Enjoy in paragliding at one of the most beautifull places in Balkans....

Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness suspended below a fabric wing comprising a large number of interconnected baffled cells. Wing shape is maintained by the suspension lines, the pressure of air entering vents in the front of the wing, and the aerodynamic forces of the air flowing over the outside.


The most beautiful paragliding terrain in Bosnia and Herzegovina is Bjelasnica mountain. It  is a mountain in central Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is found directly to the southwest of Sarajevo, bordering Mt. Igman. Bjelašnica's tallest peak, by which the whole mountain group got its name, rises to an elevation of 2067 meters (6782 feet). Other notable peaks are Krvavac (2061 m), Mali Vlahinja (2055 m), and Hranisava (1964 m). The Bjelašnica range is bordered by the Rakitnica in the south, the Neretva in the west, Mt Igman in the north-east and Mt Ivan in the north-west. Only at 20 minutes distance of Sarajevo, it is a popular tourist attraction for hiking and skiing.


There are several paragliding clubs in Bosnia which offer tandem flights, one of them is Extreme Sport Sarajevo

Main capital Sarajevo as seen from above

Sarajevo is even more spectacular from birds perspective and with first days of spring we went up into the clouds !!!

Funny Bosnia :)

90% OF BOSNIAKS LIVE IN STRESS AND WORRIES, OTHER 10 % LIVES IN GERMANY, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND,  USA........

BOSNIAKS ON CONCRETE MIXER - FIRST SIGNS OF SPRING IN SLOVENIA (Bosniaks are common sight on every construction sites out of  Bosnia, mainly working illegal)

Bosnian pyramids theory

In October of 2005, international media covered a sensational story of a man claiming to have discovered a group of huge, previously unknown ancient Pyramids in Europe. The man, Anthropologist Dr. Semir Osmanagic, made the fantastic announcement to journalists that he had found the biggest and oldest pyramids in the world and incredibly they were to be found buried in the most unlikely of places… Bosnia. The ancient structures, Osmanagic explained, were buried in the hillsides surrounding a small sleepy town called Visoko, located 25km North-West of the Bosnian Capital, Sarajevo. The town, now barely known for its once booming leather industry, would become the centre of a fierce international debate which, after eight years, continues on through to this day.

The Bosnian Pyramid of Sun, Moon and Dragon each have their four facets perfectly aligned towards the cardinal points, North, South, East and West. This orientation is a common property shared amongst many of the globes ancient Pyramids including the Pyramids of Egypt; Giza and those of China; Shaanxi Province (Photos 3&4). Unique however to the Visoko complex is the fact that the three main Pyramids each have one of their sides built into the landscape surrounding them, providing an “access plateau‟ to their peaks, which is unlike the common “free-standing” pyramid design seen elsewhere around the globe. Confirmation of the Bosnian Pyramids exactitude with geographic North has been obtained by both topographic mapping and satellite imagery. 

Osmanagić states that he has found tunnels, stone blocks and ancient mortar, which he has suggested once covered the Visočica structure. He opened excavations in 2006 which have reshaped the hill, making it look like a stepped pyramid.

As well as being aligned with the four cardinal points, the Pyramidal structures of Visoko also share alignments that are relative to each other . The first and most striking of the structural alignments present is the near perfect equilateral triangle formed between the peaks of the Sun, Moon and Dragon pyramids. Each side of this triangle is 2.2km in length (+/- 2%) and has three internal angles of 60°. Further, by producing a circumcircle around the equilateral triangle it encapsulates the peak of another topographic highpoint South-West from the Sun Pyramid.

In 2010, Physicist Slobodan Mizdrak detected an unusual electromagnetic phenomenon at two locations across the Bosnian Valley of the Pyramids. Using a scalar gauss meter to detect the presence of magnetic fields and to measure their strength, Mizdrak identified a 4.5m wide confined beam of electromagnetic energy emanating from the top of the Pyramid of the Sun and a similar, though smaller, beam at the top of the Tumulus of Vratnica. Mizdraks preliminary recordings of the electromagnetism indicated that the beams energy was stable and resonating at regular intervals of 4.2 KHz, up to a frequency of 28 KHz. The strength of the beam was measured as developing 30mV when the gauss meter was being held within the beam at a distance of 1m from the surface of the pyramids peak. The voltage was recorded as increasing by a factor of over 130 to 4V when the meter was held at 3m distance from the surface. Hertzian waves are known to dissipate energy as distance increases according to Maxwell’s equations. By the observations made by Mizdrak, that the energy increases with distance from source, it appears that the electromagnetic waveforms being generated and observed on the Pyramid of the Sun are non-Hertzian, longitudinal or “scalar‟ in nature.

