegovina.
We moved to Mostar in 2015, after 5 years in Sarajevo. We live in a great big house, and our kids go to school and kindergarten in our neighborhood. The school is almost next door to our house; the kindergarten is about 100 yards away.
This is Herzegovina. A nice restaurant with a vineyard that is great for family pictures.
We grow flowers and other things in our yard. It’s mostly my wife’s hobby…I’m a woodworker in my spare time.
This is Herzegovina. This is one of the sunflowers my wife planted in our garden.
We go on vacation once a year at a beach one hour away. It’s one of the highlights of the year for us; this year we actually made it a full week-long trip. You know Americans — we don’t know how to do real “vacations”. We’re slowly learning to save all our “vacation” time for one big trip together. We recommend it.
This is actually in Croatia. But it’s very close to the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We’ve taken 3 vacations in this spot. Note the kiteboarders.
There are lots of great destinations for day trips in Herzegovina. One of them is Kravica, which has an amazing waterfall with a lake at the bottom.
This is Kravica, in Herzegovina. Hannah was not doing pictures that day.
The point of all this is that Bosnia and Herzegovina is a beautiful country, with some wonderful people, that we get to experience every day. I know we won’t be here forever, but for this period in our lives, we have been blessed to live and work here. There is so much to learn in this world; I hope this blog helps open readers’ minds and hearts to new experiences and perspectives.