A Few Hours, Another Country

Unofficially, Carol and I have now each been to 46 countries -- not always the same ones, but mostly the same ones.

(Editor: "Unofficially"  What is this, some sort of official secret document/count.  Writer: Well, no, I have to go back and count, and at 6am in the morning, that count won't be happening.)

Anyhow, when I searched the internet for a car and driver to take us to Split from Dubrovnik, I came across Team Daytrip.  They offer private transfers in 130 plus countries, including sightseeing stops.

So when I checked out the site, they offered multiple options for stops along the way, each at an affordable cost in addition to driving us from point A to point B with a minimum of hassle for us.  

I like going to small towns and villages on trips, even if we only spend a few hours in the village.  So I went ahead and bought stops in Ston, Croatia, and then added Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The main reason to go to Mostar was to see the iconic Mostar bridge, the Stari Most.  

It's a stunning 16th century bridge that connects the two parts of Mostar, which is bisected by the river Neretva.  One side of the city is Muslim and the other is Christian.

The bridge was shelled by the Croatians during the war and collapsed in 1993.  It was reconstructed with pieces in the river, or from limestone mined from the same quarry as the original bridges.  

Suleiman the Magnificent commissioned the bridge in 1557 (I guarantee you, no matter who wins in November, our next president will not have the nickname "the Magnificent").  Built in just nine years, it was a technological marvel for its time, and a design marvel for our time.

The bridge is beautiful, nearly a half-circle, standing well above the water.  I have seen it described as "humpback" (which doesn't do it justice) and "keystone" (which is better but still not clear).  

We wandered down a narrow pedestrian street, Coppersmiths' Street, which should be renamed JunkShoppe Street.  It's charming, especially the buildings, but most of the stuff for sale is schlock.  

We got to the bridge.  It's like crossing the Charles Bridge in Prague or the Rialto Bridge in Venice; jam-packed with people.  It's also studded with little footholds, which either serve as footholds or are used to trip unsuspecting tourists.  

From the bridge you can see several mosques, and multiple minarets.  Apparently, for a fee you can climb one of the minarets, which affords a great view of the bridge, but we did not have time.

After making our way across, we headed for lunch.

Our Daytrip driver, Tarjana, recommended two places for lunch, and as Restaurant Labirint hung above the river with views of the bridge, we picked that one.  The food was good, but the bridge is definitely the highlight.

With just two hours in Mostar, we had to make the most of our time, so after lunch we immediately crossed back over the bridge.  Maddy and I climbed down the stairs to the "beach."

Carol was reluctant to go down, as going up and down stairs caused too much pain from the injuries caused by my crashing the ATV that first day in Dubrovnik.  So instead she wandered along a path, crossing the crooked bridge and enjoying other parts of Mostar.

Much of the entertainment at the bridge is by members of the local Divers Club, a group of young men who collect donations at the top of the bridge to jump the 75 feet into the icy cold river.  

They pretend they are about to jump, and then get down, asking for more money.  Once they collect 30-35 Euro, they jump.  

Just across from the beach is a lower diving platform that wannabe Divers Club members can train, and get up their courage to do the 75 foot jump.  

Maddy and I got to see one full jump off the bridge, and several jumps off the practice platform.  During lunch, Carol saw several jumpers take off.  It's fun to watch.

After a gelato, we headed back to meet our driver and head out of Bosnia-Herzegovina, unlikely ever to return again.