I was totally immersed in the goings on in and around the Drina and had lost track of time. Ivo Andric is a a gifted writer whose genius lets you enter a bygone era and live in those times as you read his book, The Bridge Over The Drina. Yes, I know I started the book in the last week of February, but life happened and I had to set it aside for a while. Anyways…

Drina is an alpine river, which on its journey, passes through a number of settlements, one of them being Višegrad. It is here that in the sixteenth century a bridge is built across the Drina on the instructions of a grand vizier. The building of the bridge and its role as the “witness to three generations of conflict” forms the essence of the book.

It is my kind of book, fictionalised history. Simply fascinating reading! It makes the past come alive through the magic of the author’s beautiful writing. (I am reading the translated English version. How much more beautiful the original must be!) Is it any wonder then that I had lost track of time?

When I finally pulled my nose out of the book, the sun had already set. I gathered my things, water bottle, phone, ear phones, glasses, all of which go wherever I go, and slowly stood up and then gasped. No, it wasn’t that I felt dizzy, which happens often enough when I get up too fast. The gasp was for the way the sky looked at dusk. Mesmerisingly beautiful.

I did what I always do when I see a beautiful sky. Took pictures. Here’s one:

©Shail Mohan 2022