If you happen to spot livanjski sir in Balkan shops, it has absolutely nothing to do with Lebanon. That's just the quirky name for cheese from the city of Livno in the Herzegovinian part of Bosnia.

This region is mainly inhabited by Croats. You can tell right away just from the way they name ljekar pharmacies. Back during the kingdom, it was even part of the Croatian Banate (the country's administrative unit).

During the Bosnian War, a lot of people left and never came back. You really notice this when you're driving between cities and see villages lining the highway that are pretty much completely abandoned.

What really surprised me was seeing a sign with HVO (the Croatian Defense Council from the time of the Bosnian War). I figured that after the 92-95 war, people wouldn't mention that kind of thing anymore. But apparently, they actually commemorate the organization's founding day every year. Even with government officials participating.