Discover Bosnia and Herzegovina
WITH ZIMMIN AROUND THE WORLD.
Day Trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina seems to be looked over by many tourists. Especially since Croatia, its neighbor gets all the attention. Bosnia has had a violent past and honestly is still recovering from years of war. The history of Bosnia is extremely rich and diverse, probably more so then most other places I’ve visited. We were staying in Split, Croatia for a few days and decided to take a day trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Departing Split for a Day Trip to Bosnia Split, Croatia is a great destination to set up a home base if wanting to explore the Balkans. Split was incredibly touristy so finding tour companies offering day tours was not a problem. But I like to plan ahead and booked a day trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina (I’m going to abbreviate it to Bosnia for now on) online via Viator. Viator offered a day trip to Bosnia stopping in the towns of Počitelj and Mostar, then making a final stop at the beautiful Kravica Falls. Although I feel that Bosnia deserves several days of exploring, sometimes that is not an option. I like day tours as they provide a small sample of the country and usually day trips make multiple stops to places I’d never even think of. We were in for an 11-ish hour day so our day started early. We were picked up in the middle of Split by our tour guide. We shared a small bus with a few other couples and began our journey to Bosnia. There is a border crossing, so plan for that. Being with a tour company the crossing was a breeze. Mostar was the main attraction of the tour, but we had the opportunity to stop in the town of Počitelj for a bit before pressing on to Mostar. Počitelj was about a two hour drive from Split. Počitelj We stopped in Počitelj for about in hour, just enough time to walk to the castle and explore some side streets. Počitelj is a walled city located along the Neretva River. I was fascinated by the architecture of Počitelj, as I’ve never seen architecture from the Ottoman Empire. This was my first time seeing a Mosque. Overlooking the town of Počitelj, was the Citadel. Currently in ruins, the castle was built by Tvrtko I of Bosnia in 1383. First thing we did when arriving in Počitelj was to hike to the Citadel. The walk wasn’t but 15 minutes to the top. We climbed the stairs of the tower that remains in tact, the views from here were beyond worth it. Afterwards, we walked the narrow paths through Počitelj back to the bus and made our way to Mostar. Mostar About a 30 minute drive from Počitelj is the city of Mostar. We had about 3 hours to explore Mostar. Ideally, you could spend a whole day here, but we managed our time wisely and was able to see Stari Most (the famous bridge), walk the bazaar, explore some side streets, and even get lunch. Mostar has a lengthy history dating back to at least 1452. Mostar was first used as a Garrison by Turkey under the Ottoman rule. The bridge in the center of town, originally constructed of wood was replaced by stone and the name Mostar was given to the city (Mostar means bridge in Serbo-Croatian). In 1993, the bridge was destroy due to the civil war in the country and was rebuilt in 2004. In 2005, the bridge and historic center of Mostar was listed as a UNESCO site. I also included the bridge in my post, My Favorite UNESCO Sites. Today, tourists can walk across the bridge and if lucky enough see people jump from the bridge into the Neretva River below. When we visited we saw two jumpers stand up there for what seemed to be an hour trying to get a crowd together. Unfortunately, after waiting for so long, they never jumped! After walking across the bridge, we decided to browse the Old Bazaar Kujundziluk. The bazaar was along a narrow cobble stone street. Now a days, it was full of touristy items but there were some cool craft shops and decorative drink sets. To me, one of the most fascinating features of Mostar was getting about one to two blocks off the main road. There was a night and day difference between the touristy section of Mostar and the side streets. Many buildings were still bullet riddled to this day or just left as is since the war ended. The two photos below area a good example of what many buildings looked like in Mostar away from the tourist areas. While walking around some of the side streets, we found a bakery that offered Burek. Burek is popular in the area and is a flaky pastry usually filled with meat, cheese, or vegetables. The burek was so cheap, flavorful, and huge I consider it one of my favorite foods. You can read more about Burek in my other post, Favorite Food Around the World. Burek was definitely filling, but before departing Mostar we had to try some local eats. Our tour guide recommended eating at Šadrvan. We ordered a national plate that had a mix of traditional Bosnian cuisine. Included in the dish were Cevapi, which are sausages made of minced meat or mutton. Dolma, are stuffed peppers. Japrak, is minced meat wrapped in blanched leaves and Djuvec which is a Bosnian rice with vegetables. The food was excellent, so hats off to our tour guide for the recommendation. I can’t talk about food without mentioning Beer. Of course at Šadrvan, I had to order a local beer. I had a bottle of Mostarsko Pivo. The beer was just alright. I rated it 2.25 out of 5 on Untappd. I also had a Sarajevsko Premium in Mostar and it was nothing special. Kravica Waterfalls Our last stop on our day trip to Bosnia included a stop at Kravica Waterfall. We had about an hour here at the waterfalls. The falls were about a 15 minute walk from the parking lot. The falls are created by the Trebizat River. Kravica Falls is made up of multiple different falls emptying into a beautiful pool of water below. Kravica Falls is quickly gaining popularity and can get pretty crowded. Many people come here to swim or even kayak in the pools created by the falls. There are a few shacks around the falls that offer food and drinks. You can easily spend a day at the falls. We were here in August and the water was warm enough for swimming but we ended up grabbing some drinks and walking along the pools enjoying the beauty of Kravic Waterfalls. That’s a Wrap for our Day Trip to Bosnia We really enjoyed our day trip to Bosnia and saw a lot. The day started with a visit to the walled city of Počitelj, we then spent time in Mostar, and finished our day at Kravica Waterfalls. Although I could have spent a whole week in Bosnia, I felt a day trip was a great way to learn about the country, see some towns/sites, and try some Bosnian cuisine. Next time I visit Bosnia, I would love to see Sarajevo, the capital and possibly drive around the country visiting some of the smaller towns and explore more of its nature.
