Today was the the journey to Mostar in Bosnia-Herzegovina. For what transpired along the way, See the video compilation I put together together and shared on my Facebook Page. Everything went very smoothly. I could’ve been in a slight bind for two hours, but had an awesome cab driver who helped me out. And we say cabbies aren’t helpful ? 

After I was settled in at Villa Anri and given a welcome glass of wine (yay!), I walked to the Old Town and the famous bridge, Stari Most. I can’t believe that the original one stood for over 400 years, before it was destroyed in the Croat-Bosniak War in the early 90s. It wasn’t too crowded, and thank goodness I had an umbrella from the villa. Mostar received almost 2 inches of rain today. 

After the bridge, I checked out a war exhibition, with photos take by a photographer from New Zealand. The west side of Mostar is primarily the Croat side, and the east side is the Bosnian side. both sides had destruction, but more was on the east. 

I climbed the minaret Koski Mehmed-Pasha Mosque. It was narrow and 89 steps, but the views of the bridge and town were spectacular.  

Bosnians are known for their coffee, and I was able to have some at the hotel, made for me by Aida, and at the restaurant for dinner. Cevapi is also very common- grilled mince meat with flat bread. I don’t even want to know how much meat and bread I will consume in the next few days. 

A lot of people only come to Mostar for the day, either from Dubrovnik or Sarajevo, so it clears out at night. Being the off-season, it’s also fairly quiet. I like it here. But, I can’t imagine how much destruction took place 25 years ago. That is something I think all of us hope to never experience. I’m glad I’m spending too nights here.  My room at the villa is so cozy, and I feel right at home.