Taylor Anderson's Euroblog

journal of a college student

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    Sarajevo

     

    Sarajevo
    I'm currently a couple days into my week living in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and the workload for my study abroad program has really picked up. We had to turn in our topic ideas for our thesis paper (15-20 page essay due July 29th) on Saturday night and we have a series of meetings this week with the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe, the US Embassy and various speakers from NGOs. This last week in Bosnia-Herzegovina is focused on giving us final exposure to these “front-line” organizations before we head to Vienna, Austria next week to settle down for 3 weeks. We spend about 4-5 hours a day in briefings with these organizations throughout the morning and afternoon, and then head back to the hotel to get some personal research done and then relax in the evenings.

    Our hotel is in the middle of a pretty neat part of town consisting of several blocks of walking streets with shops, restaurants and bars lining them. There's also a sort of “supermarket” down the street, so we have about everything we could need. Last night several of us students and our TA held a poker tournament in the basement of the hotel and I believe we're going to a Turkish hookah bar down the street tonight. Also in our vicinity is the very bridge that Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on (which, and I apologize if you already know, is referred to as the spark that started WWI) so I thought that was pretty awesome. The history in this city is pretty incredible, as it holds a mixed heritage of Ottoman and Hapsburg (Austrian) rule. This provides some great architecture to look at, as well as one of the oldest cable car systems in the world (a trial for the one that would be implemented in Vienna years later).

    Photo
    Speaking of the cable cars, we were supposed to ride them to our first meeting today but found out they were closed. Why? Because the Prime Minister of Serbia was coming into Sarajevo for a meeting and they were closing down the streets. This was neat a) because we now got to take cabs and b) the motorcade drove past us in the opposite direction as we were driving. The 4-5 lane road was cleared and their were motorcycle police in the front, several blacked out SUVs in the middle and police cars and an ambulance in the back. In an ethnically charged place such as Bosnia, you can never be too careful I suppose.

    Anyway, Sarajevo is pretty neat but I'm really anxious to arrive in Vienna on Saturday afternoon. I'll be living there for 3 weeks so hopefully but the end of it I wont need to look at a map anymore! As far as a change of location goes I'm ready for some different food as well. Sarajevo has had pretty good food but its all the same everywhere. Hopefully since Vienna is such an international city they will have more variety. I even hear they have Subway...

    (Disclaimer: Yes I know there are only two photos in this post but my internet is painfully slow. When Its better I'll go back and insert some pictures)

    - Taylor

    • 7 July 2011
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  • Taylor Anderson's Space

    I'm a 21 year old male from wilmington, nc and a student at the university of north carolina. last summer i created this blog to follow my journey studying and traveling across europe as a participant on the burch research seminar in vienna and the balkans.

  • About Taylor Anderson

    I'm a 21 year old male from wilmington, nc and a student at the university of north carolina. last summer i created this blog to follow my journey studying and traveling across europe as a participant on the burch research seminar in vienna and the balkans.

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    • Rick Steve's Europe
    • UNC Study Abroad
    • thoughtsfrombudapest
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