I have long been fascinated by which has been called the of . In the town centre, Orthodox and Catholic churches, mosques and synagogues, are all side by side. Until the Second World War, 20 per cent of Sarajevo’s population were Sephardic Jews.
People of all religions lived here peacefully alongside each other for years. Indeed, during the Bosnian war and the brutal siege of Sarajevo, many inhabitants still worked together, even though this was an ethnic conflict. There are Free Palestine signs everywhere.
I am here with my youngest child, my 20-something who like many of her generation has discovered the Balkans as a source of cheap holidays, incredible history and for its rave scene. There is the beautiful Adriatic coast of Croatia, of course, but if you want to understand something of the soul of the region, go to Sarajevo. It’s a remarkable place.
The siege of Sarajevo, nearly four years was longer than the siege of Leningrad. The snipers (Serbian people) were up in the hills. There was no food, no electricity yet only 10 years earlier in 1984 this sophisticated city has hosted the winter Olympics.
We went up in a cable car to see the abandoned bobsleigh runs. Up in the hills you can get a handle on the place. You can take in as many war stories as you like, in official museums, or we preferred the strange little unofficial places that some have turned their homes into.
Sarajevo has always been a crucible of history. You can stand on the exact spot where Gavrilo Prin.