Sunday, October 9, 2011

Bosnia, intre Muntenegru si Serbia / Bosnia, Between Montenegro and Serbia

As we have never been in Bosnia, we decided to come back home, crossing the North-East of Bosnia. Our itinerary was Hum (border-crossing between Montenegro and Bosnia)- Brod-Foca-Visegrad-Vardiste (border-crossing Bosnia and Serbia).

The road follows the Drina valley. The arrow of the minarets in every location indicated we are in a Muslim country.

We only stopped some minutes in Visegrad to take photos of the famous bridge, built by Mehmed Pasa Sokolovic, in 1571. It is an UNESCO treasure monument.

The ugly face of war (1992) is revealed by some houses near the border.

If you are curious stay tuned, as the story continues with the Albanian itinerary.

We crossed the border to Serbia at Vardiste, paying 50 eurocents (50 dinars) as entrance fee on the territory of the National Park Mokra Gora. As the tourist train from the Mokra Valley was not circulating at the time we were there, we continued to Cacak, where we spent the night in a pension near the road (18 euros/night a double room, bath, AC, fridge). Next day, through Beograd-Pancevo-Vrsac, we drove safely home, ending a nice two week vacation.


N-am mai fost pana acum prin Bosnia (cu exceptia celor 26 km parcursi pe Jadranska Magistrala, pe coasta dalmatina, spre Dubrovnik), asa ca am hotarat "sa taiem" macar un colt de tara pentru a vedea cum sunt drumurile si atmosfera in general. Parcurgem asadar, la inapoierea spre tara, 116 km prin coltul de nord-est al Bosniei.

Dupa trecerea granitei dintre Muntenegru si Bosnia, la Hum, urmeaza 16 km de drum ingust dar destul de bun, apoi o sosea normala, foarte buna. Ne-am deplasat de-alungul Drinei pe traseul: Hum-Brod-Foca-Gorazdin-Visegrad-Vardiste (punctul de frontiera spre Serbia).

Vremea n-a fost prea frumoasa la inceput, apoi s-a mai indreptat si am putut admira peisajul. Pe Drina, ca si pe Tara sau Piva, se face rafting in unele parti. Acelasi aspect de defileu, cu inaltimi impadurite, reflectate intr-o apa albastrui-verzuie, ne-a insotit o buna bucata de vreme. Localitatile sunt punctate de sagetile minaretelor care se avanta spre cer. Mi-a placut, din mers, Gorazdin, care seamana cu o mica statiune montana, plina de flori.
 Valea Drinei
 aici se varsa Lim in Drina
Singurul popas ceva mai lung l-am facut la Visegrad, pentru a fotografia batranul pod construit de vizirul de origine sarba Mehmed Pasa Sokolovic, in 1571. Podul face parte din patrimoniul UNESCO.
 Visegrad, pe Drina
 Podul Lui Mehmed Pasa, sec. XVI, monument UNESCO
Visegrad
In istoria recenta, Visegrad pastreaza amintirea masacrarii a 119 bosniaci, inchisi in doua cladiri si arsi de vii de catre trupele sarbilor bosniaci, in ceea ce s-a numit "razboiul bosniac" din 1992. Acum orasul si-a revenit si incearca sa-si faureasca un nou destin. Doar in apropierea granitei, ce a mai ramas din niste case bombardate, aminteste de razboi. 
 fata hidoasa a razboiului
Suntem foarte aproape de Vardiste, punctul de frontiera, cand vedem in stanga drumului, pe o coasta de deal, o manastire viu colorata. Nici un indicator nu ne spune insa cum se numeste.
La granita, la intrarea in Serbia, platim 50 eurocenti sau 50 dinari, taxa de intrare in Parcul National Mokra Gora. Zona seamana cu cele montane de pe la noi, iar casele de lemn ne amintesc de Maramures.
in zona Mokra Gora
Celebrul trenulet turistic nu mai circula la ora cand ajungem noi acolo, asa ca ne continuam drumul prin Uzice si Pojega, poposind peste noapte la o pensiune de la marginea soselei, in apropiere de Cacak (18 euro/noapte,fara mic dejun, AC, frigider, baie).
loc de popas, la marginea soselei
 De acolo, prin Beograd-Pancevo-Vrsac, ajungem la Timisoara incheind o vacanta de doua saptamani care ne-a oferit atat de multe!
traversand Beogradul
 Daca sunteti curiosi, stati pe aproape fiindca povestea continua cu itinerarul albanez.

