Trebevic (08/02 & 22/02/2025)

As a day hike, we decided to hike up Mount Trebevic, the mountain overlooking the city of Sarajevo from the south. We took the cable car, originally built in 1959, but renewed several times until the latest in 2018, which in a few minutes took us from the city center, at about 600m, to the top of the plateau overlooking the city at about 1170m. Once we got off the cable car, we had a short way downhill to reach an opening where a road runs through, and there is the Hotel Pino. Here was a parking lot which can be reached by car from the city center. Our hike started there, heading constantly uphill. We first had a nice section through a thick pine forest with meandering trails. At one point, though, as we reached about 1400m, we started seeing the occasional patch of snow mixed with ice, and as we continued, the presence of snow became even more prominent. The last section was a bit tricky as the path was fully covered in snow and ice, which made it a bit slippery and uneasy. However, after a bit, we eventually manage to reach the top of Mount Trebevic, set at 1627m. As it is free of trees and faces south, that part, despite a higher altitude, was actually free of snow. We stopped a short while to admire the nice view, looking south east towards the Jahorina mountain, location of the largest ski resort in the country, while to the south and south west, the imposing presence of the Bjelašnica mountain, also featuring a prominent ski resort. As is typical in the region, there was a bit of smog mixed with light clouds covering the valleys and the city below. Right next to the mountain's peak was the 60m tall telecommunications tower built in 1975. Mount Trebevic has had quite a tumultuous recent history. In 1984, when the Sarajevo Olympics took place, the mountain was used for several Olympic events, such as bobsledding. Its history became macabre when the mountain was used by the attackers' Army of Republika Srpska during the 1992-1995 Bosnia War, as it unfortunately provided the besiegers with favorable positions for positioning the artillery that bombarded the city. From the peak we walked a bit along the ridgeline admiring the panorama all around us and then finally started our descent from the northwestern side of the mountain. After a bit of downhill we then reached the Jure Franko mountain hut where both Ania and I had a nice tasty and warming bean soup. After the break we then headed on, continiung our descent, this time back through the pine forest and eventually making it down to the Pino Hotel. We then had one last section uphill to reach the cable car station which we then took to get back down into the city. 

On a separate occasion, we headed back up to Trebevic mountain, this time after a few days of snow but on a sunny crip day. We took once again the cable car but this time decided to walk along the abandoned bobsled track. Many sections of the track are still standing and are fully covered in graffiti. Following the tracks downhill we then reached the end of them and then decided to walk further to reach the Bistrik Kula Observatory located on the hill of the same name at about 1000m. It was built on the site of a former Austro-Hungarian fortress and used to be the only observatory in Bosnia and Herzegovina but was closed due to the serious damage it suffered in the 1990s during the siege of Sarajevo. From there we had a beautiful view over the city so we sat on a rock and enjoyed it for a little while. Heading back the way we came we reached the Pino Hotel where we decided to have lunch, I took a dish of klepe, a local type of filled dough in a yoghurt and slightly spicy tomato sauce. After lunch we headed back to the cable car and took the next ride down into the city.

On the Trebevic gondola looking down on Sarajevo

The Hotel Pino on Trebevic mountain

Trail through the forest

A bit of snow and ice on the trail

Looking towards Jahorina

Trebevic peak

A view towards Sarajevo

The Jure Franko hut

View of Sarajevo and the Trebevic gondola

The abandoned bobsled track

Another view

The Bistrik Kula Observatory

View towards Sarajevo

The Miljacka river and the town hall

Sarajevski Ozren (25/01/2025)

On the nothern outskirts of the city of Sarajevo lie a group of hills and mountains making up the so-called Sarajevski Ozren. We decided to walk directly from the house, leaving a bit late in the morning but at least with the shining sun. As we passed the upper hamlets of the city we reached the northern edge where the frist rocky outcrop of these mountains is set. The Špicasta stijena is a small rocky outcrop reaching 900m in altitude on top of which are a series of masts and from which a great view of the city below can be seen. A memorial was also set up to remember the fallen soldiers of the Bosnian army that fought the Bosnian Serbs to take control of this part of the mountain as it was an excellent position for the enemy to bomb the city and snipe civilizans. From there, after exiting a small pine forest, we walked along a country road through the small village of Barice set on a high altitude and where we had a nice view of the snowcapped peaks in the distance. A little further up the road we eventually rached the Čavljak mountain hut, which, as its reachable by car had a full parking spot and a lot of people sitting on the outside seats enjoying lunch and sun. We stopped for a light lunch as we still had brought some food with us, while enjoying the view and sun as well. After eating we continued on our walk, heading on through the nice hilly landscape in some sections, particularly in the shade, with still some snow remaining. Moving on we passed through a nice small hamlet, Vukotine, a group of makeshift houses many of which with metal sheets as rooftops and walls and only some in wood. There were also some sheep grazing happily in the fields around. The view from there was also nice spacing across the surrounding hills and with the snow capped Jahorina mountain in the distance. Slightly downhill we passed another group of houses, Gornje Biosko, and a little further ahead we reached a point where we could finally spot the city of Sarajevo below. Further downhill we passed by a very large cemetery in the village of Faletici, one of many dotting the area around the city. Finally after some more walking we reached the outskirts of Sarajevo, where we had a nice view at sunset of the city center, eventually making it down through the Vratnik neighborhood with tight and steep streets and reahcin then the old town. A further walk brought us back to our house. 

