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| Croatian Oyster farm from our van |
The day started early with a pick up at my hotel and then a quick few stops to pick up all our other guests. It was me an adorable gay couple from Berlin, Kevin (who is originally from Taiwan and his boyfriend, Tealo, a couple for Dublin Ireland, the girl Yvonne from Maryland who was one the tour the day before and a boyfriend and girlfriend from Westchester, New York. So we had a full van and our tour guide, Philip, yes the same young man from the day before, gave us a wonderful day with little extra stops for pictures and even some fresh fruit.
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| Mostar Old Town |
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| Mostar Old Town with view of house and raging river diverted by canals around it |
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| Mostar Old Town with view of house and raging river diverted by canals around it |
We started off with a long, almost 3 hour ride to Bosnia and Herzegovina passing all the same towns we went to yesterday as well as four boarder stops to show our passports. They didn't pay much attention to most of us, only Kevin who had a Taiwan passport was scrutinized but he passed each time so all was good. We got checked at the old station which after next week will be dismantled and the new one that they are just completing will be used from now on. The Bosnian police take it all very seriously and the women guard who is in charge of anything guests need to declare was so intimating just by her glare that I can imagine she's incredibly effective without ever having to open her mouth.
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| Mostar Old Town - Small bridge first built in the 16th Century and the inspiration for the larger bridge |
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| Mostar Old Town |
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| Mostar Old Town - Water levels unusually high from rain |
We were in Medjugorie by around 11:00am but we only had a half hour so not enough time to take the required taxi to the mountain where you then have to hike up to the site where in
1981, the apparition of the Virgin Mary appeared to six young catholic kids who were playing on the hill. She spoke to them and still does giving them messages of peace and love to share with the world. Međugorje literally means "between mountains. Medjugorje is a small town located in the Herzegovina region of western Bosnia and Herzegovina near the Croatian boarder and part of the municipality of Čitluk. The town is quite populated now with lots of tourists shops and hotels and restaurants and a large church with an enormous outdoor area for masses and services.
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| St. James Church Medjugorje |
Thousands of predominantly
Italian Catholics come each day to visit and walk up to the peaceful hill were the apparitions took place and pray and commune with nature and God. I would like to have taken the hike which requires about 2 and half hours but the rest of the guests were waiting for us to continue on to Mostar.
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| Virgin Mary Shrine in Medjugorje at St. James Church |
I did however get to the large, modern church in the town center just in time for the ending of mass which was being held in Italian and the church was filled to capacity with Italian pilgrims from all over Italy who arrived on many buses.
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| Mostar Old Town |
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| Mostar Old Town - Old Bridge |
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| Mostar Old Town with Old Bridge in the distance |
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| Mostar Old Town - Old Bridge |
After communion and the closing of mass which ended in a beautiful song lead by one of the priests and which had hand movements I was able to visit the Virgin Mary shrine in the church before heading back to the van. I'm glad I got to visit even if I didn't get to hike to the top of the mountain and I felt lots of emotion during the mass and my little time at the shrine despite all the people. There is clearly something very special and profound in this town and well worth a visit for those seeking a spiritual calm and connection.
We drove about 25 minutes to Mostar through a beautiful but sad area of the country dotted with the remains of so many bombed out buildings from the war in the 90's. Unlike Croatia where the signs of the wars ravaging effects are minimal now in Bosnia and Herzegovina it is all still so real and a huge presence of the devastation still looms over each town and city you go to. It will take them years more to recover fully but they are making a concerted effort and I do hope for the sake of these lovey, friendly people they will be a thriving, prosperous country soon.
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| Mostar Old Town |
There is so much natural beauty in the rivers, lakes and green, lush fields and so much to enjoy here.
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| Mostar Old Town |
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| Mostar Old Town |
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| Mostar Old Town Bridge |
Our tour guide in Mostar is a lawyer who is having trouble finding work in her chosen profession so she does tours around Mostar to support herself. She was so lovely and gave a wonderfully informative and lively tour of the old town of Mostar.
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Nesuh-Aga Vucjaković Mosque, Hadzi-Kurt Mosque - Fountain
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The city is the largest and the cultural capital of the Herzegovina region of the country and it's old town now completely rebuilt after having been totally destroyed during the war looks just as it did when it was initially built by the Turkish in the 1500's. "
Mostar was named after the bridge keepers (natively: mostari) who in the medieval times guarded the Stari Most (Old Bridge) over the Neretva. The Old Bridge, built by the Ottomans in the 16th century, is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's most recognizable landmarks, and is considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans."
Having only really recovered it's original look and feeling around 2004 when the famous bridge's reconstruction was completed.. "
Stari Most (English: Old Bridge) is a reconstruction of a 16th century Ottoman bridge in the city of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina that crosses the river Neretva and connects two parts of the city. The Old Bridge stood for 427 years, until it was destroyed on 9 November 1993 by Bosnian Croat forces during the Croat-Bosniak War. Subsequently, a project was set in motion to reconstruct it, and the rebuilt bridge opened on 23 July 2004. One of the country's most recognizable landmarks, it is also considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans and was designed by Mimar Hayruddin, a student and apprentice of the famous architect Mimar Sinan."
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| The restaurant we ate at in Mostar Old Town - Fabulous |
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| Ruins of a building outside Mostar Old town - It's where they brought the mortally wounded victims during the war built in 895 |
We saw a short video of the destruction of the bridge in those three fateful days in November 1993 when the bridge was besieged by the Serbian soldiers that attacked from the hill top above the city (where a large crucifix
now stands) and eventually blew it to smithereens It was all captured by a man who hid in a cave across the river from the bridge and who through the 3 days of warfare managed to stay his ground and film it all. It was alarming to watch this beautifully city become a pile of bricks and debris and of course several us were in tears by the end. The whole old town was a shell of it's former self and by the end over 10,000 people lost their lives there. Our tour guide and her mother and sibling were sent prior to the bombing to Turkey where her mother had family so they all survived but sadly several of her family members were not so fortunate.