37 comments:

Joop Zand said...

Good serie photo's..... well done.

greetings, Joop

escape said...

that dome church resembles the churches in turkey.

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Joop!

Traveling Hawk said...

Both Turkey and Bosnia are muslim countries, dong ho, so the mosque are alike. The churh in no.15 photo is an orthodox one. Thanks for the comment.

Liliana said...

Intrebare poate stupida. Te puteai urca in minaret? Ma gandesc ca trebuie sa fi fost faina privelistea de sus.

VP said...

So many different styles...

Victor said...

am fost o singură dată în Bosnia, în '97, la Medugorje... se simţea foarte puternic mirosul războiului... de exemplu, nu am fost lăsaţi să trecem prin Sarajevo;
drumul spre casă l-am pornit noaptea, şi m-a încântat drumul de-a lungul unei văi superbe, probabil Drina...
mulţumesc, şoimule...
să ai o săptămână frumoasă...

joo said...

This old bridge over Drina is gorgeous! I love this post and I love the memories from Bosnia. It was my favourite part of ex Yugoslavia:)

Traveling Hawk said...

Nu stiu Liliana dar nu cred...in moschei mici, de tara, ca asta nu cred ca iti da nimeni voie sa urci. Poate in cele mai "turistice", din Istanbul...Astea sunt fotografiate din masina.

Traveling Hawk said...

Yes, VP. it was again a kaleidoscope!

Traveling Hawk said...

multumesc pentru vizita, Victor!

Traveling Hawk said...

You said you lived in former Yugoslavia, Joo. In which part?

Randy said...

What a beautiful place. I would love to visit there.

Traveling Hawk said...

May be once, when you come to Europe, Randy:)

Doug Hickok said...

Such fascinating places Traveling Hawk! The old stone bridge, the orange church, and the beautiful rocky mountains... I find them unique and lovely. Thanks for all your enlightening travels :^)

Traveling Hawk said...

Doug, I am so happy when people find that what I'm presenting here is interesting for them! Thanks!

LifeRamblings said...

what a beautiful and peaceful setting. lovely reflections and the minaret is exquisite. thanks for sharing your wonderful journey.

Marinela said...

Such a beautiful places, Traveling Hawk... Amazing shots!

Traveling Hawk said...

You're welcome, Life Ramblings! I'm glad you like it.

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Marinela! Welcome to my blog!

magda said...

Your photos are wonderful and all the places, are so interesting and nice!!!
Best regards

RIZALENIO said...

Beautiful photos of the bridge. I love the one with reflections.

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks for the visit, Rizalenio!

Traveling Hawk said...

Thank you for the kind words, Magda!

Dragos said...

Imi place , ai talent omule!Prin asta ti-ai mai castigat un cititor, bafta si la cat mai multe articole!

Traveling Hawk said...

Daca nu ar fi o strategie de marketing, ti-as multumi pentru comentariu.

- Yvonaut -
Das sind Raphael und Yvonne
said...

Thank you for taking us through Bosnia. Beautiful pictures!
Greetings from Switzerland
Yvonne and Raphael

VP said...

The strange red church is amazing...

Traveling Hawk said...

Welcome to my blog, Yvonaut!

Traveling Hawk said...

Yes, it was very different of what I have seen, VP.

Phivos Nicolaides said...

A wonderful place to visit!!

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Phivos, for being here!

黄清华 Wong Ching Wah said...

I am impressed ...

Traveling Hawk said...

Even small, Bosnia seems to be a nice country with many things to offer for the tourists. Thanks for the comment, Wong!

joo said...

Actually my Dad used to work in Serbia, and I spent much time there!I really loved this country!

Traveling Hawk said...

I understand. I like it too and I like the people. Do you speak Serbian? I do a little, usual phrases:)

ElizabethJ_Bird said...

Great Photos. I remember several of these scenes from my drive through the country.