My Favorite Food From Around the World!
Food is a major contributing factor as to why I travel. Food is regional and differs from state to state, country to country. In my lifetime of travel, I’ve never really had a bad food experience abroad. Sure some cuisines I like more then others, but sampling food excites me no matter where I am. I’ve been to some surprising locations, like Lima, Peru that had some of the most flavorful and authentic dishes. Other places like Guatemala where the food was not as exciting, but still can’t go wrong with basic tortillas, beans, and a side of meat. Regardless of the location, I do my research prior to visiting a country so I don’t miss out of any of the must eats! I love food, and trying new things, so I want to share some of my favorite dishes from around the World. Burek – Bosnia & Herzegovina I’ve never heard of a Burek before my trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sure, I’ve had similar baked goods but the Burek might be my favorite savory pastry. A Burek is basically a flaky pastry filled with ingredients like meats, cheese, and/or vegetables. It is usually rolled up in a spiral or cooked in a large pan and cut into pieces for serving Jill and I took a day trip to Mostar, Bosnia from Split, Croatia and our tour guide stopped along the route and surprised us with a sampling of two types of Burek’s. One was filled with meat and the other with cheese, they were both phenomenal. This was our first encounter with Burek, so we instantly knew we had to find a bakery in Mostar that served fresh Burek. We did find Burek at a local bakery and it was ridiculously cheap, less then a dollar and oh so good! Cracked Conch – The Bahamas Conch, my favorite snail of the sea! They are found throughout the Caribbean, but the Bahamas in particular is known for them. In fact, many countries have Conch seasons, but not the Bahamas, you can eat them all year long. For being a Mollusk they are very cute and their shell is beautiful. There are many different recipes and styles to prepare the conch. You can have Conch Fritters as a snack, fresh conch salad, and cracked conch, which was my favorite. I ordered cracked conch at every restaurant I went to in both Nassau and Exuma. I know not very healthy, but oh so tasty! I mean conch is hard to come by in Kansas. Cracked Conch is a meal in itself where they take the conch meat and tenderize it, coat it in batter and fry it to perfection! In the end you get fried little conch pieces generally served with fries, beans, or some type of slaw. Most restaurants in the Bahamas have outdoor seating, so eating fresh seafood while starring at the waves in the picturesque setting of the Bahamas is Paradise! Döner Kebab – Germany Oh, the Döner Kebab. I literally have day dreams about it. It seems like such an easy creation, yet does not exist in the United States. It can be found in Europe, particularly Germany, on every street corner. The Döner Kebab is filling, flavorful, and just down right mouth watering. The closest thing to a Döner Kebab is a Gyros, but trust me, no comparison, the Döner is 100x better. The Döner is a German creation created my Turkish immigrants. It seems like many food creations start this way. You bring a traditional dish to a new area and realize everyone is on the go, so you wrap up the ingredients in a type of bread and Walla! you have a tasty meal on the go! So yes, the Döner was invented in Germany. So what is a Döner Kebab? The meat is layered and seasoned on a rotating spit, that way it gets evenly cooked. It is then shave off the spit and added to somewhat of a pita bread layered with cabbage, onion, tomato, and smothered in a white garlic sauce. Such a simple and quick meal and relatively cheap for the size of the kebab. The Döner Kebab dominates the late night and fast food industry in Europe, kind of like a fast food burger joint in the States. People, including myself crave these after a late night out, or after swimming, hiking, watching tv, you get the idea, I crave them 24/7. It’s weird, I love Döner so much, I have Döner stories, but that is a whole other topic! I absolutely love the Döner Kebab and lets be honest, I love most German Dishes. But I don’t want to make this post all about German food. Instead, if you want to learn more about popular German dishes or love them as much as I do then check out these 16 mouthwatering foods that are a must try. Fried Seafood – Lima, Peru and New Orleans, USA A mound of fried seafood on a plate might just be my favorite all time meal! I’ve had fried seafood in several states and countries but two places really stand out to me of having the best. The cities of New Orleans, LA and Lima, Peru. One city is in the northern hemisphere on the continent of North America while another cities lies in the southern hemisphere in South America. One thing they each have in common is their proximity to the ocean and fresh seafood. In New Orleans, you can order a mix of seafood and you will generally get crawdad tails, crab, and a variety of shrimp and fish. I am not entirely sure about the mariscos (seafood) platters in Lima, my best guess is a mixture of fish, shrimp, and clams. For sides in NOLA the seafood will usually come with slaw and fries. The mariscos platters I had came with yuca fries. Yuca is starchy like a potato, but it is a root and so delicious! The seafood platter in Lima is about a