Peace Playground Project::::Sarajevo Travelogue::::

Day One

We bring you the first installment of our journeys in Sarajevo. After arriving three hours early to JFK, and encountering no problems with tickets or weapons (Adam remembered to leave his Exacto knife at home,and Renee passed the explosives test), we quickly fell to playing cards.

Alongside tuna sandwiches and a Caesar salad at the Brooklyn Brew Garden, we were soon involved in a battle of Rummy.

The game continued on the plane, and was left with Adam in the lead, with Renee and Margaret neck and neck for second. We arrived in Munich half an hour early, and left half an hour late - spent the time futilely on the Sunday Times crossword puzzle.

Flying into Sarajevo, we didn't know what to expect. Lyle had suggested taking a cab to the Youth House, if we were not too fatigued. Renee and I knew that last time we were met by an unexpected greeting party - signs, bus and all. Could we expect anyone this time? We walked through the mothers with flowers, and drivers with signs, and at first recognized no one. All of a sudden we were being lead to a car by two Bosnian men into the parking lot. None other than Eddie the psychologist, and his "English-speaking" friend.

That was all of 30 minutes ago, and now we sit in the Computer Cafe at the Youth House, while Lyle gives a weary architect the grand tour. There will be no update tomorrow (the Youth house is closed on Sundays), but read on for daily updates.

So, on this first day, we ended up going back to the Youth House in the evening for a professional puppet show. The show was in Bosnian, but we were kept entertained by the imagery and movement. The set was simply three scarf-like banners readjusted for each scene.

The Youth House was buzzing with exictement. We met Ahmed, Muhamed, and Muhidin there, along with Emina (Nadja´s little sister) who goes to First Bosniak as well. They took us out to Kroki (sp?) for drinks. We also ran into Lejla (the one who Anna stayed with) on the street, and told her that we planned to meet on Sunday with everyone. We also called Selma (who Rosa and I stayed with) and let her know about the meeting. Jasna got a group of kids from the Youth House together to come to our meeting.

Day Two

Everyone met at Hotel Emona at noon and we announced the reasons for our visit and showed them all the schemetic that Adam had so beautifully drawn.

We were all excited to see each other again. We took everyone out to lunch for èevapi. They let us pay! Adila and Selma had to leave to study but the rest of the kids came with us to see the outdoor chess, the synogogue, and finally the cathedral where Adam met a friend of a friend who works for the UN. We all ended up back at Kroki. We also met up with the Psychiatrist, his girlfriend , and Admir. They took us for tea and cake. We left to go meet the kids at Kroki (again).

Day Three

We went to the middle school in the morning. There wasn't a very structured program there, but it went well because we got to speak with the Director, and the woodshop teachers about the chess pieces. The big pieces may be too heavy if made out of wood, but the smaller ones should be possible. Things got moving on that, and Muhamed, Ahmed, and Muhidin are all on the Youth Advisory Board and the subcommittee for chess, and will be following it up.

We had the afternoon free, and caught up on the sleep we lost Sunday night to the Rumy game. We had a meeting at the Youth House in the evening with all the kids we could round up from the different schools. Aida was there, as well as Haris, Jasna, and Lyle. Adam presented the drawings, and then we split up (adults, and students).

We kids established a Youth Advisory Board, and reviewed the three subcommittees that would need to be formed (Chess, Murals, and Website) to work on the initiatives that have just begun.

Day Four

First Bosniak HS in the morning, Youth House in the evening, and now we're off to Slogger (sp?). We are due to meet Selma and Selma in 20 mins and will be late - must run, will try to write more tonight from the hotel, and if not, we'll be home tomorrow.

back at the hotel, 1AM --

So our visit to the High School was nice. We ate pie first thing in the morning, and then visited with the Director. We also got to attend a fourth year (like our senior year) English class. Adila's sister was the teacher, and it was a discussion class. They were talking about body piercings, and tatoos. It was the first time we saw Nadja.

Our meeting tonight was much more in depth. We got down to the nitty gritty of what has to happen next, and who is in charge of what. We split up into the three committees, and came up with a list of goals for each group. The notes on this should be sent in form the committees, and posted on the site. Although we were all a little antsy by the end of the meeting, it went well. We feel like we can count on everyone to follow through on these projects. Even though there may be bumps in the road, we hope to be in much better contact now, and able to help each other out.

We're all very excited!

Slogger was fun also. It was Yugo Rock night, and they had a live band. We sat downstairs this time, and it was packed. The band was great, and took suggestions (although they only played local music). Everyone knew all the words, and was singing and dancing. The frontman put on a great show. We said goodbye to Selma and Selma at the show, and were left sad, and already missing everyone! We'll be home soon, and we' tell all the stories, and all the details, and all the developments.

--Renee, Margaret, & Adam