Today started with waking up at 6 in the morning even though both my wife and I had the day off, but our son was going to another country for a competition, to neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina, specifically to the beautiful city of Mostar.
When we took him to the meeting point where a van and a car were waiting for them, as only the top 11 were going, we then went for a coffee and around 8 o'clock we also slowly set off towards the city of Mostar, which is almost 250 km away.
We had to check the most important thing, which in this case was the ID card because without it one cannot enter Bosnia and Herzegovina, and only then did we set off.
We stopped halfway on the highway to buy something to eat and drink because by 9 o'clock it was already 29 degrees outside and it was really hot, and my wife can't stand the air conditioning in the car, so I had to cool myself with cold drinks and a slightly open window.
After almost 3 hours of driving, we arrived at our destination and entered the hall where the fights were already taking place, and we arrived just 15 minutes before our son was competing.
He did well, but he was not very satisfied, nor was the coach, because one of his kicks, which should have brought 3 points and the victory, was not recognized, so he ended up in second place and won a silver medal.
After that, my wife and I went on because the competition lasted another 3 hours and it was over 30 degrees in the hall, and our son was returning home with the coach and the rest of the team. Of course, after the competition, the coach always takes them to a restaurant to eat because it’s a whole day event and the kids are hungry.
So, right after his last fight, we also went to explore the city of Mostar a bit and, first of all, to a restaurant to eat some of their specialties.
In this case, I had a stuffed spicy pljeskavica, and my wife had ćevapi and chicken, naturally with a salad, in this case, a shopska salad with their homemade goat cheese in brine.
The restaurant we visited was called Mystic and it was beautiful, and the view from the terrace where we sat was even more beautiful. We could see numerous mosques, forests, and the river with boats constantly taking tourists for rides. For dessert, my wife had their specialty, baklava. It's a very sweet pastry, of which you can eat only one piece because it’s extremely sweet. It contains walnuts and sugar, and it’s soaked in a sauce made of melted sugar and a bit of butter, so it literally swims in it.
After that, we went to the most famous landmark in Mostar, the Old Bridge, which was packed with tourists. You could hear all kinds of languages, German, English, Chinese... and all this because the city of Dubrovnik, which is a well-known tourist spot and the most famous in Croatia for the large number of cruise ships with foreign guests, is nearby, so tour guides take them to visit the city of Mostar. We barely managed to take a few pictures from the bridge, and then my wife went down below the bridge and took pictures from there.
We bought a few souvenirs, fridge magnets, in their street where souvenirs are sold, and that street is called Fijet. You can, of course, bargain for the price, and if you buy more items, you get even more discounts.
I wanted to buy their famous coffee set, but it was too expensive, and I didn’t have enough money with me because I had spent it in the restaurant. I was very sorry because the set is beautiful as a decoration, as a souvenir, and also for occasionally making coffee and imagining being in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
There, coffee is typically drunk black, without milk. You get a small pot (džezva) with coffee, a small cup called (fildžan), and a small container with sugar cubes to sweeten it to your liking. The coffee has a strong and intense flavor, which is also why it wakes you up well.
After visiting the bridge and the local streets, we headed to our car and slowly made our way home because we needed to get back before the kids arrived. The roads are quite bad, as if they haven't been repaired since the war; some are just patched up, but there are many potholes, and traffic rules are poorly followed. People turn without using signals and also cross the road where there are no pedestrian crossings.
All in all, it was beautiful, and I hope to visit the city of Mostar again in the near future, and of course, the sanctuary of Međugorje, which is not far from it, but next time I will stay for at least two days, so I can spend the night because doing everything in a hurry means missing out on a lot.
I wish you a pleasant day, dear friends.
