{"id":81230,"date":"2022-08-10T15:38:44","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T13:38:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/?p=81230"},"modified":"2025-03-06T10:08:51","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T09:08:51","slug":"the-alternative-balkan-postal-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/the-alternative-balkan-postal-system\/","title":{"rendered":"The alternative Balkan postal system"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"81230\" class=\"elementor elementor-81230\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-c394426 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"c394426\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container 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icl_lang_sel_native\">ENG<\/span><\/a>\n\n\t\t\t<ul class=\"wpml-ls-sub-menu\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"icl-sq wpml-ls-slot-shortcode_actions wpml-ls-item wpml-ls-item-sq wpml-ls-first-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\" class=\"wpml-ls-link\" target=\"_blank\">\n                            <span class=\"wpml-ls-native icl_lang_sel_native\" lang=\"sq\">SHQ<\/span><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"icl-sr wpml-ls-slot-shortcode_actions wpml-ls-item wpml-ls-item-sr wpml-ls-last-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/sr\/\" class=\"wpml-ls-link\" target=\"_blank\">\n                            <span class=\"wpml-ls-native icl_lang_sel_native\" lang=\"sr\">B\/C\/S<\/span><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\n\t\t<\/li>\n\n\t<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-6aecaba elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"6aecaba\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-no\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-8f93c0d\" data-id=\"8f93c0d\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-053ec3c elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"053ec3c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81232\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/FEATURE-03-326x183.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5cb6da0 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5cb6da0\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-no\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-cb8408c\" data-id=\"cb8408c\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-86fa291 elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"86fa291\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/longform\/\" target=\"_blank\"><b><span style=\"background-color:#FFFB00\">LONGFORM<\/span><\/b><\/a><\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2f46fb3 elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2f46fb3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large\">The alternative Balkan postal system\n<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-c489694 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"c489694\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-86e78b0\" data-id=\"86e78b0\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8185c2e elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8185c2e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Or how to transport a mysterious powder across borders.\n<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a55f24d elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"a55f24d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-00ffc32 elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"00ffc32\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/author\/ilirgashi\/\" target=\"_blank\"><b><span style=\"background-color:#FFFB00\">Author: ilir gashi<\/span><\/b><\/a><\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d526d1d elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d526d1d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><b><span style=\"background-color:#FFFB00\">10.08.2022<\/span><\/b><\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e1e1ce2 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"e1e1ce2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b5e867e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b5e867e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s still dark while I go down to Petrakija Street, toward the Music Academy<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, disoriented an<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">d confused with the reality of the early Sarajevo morning. From the bell tower of<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the cathedral, rig<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ht there around the corner, six o&#8217;clock rings out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the last toll of the church bell, the irritating sound of a Viber call pierces my sleepy mind. What is it now? I pick up the phone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHey, where are you?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She sounds angry.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I glance at my phone: 6:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">02. Damn cathedral. Is it po<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ssible God slept in this morning too?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat\u2019s the problem? I\u2019m only two minutes late!\u201d I say, getting angry myself. &#8220;We aren&#8217;t in Switzerland!&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At that moment I see her below \u2014 right at the corner of \u0160tadler and Pehlivanu\u0161a, where we&#8217;d agreed, as she <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">squats in front <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of her car. She spots me too. We both put our phones down. \u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hajde<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, hurry up!\u201d, she calls to me.