More from Sarajevo

I am on a field visit, but this is far from a field trip that I am used to. No bumpy and dusty roads or no sleeping under a mosquito net in a sub-standard hotel. It is a country in a transition, but it is Europe after all.

The field office and the building that houses the office are lot more modern than where I work in Canada. It has very nice boutiques and a cafeteria downstairs. A wireless internet connection both at the hotel and the office make it easier to do work and stay in touch with people in Canada and Japan. The hotel even has an OK gym where I did some exercise last night.

The city is really beautiful with a mixture of different architecture styles. I am staying in the old part of the town filled with exotic stores selling silver jewelries, carpets and other crafts. I can see the influence of Turkish culture.

Over and above the beauty and charm of the city, what struck me the most was the legacy of the long history of war and conflict in the region. I see bullet marks on building all over the town. The hotel where I stay is around the corner from where the Austrian prince got assassinated that triggered the World War I.

I am usually a good traveler, and I get adapted to a new environment pretty quickly. However, this time around, I am having a bit of a hard time. I can’t sleep very well at night. It is not because of the local strong coffee. For the past two nights, I am having a bad nightmare that wakes me at night. I am tired and sleepy, but I feel scared of falling sleep. I get what we call in Japanese “Kanashibari”. I guess there is no equivalent in English, but it is a state where you can’t move your body. Some say it is because of a ghost or spirit, and others say it is just your brain playing a trick on you (sort of a more scientific explanation.) I am not really inclined to believe either one, but whenever this happens it is frightening. Especially, when I am in a foreign country and sleeping in the middle of what used to be a battlefield until quite recently. I am not sure if I am simply being too sensitive and imagining things. I am not superstitious normally, but I can’t help it this time….

Last night I had to scream in my dream, which I thought was a reality, to wake myself up. In my dream, I was lying on a bed in the hotel room, and I can see some images (one was a bicycle!) passing by. I could feel a heavy weight on my chest and my heart was pouncing. It feels like there is an invisible but enormous pressure on my body.

On more positive note, I am enjoying the stay in general. I love taking a walk in these little alleyways to window shop. I bought a pair of silver earring in a shape of a leaf yesterday. I have tried some regional specialties, such as cevapcici, a filo pastry cheese pie, nice chocolate and local cheese (a bit like feta cheese but less salty). The exchange rate to the local currency, KM is about $0.80 CAD, and generally things are cheaper here. For example, the gigantic cheese pie that I bought for dinner at a bakery cost me only 1.5MK, which is just above 1-dollar Canadian. I will do some more shopping before I move to Belgrade on Sunday.