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| Mostar Old Town - Old Bridge |
Walking around now though with the exception of a few remaining ruined buildings outside the main old town square your wouldn't necessarily know what happened and life goes on here and they have a booming tourist trade in the summer months and due pretty well I was told but that's only mainly in this area. The city just outside looks a little like the war just ended recently and it's heartbreaking and you can't help but feel so grateful for all you have in life.
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| Picture I found online of a man jumping in the river compiled from several shots to show his proegression |
Interestingly from this bridge they have the famous tradition where locals will jump from the middle of the bridge to the river below. This is an extremely dangerous feat because of the height and the sometimes lower depth of the water below but also because all throughout the year no matter how hot the temperature is of the air above getting to almost 104 degrees Fahrenheit in summer the water never reaches above 42 degrees and when a body goes from 104 degrees to 42 degrees in a millisecond or so and isn't prepared it can have a heart attack. The locals who do it do it for money and they will jump for 30 euros (collected from as many people who are around at the time so it is not the sole responsibility of one person to pay. They just need 30 euros and off they go. They will get several offers a day so they support them self (and we were told all year round they do this even in winter) by this activity. It's work for them and they first train when they are younger by diving off a small ledge on the river then a higher one and and higher one and only until your a true professional can you dive head long. Most will do on their knees or feet first.
We were told that a year or so ago two young drunk tourists decided to do it and one died instantly when he went head first into the water. His friend amazingly survived having gone feet first.
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
Yvonne and I had lunch where Philip had recommended (although I suspect we got it wrong and went to the place next door) but either way the food was outstanding and we had incredible Bosnian cheese appetizers with bread and olive oil, their famous Bosnian sausage dish with fries and homemade baklava for dessert, all for only $13.00 US. It was so incredible and delicious and right now traveling within Bosnia is very affordable and once you accept the sad history it's such a great place to visit and enjoy the local cuisine and people and it's history.
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
Mostar has so many amazing sites in such a small area but also they are now living harmoniously with the make up of the town being very diverse. "
Mostar's noteworthy sites include Bishop’s Ordinariate building, the remains of the Early Christian Basilica Cim, Public Turkish Bath (hammam), clock tower (sahat kula), Synagogue (1889) and Jewish Memorial Cemetery, Nesuh-Aga Vucjaković Mosque, Hadzi-Kurt Mosque or Tabacica, Metropolitan Palace (1908), Karadjoz-Beg Mosque (1557), Orthodox Church, Catholic Church and Franciscan Monastery, Ottoman Residences (16th-19th century), Crooked Bridge Mostar, Tara and Halebija Towers." So as you can see there are people of the Jewish, Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox faith all living together and worshiping in harmony.
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
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| Pocitelj |
Our tour guide brought us to the Nesuh-Aga Vucjaković Mosque, Hadzi-Kurt Mosque or Tabacica mosque where they have a beautiful fountain where those coming to pray 5 times a day must first wash their hands and feet and take off their shoes to ensure they don't bring dirt of any filth into their prayer and it's important especially not to wear shoes as we were told they pray on individual rugs and they are not only praying for their souls but for the soul of the person whose family donated that rug in honor of them when they passed away.
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| Pocitelj - Architectural Elements from original mosque |
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| Pocitelj |
We left Mostar and then stopped about 25 minutes later heading back toward Croatia at Pocitelj, t
he historic site located on the left bank of the river Neretva, on the main Mostar to Metković road, and it is to the south of Mostar. "During the Middle Ages, Počitelj was considered the administrative centre and centre of governance of Dubrava župa (county), while its westernmost point gave it major strategic importance. It is believed that the fortified town along with its attendant settlements were built by Bosnia's King Stjepan Tvrtko I in 1383. The walled town of Počitelj evolved in the period from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Architecturally, the stone-constructed parts of the town are a fortified complex, in which two stages of evolution are evident: medieval, and Ottoman."
It's a gorgeous town also rebuilt after the war to it's original form with a large citadel and mosque. We climbed up to the top where the original ruins still remain and then walked town past the mosque where two men were washing and entering for prayer. Also according to our guide in Mostar a leader sings (now amplified through speakers in the tower) to call people to prayer. Just as we were walking down the hill the singing rang out and it was such an incredible experience to walk down the cobbled hill past all the beautiful stone buildings and listening to the prayer in song ring out.
After the Irish couple bought some fresh tangerines from a lovely older women selling fruits and veggies from her basket we headed to the region, not far from her just over the border where the fresh fruits and veggies are grown in a lush green valley.
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| Neretva, Croatia |
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| Neretva, Croatia |
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| Neretva, Croatia - Fruit Stand |
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| Neretva, Croatia |
But first, of course, we passed 2 of the 4 boarder controls and all went well as we entered a bit of the Croatian countryside and made a stop at an incredible fruit stand in the Neretva region of Croatia where you can buy incredibly fresh fruits and veggies and homemade goodies like nut breads and candies lemon and orange peel. The married couple let us try lots of stuff and people bought just made yesterday, strawberry jams, tangerine marmalade and other goodies. All delicious and all fresh and bought as you look out from their stand to the green valley below where it's all grown.
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| Neretva, Croatia |
We were home in Dubrovnik by about 7:00pm all happy we had this adventure and all happy to be going back to get some rest.
