Pausa: The Cause of and Solution to All of Life's Problems

Sometimes I get really frustrated with living here because it can take a long time to get things done.  However, paradoxically, the laid-back atmosphere is also one of my favorite things about Bosnia.

Last night I was pretty cranky for no good reason.  I was sad that Ross's visit was over, but all in all, life it pretty good right now.  So, before going to bed, I vowed that I would better attitude today, and not sweat the small stuff.

Little did I know that I would have a rather challenging day.  When I woke up, it felt quite cold in our apartment.  I decided to take a nice hot shower.  I turned the water on, and noticed that the water heater had broken.  We have steam heat, so when the water heater doesn't work, we also don't have any heat.  Blech.  So I nixed the shower, and decided it was okay to be a little smelly today. :)

When we got to rehearsal, the rehearsal room was quite cold.  The heat was broken in the theater too!  Some of the orchestra members were very upset.  I was willing to go on with the rehearsal  because it wasn't dangerously cold.  It was above 60 F and not too dry, so I didn't have to worry that my oboe would crack.  However, one of the orchestra members suggested that we refuse to play in protest of the conditions.  Disagreement ensued.  The ultimate solution was to take a 30-minute break ("pausa" in Bosnian) while space heaters were brought in to heat things up a bit.

Starting the day with a 30-minute coffee break was quite nice.  However, we needed the rehearsal time, so we had to make up the 30-minutes at the end of rehearsal.  Boo.

I told Alisa about our problems with the water heater in our apartment, and she tried in vain to get a plumber to come out and look at it.  I had done a good job staying calm and happy throughout the day, but I got very frustrated and anxious when I found out that we might have to go a night or two without heat.  Fortunately, Flobens, a friend from my building, managed to fix the heater after he fiddled with our water pressure. (I was afraid to do so, since I caused a flood last time I touched the water pressure knob.)  Things always seem to have a way of working out.

Tomorrow is a new day, and another chance to try to be more patient and optimistic.  My back, neck, and shoulders have been quite sore lately because I've been too tense.  Ross brought me my yoga DVD, so I intend to start the day with yoga.  Maybe the exercise will help me be both physically and emotionally prepared to do my best tomorrow.  If I can stay focused and positive, I will be very proud of myself, because tomorrow will be a very long day with two full-length rehearsals.  Wish me luck!

Ross in Sarajevo Part II

            Ross had a great stay in Sarajevo, and I was very sad to see him leave this morning.  I felt much more at home with him here, and now I need to adjust to being on my own again.  Fortunately, I will be flying to Los Angeles in only a few weeks to visit Ross’s family, and enjoy the festivities of the West-coast wedding reception they are planning for us.

            Since I haven’t updated for a while, I will give a brief* account of what Ross and I have been up to since last Tuesday.  I’m hoping that later, once he’s home and recovered from jet-lag, Ross will contribute a short post about Bosnia from his perspective.

            So, backing up to Tuesday…the philharmonic’s director and administration kindly gave Ross permission to ride on the orchestra’s bus to our concert in Zenica.  We had a short rehearsal upon our arrival, and unfortunately I was quite cranky.  We had a lot working against us: the theater is not properly heated, so it was extremely cold, the technicians kept playing with the lights, so we had to warm-up in the dark, we couldn’t really see the conductor or our music very well with the lighting that was chosen, and the winds were sitting very far back on stage, so it was hard to hear the strings.  Rather than sucking it up and dealing with the problems in a mature way, I regrettably got pretty sulky and played terribly in the rehearsal.  In the future, I hope that I will keep a more level head when things aren’t going as planned, since having a bad attitude only made me play and feel worse.

            Ross patiently waited in the hall until the concert began, and was subsequently joined by hundreds of children! (We were playing Peter and the Wolf/Peca I Vuk by Prokofiev.) As soon as we started performing, I instantly cheered up.  The narrator was great at getting the kids interested and excited about the music.  They were so cute that I couldn’t help but smile the whole time.  It was amazing how strongly the children reacted to the music and the story.  One poor little guy kept crying every time the wolf theme was played by the horn section, and had to leave.  I can relate—it is pretty scary!  Of course, being an oboist, I had to play the poor duck that gets eaten alive.  Sigh.  Probably the funniest moment was when the narrator introduced my roommate, a bassoonist, as a grandfather.  He asked the children, “it she a grandfather?” when she stood up, which left most of them scratching their heads, mouths agape.

Ross in Zenica

            Because the concert in Zenica was for children, it was earlier and shorter than usual, so we got home pretty early in the evening.  This gave me a chance to have all of my Sarajevo Philharmonic neighbors down for a drink so they could get to know Ross a little better.  I am happy that he likes my friends and colleagues just as much as I do, and we both had a lot of fun spending time with them this week.