The most remote village in Bosnia

Lukomir is a village in Bosnia and Herzegovina situated in the municipality of Konjic. Lukomir is the highest altitude and most remote village in the entire country.

At almost 1,500m, the village of Lukomir, with its unique stone homes with cherry-wood roof tiles, is the highest and most isolated village in the country. Indeed, access to the village is impossible from the first snows in December until late April and sometimes even later, except by skis or on foot. A newly constructed lodge is now complete to receive guests. From there, you can do some magnificent hiking in the area along the ridge of the Rakitnica Canyon, which drops 800m below. 

Lukomir is known for its traditional attire, and the women still wear the hand-knitted costumes that have been worn for centuries. A version of history of present-day Lukomir can trace much of their ancestry to the Podvelezje region of Herzegovina. These semi-nomadic tribes would come to Bjelasnica in the summer months because of the abundance of water. Podvelezje, a dry plateau above Mostar, could not provide the herds with enough water to sustain themselves over the summer months. For reasons not entirely known, many of the villagers from the Podvelezje region eventually made permanent settlements in the canyon and later in the place where it is now located.

Top tourism places

1.) BAŠČARŠIJA


The Old Town 'Bascarsija' may be hard to pronounce but it is certainly one of the most impressive and charming market centers in the country. Bascarsija has been a trading and meeting place since the 15th century as caravans from Asia minor, Dubrovnik and the west met here to trade their wares.

Gazi Husrev-Beg raises a madrassa, a library, a haniqah, the Gazi Husrev-Beg Hamam, the Gazi Husrev-Beg bezistan, the Morića Han, sahat-kula and other tourist attractions in Baščaršija. Gazi Husrev-Beg was buried in the harem of his mosque, beside the harem is the Türbe of his freed slave and the first mutevelija of his vakuf Murat-beg Tardić.

2.) MOSTAR

When the Stari most, or Old Bridge, collapsed from tank shelling in 1993 it was like the heart was ripped out of most Mostar natives. 

Even mentioning the bridge for years after it fell to the bottom of the Neretva River could invoke tears as it symbolized both the city and the country as a whole. Now, more than a decade later, the beautiful stone structure that had spanned the Neretva River for over four centuries once again arches across its raging waters. The bridge is Mostar's core and its reconstruction means that life is slowly but surely returning to normal in what is most certainly the most beautiful city in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

3.) JAHORINA MOUNTAIN

Jahorina is the mountain range to the southeast of Sarajevo. Its ideal geographical position more or less guarantees three to four months of good ski snow.

Its highest peak reaches 1,910m. The ski lifts climb to 1,894m with fabulous views towards Sarajevo. The slopes of Jahorina are covered in tall pines till about the 1,500m mark. 

From there the mountainside is relatively bare with some thick patches of klek, a high-altitude pine that doesn't grow higher than 2m.

4.) TRAVNIK

Travnik is situated in the valley of the Lasva River and bordered by Vlasic Mountain to the north and Mount Vilenica to the south. The early Slav settlers gave little evidence of their presence until 500 years after their arrival to the area around Travnik. 

The valley reappeared in 1244, in terms of primary historical records, when the Hungarian King Bela IV gave one of his notables a piece of land in Lasva. By that time, the area was a feudal estate of the Bosnian state. 

Although remains from these centuries do not show the wealth the valley had known in Roman times, the era did have its share of castles and mansions. The Travnik Fortress was the most impressive fortress at the time, and still stands out as the best preserved of them all. This era gave Travnik its name. 

5.) JAJCE AND PLIVA LAKE

Jajce has had more than its fair share of battles. The town changed hands several times before the independent Bosnian state was finally conquered when the Jajce fortress was the last one to fall to the Ottoman invaders in 1528. 

It seemed fitting after so many civilizations had settled and fought over this place that in 1943 the AVNOJ was signed and sealed here in one of the most historical moments of Bosnia's and Yugoslavia's history. 

I hope that these few among many other attractions waked up a wish to visit Bosnia even more ..... 

Bosnian cuisine

Bosnian cuisine is balanced between Western and Eastern influences. The food is closely related to Turkish, Middle Eastern, and other Mediterranean cuisines. However, due to years of Austrian rule, there are also many culinary influences from Central Europe.

Bosnian cuisine uses many spices, but usually in moderate quantities. Most dishes are light, as they are cooked in lots of water; the sauces are fully natural, consisting of little more than the natural juices of the vegetables in the dish. Typical ingredients include tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, bell peppers, cucumbers, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, spinach, courgette, dried and fresh beans, plums, milk, paprika and cream called pavlaka and kajmak. Typical meat dishes include primarily beef and lamb. Some local specialties are ćevapi, burek, dolma, sarma, pilav (pilaf), gulaš (goulash), ajvar and a whole range of Eastern sweets. The best local wines come from Herzegovina where the climate is suitable for growing grapes. Plum or apple rakija, is produced in Bosnia.



