Burford's World

British #Travel and #ScienceFiction writer, 30 years on the road. Advice, photos, irreverent observations and news about Rewind - my new #SciFi epic.

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

(3/3) The Razvitak department store, dark, crumbling and empty, stands as a poignant reminder of what was lost all those years ago, when the bombs fell.
#Travel #Mostar #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

(2/3) …but in intricate carved concrete slabs depicting surreal misshapen people with huge hands and feet along with horses, antelopes and other assorted animals. The effect is like the hieroglyphics on the walls of the great pyramids, and draws the attention.
#Mostar #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

As you head into the old city, you pass the Razvitak department store, one of the finest examples of this you will encounter - now cordoned off and boarded up, this magnificent building is unique in that its facade is clad not in modern brickwork or aluminium panels but (1/3)

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In many places, the cordoned off remains seem reminiscent of some of the monasteries destroyed in England during Henry VIII’s mad rant at the church, and this can cause you to momentarily forget which part of the city you’re actually in.
#Travel #Mostar #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

The irony, however, is that much of the new city was destroyed in the war and that many of the buildings now stand derelict or in imminent danger of collapse, surrounded by high fences and warning signs.
#Travel #Bosnia #TravelBlogger

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Brochures, when they could be bothered to feature #Bosnia at all, tend to concentrate on the romanticism of the old town, so try not to be too surprised when you find that #Mostar has developed outward somewhat since the middle ages, though!
#Travel #TravelPhotography #Europe

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

Almost every image you find of #Mostar proudly depicts either Stari Most - the old bridge - or the streets of the old town bustling with life and filled with exotic bazaars and lively street pedlars.
#Travel #Photography #Bosnia

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Mostar’s claim to fame is that it has quickly become one of the more popular destinations on the #Bosnia #tourist trail, due not only to its proximity to #Croatia but also to the picture postcard image of narrow cobbled streets, beautiful bridges and Mosques which it conjures.

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

Mostar boasts a population of a little over 126,000, making it the fifth largest city in the country. This is a little misleading, because only Sarajevo and Banja Luka, however, have populations above 200,000 - so nowhere here is exactly overflowing with people.
#Travel #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

It’s not just women, either - even male tour guides seem to resemble, well, insert the name of your favourite male movie star here. The women in the group, on this occasion, spent most of their time glaring at their husbands while deciding how hard to kick them in the nuts later.

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

My guide in Mostar has been one of those supermodels I was telling you about back in Croatia - the ones who seem to make up at least 50 percent of the population of Eastern Europe and serve mainly to ensure that all visitors feel immediately inferior upon arrival!
#Travel #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

A Bosniak, on the other hand, is a native of the country. The best way to think of this is to consider the various ethnic groups living in the UK - most are British, but of differing ethnic backgrounds. In #Bosnia, they have a different word to distinguish one from the other.

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If you don’t want to offend anyone, however, it really is quite a good idea to know the difference. Technically, a Bosnian is anybody living within the country of Bosnia and Herzogovina, regardless of whether they are Bosniak, Croat, Serb or Martian.
#TravelTips #Bosnia

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

The population of #Bosnia is mainly comprised of three ethnic groups - Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs. You may be wondering why I called the people of Bosnia Bosniaks rather than Bosnians - and since my spelling checker chooses not to acknowledge the former, you wouldn’t be alone.

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To paraphrase the late great Douglas Adams, this must be some strange new meaning of the word “peace” that I wasn’t previously aware of.

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It continues to fascinate me, however, that people calling themselves peace officers always seem to have a curious habit of going everywhere with huge machine guns strapped to their backs while telling everyone around them what to do.

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To be honest, I’m not altogether sure just how much peacekeeping is still required in Bosnia thirty years on, but then I also have to confess that neither the UN nor the EU have ever personally invited me to any of their meetings, so what do I know?
#Travel #BosniaandHerzegovina

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Up until 2004, NATO still maintained a large force within the country before finally handing authority over to the EU who proceeded to send in 7000 troops in their first real attempt at establishing a military of their own.
#Travel #Bosnia #History

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

One of the things which truly astonishes me about Bosnia is that, even nearly twenty years after the war, there are still parts of the country which are not technically governed by their own central government, being presided over instead by external peacekeeping forces.
#Travel

[Burford's World @BurfordsWorld]

Of course, please bear in mind that I’m just passing on information here, so feel free to do your own research rather than simply getting involved in my hearsay - or heresy, if my spelling checker has anything to do with it.
#Travel #Bosnia