Srce na Sarajevo (Heart of Sarajevo)

"All you need is an idea and hope".  This is what an old Bosnian lady named Aida told me as we visited a newly refurbished preschool in the small town of Olivo, which is about 50km from the capital of Bosnia and Herzergovina, Sarajevo.  Aida is part of a remarkable organisation comprised mostly of women from the small community, who are successfully running a range of economic and social programs including greenhouse co-operatives, preschools and community centres.  World Vision has been one of many partners with the group over the past 5 years, but it is the spirit and determination of the women that is most impressive.  

Refurbished preschool in Olivo

The vast majority of ladies in the group lost their husbands as well as other family members in the brutal war that took place in Bosnia and the Balkans through the mid 90's.  Towns such as Olivo were close to the front lines, and were virtually destroyed in the conflict, along with systematic ethnic cleansing and forced population movements.  Aida and her colleagues told me that after the war they had lost everything.  They had a choice to either grieve for the rest of their lives, or turn their pain into something good.  It was from these roots that their organisation of community volunteers was founded.  There was a remarkable spirit and resilience about these ladies, and I had to laugh when I asked how they had funded some of the other children's projects in the town.  Their answer was that they have had to be very resourceful, and that the occasional win at the local bingo draw has also helped!  


The beautiful forests and mountains surrounding Olivo hide one of the darker legacies of the Bosnian conflict.  More than 1 million landmines remain unexploded in the country, and vast areas of land and forests are still inaccessible as a result.  Tragically each year a number of people are still wounded or killed in landmine accidents, including many children.

Downtown market in Sarajevo

It's been a privilege to spend time in Bosnia this week, and to visit various World Vision field offices and programs. We've also spent time meeting with local and regional staff in Sarajevo.  Sarajevo is a different looking city from 10 years ago when Sarah and I were last here. Reconstruction has progressed, although the signs of the war are still apparent.  I have always been struck by the geographic beauty of the city, and it's location in a long valley surrounded by mountains.  This geographic setting also tragically also served as the amphitheatre for the siege of Sarajevo, which is the longest siege in modern warfare history, lasting for almost four years between 1992 and 1996.  Even today as you walk through the city, red paint on the sidewalks marks where many people were killed by snipers or shelling.  It is estimated that approx 400 shells were lobbed onto the city each day for 4 years from the surrounding mountains, with 3500 on one particular day in 1993.  It's hard to even begin to imagine the impact this would have on the thousands of children and families holed up in the city?  Casualties were very high, with estimates of more than 10,000 people killed during the siege, and more than 60,000 wounded (including atleast 15,000 children).

The infamous bridge in Sarajevo where Archduke
Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in 1914.
This event led to the outbreak of World War 1.

Whilst the Bosnian conflict ended 15 years ago, the country remains in a political, economic and social deadlock.  Some say 
that while the Dayton Agreement ended a war, it also made future development of the country virtually impossible.   The lines of the conflict remain frozen, and Bosnia essentially has two semi-autonomous ethnic regions present within: Replika Srpska and the Federation.  Parallel governments, parallel heath and education systems, and virtually parallel economies, both with very limited scope to expand.  
It is hard to comprehend the physical and psychological impacts of the Bosnian war, many of which are still evident today.  However groups such as Aida and her committed female colleagues in Olivo show that from brokenness, grief and despair can emerge a sense of hope and resilience.   


The music clip below is called Miss Sarajevo, and was a joint collaboration between U2 and Pavarotti.  It is based on a short film of a beauty pageant that was held in Sarajevo in the midst of the war in 1993.  The film captures the dark humour of a besieged population and their stubborn refusal to be demoralised through the conflict.  

Hills above Olivo.  Mosque and church in close proximity.

My AWESOME weekend!!!!! Written by Jessie

On the weekend we stayed at the Oscar Hotel Resort in Kyrenia which is in the north.  It was about half an hour to drive from the border.  The hotel had a casino on the bottom level.
We were going to be to split up into 2 different rooms, but luckily a very nice receptionist had a big room in mind that we were allowed to stay in altogether .................thank goodness!  So the room we were staying in was big & pretty.  We had dinner & breakfast in the restaurant, both meals were a buffet.

There was also a beach right behind the hotel & it had a PONTOON & we all jumped off it!!!!

Angus made a friend & I made a friend! Angus's friend's name is Kim & my friend's name is Eve they were both from Scotland & they both had a very big accent they & were brother & sister.

Finally there were 3 pools!!!! One of them was a wave pool, the other one was just a plain old boring rectangle shaped pool & finally the last pool had 2 water slides & one of them was blue & was very long, slow & twirly, the other one was pale yellow & went 10 times faster than the blue slide!!!

We all got a bit sunburnt & a couple of us got slide burns because of the bumps on the blue slide.
Monica came with us but she only stayed the day & we stayed the day & the night.

We all had a fabulous time!!!!

