Gallery – SteveWhittythoughts1965

January 7, 2014January 7, 2014

Day 11, 18 September – Everything Comes Together

This morning the weather looked more promising, time to explore Sarajevo properly. After a good breakfast in the hostel I made my way towards the historic centre.

My first stop was the Gallery 11/07/95. It is dedicated to Sebrenica massacre. I found this to me moving. The gallery tells the story of the events leading up to the massacre and why it happened. Watching the film I ended up feeling ashamed that the Western powers did not do more to stop this. It was clear what the Serbs wanted to do. Mladic even said that the Muslims were going to pay. The most heartbeaking moment was the scene where a woman was told that they were 99.994% sure they had found her husband's remains. A Japanese girl who was also watching just broke down in tears.

Moving on to the Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque I needed to reflect on what I had seen. I could do with cheering up. At this point I bumped into Timo and Ahmed who I had met in Mostar. Ahmed is a bit of a legend as he had jumped the bridge in Mostar. He mentioned that others from the hostel had made their way to Sarajevo. Feeling somewhat better I decided to explore the city further by walking round in a circuit. I was not paying too much attention on where I was going. I was just happy to be ambling around.

Yesterday the bad weather had prevented me from joining the free walking tour. As the weather was better I thought I'd best check it out. As usual I was there too early but I did not mind. While waiting I saw a couple of familar looking figures. It was the German couple from Mostar. They introduced me to Ryan from Northern Ireland. While waiting more familar faces appeared. These were the girls from Ireland. We caught up with each other while we were on the tour. One of the girls had received some good about passing her law exams. So a night out was agreed.

Back at the hostel I bumped into another person I met in Mostar. She was from Korea. Today was getting better. While waiting to leave the hostel we starting talking to a couple of guys from France. We were getting on well and they started to share the red wine with us. It went down well so we asked them to join us on the night out and they accepted.

We all met up at the girl's hostel. It had a bar which we could use. Sadly, it had ran out of beer so we ended up drinking white wine and rakia. I am sure that this is not going to do me any good at all.

We made our way to the Hacienda Bar where we met up with Timo and Ahmed. It was too crowded so we went to the Blues Bar. This was more like it. Live music and a great atmosphere, what more could a man ask for in life? Drank too much and after a bite to eat staggered back to the hostel.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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November 26, 2013November 26, 2013

Balkans Day 7, 14 September – Time To Think About Pastures New

I decided that I should purchase my coach ticket to Mostar. It was going to be an early start tomorrow so it was best to prepare. It was another scorching day so it gave me the perfect excuse to walk into town.

What I like about Dubrovnik is the quietness. There was hardly a soul about but it did not bothered me. The walk to the coach station took me past the cruise ship port. Until you see one for real you do not realise the size of them. It is the cruise ships that keep Dubrovnik going.

I purchased my coach ticket to Mostar and made my way back to the hostel. I wanted to avoid the old town on Saturday afternoon. It was full of the cruise ship crowd. So I decided to venture out of town in the other direction. Again I was away from the crowds. This was going to be a quiet day. Tomorrow was going to be an early start. It felt good to be away from the bustle of the old town. The further I walked the quieter everything became. This was the first time in a week that I could gather my thoughts.

Eventually I turned back and returned to the old town. As it was quieter than first thought I decided to take in some of the sights. Firstly I went inside an art gallery and museum. The gallery was nothing spectacular. Dedicated to a local artist it was more of a shop than gallery. More interesting was the exhibition that was dedicated to replicas of documents charting the history of Dubrovnik.

Next up was War Photo Limted. It was a photography exhibition. Not just dedicated to the conflict of 20 years ago, there were also photos from conflicts in Africa and Asia. It was thought provoking and it was the first time that I had been reminded of the conflict.

My final museum was the Memorial Room of the Defenders of Dubrovnik. While it was small I found it to be moving and humbling. I saw photos of those who died while defending the city. While reading the signs it became clear from the language used that it will take a long time before there will be any forgiveness.

Looking at the photos of the city after the siege and then walking out into the plaza you would not be able to tell that anything happened. This maybe the biggest tribute I can give the city.

As the sun started to go down I made my way up to the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola. As I climbed the steps I could hear the sound of bagpipes. They get everywhere. As I reached the top I could see a wedding party coming out of the church. The men looked stylish and the women beautiful, not that I know anything about fashion. As I made my way back down I could hear singing and music. More guests were arriving for the celebrations. It was a beautiful sight to see. It is not something I would see in the UK. This is why I travel. Tomorrow Mostar beckons.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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July 21, 2013July 21, 2013

London Walks – Spitalfields

This post is another based on the City Walks series by Craig Taylor. This walk took me around Spitalfields in the East End.

The walk started from Liverpool Street station. This was convenient as my previous walk from Old Street had finished there. Making my way up Bishopsgate I soon found my way up to Spital Square. From there I turned into Felgate Street and then into Commercial Street. I stopped to look inside Spitalfields. This is one of the oldest markets in London. It is very popular at weekends. There are plenty of traders selling all sorts of goods ranging from clothing to furniture. It is also a good place to come and have a spot to eat. Like a lot of markets in London you can eat the world.

Once out of the market you go past 'The Ten Bells' pub. You are now in Jack the Ripper terrority as two of his victims spent their last hours drinking in the pub. Turning left and then another right at Princelet Street I found myself in Brick Lane.

Historically Brick Lane has been home to immigrants who arrived into London. Particularly the Huguenots, Jewish and Bangladeshi communities. This is reflected with the amount of curry houses to be found here. On a previous visit I eat at the City Spice restaurant. It was delicious and you are spoilt for choice. I would also recommend a visit to the Beigel Bake. Open 24 hours a day it offers the best bagels that I ever eaten. The queues would back me up on that. Again being the weekend Brick Lane was packed with visitors enjoying the food stores and market traders. One tip I would have for you, make sure you have enough cash on you as I could not see many ATM's and the one I saw charged for using it. Also I found that the food on Brick Lane was more expensive that at Spitalfields market.

I carried up Brick Lane until I reached Osborn Street. Turning left took me into Whitechapel High Street and the Whitechapel Gallery. This is home to displays of modern art. Sadly, my visit coincided with work being done while they install new exhibits. Still it was free and I was grateful to get out of the hot sun for 30 minutes.

After leaving the gallery I turned into Gunthorpe Street. Another right turn took me into Middlesex Street. This is home to Petticoat Market. I would have say it was packed with shoppers looking for a bargain. Progress was slow and I would say be mindful of your belongings. Once out of Middlesex Street I was back on Bishopsgate and the walk finished back at Liverpool Street Station.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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May 22, 2013

Photo of the Week – After George Stubbs by Raqib Shaw

This weeks photo is of a painting by Raqib Shaw called 'After George Stubbs “Cheetah and Stag with Two Indians.”'

Shaw was a fan of Stubbs painting “Cheetah and Stag with Two Indians.” Sadly, this photo cannot show the ornate magnificence of the painting. It is on display at the Manchester Art Gallery until 26 May along with other works by Shaw. They are worth viewing.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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