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rada doesn\u2019t like when passengers are late. And not because she can\u2019t be patient. When her job requires patience, she will wait, even for hours if she has to. But not today. Rada has a very tight schedule. At 6:05, just above <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parku\u0161a, we pick up a package. Do<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">brinja, 6:25, a young guy is waiting for us, he&#8217;s going to work in a hotel on the Albanian coast. Then at 6:30, in the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mojmilo neighborhood, acr<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">oss from the King Fah<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">d Mosque \u2014 the biggest in Sarajevo, a gift from Saudi Arabia \u2014 we pick up a doctor. An upstanding woman, she often takes this ride. A<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nd then towards Pale, from where Ivana, a programmer, is heading to Belgrade for a work meeting and a family visit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rada knows that if I&#8217;m two, three or five minutes late, everyone else will need to wait at least that long, or perhaps l<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">onger, if we get caught at a traffic light. And Rada hates for her passengers to wait. Those awaiting her passengers and those who aren&#8217;t awaiting passengers but rather the packages Rada carries with her, which are usually not any less important, also hate to wait. Above all, Rada wa<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nts us to reach the Drina River and cross the border before traffic gets bad, which starts around 8:30. If we fail, all these people will wait a lot longer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou get it now, what the problem is?\u201d she a<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sks brusquely, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">after giving me an in-depth rundown of the situation as we blast down the empty Tito Street toward Marin Dvor at the speed of light.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I&#8217;m a bit ashamed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBut what are you gonna do? We\u2019ll get th<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ere,&#8221; she says. &#8220;Ho<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">w are you? What\u2019s new with you? How\u2019s your mother?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since she started taking passengers between Sarajevo and Belgrade 20 years ago, Rada has been performing an additional, but no less important, transport function, working as part of an informal postal network. She<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> transports anything anyone wants to send, as lo<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ng as it&#8217;s legal and can fit in a car. In most cases it can.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOne time a woman came up to me in Belgrade, she&#8217;d bought everything you can imagine, just walked into shops and started filling her bags. Gimme this, gimme that. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She brings two huge sacks and asks, will there be enough room in the trunk? I take a look and on top of one of the sacks sits a giant bag of popcorn. Well, alright ma&#8217;am, I think to myself, do you really need to send the popcorn too? There&#8217;s popcorn in Sarajevo! But what can you do, she is sending it to her mother. We\u2019ll find the room!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-59bb58b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"59bb58b\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-638294a\" data-id=\"638294a\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57366cd elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"57366cd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1452\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81238\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-1024x581.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-768x436.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-1536x871.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-2048x1162.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-02-326x185.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-b2c8fb6 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"b2c8fb6\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f810343\" data-id=\"f810343\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9a0885a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9a0885a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This time around, it&#8217;s not just Rada on the job. My bag is also full of packages. I\u2019m bringing a carton of Sarajevo&#8217;s Drina-brand cigarettes for a friend and the night before I was given an envelope with documents \u2014 what they are or who they&#8217;re for I don&#8217;t know, but it&#8217;s important that they arrive in Belgrade as soon as possible \u2014 as well as a pouch full of some strange powder with big chunks and a coarse texture. The man who handed me the pouch said the name of the substance but I didn\u2019t understand what he was saying. Then he repeated it. I still didn&#8217;t understand but I decided to pretend I had. Now I\u2019m wondering if it\u2019s legal. I hope it is. He looked like a fine guy. The person who put us into contact to hand the package off also seemed fine. At any rate, better not to mention this to Rada. If there is room for the popcorn, there must be room for my weird powder.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A leap of 300 kilometers in distance<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and a few months in time, into a bustling spring afternoon at the Belgrade bus station.<\/span><\/i><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With broad strides I head toward the hall of ticket counters. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My steps grow tighter; the narrow hallway between the counters and the departure platforms is packed with passengers, suitcases, shouts, rushing, confused looks, hugs and kisses.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amid the commotion, my eyes are drawn to an old analog station clock. The long white hands show a calming sight: it\u2019s 15:49. I love it when I arrive early, even if it\u2019s just one minute.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At that moment, my phone rings. \u201cWhere are you?\u201d He doesn\u2019t sound angry but it does sound like he arrived before me, and on time. I start saying that I was the one who came early, but then I glance at my phone. It\u2019s 15:52. Oh God.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-2f4afe6 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"2f4afe6\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-bc5fd6a\" data-id=\"bc5fd6a\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-dd81ee7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"dd81ee7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_direction&quot;:&quot;negative&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1452\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81241\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-1024x581.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-768x436.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-1536x871.