Eastern and Central Europe (Eyewitness Travel Guides)

518 SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE

For hotels and restaurants in this region see p524 and p525

Travnik 2

95 km (59 miles) NW of Sarajevo.

• 33,000. @

Dwarfed by the lush green
mountains to which it owes its
name, Travnik is over looked
by the medie val 15th-century
Travnik Fortress (Travnička
tvrdava). It is famous as the
birth place of the Nobel Prize-
winning novel ist Ivo Andrić,
who immortal ized the town in
his book, Bosnian Chronicle.
The fort ress and the surround-
ing Old Town, perched on
steep slopes with dramatic
views, were built and strength-
ened during the reign of
Bosnian kings in the early
15th century. In 1463, the
fortress fell to the Ottomans
(see p510), who coveted its
com manding position and
built a mosque, of which only
the mina ret remains. The
inter esting Archaeological and
Ethnographic Museum in the
complex presents an eclectic
display of local finds as well
as regional costumes. From
the heights of the Old Town,
the minaret of the Many
Coloured Mosque (Šarena
džamija) is clearly visible.
Originally constructed in 1757
and rebuilt after a fire in 1815,
the mosque stands above a
covered bazaar. Its interior is
decorated with floral patterns.
One of the best-developed
ski resorts in Bosnia,
Babanovac lies 28 km
(17 miles) north of the town,
on Mount Vlašić. The

The picturesque town of Travnik, with its towering minarets

mountain reaches a height

of 1,943 m (6,375 ft) at

Paljenik, its highest peak. The

surround ing high lands are still

pop u lated by shep herds but

the threat of land mines means

that hiking should not be

attempted with out experi-

enced local guides.

+ Travnik Fortress

Old Town. # 8am–8pm daily.

& =

U Many Coloured Mosque

ulica Bosanka. # 8am–7pm daily.

its fortified citadel was

founded in the 14th century.

It served as the capital of the

Bosnian Kingdom before

suc cumbing twice to the

Ottomans: first in 1463 and

again in 1527. From then on,

Jajce remained part of the

Ottoman Empire until the

Austro-Hungarians took

over in 1908.

The idyllic position of this

small town on a hillside above

the mighty Pliva Waterfalls

belies its disturbing recent

history. Before the Bosnian

War, Jajce was a peaceful

multi-ethnic town, but in May

1992, most of its Bosnian Serb

residents fled in fear of Croat

aggression. In October 1992,

the army of Republika Srpska

responded by heavily bombard-

ing the town, forcing the

Bosnian Croat and Muslim

population out. Croat forces

recaptured the town in 1995,

causing the Serb pop ulation

to flee once more. Though

much of the damage to the

town has since been repaired,

few of its original Bosnian

Serb residents have returned.

One of the town’s oldest

sights is the ruined St Mary’s

Church (Crkva sv Marije),

which dates back to the

12th cen tury and was used

as a Franciscan monas tery in

the 14th century. The last

Bosnian queen, Katerina

Kotromanić, added St Luke’s

Tower to the church building

but fled with the saint’s relics

when the Ottomans conquered

the region and converted the

Detailing on the façade of the

Many Coloured Mosque, Travnik

Jajce 3

137 km (85 miles) NW of Sarajevo.

* 31,000. @

The town of Jajce – meaning

egg – takes its name from the

egg-shaped hill upon which