third of the cost as in the States. I paid anywhere from $7 to $12 for a gigantic portion along with a pisco sour! In the states you are looking anywhere from $15 to well over $30 for a platter of fried seafood. Price is not really an issue to me when it comes to seafood. Living in Kansas I am deprived from great/fresh seafood. Lomo Saltado – Lima, Peru Both Jill and I have never heard of Lomo Saltado and had no idea it was a staple in Peru even after doing research beforehand. After a day of traveling, we went to the nearest restaurant we could find near the Historic Center of Lima. The restaurant was named Tanta and we asked the waiter a recommendation and he referred us to Lomo Saltado. Lomo Saltado is pretty basic and some sort of dish is found throughout the world, but it was so good! The dishes we had were stir fried strips of steak mixed with onion, peppers, tomatoes usually served over rice or fries. The food in Lima is multi-cultural with a lot of Asian influences regarding rice and spices. Lomo Saltado comes in different varieties based on traditional Peruvian spices or Asian spices, or a mixture of the two. You get your veggies and protein all in one flavorful dish! Mofongo – Puerto Rico Mofongo is another dish we randomly stumbled upon while asking for local recommendations. We both love plantains in all variations. Mofongo is probably my favorite dish that consists of plantain. Basically, Mofongo is mashed plantain that is used as a base with a combination of chicken, pork, seafood, or any type of meat or anything you want really! I had mofongo at several restaurants and it is served in various forms whether it be as a side dish or crusted on the inside of a soup bowl, which happened to be my favorite. Poutine – Montreal, Canada Poutine is the weirdest name for a food item. I read that the names origin is not exactly known but possibly derived from the English word for pudding. What is poutine exactly? Well, it’s definitely not the healthiest dish. Canadians need a hearty meal to get through the brutal winters. Poutine is a Canadian dish that consists of french fries smothered in gravy and topped with cheese curds. I like the squeaky-ness of the curds, they have a fun texture! Poutine to me sounds like a great hangover cure. In fact restaurants in Canada don’t just have poutine listed on the menu as an appetizer. You can find restaurants that specialize in different variations of poutine. My first dish in Montreal was poutine served with pulled pork! They must have had at least 15 other combinations of poutine available. I wish poutine was more popular in the states, maybe it is in the northern US, but not where live. Schweinhaxe – Germany Picture a caveman with a huge hunk of meat and the bone is protruding out. That is the image I see when I think of a Schweinhaxe. These are a delicacy in Germany, at least in Bavaria and can be found on most menus. Beware! Come Hungry! The Schweinhaxe is basically a ham hock or pork knuckle where the meat is left on the bone. The Bavarian style is super crispy and slightly salted on the outside and beyond tender on the inside, usually served with gravy and knödels (knödels are dumplings typically made from flour, bread, or potatoes). The meat is so tender and flavorful it just falls off the bone. Schweinhaxe is one of my favorite cuts of meat served at restaurants especially when paired with a dark German bier! Torta, Mexico City Mexico City is a food mecca with everything imaginable. I would say traditional Mexican food is far different then Tex-Mex, I mean Burritos aren’t even widely served throughout Mexico. Tacos with a hard shell loaded with lettuce, onions and cheese don’t exist in Mexico, weird right? A traditional taco in Mexico consists of a smaller corn tortilla, with just meat and pico de gallo or something similiar. But I am not here to talk tacos or other dishes. My favorite food in Mexico City was the torta! In fact, we had a torta for the first time on our last night, it was so good we went to another restaurant to try one. While walking around Mexico City, we noticed a lot of restaurants with a spit out front with meat, similar to the Döner Kebab. The spit had a pineapple, onion, or orange on top allowing the juices to run down the meat, this is known as Al Pastor deriving from Lebanese immigrants. I was honestly surprised I walked by so many and didn’t stop to try until the last day. As I sat down at a restaurant, I wanted to try something new, I had a torta with al pastor. To me, a torta reminds me of a combination of a taco and sandwich, basically you have the taco fillings between two buns. The bread was fluffy and the fillings were phenomenal. Our tortas consisted of al pastor, beans, guacamole, and a variety of veggies. Now I know, next time I am in Mexico, I will live off of Street Tacos and Torta’s! Zapiekanka – Krakow, Poland Zapiekanka, or as I call it a Polish Baguette. Is a popular street/fast food item in Poland. I only spent a day in Krakow, but saw these all over the place. I don’t really know much about Zapiekanka or its origins but they make for a great quick bite to eat while on the go. Basically the Polish baguette is a baguette or some type of bread, with sauce, toppings and melted cheese. The toppings vary as you can decorate your own, I had one with mushrooms and prosciutto, such a delight! I love the zapiekanka so much, I make them at home all the