Mostar B-H

We left early this morning to take the train to Mostar which was 3 hours away in southern Bosnia. It has a population of 45,000 people and is the fifth largest city in Bosnia. It was named after its' old bridge and Mostar means " keeper of the bridge".It has a divided community with Muslims and Catholics living on different sides of the river that runs through the town. In fact during the war the Croat forces engaged in mass execution,ethnic cleansing, and rape on the Bosniak people of West Mostar.

How about the train art??



The beautiful countryside


The town was heavily bombed in the Yugoslav war and was under seige for 18 months.It was made famous when the landmark centuries old bridge, Stari Most, was destroyed.The event was widely publized and received international attention as it was such a symbol of the town. After the war with help from many countries the bridge was restored as well as a lot of the town.It is now a UNESCO heritage site.It has also become a tourist destination with too many souvenir shops and too many tour groups following their tour leader's umbrella.





A view of the Old Bridge

 The town was also almost totally destroyed with many buildings still not restored.The town is mostly Muslim withmany mosques which is also true of Sarajevo.During our trip we passed through beautiful countryside with huge mountains and wide green valleys.

A view of the town

When we arrived the town was totally deluged with a sudden rainstorm so the electricity was out and we were soaked to the bone looking for coffee and tea. No luck so we had to drink beer and of course a pastry or two. I have never seen so many pastry and cake shops where the fare is both delicious and cheap. Everywhere you look someone is walking around with a paper bag munching on a pastry or sweet.

Don and Kris enjoying their morning beer

Another event Mostar is known for is the bridge divers. They are young men who stand on the bridge collecting money from tourists before diving off the bridge way down in the Drana river.

The bridge diver collecting his money

We spent a few hours in Mostar and then took the bus back to Sarajevo.It was definitely worth the trip to see the countryside and the town.It was another brief glimpse in to the history of this region.

Oh yes, we thought we saw CeeCee again,she even came over and lay right down on Don's shoes

When we got back to the city we cleaned up and went for our last meal in Sarajevo, at a small local restaurant that our guide recommended. It was one of the best meals that we had and that is compared to a lot of great ones. I had rolled veal, stuffed with smoked beef procuitto and local cheese. It was then coated with bread crumbs and fried,yes fried! It went down so well with the local white wine that there was no room for dessert.

Sorry no picture will look and post later! Here it is...