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-2048x1162.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-03-326x185.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4b3b83b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4b3b83b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We meet at the entrance to the platform. We don\u2019t know each other but recognize each other easily. He is holding a large box with a synthesizer inside, a package I need to deliver to a mutual friend.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I take the box. \u201cOkay, that\u2019s that,\u201d and we part ways. I\u2019m a mailman on an important mission and I don\u2019t have the time to waste on courtesies. I run to a counter and buy a ticket.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Outside, at platform number four, the bus for Prishtina is filling up.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I started my \u201cjob&#8221; as a mailman in autumn 2020, when I first began traveling between Belgrade and Prishtina so often that people star<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ted noticing, and for people to notice it&#8217;s enough that you&#8217;re traveling more often than, well, never.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And so one day I got a call from a friend I hadn&#8217;t spoken with for a while but who somehow knew about my recent travels. A family from Prishtina was on vacation in Belgrade and their daughter had left her d<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">oll behind when they returned home. W<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hile the weather map on Radio Television Serbia shows Prishtina as part of Serbia, as fa<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">r as the Serbian postal service is concerned, this city doesn&#8217;t exist, just like other places in Kosovo where Serbs aren&#8217;t the majority. Private delivery services are way too expensive. The<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> only way the doll could reach Prishtina was for somebody to take it with them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Would you mind doing that? It\u2019s not urgent. But, actually it is. It\u2019s her favorite doll.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The next time, a reque<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">st came from the other side: Hey, do they still have that Skenderbeg drink? Please pack two for me, I really miss it! Then, in Prishtina: It\u2019s not easy to find film for analog cameras, and there&#8217;s that one shop in Belgrade where it&#8217;s not expensive. Can you bring me some? A few months later, on the list of my successfully completed tasks were vinyl records of Belgrade&#8217;s New Wave, a kilogram of dried sausage, the keys to someone&#8217;s apartment, and the books by Petrit Imami about the common history of Serbs and Alba<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nians (happily, but ironically, they had immediately sold out in Belgrade).<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5f60f81 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5f60f81\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-693e285\" data-id=\"693e285\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c415b3e elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"c415b3e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"2118\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81244\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-300x248.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-1024x847.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-768x636.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-1536x1271.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-2048x1695.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-04-326x270.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-b854995 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"b854995\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-b92fa5a\" data-id=\"b92fa5a\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-65b27ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"65b27ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And that\u2019s when I started noticing that al<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">most all the personal exchange that exists between Kosovo and Serbia \u2014 between close family members, cousins and friends, between those who left, those who fled, those who stayed and those who were caught somewhere in-between \u2014 all this exchange depends on three buses that run day and night between Belgrade, Prishtina and Prizren, and on the small group of people who travel on these buses.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the drivers in neat white shirts are hurriedly loading luggage, my attention is drawn to an old lady in black who is standing next to a giant plaid bag. It&#8217;s not clear to me how she got it here. She&#8217;s patiently waiting in line. She smiles at me. I think she likes me. We start talking.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhere to in Kosovo?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019m not traveling, son. I\u2019m sending things to my family.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I start to ask her what she&#8217;s sending them, but one glance at the enormous Chinese-made bag answers my question. It\u2019s full of homemade food packed carefully into plastic ice cream boxes and large glass jars. Is th<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">at sarma? I also see an old plastic box of a brand of cheese from Sombor, wrapped in thick rub<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ber bands so that whatever mystery it holds, perhaps a salad, doesn&#8217;t spill out during travel.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-12e700a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"12e700a\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-97173d4\" data-id=\"97173d4\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cf606a9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"cf606a9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_direction&quot;:&quot;negative&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1466\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81247\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-1024x586.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-768x440.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-1536x880.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-2048x1173.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-06-326x187.