Ajvatovica

This week, the Sarajevo Philharmonic prepared a unique program to perform in Travnik and Bugojno as part of the Ajvatovica Festival.  (Ajvatovica is an Islamic festival celebrated in central Bosnia.) The concert was led by our music director as well as by a guest conductor from Istanbul, so we prepared some traditional pieces from both Bosnia and Turkey.  Additionally, we played some well-known Western classical pieces, such as a Strauss waltz and Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite.  The orchestra is tired at the end of a long and busy season, so we aren’t playing as well as we should, but I tried to enjoy learning such a unique program, one that I would never have the opportunity to perform back in the US.

So, Friday, Saturday, and Monday were filled with rehearsal, travel, and concerts.  At least on Saturday night and Sunday I had time to relax and celebrate with my roommate.  She is leaving a little bit early, and now only has 5 days left!  Time seems to keep moving faster and faster…

On Saturday night, I went with some of the “Otes family” to watch a Euro cup match in the city center, and then to Sloga, a nightclub with live music every Saturday night.  I am going to miss having such a large group of friends who are always willing to make time to have fun.  We stayed up very late, but for some reason I still had plenty of energy on Sunday.  I was glad that I didn’t feel tired, because I had some reed-making and practicing to do, but I also wanted to get a haircut and watch my friends make some baklava.

My friend Arvida went with Sara and I to the hair salon in Ilidza, to translate for us.  I was a little bit afraid of getting my hair cut in Bosnia, but I’ve seen so many of my friends get great cuts for not much money, so I decided to go for it.  My hair was so long and out of control, it was literally choking me, haha.  Fortunately, Sara and I both got fantastic haircuts for about 1/3 of the price that they are in the US.  On top of that, I got my hair styled, so I can feel extra glamorous for a few days until it washes out.  The hairdresser didn’t have any rollers big enough to handle my hair, so she used about 20 round brushes to set some large curls…and interesting and very amusing technique!

After getting back to the apartments, Arvida and Admir came to our place to teach Sara how to make baklava, a popular dessert throughout southeastern Europe.  Little did we know that there are a few small differences between the Albanian method of preparation and the Bosnian method, so some heated debate ensued. J  How many layers of phyllo dough should we use? How finely should the walnuts be crushed?  Should we add sugar to the melted butter that is spread between layers?  Should cold simple syrup be poured onto hot baklava, or should hot syrup go onto cold baklava? Etc…  In the end we wound up with a large dish of burnt, oddly cut pastry.  Oh well!