            Wednesday was a free day for me, so I went with Ross to see an English professor at the University of Sarajevo, who is friends with Ross’s guitar student. (I think I’ve mentioned earlier that Ross teaches guitar to an older Sarajevo native who is an English professor in Chicago.)  Ross exchanged some papers and books with the professor (it is so expensive to mail things between the US and Bosnia) and we chatted with him over coffee.  He was a very interesting man, and kindly shared a few stories about his life.  I was especially intrigued that he had helped preserve the university’s books and valuables during the war by sneaking in past the snipers to hide them in the basement.  I know that the war is very difficult to talk about, but I think it is important to remember both how cruel and destructive, and how kind and courageous human beings can be.  So, I appreciate it when I meet people who are willing to share their stories.

            On Thanksgiving Day, the orchestra had two performances of Peter and the Wolf in Sarajevo, but fortunately, they were matinee shows and we were finished by 3pm.  After the shows, I rushed home to prepare a Thanksgiving meal for my friends, and neighbors.  (My roommate Sara has dubbed them our “Otes family”.)  We lined up three tables from the various apartments, and set the tables with colorful plastic-ware. We managed to find American football on TV, so naturally had it playing the background.  (I have no interest in football whatsoever, but it made Thanksgiving feel more authentic, haha.) 

I made mashed potatoes, peas, and stuffing, and put out cranberry sauce along with bottles of wine, beer, and water.  My roommate set out bread and made homemade apple pies.  Ross and Matt buttered, stuffed and basted two chickens. (I don’t think they have turkey here.)  Everyone else brought various side dishes, desserts, and drinks, so we had quite a feast.  Everything turned out delicious—in fact, we barely had any leftovers!  All in all, there were twelve people at our Thanksgiving meal: 5 Americans, 4 Albanians, 3 Bosnians, and an Italian.  There was lots to be thankful for, and we had a great time celebrating with our friends from all over the US and Europe. I think that our guest didn’t realize how much we would be eating, and everyone was pretty lethargic and full after we cleared away the meal.  We still hung out for a bit before calling it a night, but it was a pretty subdued party. J

I never thought that my first Thanksgiving with Ross would be so far from home!  We have always split up for Thanksgiving, each celebrating with our respective families.  It was nice to finally be together, and I look forward to many more to come.

I was lucky to have Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off.  I had many ideas and many plans for the weekend, but unfortunately the time flew by and we only got to do some of them.  At least now I already have ideas for places to see with Ross when he returns this spring.  We did not have clear weather for going to the top of the twist tower, or seeing Mostar.  But we did go back to Bascarsija on Friday and Saturday, and took a nice long walk in the park in Ilidza on Sunday.  Also, Ross got a chance to try traditional Bosnian coffee on Friday, and eat a bit more cevapi on Saturday.  Being an omnivore-herbivore couple, we are used to compromising, so Ross sat with me and had a couple falafel while I ate at Vegehana, and I sat with Ross and nibbled some French fries while he ate at the cevapi joint.

            It seems like Ross is very excited to return in late March or early April.  We had coffee with my colleague, Adi, and his brother, Djani, who happens to be a guitar teacher at the music academy.  Ross was able to talk to Djani about a guitar festival that he runs during the first week of April, and it sounds like Ross might be able to participate.  I’m all for an excuse for him to spend some extra time here!

*Okay, so maybe my account wasn’t so brief after all.  J

Ross's First Few Days in Bosnia

            Today is Ross’s fifth day in Bosnia, and so far so good. J  The trip here went well, and Ross arrived on time on Thursday night.  I feel much happier with him here, and he really likes Sarajevo.  Ross is pretty laid-back, and enjoys coffee and sausage, so he seems well suited for life here.

On Friday, it was a beautiful sunny day, so we walked around my neighborhood and ate at Pizzeria Ilidzis.  I was very proud of myself, because I was able to speak in Bosnian to our waiter throughout our meal, despite the fact that he probably speaks good English. Later, we headed to the Centar for the first performance of Giselle.  Ross was able to find a box seat in the balcony and watched the show.  Afterward, we went out with a group of my friends to the brewery, so Ross could taste Sarajevsko beer.  I avoided the “Pene Alfredo” this time and got a tasty caprese salad.

Ross meets the Otes gang at the Pivnica

Saturday was another sunny day.  Ross is quite lucky, since it is rarely sunny here for more than one day, and this weekend we had nice weather on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  We got a lot of exercise on Saturday, because we walked all the way down the path in Ilidza to the source of the Bosna River.  The scenery was quite dramatic, because as soon as we hit the shadow of the mountain, it dropped about 10-20 F and the ground was covered in a very thick layer of frost.  On the way home, we stopped by the supermarket, where Ross could ooh and ah over how much cheaper groceries are here.

Frost covered leaves in the park

After a short rest and a small dinner on Saturday evening, we headed back to the theater for a repeat performance of Giselle.  I felt happier with my solos on the second night, so I was glad that Ross watched both performances.  We went out to a bar afterward, and met up with our conductor, who was a young woman from Serbia.  Throughout the performances and rehearsals, I thought she looked a lot like a conductor I knew from Peabody.  When I was talking to her at the bar, she mentioned that she had studied in Baltimore!  It turns out she looked so familiar because she attended Peabody during the same years that Ross and I were there, and I had played for her before.  The classical music world is so small!!!

