#D8N2BiH2018 Continued...

Our experience continues here in Bosnia and Herzegovina as we enter the second (and sadly, final) week of the internship. The last few days have been full of fun and educational experiences!

Last Thursday we visited United World College Mostar, an awesome school located in the city center that is the first UWC in the Balkans and the only one with an explicit aim to contribute to the reconstruction of a post-conflict society. They're doing some amazing things and we were excited to learn about it!

On our way to the mall we had to stop by the Bruce Lee statue in the park for a quick picture. No one I've talked to so far is exactly sure why he's here, but I'm glad he is.

The park in the city center is beautiful.

The students had a relaxing afternoon and went to the Mepas Mall during the day for a bit of a break (and, of course, some shopping).

Next up we visited the American Corner again, where Inga Kotlo talked to us more about their mission and their work.

The American Corner (and others like it) is an extension of the US Embassy and provides many educational opportunities for students and adults alike. One of the students remarked after leaving that they were glad to see our tax dollars overseas going to such good use.

Our education continued in the evening as our friend Vesna Lovrić of Fortuna Tours showed us around the Stari Grad (Old City) and explained the local history and culture.

This building has a shady past... you'll have to come to Mostar to learn more!

Kayla did a good job remembering her Bosnian/Croatian words :)

The obligatory picture in front of Stari Most from the other side of the bridge :)

Vesna is a great tour guide, I would highly recommend using Fortunate Tours when you come to Mostar on your next trip!

The next day we were back at INTERA Technology Park for training. In the morning students worked on learning about SolidWorks and how to use it for programming. In the afternoon they visited AlfaTherm, a successful local company located in the same building as INTERA that specializes in thermal energy solutions.

The students visit AlfaTherm and learn about the work they do not just in BiH, but in surrounding countries as well.

The students in front of INTERA.

Mladen Kostić, Chief Technology Officer, shows students around the 3D printing and laser cutting machines.

The students also learned about the CNC machine that they have and the trainings they do, which would be the application for the SolidWorks programming they did in the morning.

Later in the evening we did some more exploring of the city, including climbing up into the tower of the Franciscan Church located in the center of town. It provides a beautiful panoramic view of the city.

The view from the top!

We had heard there was some artwork inside the monastery and asked about it. We were surprised that Father John, one of the monks who lives there, actually greeted us and took us on an impromptu personal tour of the monastery!

He and another monk showed us the library and some of the books they have that they are most proud of, including some dating back 1,000 years!

Fr. John also provided us with some history of the monastery, including a wall listing the Franciscan monks who died at the hands of Tito's partisans.

The tour guide then took us into the new chapel that's still under construction after it was destroyed during the last war. They are slowly rebuilding while they continue worshipping there. We had a chance to see many of the pictures of the previous church and learn about the last war through the eyes of the congregants.

That evening and the next day we had a chance for some more fun, including bowling, a piano concert, and a canoe safari at Adventure Trebižat, a local canoe company in Capljina (a nearby town) that provides an awesome canoing experience (and an amazing lunch!)

Griffin bowling a strike at the Mepas Mall's bowling alley during some downtime.

The beginning of our adventure as we traveled along the River Trebižat.

This was the first canoe experience I've had that included some rapids, and it was a lot of fun! Our guide was excellent and somehow managed to get us through each rapid without ever tipping our canoe... truly an accomplishment.

Afterwards we had one of the most delicious chicken meals (and they even made a delicious veggie side for us) under the shade of the trees.

On your next trip to BiH you have to visit Adventure Trebižat! The guides are excellent, the scenery is amazing, the water is crystal clear, and it was an awesome experience. They're also amazing cooks! Check them out on Facebook.

We ended the evening back in Stari Grad for dinner and some shopping. A good way to end the night!

Metal working goes back a long time here, and you can still see local craftsmen doing their thing in the shops along the main street through the city.

Sunday was our second visit to Sarajevo, our Sister City through the Dayton Sister City Committee. This year we began our trip by taking the train into town (highly recommend, although it leaves at 6:45AM!) From there we began the experience at the Sarajevo Tunnel Museum, which allows you to learn about how the citizens of Sarajevo survived by bringing in supplies through a tunnel that most people can't even stand up in.

Map depicting the situation that the citizens of Sarajevo found themselves in during the three years that their city was under seige.

The museum is at the entrance to the old tunnel, which was kept secret even by journalists during the war because they knew it was the only supply line into the city for its citizens.

They have renovated a part of the tunnel to allow visitors to walk through a small portion of the 3,000+ foot long tunnel, which ran underneath the airport. You have to duck the whole way because it's less than 5 feet high.

We saw many examples of the mortars that were launched into the city by those laying seige to the city. You can still find the marks left throughout the city.

A mockup of what was the typical living situation for people living through the seige. A small stove filled with anything one could find to burn and a small amount of rations were the norm.

After the tunnel museum we had to visit the start of WWI, which was the spot next to the Latin Bridge that Gavrilo Princip shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Up next we stopped at the Sebij Fountain in the Old City, where legend has it that if you drink from the fountain you'll return to the city. It's worked for me twice now!

After walking around a bit we visited Cjenovnik, a delicious Čevapčići restaurant recommended by locals.

So much čevapi... so good...

We stopped in the shops as well, including this one where they ground coffee the old fashioned way!

After walking for a bit we stopped at Markale Market, where we saw the spot where a mortar round struck, resulting in the death of over 60 people and prompting the US to become more actively engaged in resolving the conflict.

One of the mortar "roses" that have been filled in to memorialize the war.

The market is still bustling today, and it's a great place to get some fresh fruit and vegetables.

One of the cool things about the city is the dividing line between the "Old City" and the Austro-Hungarian influenced part of the city. You see a dramatic change in the buildings/architecture from the Ottoman influence of the 1400-1800s give way starkly to 19th century Austro-Hungarian buildings, which is pretty interesting.

Another stop we made was to the Galerija 11/7/95, which was the first museum dedicated to memorializing the genocide to open up in Sarajevo. Since the students do a poster project about genocide, the exhibit by the TRIO Sarajevo, a graphic design group that used their skills during the war to create posters that borrowed from popular culture in order to get peoples' attention around the world in the hope that world powers would do something to intervene in the war.

They have a number of documentaries showing, including one that chronicles the measures that the people of Sarajevo took to gain international attention with the aim of getting people to intervene. One even included a beauty pageant entitled "Miss Beseiged Sarajevo" in 1993 that sought to gain the world's attention.

We stopped by one of the many bridges on our way back to the train. We learned that this one was believed to have been designed by Eiffel (of tower fame)!

We ended our visit with a trip up to the Avaz Twist Tower, which provides an amazing view of the city.

Enjoying some sight seeing from the top.

Thankfully we had a beautiful/cool day, so the weather was perfect.

Afterwards we enjoyed some snacks at the cafe before heading back to Mostar. The students had to get some rest because Monday is the beginning of their embedded internship experiences! More to come...