I rarely write about other people’s online writings, and probably never about interviews, but this interview simply brought so much joy and pleasure while reading, and sort of optimism into the future and mankind itself, that I simply had to write at least a word or two about it.

So who’s Nihad Hasanović? According to the interviewer’s website, he’s a “Bosnian writer, one of the most interesting and intriguing young writers in the space of Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian language”.

As the interview progressed, which consists of five parts, I found Nihad Hasanović a very interesting person with strong opinions and vivid thoughts on life, literature, philosophy and society pretty much identical to my own ideas.

“[Danilo] Kiš was very important also because he encouraged me to think of literature not just as belonging to a particular nationality, nation, ethnicity, but as belonging to humankind.”
This is simply joy to my ears, a wonderful, albeit still somewhat utopian, idea, but nevertheless it’s great to see that the idea of cosmopolitanism is still alive even in these turbulent times of globalization and all those nationalistic, local reactions to it.

The writer is really full of “sugar puffs” (guldkorn) as they say it in Danish; Mr. Hasanović has very interesting, progressive and firm thoughts on literature, language, politics, science, moral and religion. He’s a great opponent to religion and its influence in society: “In a very cunning way religion have usurped the moral and empirical experience that humanity has accumulated over the course of history and pre-history.”
In religion he sees evil deed rather than a good one. He mentions the Catholic Church, its Inquisition and all the atrocities and genocide committed in Latin America in its name.

He sees “the suppression of freedom to interpret the Qur’an” and attacks on those who bring humor and satire that involve Islam as a very serious problem along with Muslim slave-traders in history. Furthermore he mentions Serbian Orthodox Church which had a huge role in shaping Serbian nationalism and chauvinism that later started a dissolution of Yugoslavia and all those bloody wars in the 1990′s: “Serbian Church has its hands soaked to an incomparably greater extent with the blood of the last war.”

Anyway, there are many additional interesting themes and areas covered in this lengthy interview such as influence of Latin writers, importance of learning a foreign language, criticism of post-modernism, Bosnian and South Slavic literature, religion, lack of scientific presence in literature, politics and much more.

As I mentioned before, I was overjoyed while reading the interview. I felt almost like reading a good book I didn’t want to end. I will most definitely look forward to read more about and of this very interesting Bosnian writer and thinker, and I can only thank Jasmin Čaušević for this great interview which should be read by anyone interested in literature, Bosnian and the Balkans affairs, religion and the criticism, science, language, philosophy, moral and just plain humanity and common sense.

Links to the interview: part I, part II, part III, part IV and part V.

A free chapter (in Bosnian) of Hasanović’s new book “O roštilju i raznim smetnjama” (Concerning barbeques and various interludes) can be read at publisher’s website – pdf.

You are a Bosnian when:

• you begin most sentences with “jebi ga” (fuck it).
• you can not explain what “bolan” means, but you use it all the time.
• your mother insists that “promaha” (draught) will kill you.
• older people call you “sine” (son!) although you are a girl.
• your mother tells you to wear “podkosulja” (undershirt), no matter what the temperature outside.
• you tuck your “podkosulja” into your underwear.
• your father refers to all politicians with “djubrad”, “lopovi” (thieves) and “kriminalci” (criminals).
• your mother threatens you with “samo cekaj dok ti caca dodje kuci” (just wait till your dad gets home).
• you are 6 and your father sends you out to buy him “Drina” and “Sarajevsko” (brands of cigarettes and beer).
• you start your day with a cup of coffee and a cigarette
• your mother won’t accept the fact that you are not hungry
• you have “pita” (Bosnian food that is like a pastry puff filled with salty fillings like cheese, meat or potatoes) for dinner at least 4 days a week.
• you have “sarma” (stuffed cabbage) for dinner the remaining 3 days
• a loaf of bread is eaten for lunch every day
• your neighbor comes over every day uninvited, for coffee
• you have 17 consonants and 2 vowels in your last name
• your mother tells you not to sit close to TV, and not to use cell phones, because you will get brain tumor
• your mother tells you that you will get sick from drinking cold water
• your parents have “goblene” on their walls, and “heklanje” (fine handmade lace) on every piece of their furniture, including the TV.
• the time is divided into “before” and “after” the war

The list is not final. The best part is – I haven’t done any of these things yet.

Near the city of Visoko, 30 km north of Sarajevo, there is a stone pyramid of monumental size, claims the Bosnian archaeologist Semir Osmanagić, who lives and works in the USA.

After several months of geological and archaeological research, Mr. Osmanagić concluded that under the present hill of Visočica hides a stairs-like pyramid, about 12,000 years old.
Osmanagić, who intensively researched on pyramids in Americas, Asia and Africa for the last 15 years and wrote several books on the subject, says he’s quite sure he found the first pyramid in Europe, which is quite similar to ones in the Southern America.

He believes that the project would completely change Bosnia’s significance in the world of archaeology.

On the top of “Bosnian pyramid of Sun” was a temple, built by pre-Illyrians, people who lived, according to Osmanagić, 27,000 years ago.

Mr. Osmanagić thinks he will solve the “Bosnian pyramid of Sun” in the next five years, but also prove the existence of “Bosnian pyramid of Moon”, lying under the neighboring hill of Križž.

According to BBC, the leading Bosnian newspaper “Dnevni Avaz” writes:

“The pyramid is 100 meters high and there is evidence that it contains rooms and a monumental causeway … The plateau is built of stone blocks, which indicates the presence at the time of a highly developed civilization,” the daily explains.

“Archaeological excavations near the surface have uncovered a part of a wall and fragments of steps,” it reveals.

“Visocica hill could not have been shaped like this by nature,” geologist Nada Nukic tells the daily. “This is already far too more than we have anticipated, but we expect a lot more from further analysis,” she concludes.

Watch Reuters TV-report at Politiken.

My brother, my friend and I will travel to Bosnia this summer. I have not been in my homeland in two years, my brother since 1999 and my friend Bjarke has never been there. So, I hope it will be an interesting trip to a multifaceted country with many nationalities, cultures, gourman flavors, musical branches etc.

Since my friend asked me what to bring, here’s the list (it will be constantly changed):

• passport(visa not required for EU citizens)
• money (I suggest taking Danish kroners)
• sygesikringsbevis(health insurance)
• T-shirts, short pants and sandals (it is hot like hell in Bosnia during summer)
• sun glasses
• sun protection (factor…)
• bathing suit
• sweater (during night in the car or eventual rain)
• backpack
• cellular phone (if you’re afraid of not being connected)
• photo and video camera
• reading material (book)
• notebook and pen?
• binoculars

Interesting and relevant links:
Stop in Bosnia
Info about Bosnia-Herzegovina
Info about Sarajevo
Tourism Association of Sarajevo Canton
BH Tourism

• pita sirnica (cheese pie)
• pita zeljanica (nettle pie)
• pea
• rise in some cool souce
• chicken with the turkey bacon
• salmon
• baklava and apple cookies…
• and hmmm, coca cola