Skating to Sarajevo

Week 11

Croatia

This week we will enjoy some time in Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Slovenia and Macedonia. These countries were part of Yugoslavia prior to the fall of the Iron Curtain.

Let’s start in Zagreb, capital of Croatia. Located in the NW corner of the country along the Sava River, Zagreb is the administrative and industry hub of Croatia. The climate is very similar to that of Cincinnati. As we visit this week, highs will be in the 60’s, lows in the 40’s. Population in the city and surrounding area is about 1 million, or about 25% of Croatia’s population.

Among Zagreb’s interesting architectural sites is St. Mark’s Church, which dates back to the early 13th century. Saint Mark’s uniquely colorful tiled roof was constructed in 1880 by Friedrich Schmidt and Herman Bollé. On it, you will see the medieval coat of arms of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia on the left side, and the emblem of Zagreb on the right.

Catholicism is the predominate religion practiced in Croatia (86%) so the country celebrates all traditional church holidays. We will try to arrive on October 8, a national holiday celebrating that day in 1991 when Croatia broke from Yugoslavia.

While in Croatia we will also enjoy local food, which is heavily influenced by Turkish, Central European and Italian Cuisine. A typical dish might be cabbage leaves stuffed with minced meat, dumplings and pickles. We should have no problem washing it down. Croatia is ranked #4 in the world for per capita alcohol consumption, mainly local wine and beer.

Slovenia

Welcome to Slovenia! Slovenes are Slavic people. Slovenia was never a country until Yugoslavia broke apart in 1991. The terrain contains many mountainous valleys and lakes. This will of course make for a challenge since we’re walking on our way to Bethlehem. Good news, hitchhiking is a generally accepted practice around the country. With such beautiful terrain, we will join other Slovenes in outdoor activities such as hiking, exploring caves, and river rafting.

One place we will definitely visit is picturesque Lake Bled, Slovenia’s best-known beauty spot.

Serbia

Serbia is another part of former Yugoslavia that has a rich history and beautiful scenery.

Unfortunately, we are arriving a few weeks late and will miss the annual Barbecue Week in Leskovac, a city in southern Serbia. This festival celebrates all things grilled meat over a period of five days of fun and food. Cooking competitions, music events, performances and yes, eating lots of grilled meat is what makes this festival so famous.

Despite missing Barbecue Week, we will find a lot to see in Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia and one of Europe’s oldest cities. Located at the junction of the Danube and Sava Rivers, Belgrade is known as “the city that never sleeps”, attributed to floating clubs on its rivers that are reputed to be great parties and never-ending fun. The reputation is also earned from SkadarLija, the bohemian street as a place where music and singing can be heard until dawn.

We are going to add extra miles to our trip by spending a few days (and nights!) in this wonderful city, exploring its history and culture.

First on the list is a visit to Belgrade Fortress. 2,000 years ago this fortress held the entire city. Perched on a ridge overlooking where the Danube and Sava Rivers meet, the fort contains ramparts and cubby holes built by the Ottomans in the early modern ages, designed to protect and defend against artillery attack.

Later, we visit the Church of St. Sava, the largest Orthodox church in the Balkans and second largest in the world. Situated high on a plateau, you can see the church’s white granite and marble walls from any approach to Belgrade. It’s 50 bells ring at noon and can be heard across the city. The Serbian Orthodox Church is ecclesiastically independent, a member of the Eastern Orthodox communion and composed of the majority of the population in Serbia and Montenegro. The church is named for St. Sava, the founding patriarch who established the church in the early 13th century. The church as seen now was built on the site where the Ottoman Grand Vizier burned St. Sava’s relics after a Serbian uprising in 1594. Construction of the new temple began in 1935, 340 years after that event and ended in 1989.

On another day, we will spend time at the Nikola Tesla Museum. No, not the Tesla that some people drive. Nikola Tesla was a famous physicist, inventor and electrical engineer. As such he is regarded as a Serbian national hero. Among his inventions, he designed the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system.

During the late evening, we will visit SkadarLija, where people can wander the cobblestone streets and visit stores, enjoy street entertainers, and sample local cuisine at many restaurants. Highly recommended is the grilled meat.

Sarajevo

On to Bosnia & Herzegovina and time in Sarajevo. Due to its long history of religious and cultural diversity, Sarajevo is sometimes called the “Jerusalem of Europe”. It is one of only a few major European cities to have a mosque, Catholic church, Orthodox church and synagogue within the same neighborhood.

An interesting bit of trivia, Sarajevo was the first city in Europe and second city in the world to have a full-time electric tram running through the city, following San Francisco.

A signature event in Sarajevo’s history occurred when it hosted the 1984. Americans will remember it as the Olympics where Scott Hamilton (now a figure skater commentator) won gold and the Mahre brothers took gold and silver in the men’s slalom. In total, the US wn 8 medals, including four gold. Katarina Witt won the women’s figure skating gold, and the UK’s Ice Dancing duo of Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean stole hearts and walked away with the gold.

We covered a record 707 this week! Continued steady progress will allow us to explore some unique places this coming week including Macedonia, Albania and Greece. Let’s keep it up and encourage other members to join us!