Ćevapi – Bosnian kebabs: small grilled meat sausages made of lamb and beef mix; served with onions, sour cream, ajvar and Bosnian pita bread (somun)

Čevapi.....

Pljeskavica - a patty dish
Begova Čorba (Bey's Stew) – a popular Bosnian soup (chorba) made of meat and vegetables
Filovane paprike or punjena paprika – fried bell peppers stuffed with minced meat
Sogan-dolma – onions stuffed with minced meat
Popara – bread soaked in boiling milk or water and spread with kajmak
Ćufte – meatballs
Meat under sač (meso ispod sača) – a traditional way of cooking lamb, veal, or goat under a metal, ceramic, or earthenware lid on which hot coals and ashes are heaped
Pilav (pilaf) - grain, such as rice or cracked wheat, browned in oil, and then cooked in a seasoned broth
Burek – a meat-filled flaky pastry, traditionally rolled in a spiral and cut into sections for serving. The same dish filled with cottage cheese is called sirnica, one with spinach and cheese zeljanica, and one with potatoes krompiruša. All these varieties are generically referred to as pita (Bosnian for "pie").
Sarma – meat and rice rolled in pickled cabbage leaves
Grah – a traditional bean stew with meat
Japrak – grape leaves stuffed with meat and rice
Musaka – a baked dish made of layers of potatoes (or cabbage or egg plant)and minced beef
Bosanski Lonac – Bosnian meat stew cooked over an open fire
Tarhana - typical Bosnian soup with homemade pasta
Sudžuk - (Sujuk) – spicy beef sausage
Suho meso – air-dried meat similar to Italian bresaola

Dolma - stuffed grape leaves with rice

Livno cheese (Livanjski sir) - a dry yellow cheese from the west Bosnian town of Livno and surrounding villages
Tešanjski– made from the nettle and milk, originates in the Tešanj district in northern central Bosnia and Herzegovina
Travnički – a white feta-like cheese from the Travnik district in central Bosnia and Herzegovina
Vlašićki – a highland cheese similar in its salty taste to Travnički, originates in the villages on Vlašić Mountain in central Bosnia and Herzegovina
Kajmak - a Turkish creamy dairy product, similar to clotted cream

Pavlaka - a soured cream product like crème fraîche


Baklava – flaky pastry with a filling of nuts, drenched in sugar syrup or honey
Gurabija
Halva
Hurmašica – date-shaped pastry drenched in a sweet syrup
Jabukovača – pastry made of filo dough stuffed with apples
Kadaif
Kompot – a cold sweet drink made of cooked fruit
Krofna - filled doughnut
Krempita
Oblande
Orasnica - walnut cookie
Palačinka (crêpe)
Pekmez
Rahatluk – lokum (Turkish Delight)
Ružica – similar to baklava, but baked in a small roll with raisins
Ruske Kape (trans. Russian Caps, plural)
Šampita - a whipped marshmallow-type dessert with fillo dough crust
Slatko (made from different fruits)
Sutlijaš (rice pudding)
Tufahija – whole stewed apple stuffed with a walnut filling

Tulumba - deep-fried dough sweetened with syrup

10 facts about Bosnia....

1. It has a currency that can’t be exchanged anywhere else in the world.

The Bosnian Convertible Mark (BAM) can’t be bought outside the country. So when you arrive you exchange your existing currency or withdraw from the ATM (the hole in the wall). On leaving, its exchange back again or the only use is as an expensive souvenir when you get “back home”. Guests, friends and relatives find this very hard to understand. I somehow think that the Germans love having left their “Mark” here? 

2. There are three official languages which are all really the same.

Before the terrible conflicts of the 1990’s the language here was known as Serbo-Croatian (with dialects). Today that same language is now either Serbian, Croatian or Bosnian (dependant on your ethnic background). It can be a bit of a minefield (excuse the pun) and can cause stress sometimes, but as a foreigner, all you are told if a perceived mistake is made is “don’t worry, its the same language, we all understand each other`’. Proof of the pudding is that the same health warning appears three times on the same cigarette pack!

3. it has the last remaining jungle in Europe at Perućica.

