Jaunt in nothern Bosnia

Also on the list of places to go in BiH was Banja Luka, in the Serb controlled part of Bosnia. For those of you that don't know, former Yugoslavia continues to splinter. If it's not Montenegro or Kosovo declaring independence from an already thin Serbia (not to mention Vojvodina, the Hungarian part in the North), Bosnia (while still one country) has been split into the Federation—Croat & Muslim Bosniak—and the Republic of Srbska. Two very different structures of government prevail, causing confusion beyond belief.

BL is not a place I really enjoy, truth be told, but I was able to enjoy myself visiting our partner. I stayed in a hotel that used Swiss Air Timetable Booklet as decoration, but it was my own fault, because I had asked my contact not to book me at the hotel that I stayed at last time—the ALL red hotel. But this hotel turned out to be ALL pink. I guess they go for dramatic colors & consistency. Nonetheless, it was nice enough and I slept just fine. I also had good food in BL, that is, fresh produce, like an arugula salad!! (My friend didn't know what arugula was, but I was excited to eat it!)

Serbia & Bosnia are fascinating. I learned a lot more of the controversy behind Kosovo's independence that has really made me think. Why has the US supported Kosovo and not Kurdistan? Kurds arguably suffered much more at the hands of S.H. than Kosovar Albanians did. Other areas are agitating for independence—why Kosovo? The more I learn about what Croats did to Bosniaks, what Bosniaks did to Serbs, and all combinations above, there were truly no innocent parties. Not to say Kosovo doesn't deserve independence, but it was nice to hear a few more perspectives (and something other than the response that Kosovo is the heart of Serbia and therefore can't leave!). I've also heard that the way Kosovo will survive will be on EU subsidies--that the infrastructure is not there and there is not much in terms of economy. Note all of these things were told to me by supporters of Kosovo's independence.

Now I'm off to Ukraine, a country I follow a few days after my president. Hopefully the protesters have left. Or not, making for a more interesting ride!