Up past the Špicasta stijena

A view towards the west

Around the Planinarski dom Čavljak

A trail next to grazing lands

The hamlet of Vukotine

Some sheep in the village

View towards the east with Jahorina in the distance

A farm along the way

Sunset over a cemetery

Sunset view of Sarajevo

Kovači street

Ferrara (04/01/2025)

For a nice day trip, my mother, brother, Ania, and I decided to visit Ferrara, as Ania had never been there. Once there, we found parking close to the city center and then continued on foot. After approaching the old town, we started walking the nice narrow streets and came upon the first monumental building, the Palazzo Bentivoglio, a beautiful 15th-century Renaissance palace. A little further on, we reached the Piazza del Municipio, where the Palazzo Municipale is located. This 13th-century palace, later extended and refurbished during the 15th century, used to be the ducal residence of the Este family until the 16th century, when the court moved to the nearby castle. Nowadays, it hosts the town hall. In front of it stands the imposing, beautiful Romanesque cathedral, with still part of its facade covered in scaffolding. Continuing on our walk, we then reached the aforementioned Castello Estense. It was built starting in 1385 and later expanded and turned into the Este family's main seat, but still connected to the Palazzo Municipale with a covered passageway. It features a central courtyard, four towers at each corner, and is surrounded by a moat. We walked around it and then headed back towards the Cathedral on the square next to it, which had a small Christmas market. We walked around and then strolled through some side streets before looking for a place to have dinner. We first tried a local typical restaurant, but the wait was very long, so we instead opted for the nearby The Lab, where we had some tasty burgers. From the restaurant, we then continued on our walk, taking some side streets lined by old and nice buildings. Then we walked along Via delle Volte, a medieval street, as the name suggests, covered by arches from the 13th and 14th centuries. We then reached the southeastern side of town, where we visited the Monastery of Sant'Antonio in Polesine. The main part of the church, which can be freely visited, had a nice baroque decoration with a frescoed 17th-century ceiling. The rear church, known as the nuns' choir, can only be visited through a guided tour by one of the monastery's nuns. Once inside, the stern old nun with a faint voice that was very hard to hear showed us the three chapels of the rear church. The left one had the Stories of the Infancy of Jesus and the Life of the Virgin, the one on the right had the Stories of the Passion, both from the 14th century in a style like Giotto's, while the central one had frescoes from different periods and styles. After the visit, we exited the monastery and continued on through town until we reached the next monument, the Palazzo Schifanoia. One of the many so-called Delizie Estensi, a series of palaces and villas used by the Este family as a leisure retreat, it is the only surviving one inside the city walls. It was built in 1385, and its name is thought to originate from the Italian for escaping from boredom. Its simple exterior with a nice marble facade hides its splendid interior. As it's now a museum, we paid the entry fee and started the tour of the palace. We first saw some of the older rooms with part of the old wall frescoes and wooden ceilings still visible. Then the highlight came, the Salone dei Mesi, or Hall of the Months, a room decorated at

the behest of Borso d'Este by the best painters of the Ferrarese school active around 1470. The hall is 24 meters long, 11 meters wide and 7.5 meters high, and the fresco cycle starts from the southern side with each of the months of the year taking a section of the wall, further divided into three horizontal bands: two figured ones of greater height at the top and bottom and a central, narrower one with a blue background, shows the zodiac sign of the month. Some months, from October to February, have been nearly completely lost, while others, from March to September, feature some of the best Renaissance frescoes. Triumphs of Roman gods were frescoes on the upper part, while the lower parts were dedicated to the scenes of the life of Borso d'Este. Due to its artistic merit and references to the neo-Platonic and astrological culture of the era, the cycle of frescoes represents one of the most important moments in Renaissance art linked to the history of the Este family. We stood there gazing in awe at the lifelike frescoes and the overall amazing setting of that room. After visiting the rest of the museum, which was still worth it and featured many old objects and other frescoes rooms we headed outside as it had gotten dark. We walked shortly and reached the church of Santa Maria in Vado, with a beautifully frescoed 16th-century Renaissance interior. Next up was the church of San Francesco, built at the end of the 15th century with a simple but nice Renaissance interior. From there, we then walked to the northern side of the old town where the so-called Erculean Addition is set. This area, celebrated as an example of Renaissance urban planning, was created in 1492 by the enlargement of the walled city limits of Ferrara under the initiative of the duke Ercole d'Este. In this grid-like area of the city were straight roads, low buildings, and lots of inner gardens and green areas. Among the buildings, we stopped to admire the well-known Palazzo dei Diamanti, a Renaissance palace featuring thousands of white marble blocks with pinkish tones carved to represent diamonds, hence its name. At that point, we started heading back towards the core of the city, passing once again the castle and arriving at the cathedral. We visited its interior. Built in a Romanesque style in 1177, despite the scaffolding covering the majority of the facade, we could still partly admire the beautiful loggias, small arcades, and rose windows. The interior was completely remade in the baroque style during the 18th century, with some nice altars. After the visit to the Cathedral, we had one last walk around the area, visiting the Christmas market now during nighttime which was quite nice to see. From there, we eventually got back to the car and drove home.

