Sul blog MessyNessyChic si racconta il viaggio in una città multietnica e crocevia di una moltitudine di culture, Sarajevo, ad opera di Luke Spencer. Il reportage è impreziosito da splendide immagini della capitale bosniaca.

Sarajevo might be quite unlike any other city in Europe. Nestled in a valley surrounded by the beautiful Dinaric Alps, it is a beguiling mix of old world cultures, where centuries of Ottoman Empire rule meet the grandeur and elegance of the Austro07-Hungarian Hapsburgs. Wander through the maze of cobbled winding streets in the Old Town and you’ll discover crammed in amidst the ancient bazaars, synagogues, minarets and churches all within a stones throw of each other; Sarajevo is so breath taking you can see why it was named after the Turkish word for palace, ‘stray’.

Il viaggio di Spencer è un’occasione per raccontare alcuni dei momenti storici più importanti della città: l’assassinio che diede inizio alla Prima Guerra Mondiale, le Olimpiadi Invernali del 1984, orgoglio della Yugoslavia e di tutto il blocco sovietico, e la terribile guerra che pochi anni dopo avrebbe devastato la città.

Sarajevo is a city best explored by walking. But as you do, it is hard to escape the reminders of the siege. Many of the buildings are still beaten by the scars of modern warfare. When Bosnia and Herzegovina received international recognition as an independent nation on April 6th, 1992, the first Bosnian Serb shells fell on the city that same day. Surrounded by mountains, Sarajevo was swiftly cut off, and for 1,425 days Bosnian Serbs laid siege to the city with constant sniper fire and over three hundred artillery shells a day. Walk through the city and you will come across impact craters still in the pavement, which have since been painted bright red in memory of the 11,541 people killed, and due to their resemblance are known as Sarajevo Roses.