I had Sunday off, so we could sleep in and take our time getting ready in the morning.  Around noon, Ross and I headed out to catch the tram into town, so I could show him around Bascarsija.  (Ross had still only seen downtown Sarajevo after sunset.)  We wandered up and down the old cobblestone streets, and stopped to admire the books, fabrics, and silver being sold at all of the little shops.  Ross was super-happy to finally have cevapi for lunch.  The waiter always looks at me like I’m crazy when I order “samo kajmak”, or bread with “only cheese”, but I think it’s quite good.  I also took Ross to my favorite sweets shop, Egipat, so he could wash down the cevapi with dessert.

Ross in Bascarsija

I had to work yesterday, but I still had plenty of time to hang out with Ross and show him a bit more of the city.  He came downtown with me, and hung out at BBI while I had rehearsal for Peter and the Wolf.  We ate at my favorite restaurant, Metropolis, with Matt and Ivana after rehearsal got out.  Then, Ross and I went shopping for Thanksgiving supplies and headed back home.  It was great to have a relaxing evening at home with Ross around.  I really do feel more like myself with him here.  Now, we are looking forward to going to Zenica today for a Peter and the Wolf performance, and to hosting Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday.

In the News

Ross arrived on Thursday night.  It is so great to finally have him here!  However, I want to spend as much time as possible with him during the 10 days he's here, so I might not blog as much as usual.  Sorry readers!

In the meantime, enjoy this article about the American quartet that was just published online.  Ross had fairly good success understanding it by putting it into an English-Croatian online translator.  (There aren't really any good options for English-Bosnian, but Croatian and Bosnian are extremely similar languages.)

http://magazinmoderna.ba/index.php/stil/item/127-kad-je-muzika-život-amerikanci-u-sarajevu

The Daily Commute

           

I am going a bit crazy with the anticipation of Ross’s arrival tonight!  I knew it would be hard to be apart from him for two months, but I couldn’t even imagine how much I would miss him. I hope his travels go well.  Poor Ross had the final leg of his journey rescheduled, so it will take him 28 hours, and four layovers, to get here!  Right now, I am fluctuating between anxious, ecstatic, nervous, and relieved by his impending arrival.  So, in order to distract myself, I’m trying to stay busy cleaning, practicing, studying, and blogging.

            I have been meaning to write a post about my commute between Otes and Sarajevo.  It takes me about an hour each way every day, so it takes up a good 1/8 of my waking hours.  However, I really don’t mind it.  I’m used to long commutes after regularly schlepping from Evanston to the Chicago Loop for the last couple of years.

            My commute begins with either a bus ride or a walk from the front of my apartment building to the tram station in Ilidza. I think the bus takes about 10 minutes, whereas walking takes about 20.  However, taking the bus puts you at the mercy of the bus schedule. (The buses run about once an hour.)  I prefer to walk, especially because it sometimes is my only way of getting exercise during our more busy weeks.

            On the way to the tram, I first pass several blocks of small houses.  Despite the bullet holes and mortar scars left over from the war, the houses still look quite welcoming and cheerful.  There is always laundry hanging outside to dry, stray cats and dogs hunting for a meal, and people outside tending to their yards.  Everyone has a courtyard, garden, and fruit trees.  Cabbage patches and apple trees seem to be especially popular.

            After about 10 minutes, I cross the train tracks via a tunnel, and then the highway via a bridge.  I’m glad that there’s a pedestrian bridge, or the highway crossing would be a little scary.  Once I get past the bridge, there is a field with about a dozen small gardens and a basketball court.  I’m not sure who owns all the gardens (sometimes I see some old couples out harvesting).  At the end of the gardens, I turn left to head down the street that leads directly into Ilidza’s center.  

            After passing a few more houses and small shops, I have to cross the highway one more time.  (There is a crosswalk light.)  Entering the center of Ilidza can be a little overwhelming, since it is so crowded by an outdoor market.  Vendors sit on the sidewalk and hawk produce, handmade knitted woolen mittens, cheap plastic household goods, etc.  Well, they sit on the parts of the sidewalk where no one has parked.  You see, in Bosnia, people park on the sidewalk, forcing the pedestrians to walk in the street.  It seems a little backward to me.

            I pass about one block of vendors, as well as the downtown Ilidza shopping complex, called the Sara Centar. Right past the Sara Centar is the Ilidza tram station.  Starting October 1^st, I have been getting monthly passes, so I simply swipe my pass under a machine and can board the #3 tram toward Bascarsija.  Before I had my pass, I could go to a little kiosk next to the station entrance and buy a 1-ride or 10-ride ticket.  The kiosk also sells snacks, drinks, gum, and magazines, which is pretty convenient when I’m running late and forgot to pack a water bottle.

