Mostar

Two and half hours southwest from Sarajevo is the ancient town of Mostar.  It was here that connected the East and West.  The Ottomans expanded thier empire to include this town, known as "Market and Bridge" and eventually shortened to just "Old Bridge" (Mostar translates to that).  In 1557, Suleyman the Magnificent ordered a swooping arched bridge to replace the old chain-link bridge that crosses the Neretva River.  

 

Stari Most, or "Old Bridge"

What was built was a beautiful bridge with an arch that matched a rainbow.  It stood until November 1993, when the fighting between former allies of Croats and Bosniaks erupted and exploded the bridge.  In fact, the entire town was pretty much destroyed during the conflict and many buildings are still empty bombed-out shells.  

Weather in Sarajevo apparently was terrible, but in Mostar, it was warm and sunny.  The call to prayers and church bells announced the noon hour as I took my first look at the newly reconstructed bridge. 

call to prayers

 Nearby is the crooked bridge, a miniature Stari Most. It crosses the Rabobolja creek, which is flanked by old mills turned into scenic restaurants. It was the only bridge left after the conflict, through severely weakened.  It washed away in the floods of 2000, but UNSECO provided funds to rebuild it, as well as its big brother, the Stari Most.

the Crooked Bridge

the Rabobolja Creek

the pathway of the crooked bridge

Looking to the east from the Stari Most

 The bridge is about 27 meters high and people are crazy enough to jump from it. You couldn't pay me enough to do that-- the water below is running so fast!

Mostari Diving Club

remembrances to the war are everywhere

looking up river-- that minaret is one I climbed

 The bridge also served as a mosque, but it doesn't have the traditional minaret.  It has two defensive towers, and from there the call to prayers were sounded. 

one of the defensive towers

the pathway of the bridge

 I climbed up the other defensive tower that also serves as a bridge museum.  It has fantastic views of the bridge and the city, but was kinda limited artifacts and history. Still worth the climb up the 5 ladders to the top.

After the museum, I wandered by the Kujundžiluk, the ancient street of vendors and places to eat. 
Instead of wild dogs roaming around, here, you are greeted by cats begging for food. 

a cross on the top of the mountain serving as a reminder of the dead

Stari Most

 I visited the Koski Mehmed Paša Mosque, which has a courtyard and fountain built in 1618.  The inside of the mosque is a bit plain but I climbed the extremely steep and claustrophobic spiral staircase to the top, where you can see Mostar in 360 degrees.  It was a perfect day to do it, but going down was every bit as terrifying as going up!

fountain

Muslim gravestones

inside the mosque

the ceiling of the mosque

Stari Most from the top of the minaret

the bare mountains with the town below

bombed out buildings

bombed out former hotel