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-204b5a8 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"204b5a8\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-39c8b56\" data-id=\"39c8b56\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a1e3557 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a1e3557\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her sister lives with her family in Gra\u010danica, near Prishtina. She hasn&#8217;t stayed with them since corona broke out. She hopes to visit soon, perhaps next month, when she is done with some medical check-ups.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAre you often sending things?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cNot that often. They have food there, it\u2019s not that they don&#8217;t. But they love it when I cook for them. Recently, my granddaughter celebrated her birthday. So, there is cake! It\u2019s convenient this way, I just put it on the bus. Otherwise, it would be impossible.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I stop and think how it would look at the counter in the post office to send homemade food. The serious face of the clerk looks you over through the glass. What&#8217;s in the box? A strawberry cake and sarma with dried ribs! How fast do you want it delivered? Immediately, so that it doesn\u2019t go b<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ad, you see how hot it&#8217;s been these days! D<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">eclared value? Priceless!<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As I will find out through several trips and dozens of conversations with people who send and receive things across the<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Balkans, it&#8217;s not all just an issue of food and its perishability.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Uncle Pera is returning to Lipjan; that\u2019s where his home has been for over 60 years. He had been on a visit to Belgrade. We are sitting together on a bus. Somewhere around the toll ramp at Bubanj Potok, I offered him some Pla<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">zma cookies. In return, when we stopped for a pause at a gas station somewhere around Pojate, he gav<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">e me a cigarette. I ask him whether he sends or receives anything from Serbia by mail. He decidedly says \u201cno.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou never know with them! Two months ago, my son was looking for some car documents from a friend in Kraljevo. They still haven\u2019t arrived.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Uncle Pera clearly doesn\u2019t trust institutions. And judging by the number of things that travel by bus everyday, he isn\u2019t alone.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sitting with the drivers in the semi-dark of a roadside cafe with the longing name of \u201cEvropa,\u201d I\u2019m trying to figure out what everyone is sending. Most of the travelers sit outside waiting for the sign for departure.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAre you trying to see if we\u2019re carrying any dru<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">gs?\u201d one guy asks me gruffly, as<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> he offers me a piece of chicken he just pulled out of some aluminum foil.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He offered me chicken out of common courtesy. He asked the question out of open distrust. A journalist who writes about people who are sending stuff by bus? Why would anyone<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> do something like that? And what does that exactly mean \u2014 are they sending some interesting things? What could be interesting there?<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019m not a police officer,\u201d I tell him. I take out my journalist&#8217;s credentials. Afrim wipes his fingers and takes a look with genuine curio<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sity. A thought comes to me that people in this cafe have probably taken many things out of their pockets, but it is certain that this was the first time that somebody had taken out a card from the International Federation of Journalists. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It seems to have some effect on him.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat are people sending? Well, everything. Documents mostly,&#8221; Afrim says. &#8220;Paperwork for pensions up there, in Belgrade, for those who worked in firms before the war, for real estate, if somebody is selling something in Kosovo. Medicine. People also send money. Mobile phones, clothes. All types of stuff.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-be39716 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"be39716\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f493ea5\" data-id=\"f493ea5\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-08ce467 elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-video\" data-id=\"08ce467\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;video_type&quot;:&quot;hosted&quot;,&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;autoplay&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;mute&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;loop&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;slideInRight&quot;,&quot;_animation_delay&quot;:0}\" data-widget_type=\"video.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-hosted-video elementor-wrapper elementor-open-inline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<video class=\"elementor-video\" src=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/MAP_FINAL.mp4\" autoplay=\"\" loop=\"\" muted=\"muted\" controlsList=\"nodownload\"><\/video>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-784d572 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"784d572\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-7864a71\" data-id=\"7864a71\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f65dcbe elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f65dcbe\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDo you sometimes experience any trouble?\u201d I ask. Afrim gives me a sharp look. He again thinks that I\u2019m a cop.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">His colleague Edin enters the conversation: \u201cIt happens sometimes that people don\u2019t show up to pick up their things. Or they ask us to wait for them someplace else\u2026 How the hell am I supposed to wait?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat happens with those things?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe return them to the agency and the sender goes to pick it up there.