            A word of warning to anyone interested in visiting Sarajevo:  at most stops, you can board the tram without having to show your ticket.  So, once you board the tram, you have to run your ticket through a little machine to “validate” it.  You might be able to get away with a free ride if you board sans ticket.  However, there are guys who randomly come through the cars to check that you have one and that it’s validated.  If not, you have to pay a fine.  One time I was riding the tram with my friend Mattia, and his ticket had gone through the validation machine without actually getting stamped.  When the “tram cops” checked his ticket they pulled him off the tram and gave him the fine.  Poor Mattia.  So the moral of the story is to have a ticket, validate it, and then make sure that the validation was actually stamped.

            The tramcars themselves are quite old, and usually very crowded.  I have figured out where and when to board, so I can usually find a seat.  Standing isn’t so bad as long as I don’t have my heavy instrument case with me.  People in the tram are usually pretty considerate about giving their seats up to the elderly.  However, there seems to be no etiquette regarding personal space!  Sometime the train will be pretty empty, and someone will board and then come and stand with either their butt or their gut pressed right up against your face.  Yuck.  The best solution is to try to get a window seat so no one can stand next to you.

            I think that the trams are fairly safe, but sometimes the doors don’t close all the way and it makes me very nervous that someone is going to fall out.  So far, I have neither been in nor witnessed any accidents though.  (Matt was once on a car that derailed, but it was pretty minor and no one was injured.)  I think the biggest risk is getting pick-pocketed, so I always keep my purse zipped up with my arm wrapped over the top.

            The whole tram ride lasts about 30 minutes until I get off at a stop right in front of the National Theater.  I guess I could bring a book to read, but I like to pay attention and look out the window every day.  There is always something new going on.  We pass several landmarks, including a rebuilt Olympic swimming pool, the national TV station headquarters, the National Museum, the American embassy, and the ubiquitous yellow Holiday Inn.

            To return home, I pretty much make the same trip, but in reverse, although I do board a couple of blocks north of where I get off in the morning.  The tram makes a loop around the city center, so it is much fast to board the tram on its way back out of town.

The Otes Bunch

            Sometimes, I feel like my life in Otes would make a great sitcom.  I’ve got neighbors popping in for a drink, funny lost in translation moments, cute animals, friends with developing love interests….  What more do you need?

            Sunday was one of those days that especially felt like a sitcom episode.  The day began quietly and calmly, as Sara and I took a long walk in the park in Ilidza.  However, on the way home, Sara stopped by the market and arranged a date with the fruit vendor!  There is one stand in the market with a very nice, attractive young guy, who speaks excellent English.  (It turns out he is in law school.  A very educated fruit vendor.)  He always is talking to Sara and giving her free fruit, so she worked up the nerve to ask him out for coffee.  It sounds like the date was a little awkward (aren’t all first dates awkward?) but went pretty well.

            Meanwhile, (a good sitcom episode has to have multiple story lines) Matt and Tim have taken in an adorable puppy.  The little female mutt was so sweet!  She was very tired, and little bit clumsy, which made her extra cute.  Sadly, Matt and Tim cannot keep her, and there is nowhere to take her.  Matt tried in vain to find some sort of shelter for the poor thing, but alas!  So they fed her, gave her a bath and a warm place to sleep for a night, and then had to turn her back out onto the street.  She is so cute that I am hoping maybe someone else will find her and start taking care of her.

            On top of all of this, our crazy neighbor from the 7^th floor, Vaita, had a party, and convinced all of the Sarajevo Philharmonic people in our building to join him and his family.  You may remember me writing about this neighbor before—he is the same guy who crashed Ingrid’s birthday party in September.  He sure likes to drink, dance, and have a good time! Sara and I figure that we need as many friends as we can get in our building, after the whole mess with our other neighbor accusing us of throwing a bottle at his car.  So, I definitely wanted to meet Vaita’s family.  His wife was an excellent host, serving an odd combination of alcohol, Bosnian coffee, chips, and cookies.  She did not drink, but seemed quite tolerant of Vaita’s craziness…haha.  I had a beer, and then had to try a bit of Slivovic, which is liquor made out of plums.  It is powerful stuff, so just a little bit is plenty.  I switched over to coffee after that.  Bosnian coffee is really growing on me.   I realized that I still have not taken a picture of a traditional Bosnian coffee service!  Next time I have it, I will have to photograph the extravagant, handmade silver serving pieces and write an entry about the coffee-drinking culture of Sarajevo.

False Accusations: An Update

            On Thursday, Sara, Matt, Alisa and I went to the Ilidza police station so that we could give our side of the story.  Alisa did some research and found out that the police were legally required to provide Sara and I with a translator.  When she called the police station and asked for one, they said they were not obligated to provide one, so Sara and I privately hired an official translator to come with us.  Alisa reassured us that later the Sarajevo Philharmonic could sue the police for not providing a translator.

