July 6th

Today we had a lecture back at the Belgrade Lady from Mladen, who had been given the daunting task of catching us all up on the history of the Balkans, beginning in pre-Roman times and ending for today just before World War I.  Obviously the history of the region is very complicated, with Serbs, Croats, and Bosnians moving into the area up until the 7^th century.  There was little difference between these tribes then.  The Ottoman invasion in the 14^th century served to introduce religion more into the ethnic identity equation, which is also based on the dialects used.  The languages are all almost identical.  According to Mladen, about 90% of the words in Serbia, Croatia, and amongst other ethnicities are the same, giving this common language the term “BHS” (Bosnian, Hrvatska, meaning Croatian, and Serbian).  We also discussed how since the rise of nation-states, there has been ethnic nationalism, but also the Yugoslav idea- that the tribes in the Balkans are all the same, and that they should unite to form a strong state to deter empires (namely the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottomans) from attempting to control them.  It is a very complicated and intricate history, but Mladen was able to make sure we all got a basic understanding of it and a grasp of the different identities in the Balkans.

Our structured meeting in the afternoon fell through, so our group improvised, and opted to return to the Kalemegdan to visit the military museum of Yugoslavia.  We found it interesting that the museum allowed for equal information about Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbian history, as the current Serb government has yet to really create and instill a strong national identity.  The museum remains unchanged since the breakup of Yugoslavia.  An amused Mladen mentioned that he would have loved to see the Croatian version of the museum, and how it differed.  The museum was very interesting, stretching from Celtic weapons to early Yugoslavs, from Turkish warriors and Janissaries to Communist troops.

Just wanted to throw on here that I love this place.  When we first drove in with Dragan, I was really not super psyched to be in Belgrade for two weeks.  The Socialist architecture did not give off the most aesthetically pleasing vibe, as I had been expecting one of the ancient beautiful cities of central and western Europe.  But Belgrade has definitely grown on me.  I’ve begun to look past the post war buildings, seeing a city with a vibrant and strong culture, a people who are hospitable and kind, and needless to say, I’m having the time of my life.