Last month, Max and I spent three weeks driving around the Balkans, beginning and ending in Sarajevo. The scenery was fantastic but our experience with locals and local food was just as good. We spent 4 nights in Bosnia before heading over the border to Montenegro. After our AirBnb hosts welcomed us with Bosnian coffe and biscuits and broken conversation in German , our first meal in Sarajevo was in Baščaršija, the Old Town dating back to the Ottoman Empire. Sheltering from an afternoon downpour under a market umbrella, we tried some local fare, sitna cevapi (goulash) and potato pie. A very welcome meal after our long haul flight.
The next day's lunch of grilled vegetables and bread and dips was less successful in a smoky bar escaping another afternoon downpour so didn't rate a photo shoot.
We then travelled down the spectacular Neretva river to Mostar, home to the 16 th century stone bridge, commissioned by Suleyman the Magnificent, was destroyed by bombing In 1993 in the Croat-Bosnian conflict. The bridge was rebuilt by UNESCO in 2004 using original stones recovered from the river and now it and the beautiful Old Town surrounding it attract tourists from around the world. The Neretva River 20m below is the most stunning jade green and we saw a few fisherman on the banks trying their luck.
There is a real Turkish feel to the Old Town with several mosques in the area so we dined at Sadrvan , a Turkish style restaurant complete with waitstaff in costume. Delicious soup followed by Mostarian sarma ( dolma) and a kebab stew.
Our apartment hosts next morning surprised us with a free breakfast of freshly made fried pastries and kajmak,a thick semi soured cream to spread on them along with a selection of teas.
The next night after a road trip to the beautiful Kravice waterfall and the river at Blacaj,we were back in the Old Town for dinner.
This time I decided that I must try the Bosnian staple of cevapcici, hand rolled spicy sausages with pita bread while Max had risotto.
Dessert of fresh strawberries and cherries bought from our local fruit stall, waited for us back in the apartment. Next stop Montenegro.
We then travelled down the spectacular Neretva river to Mostar, home to the 16 th century stone bridge, commissioned by Suleyman the Magnificent, was destroyed by bombing In 1993 in the Croat-Bosnian conflict. The bridge was rebuilt by UNESCO in 2004 using original stones recovered from the river and now it and the beautiful Old Town surrounding it attract tourists from around the world. The Neretva River 20m below is the most stunning jade green and we saw a few fisherman on the banks trying their luck.
Our apartment hosts next morning surprised us with a free breakfast of freshly made fried pastries and kajmak,a thick semi soured cream to spread on them along with a selection of teas.
The next night after a road trip to the beautiful Kravice waterfall and the river at Blacaj,we were back in the Old Town for dinner.
1 comment:
Looking forward to the next installment
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