It may not be huge being some 6 kilometres long and 1–3 kilometres wide, but with an area of 1,400 hectares, the Perućica forest has many trees that are 300 years old, and the forest's vintage is stated to be 20,000 years. In some places the forest growth is almost impregnable. I don’t need to go to Borneo for the full jungle experience :)

4. Most people live off the black economy.

It’s so hard for me at times to still get used to the “cash culture” that is BiH. Yes there are credit and debit cards, but all good deals are done with cash. right? People here still are wary of putting all their money in banks, seeing most banks were destroyed in the conflicts and they lost everything. No bank anymore? Then no one to give your money back :( 

The people of BiH take the “how much for cash” mantra to a whole new level. For those who know the british TV comedy series “Only Fools and Horses”, well that’s how the people of BiH see good business practices. So much so that the show is still the most watched on local TV and the constant repeats are still enjoyed.

5. People drink hard liquor (Rakija) to start the day.

Although this is a rather large generalisation, the culture, particularly the rural areas, is still one of “Rakija (plum brandy) delivers health benefits”.

Rakija is also offered, with no consideration for time of day, to guests and visitors etc. To prove the point, I attended a high level meeting years ago, at around 10 in the morning, when a bottle was opened and we sat drinking during the meeting until midday. Weird. And people drove afterwards too !!

6. Births and Weddings are still celebrated with “celebratory gunfire”.

Weddings here are a BIG thing and I mean BIG. Huge convoys of cars with flags everywhere, blocking routes to the church and afterwards to the reception. Sometimes in excess of 500 people attend these. Although diminishing, the firing of AK-47 automatic rifles and other weapons in the air prior to and after the event, still is common place especially in rural areas. It seems that the logic of what goes up must come down is lost on everyone. Oh and to have given birth to a baby boy? Don’t think of how much ammunition might be required.

7. Smoking is almost an Olympic sport.

Laws are slowly coming into effect regarding smoking in public places but old habits die hard as they say and thats so true here. Smokers here SMOKE. I mean SMOKE! Like chain SMOKE. Cigarettes are still reasonably cheap, even by local standards. I swear that if smoking were an Olympic sport BiH could hold its own, even winning against competition from Russia!!!!!

8. Bribing officials is the rule not the exception.

if you want/need something baldy you can always give someone a little cash to ease the way so to speak (police, officials , doctors, lawyers etc). This system works though and everyone seems more or less happy with it. 

9. Bosnia and Herzegovina might have a Pyramid.

Sounds weird I know, but certain archaeologists are claiming (and have been since 2008) that near Sarajevo there lies the “Pyramid of the Sun”.

To be honest I am totally lost on this. To me, the top of the hill in question has just got a point, but then again …..

10. And finally, the country still has some 200,000 mines to clear.

Not so much a crazy fact as a sad one. Having said that the country is safe to travel around as long as common sense prevails and local rules obeyed.

That’s my Top 10, from a country I actually love living in. Diverse, Quirky, Dysfunctional. Hospitable and above all FUN. 

Please drop by for some Rakija?

A few words about Bosnia......

Sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina, abbreviated BiH, and in short often known informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeastern Europe located on the Balkan Peninsula. Sarajevo is the capital and largest city.Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for 20 kilometres (12 miles) of coastline on the Adriatic Sea surrounding the city of Neum. In the central and eastern interior of the country the geography is mountainous, in the northwest it is moderately hilly, and the northeast is predominantly flatland. The inland is a geographically larger region and has a moderate continental climate, bookended by hot summers and cold and snowy winters. The southern tip of the country has a Mediterranean climate and plain topography.

This craggily beautiful land retains some lingering scars from the heartbreaking civil war in the 1990s. But today visitors will more likely remember Bosnia and Hercegovina (BiH) for its deep, unassuming human warmth and for the intriguing East-meets-West atmosphere born of fascinatingly blended Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian histories.

Major drawcards are the reincarnated antique centres of Sarajevo and Mostar, where rebuilt historical buildings counterpoint fashionable bars and wi-fi–equipped cafes. Elsewhere Socialist-era architectural monstrosities are surprisingly rare blots on predominantly rural landscapes. Many Bosnian towns are lovably small, wrapped around medieval castles and surrounded by mountain ridges or cascading river canyons. Few places in Europe offer better rafting or such accessible, inexpensive skiing.

                        OLD BRIDGE IN MOSTAR


The name "Bosnia" is derived from the Bosna River, which cuts through the region. Herzegovina takes its name from the word herceg, which designated the duke who ruled the southern part of the region until the Ottoman invasion in the fifteenth century. The two regions are culturally indistinguishable and for much of their history have been united under one government. Although cultural variations in Bosnia and Herzegovina are minimal, cultural identity is currently extremely divisive. The three main groups are Muslims (Bosniacs), Serbs, and Croats. Before the recent civil war, many areas of the country had mixed populations; now the population has become much more homogeneous in most regions.

BASCARSIJA IN SARAJEVO

AN OLD BRIDGE ON RIVER NERETVA