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDoes it sometimes happen that no one picks it up?\u201d I ask, imagining a magical antique shop, with various objects scattered around because people forgot about them over the years, each with its own history, ordinary and unusual story\u2026 Now, that would be something!<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Afrim rudely interrupts my fantasy. \u201cNo, never. They always come. Come on, let\u2019s go.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sending packag<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">es by bus or <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">taxi, by driver, friend or acquaintance, is one of the most functional social inventions in the Balkans. It&#8217;s as fast as the speed of a car or bus. And in a place where railway and airline connections have been destroyed or simply canceled, it&#8217;s the fastest way to send or receive things.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One specific person \u2014 driver, friend or acquaintance \u2014 takes care of the delivery. It is a person you either know or at least met, someone you&#8217;ve shaken hands with at some point and exchanged a few words. It seems in those 30 or 60 seconds a level of trust is built that is so much greater than it&#8217;s possible to establish with any postal service worker, hidden behind the counter with their promotional stock photos of yellow vans that always arrive on time.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Who would you trust more, a company with a slogan that guarantees your shipment will be delivered in the next 48 hours, and which offers you the possibility to follow your shipment through a special code, or a driver who, when asked \u201cwhen will it arrive, approximately?\u201d \u2014 asked bashfully so as not to appear as if you are, God forbid, rushing him because he has every right to get there whenever he wishes \u2014 first looks into the distance, inhales a smoke, and exhales: \u201cit depends on the rush hour, but not before nine\u201d? And they always give you a time that&#8217;s too early. Better for you to wait, than for the whole bus.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Somehow, for an astonishingly high number of people in the Balkans, the right answer is B.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, there is the issue of pricing.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you send by mail, there are a number of relevant criteria. The weight of the object, its value and the distance and speed of the delivery. Postal websites and applications are filled with detailed tables and calculations enabling you to estimate the price down to the cent. With a calculator or without one, it\u2019s often quite high. For example, to send a half-kilogram package from Serbia to Bosni<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a, without a return receipt, separate handling or air transportation, it will cost you around 18 euros. If you want to send that package to Kosovo via DHL, the price is around 50 euros.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But when you send it informally, that\u2019s when you enter the field of a magical Balkan ritual, bounded by clear rules within which absolutely nothing is clear. Wh<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">en a friend or acquaintance takes a package, offering money for the service is like cursing their mother. An unwritten rule calls for inviting the helper to a glass of juice or coffee, but discreetly, to make it look like you aren&#8217;t inviting them only because they helped you out, but because you really want to get a drink with them.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the same time, it is almost expected that they will reject the refreshment because neither of you has time nor desire for drinks. If the two of you wanted a drink, you would drink, without any packages. Though without that drink, you become indebted to the helper. Rest assured, if you ever do anything to displease this person, they will go around and say how they foolishly helped you when you needed it and this is how you repay them!<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-17ba3cc elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"17ba3cc\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-no\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d0a3368\" data-id=\"d0a3368\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-23f57fc elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"23f57fc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"543\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81585\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-300x64.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-1024x217.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-768x163.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-1536x326.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-2048x435.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-07-4-326x69.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-f9b157f elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"f9b157f\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2bd3f1e\" data-id=\"2bd3f1e\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b87018d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b87018d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it comes to bus drivers, things are a bit differe<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nt. Every day, sometimes twice<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> a day, they carry packages across borders, taking a risk (although, they often check what is inside; if it appears illegal, dangerous, or that it could break easily, they will refuse no matter how much money they are offered). They carefully keep track of what they are carrying and for whom and where people will await them. They write down names and phone numbers, call senders from dimly lit stops by the side of highways, arguing with people who are late or have simply forgotten to show up to pick up their packages.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To put it shortly, they expect you to pay them, and for good reason. But transporting things by bus isn&#8217;t quite standard, nor do the bus companies officially permit it, so there usually isn\u2019t any official price list. It depends on what you&#8217;re sending and sometimes on the mood of the driver, but some charge the equivalent of a full bus ticket, others a half. Others allow you to independently set the price for the service.