About mountaineer guest house «Ozren»...
The mountaineer guest house «Ozren» is located near Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the height of 1.310 meters of the Ozren Mountain.
The house can be reached in two ways – an hour-long drive by car or, for those more adventurous, a three-hour long walk through the wonderful woods.
The history of this house is quite interesting. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and its then residents were the gendarmes whose task was to prevent the illegal transport of tobacco from Herzegovina into the heart of the Empire. During the World War II, the building was occupied by members of the Croatian Revolutionary Movement and was used as a base for attacks against the Partizan troops in the area.
All of (you) history lovers sure have a lot to explore and discover here! Besides this very rich history of the house itself, there are also two stećak necropoles. Stećak is the name for monumental medieval tombstones characteristic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and some surrounding areas. These necropoles provide an excellent opportunity for anyone to learn more about the history of this place, but also of the country in general.
Current situation and beneficiaries
The house has a lot to offer to all mountaineers and nature lovers. If you enjoy hiking, the Ozren Mountain is a great place for you! The guest house «Ozren» is a perfect little spot for you to rest, recharge your batteries and then continue with your hiking adventure. It can also be your final destination prior to going back to the city, because it certainly is beautiful enough to be the icing on the cake that is your trip!
If you are not a fan of hiking and walking but simply enjoy spending time in nature, this house couldn’t be more suitable for that! You can come here by car, spend a whole day (or more) relaxing, enjoying the wonderful view and delicious food, and so much more. There is also a farm of horses so if horse-riding is something that you enjoy, you can do that as well!
What else? Hmmm… well, food, of course! The Bosnian cuisine is actually very famous and peculiar – natural ingredients, delicious dishes, wonderful desserts – all home-made and all awaiting in this guest house!
Who can come here? Well, anyone who is interested! Currently, however, the visitors are mostly members of the Mountaineering Society «Ozren» and some tourists and nature lovers who come here on their own. But, we want to change that!
The current condition of the mountain lodge is really bad, the first floor is only partially renovated, while the renovation of the second floor has just begun, but there are no funds to continue it. The big and main problem is the lack of quality central heating, and the facade. The home is currently used by Seniors and Juniors, but not all capacity has been used due to the current condition of the home.
What is our goal?
We want to make this place attractive to everyone and we need your help to do it!
Our plan is to make some repairments and improvements to the guest house, which would include refurnishing the second floor and the bathrooms, installing the heating system and finishing the façade.
We have already taken some preliminary steps but in order to make this idea a successful one, we need you!
What makes this project a peculiar one and what is so amazing about it is the fact that it is the result of the collaboration between different generations! Members of both the young and the senior population are part of this project and with the joint effort of these two groups we hope to make this mountaineer guest house an attractive spot where everyone can come to relax and enjoy the company of different people from different generations, cities, countries… Our desire is to show that wonderful things can be achieved when we work together and that this is precisely how we can make the world a better place for us all!