            Fortunately, when we got to the police station, they read Sara her rights, including the right to a translator.  So, the police made a phone call or two, and it was agreed that the police would pay for our translator after all.  It ended up working out to our benefit, since we wound up with the translator we chose (one recommended by the embassy) rather than one chosen for us.

            The policeman who interviewed us was pleasant and professional.  He had Sara, Matt, and I come into his office one at a time and give our accounts of what happened.  (There are no charges filed against Matt, but he chose to make a report as a witness, since he was watching TV with Sara and I last Saturday evening and knows we were quiet and went to bed early.)

It took forever.  Three hours, in fact.  First, the police had to read us our right and then have them translated to English.  After that, we had to give our report and have it translated to Bosnian.  The policeman typed very slowly, so it took Sara a good hour and a half to give her report.  Fortunately, Matt and I could simply confirm what Sara said, and add a couple additional details, so it didn’t take us quite as long.

While Sara was giving her report, Matt and I had to wait in the hallway of the police station, which was pretty entertaining.  Fortunately, a nice woman felt sorry for us, and brought us some chairs so we could sit.  While we were waiting, we saw a police officer escort a pretty skuzzy guy into his office, and much yelling ensued.  Hmmm.  Later, the guy (a suspect, I guess?) and his friends stood smoking in the hallway until the officer came out and chased them off.  Besides this, there wasn’t very much excitement.  It seems like the police spend a lot of time carrying paperwork from one room to another.  Oh, bureaucracy…

I felt reassured once our trip to the police station was over.  While Sara was being interviewed, I heard some laughter.  It sounds like the policeman who interviewed us thought that our accuser was wasting everyone’s time.  Which is so true!  There are so many “real” problems in our neighborhood, and it seems silly to be wasting government resources on investigating this case.  The policeman also told us, as we were leaving, that if our neighbor bothers us again, we can call the police in Ilidza and they will be there to protect us.  I was glad that we were treated kindly and professionally.  (Our accuser apparently works for the police himself, and I was worried that his colleagues would show bias against us.)  Alisa also seemed reassured that (hopefully!) nothing more would come of this, and that no prosecutor would take up this frivolous case against us.   So, now we just have to wait and see what happens… 

False Accusations

Written 11/8:

As I’ve said many times in my blog, most of the Bosnians that I encounter are good people.  Many of them are extremely welcoming, and excited and curious to meet me.  Just today, on the tram, I was sitting next to an older woman who tried to start a conversation with me.  I could say a few sentences, but then had to confess that, “I don’t understand Bosnian” (“Ne razumiem Bosanskom’”).  She smiled, gave me a very sweet squeeze on the arm, and wished me a good life as she got off the train.  It felt so special to have such a positive encounter with a complete stranger, whose life is so different from my own.

Unfortunately, there are some mean, xenophobic people here too.  There are bad people everywhere, I guess.  On Sunday evening, a man rang the doorbell of my friends’ apartment, and complained that a member of the Sarajevo Philharmonic had gotten drunk and thrown a bottle from a balcony onto his car.  He claimed that someone had witnessed “an Italian guy” do it on Saturday at midnight, and was completely sure that it came from the second floor, where my friends live.  Of course, on Saturday night, we were all asleep, being so exhausted from our week of preparing for the Tchaikovsky concert.  The only people who we in the second floor apartment were my friends Arvida and Morena, having a quiet night at home.  Another neighbor overheard the commotion and came out to vouch that there was no party going on that night.

            Sara got nervous about the accusations and decided that she wanted to throw away all of our empty bottles, left over from our Halloween party.  I told her not to worry, because we did nothing wrong and there was no reason to do anything.  Unfortunately, as Sara took the bottles down the stairs, a woman (the wife of the accuser) grabbed her bag, started scolding her, and pulled her and the bag back up the staircase.  Poor Sara!  Arvida heard the commotion and came out to translate.  The woman accused Sara, threatening to call the police.  Suddenly, her story changed, and she was so sure that the bottle had been thrown from our apartment on the fourth floor, rather than the second floor.  Arvida told her to go ahead and call the police, since we were in the right.  The woman turned white, and offered not to press charges if Sara gave her money.

            Aha.  She wants to take advantage of us, and blackmail Sara for money, I think.

            Sara stayed with Arvida in her apartment, and sent me a cryptic text message indicating she was in trouble.  After the commotion ended, I headed down the stairs to find out what happened.  Sara seemed very scared and worried, but I was angry.  How can people be so mean, assuming, and rude?

            The man and woman came back one more time to yell at us, threaten us, and ask for money.  Arvida brought Sara and me to the door and translated for us that we were asleep early on Saturday night, and knew nothing about what had happened to their car.  They stormed off, saying that we should expect to see a police inspector the next day.

            The next day, Monday, came and went without incident.  I figured that the couple realized that they were being assuming, had no case against us, and let it go.  Or that they were just trying to take money from us and had given up.  However, today, the man called Alisa, claiming that he was pressing charges against Sara, Arvida, the Sarajevo Philharmonic, and me!  I don’t think anything will come of it, and am not worried, since we didn’t do anything wrong.  As I told Sara, “there’s nothing illegal about taking the trash out”.  Just in case, Sara called the embassy to let them know what is going on, and we obtained a number to call in case of any legal emergencies.

