I’m back in Sarajevo.
It’s ISP month which means its our four week period of independent research. We were given the option of studying in Bosnia, Kosovo or Serbia and I found myself pulled back to the city in the mountains.
When I packed my bags to leave Belgrade I cried, torn at leaving my home stay family and the friends I made. I cried knowing that my life in the Balkans was coming to a close. I know in my heart of hearts that if I could extend this stay by a year or even two or three, I would gladly nestle into this life and live here happily.
I find myself half in love with Belgrade, with the speeding cars and noisy honking and thundering trolleys. I love running for the tram and losing myself in Republic Square, for finding small cafes up winding staircases and walking along the Danube river.
So it was with a heavy heart I left Belgrade and once again found myself along the winding road to Sarajevo.
Night falls faster now, the sky already a dark shade by four pm and this time I saw nothing but stars and headlights on the way there. Four others came with me and we stuffed ourselves into a small white van with three strangers. I shared a seat with a woman I didn’t know and we shared chocolate marshmallows.
I think a lot of the strangers I’ve met so far- the women in the green markets that tell me to buy a hat to protect myself more from the cold- the pedestrians that chuckle when I ask them directions in my broken Serbo-croatian. I think that four months is nowhere near long enough to spend in any place.