BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA || Mostar & Sarajevo - travel vlog (plus Lukomir, Kravica) 15 Degrees North

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15° North are travelling again! This time we are in Bosnia & Herzegovina. There we visit: Pocitelj, Kravica Waterfall, Mostar, Blagaj Tekija, Lukomir and Sarajevo.
Jérémy and Ben here again! We love to travel and to satisfy our wanderlust, we are on a worldwide odyssey exploring the best places for a break around the world. We love to escape Britain to experience the best culture, cuisine and attractions that the globe has to offer. If you’re a tourist like us and just need a good itinerary for what to do and how to do it when you’re in Bosnia & Herzegovina, we will show you the best things to put on your itinerary.
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Bosnia & Herzegovina is a Balkan country that sits in the middle of the territory that once made up Yugoslavia. Bordered by Serbia, Croatia and Montenegro, Bosnia is its northern portion and Herzegovina is in the south. So what about the republic of Srpska? Well that’s a whole other thing, but we didn’t make it to that part of the country, so we won’t go into too much detail on that... But Bosnia is federated with Herzegovina but that’s also one entity within the nation of Bosnia & Herzegovina, the other of which is the Republic of Srpska, which isn’t independent but still different from Bosnia & Herzegovina but is in neither Bosnia nor Herzegovina.
We entered the country from Dubrovnik, which is actually very close to the border. It’s easy to cross with no visas required, but the difference between the countries is evident immediately. Croatia is Christian, EU and historically part of the European Empires. Bosnia is Muslim, non-EU and historically part of the Ottoman Empire. They might sit side by side, but they are poles apart culturally.
The biggest tourist destination in the country is the ancient town of Mostar. It’s easily accessible by road from Dubrovnik, so tourists often book a daytrip across to see it. Subsequently, during the day it’s full of people and at night, you have the run of the place. Sitting on the banks of the River Neretva, Mostar is named after its most famed landmark, the Stari Most, which means “Old Bridge”. Built in the sixteenth century by the Ottomans, it is a rainbow bridge, meaning that it forms a perfect semi-circle. The bridge has long been prized as one of the most exemplary examples of Balkan Islamic architecture, but then the Balkan Wars came along. In 1993, following heavy bombardment of the city by the Croatian military, the bridge collapsed into the river. Once the war was over, reconstructing this national treasure became a high priority and the reconstructed version was opened again in 2004.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a mountainous country, containing a large chunk of the Dinaric Alps. 50% of the country is forested, but with such huge chunks of the country sitting at high altitude, it is noticeably colder here than most of its Balkan neighbours.
We love nothing more than getting away from the beaten track to have an authentic experience of a country. In Europe, it has become increasingly more and more difficult to find traces of these, but high in the mountains of Bosnia, you can absolutely do that. There a handful of mountain villages, far from the tourist trail, where life hasn’t changed in centuries. The people are shepherds and contact with the outside world is limited. We visited Lukomir, which sits at an altitude of almost 1,500 metres.
Our final stop in Bosnia was its capital, Sarajevo. For us children of the 90s, the name conjures images of a war torn city, destroyed by the Balkan Wars. That was, of course, true. However, since 1996, the city was quickly rebuilt, with its centre now a busy and attractively restored Old Town. Built by the Ottomans, the city has two major claims to fame.
World War One started here. Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated here in 1914, which led to all the European Powers forming two big alliances that then spent five years trying to annihilate each other.
Also; The Siege of Sarajevo. It holds the world record for being the longest siege on any city, ever in the history of modern warfare. 1,425 days in fact. We went to a museum that explained how between April 1992 and February 1996, the city was shelled daily and snipers fired regularly at its inhabitants. It was a regular occurrence for children to be shot at as they played in the street, with dodging bullets becoming a daily occurrence for the entire population. Today, the bullet holes can still be seen all over the city, peppering the buildings with traces of is city’s important history.
Our time in Bosnia and Herzegovina was a fascinating and wonderful trip. If you’re looking for a true European undiscovered gem, then you have to come a discover this wonderful country.