Bosnia Blog-Wed., 9/16/09, 10:30 p.m.
This morning started with a wonderful breakfast of fresh baked rolls, cheese and tomatoes from Remza’s greenhouse. They are somewhat like our Heirloom tomatoes….sweet, tasty…perfect! We have enough for breakfast every day.
We drove to Sokolac this morning and met with Father Milorad, of Project “Christian Commitment” @ the Orthodox Church, who is highly respected among the community.
He told us that people had a great life in the former Yugoslavia….they had the sea, the mountains, they had everything. Now they have nothing and therefore they have no hope. Life used to be such that if you got a job, you were given an apartment. Inter-marriage was okay…even good. What was once normal – a job, home, culture, art – is now rare. The people live as intergenerational families because they can’t support themselves. People never had to think much about quality of life….they just “had” it. Now the younger generation is learning that is a 41 % unemployment rate in the country. Father Milorad has broken down barriers and bridged the gap for these people and they are very thankful for his work. 
We spent the afternoon at Project ADP Krivaja at an association of support for disabled persons. The work being done in this project was very inspiring. We met Milimirka, a 19 year-old woman who works in the copy shop on the ground floor of the building. She is so thankful to be working and contributing to her community. Her favorite thing about her job is simply that she is employed….that she receives a salary, pension and health insurance. She works 5 days a week in the copy shop and then on the weekends she helps with art workshops for kids. She went to a special high school for disabled persons and received a diploma. During school she worked at the project and is now successfully employed.
Elena is one of the members of the project who does handi-work. She and a team of women were knitting sweaters, blankets and miscellaneous items for a period of 4-5 years. They were then taken to the US and sold by a woman who eventually became ill and is no longer able to sell them. She cannot sell her goods in any other country because getting the goods to other countries is cost-prohibitive. It comes down to getting VISA’s and money for transportation. This is a worldwide problem…creative women who are stuck with no means of selling their goods. Elena loved modeling for us many of the sweaters she has made. She was quite entertaining!
This evening we walked to Old Town Sarajevo for dinner. We found a restaurant with tables on the sidewalk and we (well, Jeanie and I) ordered a traditional Bosnian dish called Cevapcici, pronounced “CheVAPchichi”. It was wonderful and everyone else MISSED OUT!!! The dish is made of grilled minced meat (beef and lamb) hand-mixed and formed with a funnel. They are served in flatbread or somun with chopped onions and cheese similar to ricotta. Ohhhhh…..were they good!
We also had tomatoes, a delicacy here that we’ve enjoyed with every meal. Angela introduced us to a beverage that is not available in California called Bitter Lemon. It is a bit like carbonated lemonade and is very tart…not very sweet. We’re all hooked!
No comments:
Post a Comment