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Today was our last full day in Kosovo. We'll leave at 7 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday) for a 2-hour connecting flight to Istanbul and then board the plane for Dulles.
Our visits and connections today were both engaging and sobering as we continued our education about the Kosovo Conflict. As mentioned earlier in my blog, we visited the Humanitarian Law Center in Belgrade and this morning we visited the Humanitarian Law Center in Prishtina, now a separate organization from the Belgrade office, but they cooperate and collaborate on many projects. Bekim Blakaj provided an excellent presenetation on the database they have developed on those that lost their lives during the Kosovo Conflict. Their careful documentation has also resulted in the publication of the Kosovo Memory Book. Building a memory and an accurate history of the conflict is important as the country moves forward with its development.
Our next stop was the infamous 1389 monument, Gazimestan, where much of the Serbian history (or myth) is grounded. Afterwards, we continued north to the divided city of Mitrovica (Serbs live north of the Ibar River and Albanians live south of the river.). We observed UN Peacekeeping Troops at the bridge that divides the city. Conflicts still flare up in this city and many of you may have read about Mitrovica in the U.S. media. Our SIT hosts have a connection with a Serbian woman who works for the European Union office in North Mitrovica on peace and development issues. We were able to talk to her about the divisive problems of the city and she actually walked us across the bridge to her office. It was quite an experience!
Our day ended with a reflective discussion of our time in Serbia and Kosovo with Orli and Nenad. They have been outstanding hosts and facilitators for us! We then had dinner at another traditional Kosovar restaurant with numerous tava dishes and the best Baklava I've ever tasted!
- comments
Mary Sounds like you have had an amazing trip. Safe travels tomorrow!!
Evelyn Ochs Your blogs have been wonderful. I have read and re-read them. Talk to you when you arrive back at home.
Susan Thanks for sharing your trip with us, Lucretia. Safe travels home!