23-30 June 2024
The mountainous, heavily forested and hardly accessible Bosnia-Herzegovina was the center of resistance for the Yugoslav Partisan movement during the Second World War – and ultimately, it became the founding site of the second Yugoslav state. Today, the legacy of the partisans is either glorified or contested; yet undoubtedly, it is still very much present. During the trip, we will talk and discuss with historians and activists, visit museums and memorials, watch Yugoslav partisan films and try to get a feel for the conditions under which the partisans operated on a hike in the breathtaking mountain landscape of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The 8-day trip begins in Sarajevo. There, we are first given an introduction to the history of the Yugoslav partisan movement, with a special focus on the role of women in the resistance. In Sarajevo, we will also visit the Vraca Memorial Park and consequently drive to the legendary Mount Igman, where thousands still gather every year to commemorate the Partisan’s costly Igman march. We then head to the Sutjeska National Park, near the Montenegrin border. There, a well-preserved monument commemorates one of the most important battles, remembered as a decisive turning point in the partisan struggle in 1943. The site is located in the middle of one of the last two true primeval forests in Europe, the Perućica. Further stops are Mostar, Jablanica and the Blidinje Nature Park, from where we return to Sarajevo.
The participation fee for the trip is € 780. It includes seven nights in a double room with breakfast (single room supplement: € 80), various guided tours, lectures and museum visits, a PDF reader (mostly in German), six meals, the costs for public transport in Sarajevo to the individual program points, as well as the bus trip from Sarajevo to Tjentiste, Mostar and via Jablanica back to Sarajevo.
Arrival and departure are to be organized and financed separately by yourselves. The working language in the tour group is German. The lectures will be held in German, English and Bosnian/Serbian/Croatian (with translation into German).
The registration deadline is 15th of March 2024. Organization and tour guide: Dirk Auer (journalist), Hannah Marquardt (cultural manager) and Thomas Schad (historian).
In Berlin, the trip is recognized as educational leave (Bildungsurlaub). For the other federal states (except Bavaria and Saxonia), we can apply for this status upon request.
Pdf-Downloads: Preliminary program (as of 8th of Dec 2023, German) and registration form (German).