A hard week for Cyprus

You may have seen or heard on the news that there was a big explosion on island last Monday. A large Iranian arms shipment passing through Cypriot waters was impounded three years ago, and was stored on the island on a naval base beside a large power station.  Last Monday the arms and ammunition exploded after a small bushfire, causing extensive damage to island's main power station, killing 12 people and injuring many more.  The loss of the island's main power station at the peak of summer and tourist season is a major setback, and will create a huge burden on an economy that is already struggling in recession, along with the economic woes
of neighbouring Greece looming large.

BBC News - Cyprus protest over deadly blast at navy base

www.bbc.co.uk

Police fire tear gas as thousands of Greek Cypriots march on the presidential palace in protest at the deaths of 12 people in Monday's blast at a navy base.

Loss of the main power station also means that all Greek parts of the island have had to commence rolling power cuts and water restrictions (much of the island's water is provided via desalination).  This is likely to go on for a number of months due to the extent of the damage to the power station. 

Over the past three nights, there have been large protests at the President's palace in Nicosia.  People are demanding the President's resignation, as it is widely felt that the incident could have been prevented had basic precautions been followed.  It's been interesting to observe the reactions of our Cypriot colleagues.  There is a sense of anger and frustration with inept Government and bureaucracy, and I think also a sense of shame that a modern EU country would find itself in this situation.    

So now daily power outages are a reality, with a further potential for water cuts where water will only be available for 12hrs in 48.  The Government is currently working on short term options to increase electricity supply for basic demands.  This includes sourcing large generators from Israel and Greece.  Ironically there has also been an offer of additional power from the Turkish side of the island (which runs on a separate grid and generates it's own power). 

Large public funerals have been held over the past few days for those killed in the blast, with all flags at half mast and church bells ringing across the city. 

All in all a challenging week for Cyprus.

Betty Crocker in Dante's Inferno

An old photo of Beirut

I wish I could take credit for the title of this blog, but alas it’s a quote that I love from Thomas Friedman’s book ‘From Beirut to Jerusalem’.  The quote describes the general attitude and approach of the US Marines when they were engaged in the Lebanon civil war during the 1980’s and early 90’s.  At its height, the Lebanese civil war was about as complex and dark as a conflict can get, with more than 18 different factions all fighting each other, and huge loss of life on all sides.   The US Marines ended up leaving Lebanon with their tails well and truly between their legs, after paying dearly for their failure to understand the complexities of the conflict.  Likewise the many other armies who have arrived in Lebanon have all suffered similar indignity: the PLO, Israelis, Syrians, Saudis, French, Italians and even a small British contingent have all left Beirut hopeless, humiliated or ashamed.   

 

Downtown Beirut during the civil war

Lebanon is a country of remarkable contrast and complexity, where high street fashion and the latest European cars can co-exist with Palestinian refugee camps and small communities living in what are essentially third world conditions. 'Camps' is not the best way to describe the living situation for Palestinian refugees.  Rather the Palestinian communities are more like enclosed suburbs or ghettos, which were built by Palestinian refugees who were displaced when the modern state of Israel was declared in 1948.  Consequently, many of the current residents are third or fourth generation refugees.  Life in the Palestinian camps is extremely challenging, but poverty also has a very different face in Lebanon, with issues such as human and child trafficking, lack of rural and market infrastructure, and economic development being key challenges in many other parts of the country. There is also the ever present reality of future conflict, which appears to be an increasing likelihood with current internal and external dynamics.   

Some pictures inside one of the many Palestinian
refugee 'camps' in Lebanon

Note the improvised electrical wiring and water pipes

I've spent the last four days in Lebanon, and I've been reminded of the ironies and contrasts of Beirut, where people hold with open hands the concept of a stable and secure future, and live very much for the day.  There is a certain 'lightness of spirit', passion and spontaneous overwhelming hospitality that many Western cultures could only ever to aspire to.  But this also has a dark side, and when a community fractures or divides, the results can be catastrophic, as was the case in Lebanon throughout the civil war and more recently.  Many different groups, factions and militias remain active throughout the country, and there is a disturbing sense of a fuse waiting to be lit, should some of the current political dynamics continue to play out.   

I have to say that I love Beirut though.  In fact it's one of my favourite cities.  The so-called 'Paris of the Middle East' is framed by the magnificent Chouf Mountains and Mt Lebanon to the east.  Mediterranean beaches around the city right through to peaks higher than 3000m; a stunning physical setting.  The general spirit of the people is something to behold, and both Sarah and I have never experienced hospitality and openness like Lebanon anywhere else in the world.  The general flow and chaotic nature of the driving speaks volumes about the general attitude and approach to life in Lebanon.  On the roads, things flow and flex in a way that would never work in a western city, but somehow it works. Traffic lights are for decoration only, no roads have lanes marked, one-way streets become two-way, depending on where you need to go, and the way traffic flows through large roundabouts is something that defies any reason or logic.  On Thursday I saw a young lady having a driving lesson and had to laugh.  If she can learn to drive in Beirut, there is no other city on earth that would conquer her!

