SARAJEVO MARIJIN DVOR guide

The story of Marijin Dvor (or Marindvor, if we’re talking and not reading) is the story of August Braun, or at least the Austrian industrialist’s desire to build a palace for his wife. Legend has it that August turned up in Sarajevo with a suitcase in one hand and his wife Mary in the other. If you put aside somewhat humourous images of Mary being small enough to fit in one hand, the story-setter brings up other questions about what he was doing here, why, how, and all the rest. Still, he opened a construction company (with what funds, I hear you ask), was the biggest brick manufacturer in the city, and eventually built Mary a palace in a field. Everyone thought he was mad.

If you haven’t worked it out, Marijin Dvor means ‘Mary’s Palace’, and it was around that structure that this part of the city grew. It is Sarajevo’s commercial and administrative centre, a strange hodge-podge of elegant Austro-Hungarian-era architecture and modern buildings that leave much to be desired. It is the start of New Sarajevo, where the city began to stretch towards Ilidža. It has many important financial buildings, impressive museums, some seriously good cafes and a fabulous pub quiz. I guess the bus station is technically here? Or is it in Pofalići? I’ll report back.

WHAT TO SEE AND DO

National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Archaeology, ethnology, history, and more await curious visitors at the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The building is an attraction, another charmer from the catalogue of Karel Pařík, an Italian Renaissance beauty of four pavilions and undeniable grace. The museum stayed open for the majority of the ‘90s, an incredible feat when you think about it, but it shut for a few years in the 2010s because of a funding disagreement. Welcome to Bosnia and Herzegovina, I guess. The museum’s most famous artefact is the Sarajevo Haggadah, the oldest Sephardic Jewish document on the planet and one that miraculously survived the genocidal carnage of World War II thanks to the quick thinking of a man from Travnik called Derviš Kokut. Zmaja od Bosne 3, +387 33 262 710 (5km)

Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Next door to the National Museum is the Historical Museum, an excellent cultural one-two in Marijin Dvor. It opened soon after the end of World War II and does exactly what it says on the tin. The entire history of Bosnia and Herzegovina is covered, from the first mention to the current day, with a particular focus on the brutality that swept across the country in the early ‘90s. It always seems to be on the verge of closing, so best to check ahead of time before visiting. If it closed, use that as an excuse for an extra beer in Cafe Tito. Zmaja od Bosne 5, +387 33 226 098 (7km)

ICAR Canned Beef Monument

Yes, a monument to canned beef. This unusual statue behind the Historical Museum is a thanks of sorts to food aid delivered during Sarajevo’s long siege, but there is more to it than meets the eye. Many say that the food delivered was, how should I put it, shit. Some of it was leftover from Vietnam, much of it contained pork, and even the dogs of Sarajevo famously rejected it. You can’t even say it was dog shit. Still, it isn’t every day you see a monument to canned beef.

Hastahana

The sculpture is called Star Trek, if you were wondering. I’m not entirely sure what to make of it, but there certainly isn’t anything else like it in the city. The curious artwork resembling a musical instrument with animals is found in Nijaz Duraković Park, known informally as Hastahana (Turkish for ‘hospital’), a small park in Marijin Dvor. It was used as an impromptu vegetable garden during the war.

Sarajevo City Centre (SCC)

Yes, it is a shopping mall, but what can you do? I go to SCC way more than I want people to know. This hulking building in Marijin Dvor is what you expect: a shopping centre with office facilities and a hotel added on, all soulless modernity and vacuous entertainment. It does have a KFC, though, so I don’t want to badmouth it too much. Vrbanja 1, +387 62 992 492

St Joseph’s Church

Karel Pařík designed more than elegant halls, I’ll have you know. St Joseph’s Church is another from the Czech man’s back catalogue, a Neo-Romantic beauty that appeals even more thanks to the myriad of modern monstrosities surrounding it. Yes, I’m looking at you, shopping centres. The Roman Catholic Church contains the tomb of Archbishop Ivan Šarić, the Travnik-born man of the cloth who, erm, supported fascism in World War II. Not good, not good at all. Fra Anđela Zvizdovića, +387 33 656 956

BREWS, BOOZE AND BITES

There are many good cafe options in Marijin Dvor, so hang onto your hats. Caffe Tito (Zmaja od Bosne 5, +387 61 208 881) gets the first nod, as much for its location (right behind the National Museum and with a gorgeous garden) as the atmosphere (all Yugo everything). There are some excellent cafes behind Alta and the Holiday Inn, with Walter Ego (Kranjčevićeva 31, +387 60 33 22 345) being a personal favourite thanks to the friendly owner and excellent craft beer options. The shopping centres have many food options, and you’ll never hear me say a bad word about KFC (Vrbanja 1). That doesn’t do much for my cred, but I can’t lie. Špica (Fra Anđela Zvizdovića 1, +387 62 368 119) is also in these parts, a somewhat modern bar that hosts the excellent Nisam Ti Pametan pub quizzes every Monday and Thursday. Team Tempest for life.

SLEEPING

Hotel Holiday (Zmaja od Bosne 4, +387 33 288 200) is the most famous hotel in Bosnia and Herzegovina, although regrettably, that is because of the war and not because of the comfortable rooms. Hotel Swissôtel (Vrbanja 1, +387 33 588 000) is situated in SCC and is bloody expensive, so I assume that means it is decent.

MARIJIN DVOR