            I have never been falsely accused of anything serious before, and it is at once scary, infuriating, and embarrassing.  It sucks to feel discriminated against, just because I’m foreign.  I did nothing wrong, and I hate that I might be an official suspect of a crime.  If anything, the woman who grabbed Sara should be charged with assault.

            I am also very sad to have bad relations with some of our neighbors.  It is bad to be a victim, but in some ways it is even worse to be viewed as a perpetrator.  I really respect and admire the Bosnian people, and am heartbroken that the feeling cannot always be mutual.  Maybe the man and woman are telling the truth, and their car was damaged.  Maybe they genuinely think that we had a party, and damaged their property.  It is true that us Sarajevo Philharmonic members have had a couple of parties, but we are guilty only of being a little noisy.  All of our neighbors are noisy too, and we would happily keep it down if asked.  If the man and woman truly believe that we are guilty, I feel sorry for them as well as angry.  If so, I really want to look them in the eye, and explain that I am a good person, and it is unfair of them to assume anything about me.

            In conclusion, ARGH! 

Bajram

Written 11/8:

            Since the majority of the population here is Muslim, we have a few days off surrounding the holiday of Bajram (pronounced “Bie-rahm”).  I am beginning to learn more about Islam, so I now know that Bajram commemorates the story of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son.  I am sure most of you are familiar with this story, since it is a part of the Judeo-Christian literature as well.  In the story, God sees that Abraham is willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac, and at the last minute intervenes and replaces Isaac with a sheep.  So, on Bajram, it is traditional to sacrifice a sheep.  A lot of my friends thought I would totally freak out about this, but I actually approve of meat-eaters being more connected to the animals they eat (e.g. being involved in the slaughter).  I was also told that Muslims are instructed to eat 1/3 of the sheep themselves and then are supposed to give the other 2/3 away to the poor.  I really like this idea, and it reminds me of the Jewish tradition of “tsedakah”.

            Bajram itself began on Sunday.  The days leading up to it were quite chaotic in and around the markets.  Then, on Sunday and Monday, I went out for a jog/walk and was struck by how quiet and empty the streets were! (Though celebratory firecrackers frequently broke the silence.)  It reminded me of walking around on Christmas morning in the US.

Duvacki Qvintet Persempre

In other news, all of the principal woodwind players of the Sarajevo Philharmonic are forming a woodwind quintet, and since we have some free time, today was our first rehearsal.  We rehearsed at the Music Academy, which gave me the opportunity to go inside the building for the first time.  The music academy is situated on the third floor of a building very close to the National Theater, in the city center.  It looks very much like many of the music schools I’ve been to in the US: an old, long hallway, with classrooms, practice rooms, and offices spilling out sounds of rehearsals, lessons, and practice sessions.  Something about the building reminded me of Peabody, and I felt a little nostalgic for my undergraduate years. 

My quintet will hopefully give our first concert in early December, so we began to work on that program today.  We are playing light, easy pieces to start.  My Bosnian colleagues call the repertoire “limonata”, or “lemonade”.  In the US we’d call it a “pops” program.  Even though the music is not much of a challenge, I am looking forward to our concert.  I believe that we might be the first Bosnian woodwind quintet to perform in quite a long time…maybe since before the war.  So, the flutist, Sakib, told me that I will soon be a part of Bosnia’s cultural history!

A Vegetarian Diner's Guide to Sarajevo

Written 11/5:

When people here find out that I’m a vegetarian, they always say, “I feel so sorry for you”.  Or, “this is not a good place to be vegetarian”.  But I’ve had absolutely no problem finding delicious vegetarian food at restaurants here.  The one thing really I miss is spicy “ethnic” food: Mexican, Thai, Indian…but this has nothing to do with being a vegetarian.

So here is my personal guide/reviews of the restaurants I’ve frequented so far:

Pivnica:  I went to the Sarajevo “Pivnica”, which means “brewery”, with a large group of friend after my first performance here.  Of course, they are known for serving their beer, “Sarajevsko”, which is quite ubiquitous throughout Bosnia.  Not only do they serve their more popular blonde beer (my personal preference), but they also serve a “Sarajevsko Dark” beer.  The first time I went, I was impressed.  I got a vegetable risotto that was a little salty, but quite good.  I went back last night with another group, and we had a few problems.  First, Sara, my roommate, ordered a dark beer, and the server brought her a light beer.  She very politely reminded him that she had ordered a dark beer, but he refused to admit his mistake, and lectured her about how she had ordered a blonde.  Later, I ordered their “Pene Alfredo”.  This is funny because they misspelled “penne” on the menu, so instead of ordering penne pasta, one must order pene, which mean “penis” in Italian.  Of course, everyone teased me for ordering the dish, but I wanted pasta.  When the pasta came, it had chicken in it. L  I offered to let my friends eat it, but they insisted that I send it back, since the menu did not describe the dish as having any meat in it.  Of course Mattia had to point of that if I order “penis”, I should expect to get meat.  Haha.  Anyway, I sent it back, and the kitchen generously picked out all of the large chunks of chicken.  Maybe they thought I wouldn’t notice the small chunks…oh well.  So much for Alfred’s penis.  This is the only difficulty I’ve had as a vegetarian in Bosnia, and not a very big one.  I’ve had similar problems in the US.  It’s just part of being vegetarian and eating out.