Looking down on Northern Israel, with the
Golan Heights in the background

On Friday we drove down to the south of Lebanon.  This is the so-called liberated zone that was left after the Israeli army withdrew in 2000.  The general economic and social situation in the south is difficult.  World Vision has three area development projects in the south, with a key focus on education, economic development and agriculture.   It was fascinating to visit some of the projects, learn more about the work and spend some time close to one of the most contentious borders in the world today between Lebanon and Israel.  The geography of the area is also spectacular.  High mountains in the region overlook the northern half of Israel, and the area is therefore highly strategic.  I can see why the Golan Heights has been fought over for so many years. 

I flew back from Beirut to Larnaca last night.  It's only a 20 minute flight, hence the reason why many Lebanese relocated to Cyprus during the years of the civil war. Clearing customs in Beirut, I was reminded once again of the 'Levantine spirit' when I queued to get my passport stamped.  I was struck by the security officers walking around in high heels, and the strong smell of perfume in the air.  Never before has my passport been stamped by someone who looked like they were on their way to a beauty pageant straight after work.......... such is life in Lebanon.

Maronite church and Hariri mosque in downtown Beirut

Siesta the Summer away....

After three weeks of Meaden & Bob being here, we're back to being just us.  I wasn't expecting to feel very emotional, bidding my parents goodbye at the airport, but I was.  Something about a) not seeing them for at least a year and b) the fact that they were headed for Australia...a place I still call home.  A fairly obvious sign of homesickness I'd say but hearing all about the chilly winter that is upon Oz at present helps my condition ENORMOUSLY.  Anyone hoping to escape the cold couldn't do better than visit the Mediterranean mid-year.  This place really sizzles.  You only have to witness my dry peeling skin and cracked lips to be persuaded.

Speaking of sizzling, we're headed for the beach tomorrow morning early.  It's a slight adjustment having to drive almost an hour to reach the ocean however that's just a spoilt Northern Beaches girl talking.  It's gorgeous when we get there; umbrellas and deck chairs abound, looking out on clear blue waters, limestone caves and white sand.  We are usually the most covered up of anyone there with our rash shirts & hats.  It makes me realize how Sun Smart us Aussies are these days.  I just cringe when I see people baking like lobsters in the middle of the day.


A couple of highlights from Mum & Dad's visit was seeing Romeo & Juliet played out at the ancient Kourion theatre.  Sitting outside on a summer evening overlooking the sea in the distance was just grand.

The amphitheatre at the Ancient Kourion site...

...Re-constructed after it was destroyed by
earthquakes in the 3rd Century A.D.

A few nights later we visited Bellapais; a tiny village in the north tucked into the side of the mountain range overlooking the sea.  Aside from beautiful narrow cobbled streets and enticing restaurants with expanding views, the main attraction is the 12th century old monastery still in reasonable condition.  A friend of ours was playing in a music eistedford that evening so we were able to walk around the abbey at sunset and then witness some beautiful music in the old chappel.

Bellapais Abbey

Jessie's friend Julia on the left and her older
sister Jessica preparing to play her violin.

Jessie & Angus have now done one week of their five week Summer School program.  They're loving the opportunity to do heaps of different activities and make a few new friends.  Sam & Anna stay home with me in the mornings which is a nice time to take it slowly or see friends who also have little ones.  Monica is around from about 7am so I get a chance to do some exercize most mornings after dropping the older kids off.  I have really enjoyed this aspect of having extra help at home....no massive logistics to get free time makes for a much happier Mummy.  Anna is totally comfortable with Monica and they have a great little friendship going (not least of which is Anna having Monica wrapped around her little finger).  It's something quite special to see somebody else love your children 'almost' as much as you do.  Sam calls Monica "Moneeka" and loves to play Magic Man with her. I think he holds a special place in her heart as Monica's own son back in Sri Lanka is almost the same age as Sam.  I find it so heartbreaking to think of her being away from her little boy in order to support her family.  And yet she is still so cheerful.  After Monica has had her day off on Sunday, we've all missed her smiling joyful presence, and are pleased to have her back (one day of washing & cleaning up is enough!).

Anna on constant repeat: "Monica.....Monica....Monica!"

In a few weeks time, we look forward to having 18yr old Charlotte stay with us for 3 days.  She was a big part of our lives back in Sydney, helping out with the kids after school & babysitting often.  I can't wait to hear of her overseas adventures and new life at university and, well, the kids can't wait to have her play and be a nice reminder of home.

Ross is off to Beirut for a few days this week.  I wonder what life would have been like living in Lebanon had we taken a possible job that arose around the same time?  No point in wondering 'what if', because Cyprus is where we are and it's a fantastic place to live in many respects.  Although missing friends and family heaps, I am certainly not unhappy here.  Some days I am not quite sure what I will do with my new found time here...but it would be good to come up with something before the new academic year starts in September.  Perhaps a course to stimulate my brain, or some part-time work to use my skills, maybe fire up a Resilience Doughnut craze, perhaps start learning a musical instrument, take a painting class or start drawing 'nudes' with charcoal....   Having 'choice' is quite a gift in this season of life and I am very thankful.  May the Lord guide me with vivid dreams in my siesta!

Taking a break from sight seeing

Anna and her shoe fettish...