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And so we arrive at the precious social rule known as \u201cHowever much you can give\u201d (\u201cKol\u2019ko da\u0161\u201d). As with everything else in this region, the rule isn\u2019t what it claims to be. On the surface, you are free to independently assess the value of the service. However, what you are actually assessing is the assessment of the other side of the transaction, that is, how much money will it take so the other person is not offended. That&#8217;s why more often than not you pay more than the service is really worth.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All the same, it\u2019s still cheaper than the postal service, and incomparably more fun.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We&#8217;re on a tight schedule but Rada all<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ows for a quick break at the gas station because someone needs to go to the toilet. I use the opportunity to grab a cigarette, or rather, that\u2019s what I wanted to do when I realized that I have none left. Luckily, I have a carton of Drina cigarettes <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">that I brought to deliver to my Belgrade friend Bojan. He won\u2019t mind.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The terms Drina and Sarajevo play a significant role in his life, and not just because of cigarettes. Bojan belongs to a small group of journalists in Serbia who have been bravely and consistently writing about Serbian war crimes in Bosnia of the 1990s. Every week, links to articles arrive in my inbox that, I fear, almost no one reads.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But Bojan isn\u2019t giving up. He is currently working on a documentary about The Belgrade Circle, a not-so-small group of liberal intellectuals and peace activists that stood up against Milo\u0161evi\u0107\u2019s regime, wars and crimes in the early 1990s. Thirty years later not even a distant echo of their voices remains in Serbia&#8217;s political scene. It&#8217;s now just a memory in the heads of a small circle of devotees.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While we drive through Romanija, I feel like we are traveling through one of his stories. We pass through the beautiful nature of eastern Bosnia and see road signs with some of the most horrible toponyms from the war, places that many in Serbia have only heard about from Hague testimonies, as symbols of massacres, rapes, and ethnic cleansing. Here, just before Sokolac, that\u2019s where we find the turn to Rogatica. You travel upward to reach Han Pijesak, then you go to Vlasenica, then Mili\u0107i and Zvornik, and if you were to travel south from Zvornik, you&#8217;d reach Srebrenica.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rada, a Serb refugee from Sarajevo, who fled the city at the start of the war, now lives in Pale, with a distinctly clear attitude about this topic: \u201cWe were lucky. Neither my family nor I were hurt by anyone, nor have we inflicted harm upon anyone.\u201d If it were any different, I suspect that it would be impossible to do her job: \u201cI went to Sarajevo immediately after the war. I have nothing to hide.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally we reach the Drina River.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI used to smoke Yorks from Rovinj,\u201d Bojan tells me, \u201cuntil all ties were severed with Croatia in 1991, so I switched to Drinas.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bad call, Bojan, because the ties with Bosnia didn\u2019t last long either. He started smoking them again in the early 2000s in Sarajevo. Bojan loves Sarajevo; sometimes he just disappears there and comes back more alive than ever.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-23bc54a elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"23bc54a\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-no\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-474b6f5\" data-id=\"474b6f5\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f4eefb2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"f4eefb2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_direction&quot;:&quot;negative&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"461\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81259\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-300x54.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-1024x184.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-768x138.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-1536x276.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-2048x369.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/INTExt-05-326x59.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-0170abd elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"0170abd\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2454767\" data-id=\"2454767\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-51be38e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"51be38e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And why the heck am I bringing him Drinas, aren\u2019t there any in Belgrade? Somehow, in March 2022 the 140-year-old Sarajevo Tobacco Factory, located in a country where almost a third of the adult population are passionate smokers, shut down. Old Drinas are still in stock though, and Bojan wants to smoke them as long as they last.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I wonder if we could claim the same thing for The Belgrade Circle. The anti-war idea in Serbia has broken down, and we have been smoking stocked goods for years. But they&#8217;re dwindling.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gone are the days when the Merdare border crossing was a place where you expected problems, either as a Serb at the Kosovo checkpoint or an Albanian at the Serbian checkpoint.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Nevertheless, as we approach from Kur\u0161umlija, the bus somehow always settles down and the atmosphere becomes darker and tenser. There&#8217;s a feeling of sinister anticipation. Perhaps the scenes of desolation all around us contribute to that. Empty fields, empty streets, empty houses. And a completely empty road, which seems to lead to the end of the world.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here and there, on signs along the road you see Albanian toponyms: Kastrat, Lju\u0161a. The village Arbana\u0161ka is also nearby. But there have been no Albanians here for a long time. On a hill near Degrmen, two kilometers from Merdare, arise the dark ruins of Be\u0107&#8217;s church, which was built starting in 1912 with money from Serb immigrants arriving from the Sand\u017eak, Montenegro and Zubin Potok, who came for the lands of Albanians and Turks who fled to Kosovo after the 1876 Serbian-Ottoman War. Due to the poverty after World War I, work on the church was postponed for better times, which never came. There are not many Serbs left here either; the crumbling <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">road to mythical Kosovo takes you through one of the poorest municipalities in Serbia.