Crowded, but amazing and charming: Mostar and surroundings / BIH

25.07.2023 - 27.07.2023

TANJA:

Already on the approach, which is described as one of the most beautiful train rides in Europe, we are surprised: Andrea, a Czech who has been living in Vienna for 5 years and whom we last met on our hike in Sarajevo, meets us when we disembark and we spontaneously agree to meet in the evening. Mostar's old town greets us with a lot of people and oriental vibes. Here, too, there is a 28m high very old bridge in the center, to which a whole museum is dedicated. Again and again, men in bathing trunks walk with determined looks towards the bridge and then lie around on the railing for a long time to collect money so that they can jump after all. For 50 Eur, you can even train yourself with 6 trial jumps for the big bridge jump, which of course an American traveler couldn't miss.

Together with Andrea, we conquer the tower side of the river and go swimming naked in the river in the evening, hoping that no one sees us as it is too Muslim....

Unfortunately, Andrea has already decided that all of this is too busy for her and leaves for Neum, the only Bosnian town with access to the sea, the next day.

Instead, we treat ourselves to a luxury room with AC, kitchen, and private bathroom for a still reasonable 17 euros per person per night.

MARKUS:

Second day Mostar: round trip to (once again) old villages, towers, and beautiful waterfalls in Kravica, which, however, remind me more of Disneyland, as they are so full of colorful inflatable tourism. We move away, follow the course of the river and find a great bathing spot with natural slides and pools a few hundred meters away, where we spend the afternoon and meet Catherine, an Australian traveler who has been on the road for 5 months and provides Tanja with some valuable tips for the further journey. Always exciting to experience how traveling makes people increasingly silent, determined, and clear, which is especially visible in their eyes. This is how Catherine appears to me, at least.

Next stop: Dubrovnik and Ulcinj.