Going to Sarajevo via Osijek 2

Osijek
I arrived at Osijek bus station at 13:30. There was train station next to the bus station. The sky was gray and were few people. Shops were almost closed. I realised today was Christmas!. Christmas is Bank holiday in Croatia and Croatia is Catholic country. I had forgotten it. I gave up going to city centre. If I have gone there, shops and museums would have been closed.
I checked the timetable at the bus station, there was no bus to Sarajevo. I had to go by tarin. I knew there was one train to Sarajevo in a day because I had checked it in advance. the train leaves at 15:00. I could not buy a direct ticket to Sarajevo at Osijek station but could bought to the boarder between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The boarder name is Slavonski Samac and it cost 40 Kuna. I decided to wait for the train at a bar in the station. I drank a beer. A barman at the bar spoke german and English. He spoke to me in german at first. I talked about football and jobs with my poor german. I realised he also spoke English in the middle of the talking, but it seemed to me that he could speak german better than English. His name was Tomislav. When I asked his name, he taught me his name coming from a great croatian king. He was a nice guy and very friendly. We talked about a half hour. Then I got on the train.

I just stayed in Croatia on Christmas day for one hour and half. However the talking with Tomislav made my croatian impression good.

Going to Sarajevo via Osijek

Belgrade
I checked out Hotel Belgrade at 8:30. Breakfast was a few pieces of bread, cheese and coffee. Though the coffee tasted so bad, I bought an orange juice cost 100 CSD. Expensive!!

I took pictures of the train station on the way to the bus station. Policemen cautioned me for taking pictures at the train station. I felt I was standing on a communism country with deep emotion in a way. When I was child, my dad taught me that communism countries such as Soviet and eastern Europe did not allow to take pictures at stations. However I was not cautioned for taking pictures at the train station in Poland, Czech, Hungary and Baltic countries.

I bought a ticket to Osijek at the international ticket counter. The woman I met yesterday sold me the ticket. 1000 CSD was left, I exchanged 1000 CDS for Bosnian Konvertibilna Marka (BAM). I thought I could not withdraw Marka from ATM.

I got on the bus to Osijek with mineral water and potato chips. It took about 3 and half hours to Osijek. The bus crossed the boarder at Šid. Serbian custom and immigration officers were very polite. Both officers were young and spoke English. However Croatian officer were very rude at Tovarnik, he made me out of the bus and kept me waiting for about 10 minutes at cold air.

walking around rainy Belgrade

Belgrade
I was going to Kalemegdan Park through Terazije and Knez Mihailova street, there are a lot of cafes and shops. I found Goethe Institut Belgrade on Knez Mihailova street. It started drizzling, but I did not use my folding umbrella.
Kalemegdan park has nice view of the rivers. The city is located at the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers. Though there are few people and bad weather, it seemed lonely to me.
I went to a cafe at Knez Mihailova street to make my body warm. I had a cup of cofee and a chocolate croissant. It was very tasty.

Going out the cafe, I returned to the station. I checked in Hotel Belgrade. The equipment of the hotel was old, but prise was affordable and receptionists were so kind.
After taking a rest in the room, I went to Terazije again. It stopped raining.

I found a lot of homeless people and street children. They were begging money from people.

I walked around the city about 3 or 4 hours.

On the evening I tried to buy a bus ticket to Osijek (Croatia). However it was hard work for me to find international ticket counter. People did not understand English, I had to go back to my hotel asking of the ticket counter a few times. When I managed to find the international ticket counter, the counter had already closed. A woman spoke to me in English, and she explained that the bus to Osijek leaves at 10:00, it cost 1165 CSD and I could buy a ticket tomorrow morning.
I had to give up to get a ticket on the day.

I had Pljeskavica and went to bed.

destroyed buildings in Belgrade

Belgrade
When I woke up at 6:30, my train had not arrived on Belgrade. Scheduled time was at 5:30. Thank you for the delaying, I could sleep well and I felt well.
I got to Belgrade at 7:00. I withdrew 3000 serbian dinar from a cash machine at the station. As I was thirsty, I drank coca-cola at a cafe. A waiter spoke to me in german. When I was walk around outside the station, it was getting light. There was bus station next to the train station, the same as Sofia. I found that the yellow buses donated by japanese ODA were running around the city. I thought despite our ODA of bad reputation, It seemed it's not so bad.

On the way to old town, I found destroyed buildings which bombed by NATO in 1999. The buildings have not been reconstructed. It was pitiful a scene for me.