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The call echoes through the bus in Serbian and Albanian: \u201cPrepare your IDs!\u201d In honor of the mutual non-recognition of Serbia and Kosovo, for Kosovar and Serbian citizens, passports are invalid here. First, the Serbian policeman enters. In dead silence, he collects our IDs and carefully sorts them in his palm, and then goes out. After the check, the driver brings us our IDs back, but we get to keep them only for a minute, as it is now the Kosovar policeman that enters. The entire procedure is repeated.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All of a sudden, there&#8217;s a problem. The customs officer is lingering around the back trunk. He argues with the driver and shows him something. Passengers on the right side of the bus stare at him intently, and the left-side passengers stare intently at those on the right side because they can\u2019t see the customs officer. What did he find? Will they let us through? Deeply buried fears rise to the surface. Suddenly, we know that anything is possible.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The driver shakes his head. The customs officer also shakes his head. It\u2019s as if he doesn\u2019t want to have to deal with this stuff. He slams the trunk door closed. I had the feeling that we all could breathe again.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We enter Kosovo. Now we begin seeing signs with Serbian toponyms, but no Serbs.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Belgrade, late May.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lula greets me in the inner courtyard of an old villa in the center of the city. The street is packed with a hellish noon crowd. In the yard, full of delicate red and yellow flowers, there is complete silence.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lula is just like that villa in many ways: elegant, sad and turned inwards. \u201cI haven&#8217;t been out at all in a long time,\u201d she tells me. \u201cThis is no longer my city.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The letter and the bag were delivered to her neatly and on time. I decide not to inquire about the contents of the<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> envelope. I assume there was a reason that it was sealed. But<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> I can&#8217;t bear to not ask about the bag of mysterious powder.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cTarhana,\u201d Lula smiles. \u201cA soup mixture. My aunt E\u0161refa from Travnik prepares this for me, and sends it through my nephew. They prepare it differently in Serbia. It\u2019s good too, but I like hers. In Serbia, they usually say &#8216;tarana,&#8217; as they don&#8217;t like that &#8216;h&#8217; here because it was adopted from Turkish. Just like in Bosnia they started to insert it in places where it doesn\u2019t belong.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lula has plenty to say about the packages that are sent between Belgrade and Sarajevo. Born in Sarajevo, she has been living in Belgrade since the end of the 1960s. She&#8217;s a person who, immediately after the beginning of the Sarajevo siege, collected and shipped humanitarian aid to the besieged city. She struggled for every shipment to reach who it was intended for. And she fought for thousands of them, shipments and people. \u201cWhen I see cardboard boxes today, I feel nauseous.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I leave her on the terrace of the old villa, carefully observing the flowers, while she slowly chews over the memory of a time when some resistance existed.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">***<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We are sitting in the restaurant Kraljevo, not far away from a big parking lot <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on Sarajevska <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Street in Belgrade, where Rada traditionally picks up and drops off passengers. Where else?<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She spent the whole day in the car and is very tired but she finds the time to talk. She tells me how she has been fainting lately. The other day, she barely got in the car, but she didn&#8217;t give up. She transported her passengers and packages. She is receiving regular therapy now, and things will get better.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It&#8217;s a hot day. We order a light lunch, soups and cabbage salad. The tavern is empty and the waiter is bored, so he makes inappropriate jokes. Rada charmingly ignores them.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAnyway, I have a story for you,\u201d she tells me:<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-97e5591 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"97e5591\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-218d051\" data-id=\"218d051\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1689eb4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"1689eb4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;motion_fx_motion_fx_scrolling&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_effect&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;motion_fx_translateX_speed&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;motion_fx_translateX_affectedRange&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;%&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:{&quot;start&quot;:0,&quot;end&quot;:100}},&quot;motion_fx_devices&quot;:[&quot;desktop&quot;,&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;mobile&quot;]}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1365\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-scaled.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-81570\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-1024x546.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-768x410.jpg 768w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-1536x819.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-2048x1092.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/intext-kajmak-326x174.