Dawned a beautiful day in the charming Sarajevo. The blue skies gave a different picture of the city from the large living room window of our apartment. The Picture was quite different from that of the previous cloudy and rainy day.
The distance from Serajevo until Mostar was around 100 - 110km. We did not have planned to make some stops at attractions, this particular day was entirely devoted to the place which we would stay overnight. Watching we prepared our departure in a more relaxed pace, we started at about 10am. We followed the main road alongside the river and our guide was the blue signs to Mostar, we left the legendary Sarajevo, while having the opportunity to drive on the main streets of the city and see the massive buildings , architecture that is found in most cities of the states former Eastern Bloc.
Initially for a few kilometers, we drove at the highway, similar to that we had moved the previous day, coming to the capital. The difference was that this time we did not pay tolls, as the distance was short. Shortly after, the road entered into a canyon with lush vegetation. The scene was familiar-like we had met on several points of our trip-but also delicious! The road condition was quite good and the road layout was such as to drive in comfort.
Before the town Konjic, we encountered the first sign for the lake Boracko Jezero. Arriving in Konjic-turned left following the relevant mark-and passing by a beautiful pedestrian street, the houses reminded Muslim respectively, we met the impressive stone bridge in the city. There were some cafes and restaurants with beautiful views, but we preferred to continue with a view to a stop on the lake.
The ascent was very beautiful and it ran through a wooded area. We met only the village Borci, with minimum habitable houses and continued until the point where loomed ahead us the lake from above, in the opening of two mountains! The narrow road sloped offering points of different visual approach to the lake...
Soon we descended, reaching the shores of it. There we realized that were several houses around the lake, other maintained in very good condition or new construction and other crumbling. The area seems to have a rudimentary tourist development as presence stand the tourist information office, office of rafting, restaurants beside the lake etc. However, at the time we went to visit it, everything was closed, to the point that you get an impression of abandonment.
We moved some distance around the lake, until we found ourselves on a plateau. There we made a short stop to enjoy the scenery and took a few photos. We took the road back and we went back to Konjic, without any stop. We followed the route to Mostar. From a point the landscape became even more impressive as the river Neretva created lakes beside us, because of the dams of hydroelectric stations. At some point-after the power station-the rapids of the water was moving at the same direction with us and to the same destination, Mostar.
It was interesting that at the village Jasenjani, we met many taverns along the road, selling lamb spit! Local specialties, baked in a special way: the spit move about improvised small mills because of the great waters that are in the area... Generally, the spit lamb and pig was something we encountered in several areas of Bosnia - Herzegovina.
Late in the afternoon we went to Mostar. At first sight, this city seemed to me that I can ' drive ' in comfort. We were found very easily on the main pedestrian street, with little illegality and mainly due to the maneuverability of motorcycles, we arrived in the vertical alley where was our hotel (Villa Behar: 40€/4pers).
And this time was an apartment where it was in a relatively new two-storey building. The owner, however, was not there and we decided to wait in an adjacent cafe to come up. The owner of the cafe helped us get in touch with him. After we prepared, we started wandering towards the old part of the city, whose main attraction is the bridge “Stari Most”.
The Mostar is located in the valley of the river Neretva. It is a beautiful medieval town takes its name from the Turkish bridge in the 16th century. Unfortunately, in Mostar occurred many violent battles which caused a lot of damage to buildings. The bridge was destroyed in November 1993 and reconstructed in 1997. Walking through the cobbled streets we found a region with strong Muslim elements, tourist souvenir, restaurants, cafes, mosques, Muslim buildings and a bazaar with oriental fragrance. The combination of medieval walls and Muslim neighborhood had a unique effect!!!
Soon we reached the impressive and imposing bridge, at the ends of which are two bastions. Many tourists were everywhere, as the Mostar is one of the most famous destinations in the country and for good reason. In stores you can pay in euros, without problem, as most prices are quoted in €. We walked at the streets and ended up under the bridge on the river, now had a different angle. We continued our wandering, visiting a small mosque that had books and souvenirs, but most importantly had a television that showed the history of the bridge disaster as well as its reconstruction. Really very interesting!
Shortly afterwards we looked for a restaurant for dinner and found ourselves out of the old city. We tasted the cuisine that was delicious and the prices very economical. We returned to the bridge, as it was starting to get dark now having a different perspective. We walked for some time, while small shops were beginning to close and the crowd was dwindle. While it might seem odd, until 10pm. there were a few people that were on this - at least - region...
We returned to our hotel and we sat at an outdoor rock bar - that stood beside a Muslim cemetery (!!!) - drink a beer before returning to bed... Indeed, Mostar is a very beautiful destination that someone should not miss, visiting the country...