Cyrillic world 2

Sofia
After visiting the largest Eastern Orthodox church, I walked around the city for 2 hours. Many people were walking streets and market were crowded. I entered a restaurant to eat late lunch, and I had Bulgarian cuisine: Tarator and baked tomatoes and cheese. It tasted sour, I liked this. However Tarator was a Yoghurt based cold soup. Outside temperature was about 0 degree, the soup made my body cold. This evening I felt catch a cold. feeling cold and sniffing, I thought I must not be worse my condition. I stayed in warm places until the train to Belgrade at 22:00. I went to cinema located on underground of the National Palace of Culture. I watched "Happy Feet". Watching movie is convenient to kill time. Safe, warm, fun...
When I went to the train station at 21:30, coaches had already waited at the track. I getting on the coach, a train clue checked my ticket and lent me blankets. He spoke german and looked like Ivica Osim. I fell asleep soon so that my bed was very comfortable.

My train crossed the boarder between Bulgaria and Serbia. I did not remember clearly, but passport control and custom check was done without any problem.

Cyrillic world

SOFIA.
I woke up at about 8:00. After having breakfast, I went out my hotel to get a train ticket to Belgrade.
It takes 30 minutes to the station on foot. I do not use buses and trams usually, because only by walking, I can feel the size of the city I visit. Anyway, streets were so wide, words are written in Cyrillic alphabet. I felt I was walking ex-communism country. Main streets were paved with Viennese yellow cobblestones and there were many yellow buildings.
There was the bus station of Sofia next to the train station. The train station was darker and more gloomy than the bus station.
At the train station I stood motionless in front of big timetable. All the destinations were written in Cyrillic alphabet. I just understood "P" to "R", "C" to "S", "H" to "N", reverse "N" to "I", etc...
I could understand "Beograd", but could not find "Bucharest". If there was a night train to Bucharest, I wanted to go there.
A woman on the international ticket counter of Rira understood English, I got a ticket to Belgrade of sleeping car. It cost 46 Lev.

On the way to the hotel from the station, Policemen asked me of showing my passport. I was first time to be asked by police abroad. I showed a copy of my passport, they said O.K immediately. However they did not understand English.

I checked out the hotel, it cost 35 Euro.
I went to Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. It is the largest Eastern Orthodox churches in the world.

Going to Sofia

My flight was delayed.
I arrived at Narita airport at 11:00. SU 576 was on schedule on the flight information board, but I knew that the aircraft I am boarding was not arriving at the airport. When I woke up in the morning, I had watched flight schedule on the internet.
However I could check in without noticing delaying. After I got a memo pad at a book shop, I went to the boarding gate.
It was boarding time, but the aircraft did not come on time.
Finally the aircraft took off one hour later.

It takes about 10 hours from Tokyo to Moscow.
Aeroflot started charging alcoholic drinks, and in flight service was being worse. I was satisfied with Aeroflot's in flight service, especially the flight meals, but now that the meal was not good. I was disappointed.

The aircraft landed on Moscow Sheremetyevo airport at about 18:30 (GMT+3). There is a time difference of 6 hours between Tokyo and Moscow. I did not suffer from jet lag.

The airport was changing. It was getting light. Duty free shops were brightening, but transit counter was dark as before.
I had to wait for the next flight to Sofia for 3 hours because the flight was scheduled to depart at 20:05, but it delayed 1 hour.
The operator was Bulgarian air, the aircraft was a used one of Lufthansa. During 3 hours flight, a baby sitting in front of me was crying, It was so uncomfortable flight.

The aircraft landing on Sofia(GMT+2), the time I passed the immigration was 0:00. I tried to withdraw my money from a cash machine at arrival hall, but It did not work. I looked for a cash machine around the airport. Afterall I did it at departure hall.
There was no public transport to downtown. I had to take a taxi. It cost 8 Lev to Slavyanska Beseda Hotel.

travelling yugoslavia!

From last December to this January, I travelled around ex-Yogoslavia.
I am uploading my diary and pictures from today.

22.12.2006 NRT-SVO-SOF
23.12.2006 Sofia
24.12.2006 Beograd
25.12.2006 Beograd, Osijek, Sarajevo
26.12.2006 Saravevo
27.12.2006 Saravevo, Mostar, Split
28.12.2006 Split, Trogir, Sibenik, Split
29.12.2006 Split, Dubrovnik
30.12.2006 Dubrovnik
31.12.2006 Dubrovnik, Kotor, Dubrovnik
01.01.2007 Dubrovnik
02.01.2007 Zagreb
03.01.2007 Zagreb, Villach
04.01.2007 Villach, Ljubljana
05.01.2007 Ljubljana
06.01.2007 Ljubljana, Bled, Ljubljana
07.01.2007 LJU-SVO-NRT +1