To Be:  This is a very nice restaurant in Bascarsija.  It is a little pricey for a Bosnian restaurant, but is still quite reasonable compared to restaurants in the US. (I usually end up spending about 20 KM for a meal and a drink here, about $15.)  There are quite a few vegetarian selections on the menu.  I’ve had their vegetarian plate, which was one of my favorite meals in Sarajevo—a plate of Bosnian cheese, grilled eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes, served with bread.  I went again this week and had the vegetable risotto, which wasn't really risotto, just rice mixed with sauce and veggies.  It was still very yummy and satisfying.  One of the best things about To Be is that they are very welcoming to foreigners.  Even if the server doesn’t speak much English, he/she will try to say at least a few words.  They are also very encouraging if you try to speak Bosnian, and will cheer you on.

Vegetarian Plate at To Be

Vegehana:  That’s right, Sarajevo has a vegetarian restaurant!  And it’s good.  They have a limited menu, which is fine with me, since I get overwhelmed by too many options.  Sadly, I’ve only been to Vegehana once.  I ordered a meal with soup, salad, fried cheese, bread, a savory pastry, and a potato dish.  Yummy and reasonably priced.  The only thing I didn’t like was that the fried cheese was served cold, which I found a little weird.  Even though I’ve only been here once, I’m including Vegehana on my “restaurants I frequent list”, because I’m sure I will go back many times!

Meal at Vegehana

Metropolis:  This is my favorite restaurant in Sarajevo.  It’s casual yet classy, cheap, with a good menu, wifi, and amazing desserts.  Who could ask for anything more?  There are quite a few vegetarian selections, but I always get the same thing, the vegetarian sandwich, because I like it so much.  Fresh bread with a soft cheese and grilled vegetables, served with potato wedges.  I also like to order the “aroma kafa”, which is a mix of iced coffee and icecream.  Guilty pleasure.

Pizzeria Ilidzis:  This is the best restaurant within walking distance of my apartment in Otes.  It is situated in the park in Ilidza, right near the path that leads to the source of the Bosna river.  There are probably at least a dozen vegetarian selections on their menu, as well as good coffee and good wine.  I really like their Spageti Funghi, spaghetti with mushrooms.  Pizzeria Ilidzis is also a great place to get coffee and a snack.  They have very good dessert crepes.  I’ve gotten the ones filled with nutella.  They are very rich, so I’d recommend splitting them.  Pizzeria Ilidzis also serves a traditional Bosnian pastry that is like a fried doughnut, served with cream.  They are too oily for my taste, but most of my friends love them.  I also like their homemade polenta here, which is served with a mix of yogurt and cheeses.

Nice outdoor dining at Pizzeria Ilidzis

There are also a lot of small, cheap restaurants that serve a traditional sausage dish called “cevapi” (pronounced che-va-pee).  Or course, I don’t eat cevapi, but I often come along with my friends who do.  I’ve found that I can order “kajmak” (pronounced kai-mak) and get a filling portion of flat bread and cream cheese for only one or two marks.  However, I’ve learned not to call the bread “pita” bread, because here “pitta” is something entirely different.  “Pitta” is sold at many “Pekara”s, bakeries, and is a flaky round pastry with various fillings inside.  There are three vegetarian kind of pitta that I like: sirnica (cheese), zeljanica (spinach), and krompirusa (potato).  They are very salty though, so I have trouble finishing a whole one.

Internet

Yesterday, the internet was finally installed in my neighbor, Admir's, apartment.  We still have to get a wireless router, but it looks like I should have internet in my apartment up and running by next week.  Finally!
So, dear readers, I might finally have enough time online to add photos into this blog.  Stay tuned!

Sarajevo Social Life

 Written 11/2:

            One of my favorite things about living here is that I already have a big group of friends.  Of course, the American quartet instantly bonded, since we all came to Bosnia together, not knowing anybody else.  I feel like my American friends are best able to relate to how I feel about life in Sarajevo, and I know I can trust them when I have problems.

            However, I didn’t expect to have made so many other friends as well, both within my building and in the orchestra.  Any time I’m bored, I can walk up or down the stairs, and knock on the door of a friend’s apartment to chat, have coffee, or drink a beer.  All in all, there are ten of us from the orchestra living in my building, so we’ve got quite a good-sized community.  It’s kind of like living in a sitcom, especially with all of the funny lost in translation moments. J

            There are also many young members of the orchestra who speak excellent English and have been very welcoming.  Even the members who don’t speak much English are quite friendly.  One of the American guys, Matt, is dating the principal cellist, Ivana, so she often hangs out with my groups of friends.  (She speaks English with a perfect American accent—I think her grandmother is Canadian.)  Alisa, one the orchestra’s administration has become a good friend of ours as well.