Palazzo Bentivoglio in Ferrara

Piazza del Municipio

The Cathedral

The Castello Estense

A view of the castle

The Palazzo Municipale

A street in the old town

Another street in the old town

The monastery of Sant'Antonio in Polesine

Interior of the monastery

The central chapel

The frescoes of the right chapel

Palazzo Schifanoia

The Hall of the Months

Detail of the frescoes

The months of March and April

The church of Santa Maria in Vado

The courtyard of the Palazzo dei Diamanti

The christmas market and christmas tree

Fiera di Primiero (29/12/2024)

On a day trip from Vicenza, my parents, Ania, and I decided to head north to the mountains and visit the area of Fiera di Primiero. We parked the car right outside the old town, next to the Cismon River, and then headed first to a bar to have a second breakfast. After that, we started walking through the tiny but nice old town, consisting of a main street lined with lovely houses, and at the center, the main square, Piazza Battisti. Here stands the church of the Beata Maria della Consolazione, dating to the 17th century, with nice wooden baroque altars inside, while the exterior was frescoed in the 1940s and the bell tower was added at the beginning of the 20th century. Further along the street and slightly uphill, we then reached the Palazzo delle Miniere, a 15th-century palace which served multiple purposes throughout its history. It was the former seat of the mining judge, the district captaincy, the government palace, the duties, the forestry offices, and finally the seat of the direct tax and registry office. Right next to it stands another church, that of Santa Maria Assunta, a 15th-century Gothic church which was unfortunately closed during our visit. Smaller but nonetheless picturesque was the church of San Martino, standing next to the main church, slightly uphill. Dating to the 13th century in a Romanesque style, it was used for a long time as a baptistery to the nearby Santa Maria Assunta, and still features traces of 19th-century frescoes on the outside, while the interior still features traces of medieval frescoes. A little further uphill, right next to this last church, is the so-called Canonega Vecia, which used to be the old rectory and still features a nice 18th-century frescoed facade with wooden balconies. From there, we then walked back down towards the river, crossed i,t and passed through the nearby town of Transacqua. Along the riverside on the outskirts of town, close to the next town, Tonadico, we had some beautiful views towards the nearby Pale di San Martino mountains and then stopped to have lunch at the Il Caminetto restaurant. We then entered Tonadico's old town, made up of the typical stone and wood houses of the area. We first passed by the church of San Sebastiano, which was closed, and then past some nice old buildings, one of which was the Palazzo Scopoli. Built starting from the 11th century, it was first used as a warehouse for the local community, then became the residence of the bishop's vicar, as well as the building where the Statutes of Primiero were kept. In the 15th century, it became the property of the Scopoli family, who enlarged and modernized the building, and now the palace stands as the municipal seat. Heading uphill from the town center, we reached the church of Santi Vittore e Corona, built in the 11th century but refurbished in its current form in the 16th century. The church was closed, but from up there we had a splendid view of the Primiero valley below. Moving on, we then reached the next town, Siror. Also, the old town was characterized by nice stone and wood houses, some of which with traces of frescoes. We also reached the local church, Sant'Andrea, which was open. Originally dating to the 14th century, it was rebuilt in the 18th century, taking its current baroque appearance, especially on the inside. From there, we then left town following a nice road through the countryside between the towns, dotted with typical wooden huts, and eventually reached the car. We then drove back and had a stop in Bassano del Grappa along the way to see its Christmas market and have a nice walk through its pretty old town. 

View of the Pale di San Martino

The old town of Fiera di Primiero

The interior of the church of the Madonna dell'Aiuto

The main square

The Palazzo delle Miniere and the church of Santa Maria Assunta

The church of San Martino

The old refectory, the Canonega Vecia

The Cismon river

The old town of Tonadico

A street in the old town

The church of San Vittore

The countryside between Tonadico and Siror

The old town of Siror

A street in the old town

A view of the Pale di San Martino