Sarajevo is the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city in Southeast Europe.
Founded in 1461, the city is located near the geometric centre of the country in the Dinaric Alps. Sarajevo is located on average over 500 meters above sea level in a valley. The venue of the 1984 Winter Olympics is surrounded by five significant mountains, with the highest Treskavica at 2,088 meters, and heavily forested hills.
The Miljacka river flows through the city. It rises in the small village of Bulozi and is characterised by its brown water.
Sarajevo was founded in the 15th century and has an eventful history, both positive and negative. Thus in 1885 Sarajevo was the first city in Europe with an electric tram, which is still an important part of the public transport system, but also 29 years later the scene of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, which triggered the First World War. In the 1990s Sarajevo itself was the major location of a war.
In 1978 Sarajevo was able to beat Sapporo and Gotheburg as host city for the XIV Winter Olympics. In 1984 the first Winter Olympic Games in a socialist state took place. Sarajevo is also the only city with a mainly Muslim population that has so far hosted the Olympic Games.
Avaz Twist Tower
The Avaz Twist Tower is a skyscraper near the main railway station of Sarajevo. The twisted design of the tower was designed by Architect Faruk Kapidžić. It was completed within two years after construction began in 2006. Since then the building has served as the headquarters of the Bosnian daily newspaper Dnevni avaz.
With a height of 176 meters, if you count the antenna spire, the tower is the tallest office building in the country and former Yugoslavia. The Avaz Twist Tower has 40 floors with the top floor located 150 meters above the ground.
