Our 12th stop on our trip to meet our Spotters in 25 cities by Interrail: Sarejevo! Sarajevo is the only city on our trip we had not visited before, and it’s been high on my personal (very long) “cities I really need to visit” list, so I was very excited!
We stayed in Sarajevo for 3 nights, and had a fantastic time! We used the Sarajevo Spotted by Locals app to the max, and visited almost all the 85 spots our locals recommended…
Kino Bosnia
This place is truly one of the coolest spots I’ve ever visited and a great example of what Spotted by Locals is about for me: “off the radar” spots you would never find, or – if you were lucky enough to find it – go in, if a local didn’t recommend you to go here. Kino Bosna used to be a famous cinema, but after the war it was neglected. Ms Sena was the local hero who turned it into a lively bar frequented by the fun loving people of Sarajevo.
If you’re in Sarajevo on a Monday, as we were lucky to be, you really have to visit this spot! Live music, lots of cigarette smoke and friendly Bosnians who all seemed to know each other having a great time: I watched this spectacle for hours from my cinema chair with a big smile on my face and a Sarajevsko beer (excellent local beer) in my hand.
Avlija
Another one of these places in a street you would never expect to have a cool happening restaurant…Avlija has a nice courtyard, good wine, and excellent “Klepe” (traditional Bosnian “ravioli”).
Old Orthodox Church
The Old Orthodox Church is an oasis of calm, just 1 minute away from the madhouse of tour groups with loud speakers visiting the old town. And they serve wine in the garden!
The Brew Pub
The new place to be: a pub with home-brewed beers (and many good imported beers), just 10 minutes walk outside of the city center (so: no tourists). Big up to the gentleman who brews the excellent beer at The Brew Pub Sarajevo (my tip: APA) and also runs the bar!
The Spotters meeting was really special. We learned so much about this complicated country from our very kind and involved Bosnian Spotters, and the meeting lasted much much longer than scheduled… Unfortunately our Spotter Jasmin was on a business trip (but Ghent Spotter Nick who happened to be in town filled in for him!), but fortunately that gives us a good reason to come back again to this amazing city!
