My Slovenian drivers wanted to make a stop at a specific place in Bosnia and Herzegovina called Vrelo Bune nearby Blagaj. It’s only 14 kilometers far away from Mostar, where we spent the night. I had no idea what it was about, but oh my, this is peak idyllic! But what is Vrelo Bune about? Well, for one, it’s on the list of tentative UNESCO World Heritage Sites. But that doesn’t tell you a lot. As my drivers translated from their guidebook, Vrelo Bune is a perfect mix of nature and culture. The Dervish monastery – from a Sufi order ofContinue reading
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That Mandatory Mostar Photo (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
When in Mostar, it’s almost obligatory to take a photo with the ‘stari most‘ (old bridge). The Ottomans left a lot of their architecture around the Balkans, which now pays as one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most-loved tourist attractions. I’m wondering if the name of the town Mostar is also just ‘stari most’ but switched around and abbreviated? I feel that the coincidence is too big… This is probably something one could Google. Supposedly, people jump off this bridge into the river below for sport. However, I didn’t witness this and wouldn’t assume this dive is a year-round thing. I’m assumingContinue reading
Boračko Lake: Hitchhiking from Sarajevo to Mostar
Waiting Outside Sarajevo Events described at Boračko Lake happened on Saturday 2nd of May, 2015 It was my first time in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and I hope not my last visit. I had stayed only a few days in Sarajevo when I wanted to hitchhike onward to Mostar. I stayed the night somewhere more outside the city in a sort of campus area. This day, I started hiking towards my hitchhiking spot fairly early in the morning. But I didn’t have much luck besides a short ride past Ilidža in the direction of Konjic. My sign said ‘Mostar’. Eventually, a carContinue reading
Photogenic Street Pups in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Though the concept of stray puppies, dogs, and other pets makes me sad, I love puppies. I love to see them all day, every day. Here in Vrelo Bosne park in Sarajevo, I encountered this litter of sweet photogenic street pups. They were so fluffy and playful and a little sleepy. They reminded me of the pups that lived with us in Vake Park in Georgia. This is also about as good as my photography skills will get, I’m afraid. But it’s also heartbreaking. The mom dog was nowhere in sight. I’m not sure if these photogenic street pups wereContinue reading
Vrelo Bosne Park: Springs of the Bosna River (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
I’m spending the afternoon in Vrelo Bosne park in Ilidža, west of Sarajevo. That’s where the source of the Bosna is at. That stream becomes the river Bosna that is the namesake of the country Bosnia and Herzegovina. It flows from here northward until it contributes its water to the Sava river. The Sava river ends up in the Danube river in Belgrade. As I hitchhiked from Belgrade to Sarajevo in one day, I guess it’s possible to follow this stream back to Belgrade. But I guess it’s not completely walkable all the way to the border because of Bosnia’sContinue reading
Belgrade to Sarajevo: A Whimsical Hitchhiking Day
Yesterday’s hitchhiking trip from Belgrade to Sarajevo was just whimsical! This is my first time in Bosnia and Herzegovina (also abbreviated as ‘BiH’) and definitely not last I may hope. I already really like Sarajevo. It’s unlike anything I’ve seen in Europe and the food is good. So why was hitchhiking here so magical? Well, because the landscapes change from Belgrade to Sarajevo in a very spectacular way. There are also tons of other towns along the way with cool architecture and oodles of history. Perhaps I should have made longer stops along the way, but I had such aContinue reading