            I really like that people in Bosnia make the time to regularly interact with each other in person.  While I lived in Baltimore, and later in Evanston, I sometimes got pretty lonely for a group of buddies like I had in high school.  Of course, I have met some wonderful people in both cities, and have made some great friends, but sometimes we barely see each other.  The excuse is always that we’re too busy.  But I don’t think that’s really true.  We have plenty of time to surf the internet, update our facebook profile pictures, watch a complete TV series on DVD.  We are addicted to technology.  I like watching TV and reading facebook updates as much as the next person, but I have found that they are not a good replacement for face-to-face interaction.  Maybe it’s because I grew up in a rather large family, but I really like having others around me most of the time.

            I like that we always have an excuse for a party in Bosnia.  Last Saturday, Sara and I hosted a Halloween party.  It seems like most Bosnians know about Halloween from watching American TV, but it’s not really celebrated here.  Well, maybe a little bit.  I saw some squash jack-o-lanterns sitting in front of one of the houses in Otes this past Sunday.  Anyway, all of our friends were very excited to celebrate the holiday and dress up in costumes.  Sara and I cooked some food, put out a big bowl of candy, and Sara even found a pumpkin at the market in Ilidza.  I had a really good time taking pictures, talking, drinking, and dancing.

            I also have a lot of fun in smaller groups, going out to eat, explore, etc.  Yesterday, a flutist from the orchestra, Adi, drove the American quartet to a restaurant at the top of one of the hills surrounding Sarajevo.  Despite a little bit of fog (there’s always fog) the view was spectacular.  It was so nice of Adi to offer to show us a part of the city we had never seen, and all four of us really enjoyed his company, and hearing about what it’s been like to grow up in Sarajevo.

            I really look forward to Ross’s visit in two weeks.  I think he will really enjoy hanging out with all of my friends, and I can’t wait for him to meet them.  I hope that living here might help both of us become more relaxed and outgoing so we can enjoy more time with friends once I’m back in the US this summer.

Learning the Language

Written 10/31:

            I’m back to my normal routine this week, with daily rehearsals for our concert next Friday.  So, I’d like to write a brief post about the Bosnian language, and what it’s like to be learning it here.

            Before I moved to Sarajevo, I decided that I really wanted to learn Bosnian as well as possible in one year, regardless of whether or not I can get by just speaking English.  I don’t know any language besides English very well.  I can have a simple conversation in Spanish, and have studied a year of French and Russian, but my abilities are very limited.  I’ve always wanted to learn a language beyond the basics, and hoped this might be my opportunity to do so.

            Now that I’m here, I’m not sure that I will be able to learn as much Bosnian as I’d hoped, because the language is so difficult.  However, I’m not deterred from studying, and I continue to want to learn as much as possible.  Every morning, I wake up about 30 minutes before I need to, so that I can study during breakfast.  I have a pretty good textbook, called Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian by Ronelle Alexander and Ellen Elias-Bursac.  I’ve made it through chapter 4, and it has helped me learn some basic words, phrases, and grammar.  I’ve learned some additional vocabulary and phrases by trying to talk to both strangers and my Bosnian friends.  Soon, the American quartet will begin some tutoring sessions with a member of the orchestra’s administration, who also happens to be a Bosnian-English tutor.  I’m really looking forward to having more help, and someone to answer all of my questions.

            The reason my book is called “Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian” is because the languages are extremely similar, as are the languages of Montenegro, Slovenia, and Macedonia.  So, the advantage of learning Bosnian is that I should be able to eventually communicate throughout most of former Yugoslavia.

            On of the reasons Bosnian is so hard is because the grammar is pretty complex.  Unlike English, the nouns are altered depending on the context.  So, if a noun is a subject of a sentence, it has one ending, and if it’s the direct object, it has a different ending.  And if it is following certain prepositions, possessive, and so on, it changes.  To further confuse things, there are distinctions between masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns, as well as animate and inanimate beings.  Ack!

            Another reason why Bosnian is challenging is because some of the phonemes are sounds that we never have to make in English.  The rolled “r” is pretty straightforward—lots of languages have a rolled “r”.  However there are words that contain “mj” and “lj” (“j” in Bosnian is kind of like an English “y”) that are almost impossible for me to pronounce, as are the words with few or no vowels.  My friends Ivana explained to the American quartet that “lj” is like saying “l” without actually touching your tongue to your palate or teeth…what?!

            I get laughed at a lot.  I’m pretty outgoing about trying to speak Bosnian in public, much to the amusement of the people of Otes.  But, hey, it’s the only way I’m gonna learn, right?