A war damaged and abandoned building as I walked along Ante Starčevića.


Photographer.


And at my Airbnb for my one night stay in Mostar. Only €35 per night.


The Airbnb was situated right on the Neretva River and just south of the Stari Most and had a perfect view of the bridge from the balcony.


At about 2:30pm I went for a walk through the Old Town, with plenty of other tourists about.


Spicy beef kebab and a bottle of European Fanta (i.e. made with real orange juice) for lunch at a local restaurant.


Looking up at a diver about to take the plunge into the cool water of the Neretva River from Stari Most. My guidebook said that for a small fee the local divers will give you a wetsuit and some lessons on how to safely dive off the bridge. I didn't see any brave/foolish tourists making the plunge today though.


Stari Most was built in the 16th century, is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's most recognizable landmarks and is considered as one of the most significant pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans.

During the Bosnian War, Mostar was a divided city between the eastern and western sides of the Neretva River.

After receiving heavy damage throughout the war, the bridge was blown up by a tank on the 9th of November, 1993. A photo of the damaged bridge before it was completely destroyed.


Following the war, there was significant effort and expense to reconstruct the bridge using stone from local quarries and recovered stones from the original bridge from the river below. The reconstructed bridge was inaugurated on the 23rd of July, 2004.

In the evening I went through the Old Town again, with thankfully the number of other tourists now thinned out.


A couple taking a selfie on Stari Most.


After the substantial breakfast and late lunch I just had an ice cream for dinner.


And enjoyed the view of Stari Most at dusk at the end of day 2.



Day 3.

I got up early on the morning of day 3 and walked the 1.5 kilometres back to the bus station. Passing by some dogs helping themselves to breakfast at a dumpster.


And arriving just before 6:30am for the 7am departure. This time I didn't have to pay a bus station fee but did have to pay €1 for my bag.


Just a minibus today for the journey to Montenegro.


The route to Kotor. My ticket originally said a routing via Dubrovnik, but apparently it had been changed to bypass Croatia altogether today. It meant one less border crossing but an extra 3 hours of driving though.


At our first stop to stretch the legs after a couple of hours on the road.


Looking down on the town of Trebinje just after 11am and where we had a 30 minute break.


Crossing over at Ilino Brdo border and into Montenegro. The driver collected everyone's passport to be stamped out of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the again on the Montenegrin side.


There was luckily no queue on either side and we were on our way relatively quickly.


Another stop just after 2pm in the Montenegrin city of Nikšić.


The view of the rocky ridge of Ostroška Greda as we make our way south.


Stopping again in the Podgorica, the Capital city of Montenegro.


Looking across to Bečići as the Adriatic finally comes into view.


And just before 5pm and almost nine hours after leaving Mostar, we finally arrived in Kotor.


The daylight was quickly fading and I wanted to still do a bit of sightseeing, so after paying the €3 fee, I walked up through the Old Town and up the historic fortifications of Kotor.

The Old Town of Kotor and Kotor bay in the late afternoon.


Looking up at the rocky and barren terrain of Pestingrad Peak.


The fortifications of Kotor consist of historic ramparts, towers, citadels, gates, bastions, forts, cisterns, a castle and other structures that were designed to protect the medieval town of Kotor.


The Azamara Quest in port. Many of the tourists that visit Kotor arrive by cruise ship.


I then walked back down the hill into the Old Town.


The warren like streets and alleys of the Old Town were quite easy to get lost in.


My Airbnb for the night in the Old Town.


Quite spacious and only €50 for the night and very good value.


The view from the third floor window.


I then went for an evening stroll through the Old Town.


The Roman Catholic Cathedral of Saint Tryphon.


For dinner I headed to the nearby Pescaria Dekaderon on Tryphon Square.


And enjoyed the very tasty seafood platter.


Afterwards I went for a walk along the bay. Looking back on Kotor with the fortifications on the surrounding hill all lit up.


And looking down on the cruise ship Azamara Quest at the end of day 3.