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-f9034fd elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"f9034fd\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-4090f77\" data-id=\"4090f77\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-63dadf8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"63dadf8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIn Sarajevo, there is this woman, Mirsada. She had a husband and a son. And the son had a frien<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">d, Marko, w<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ho didn\u2019t have parents. She liked him a lot. So, anyway, Marko\u2026 Until then no one cared about what names people had. Normal people didn\u2019t care about names. But that\u2019s when the war started. She wondered what to do with him. Mirsada hid Marko in her house, so he wouldn&#8217;t get killed. She told me, &#8216;Rada, I kept him in the freezer. My child went off to the battlefield, and Marko was in the freezer.&#8217;\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;She hid him until she found a person, somebody she could trust, so that she could get him into the territory of Republika Srpska, and then to Belgrade.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;And so, time goes by, and Marko becomes a very successful man. He starts a family, starts a business and everything goes flawlessly for him. And Mirsada, her husband dies, she stays with her son. And I don&#8217;t know the details, but somehow they got in touch with Marko. Imagine, after all these years\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAnd then,&#8221; Rada pauses, \u201cthen her son dies too. And Mirsada is left alone, and Marko becomes the only light in her life.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;Since then, since I\u2019ve been working, he keeps sending her stuff. A bag of beans, peppers, walnuts, kajmak, a jar of honey. And he makes sure to send some money, 50 or 100 euros, but always with some food.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;So, I asked him once \u2014 Marko, my boy, you buy this food, and she has to go out and collect it and carry it back up to her apartme<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nt \u2014<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> wouldn\u2019t it be easier for you to send her the money so she can buy it herself?<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;He tells me, &#8216;Rada, I tried doing that but she is happy when she gets that box of kajmak and she can say \u2014 look at what my dear Marko sent me!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And that\u2019s when I finally got it. It&#8217;s not things that travel, it&#8217;s people. And only when people can\u2019t, do they send things. But even then, in actuality, it&#8217;s not things that travel \u2014 but people\u2019s feelings.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><b><i>Editor&#8217;s Note: By request of the interviewees, some of the names in the text have been changed.<\/i><\/b><\/p><p><b>Feature image: Dina Hajrullahu\u00a0<\/b><b style=\"letter-spacing: -0.1px;\">&amp; Arrita Katona<\/b><b style=\"letter-spacing: -0.1px;\">\u00a0\/ K2.0.<\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-f6d5ef8 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"f6d5ef8\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-c40ae65\" data-id=\"c40ae65\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e44f4fa elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e44f4fa\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-74861\" src=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/EN-Funded-by-the-EU-POS-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"63\" \/><\/p><p><span style=\"font-size: 80%;\"><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">The regional program\u00a0\u2018RESILIENCE: Civil society action to reaffirm media freedom and counter disinformation and hateful propaganda in Western Balkans and Turkey\u2019 is implemented with the financial support of the European Union by partner organizations\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.seenpm.org\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SEENPM<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.institutemedia.org\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><i>Albanian Media Institute<\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.media.ba\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mediacentar Sarajevo<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kosovo 2.0<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mminstitute.org\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Montenegrin Media Institute<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"http:\/\/mim.org.mk\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Macedonian Institute for Media<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.novinarska-skola.org.rs\/sr\/?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Novi Sad School of Journalism<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.mirovni-institut.si\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Peace Institute<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a style=\"font-style: italic;\" href=\"http:\/\/bianet.org\/english\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bianet<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p><p><em style=\"font-size: 80%;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This article was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Kosovo 2.0 and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.<\/span><\/em><\/p><p><em style=\"font-size: 80%;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why do I see this <\/span><\/i><u><a href=\"https:\/\/kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/donors\/\" target=\"_blank\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">disclaimer<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">?<\/span><\/i><\/u><\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ENG SHQ B\/C\/S LONGFORM The alternative Balkan postal system Or how to transport a mysterious powder across borders. Author: ilir&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":811,"featured_media":81232,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_header_footer","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[972],"tags":[912],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81230"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/811"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81230"}],"version-history":[{"count":237,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81230\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114217,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81230\/revisions\/114217"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.kosovotwopointzero.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}