To Jump Off The Bridge In Mostar Or Not?

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Mostar is located in Southern Bosnia & Herzegovina (a mouthful!). It is named after the Keepers of the Bridge, Stari Most – meaning Old Bridge.

The bridge was destroyed during the Bosnian War in the nineties, after standing there for over 400 years. It has now been re-constructed and is a symbol of reconciliation between cultures and religions.

Bridge Jumping

The bridge in Mostar is a height above the river of 24 metres and has become famous for locals and travellers alike jumping from the centre of the bridge down into the river below. As it is very risky, only the most trained jumpers…jump! Or so they say!

Here’s some information on an upcoming dive comp held in Mostar, hosted by Red Bull

Our Day Trip to Mostar

The day began far too early, as we grabbed a croissant and a bottle of water from a local Dubrovnik cafe, for the drive to Mostar. Our van was full of tourists, so the four of us in our group sat at the front with the driver so that we could be sure to see and hear what was going on along the way!

Medjugorie

Our first stop along the way was in the uber-Religious town of Medjugorje. Since the eighties when a group of local children claimed that had seen the Virgin Mary, Medjugorie is now a place of pilgrimage.

Medjugorie seems to have nothing in it besides tourist shops to purchase images of Mary in all manner of items, from Mary paper weights, to Mary beads, to May crosses, to Mary t shirts. It does also have a church, and worshippers march out to a rocky hill where Mary was supposedly seen.

For our group of neither religious nor non-religious twenty-some things, this place was semi-boring. We spent about 5 minutes trying to find interest in this town, before deciding we were confused and gave up and found a coffee shop to banter in until our time was up and we were allowed back into the van!

I will say, since having gone to Medjugorie, I have met religious people who have pilgrimaged here, which I can say that I have been to and understand. Without this pit-stop, I would never have known about the pilgrimage to this small place, so perhaps that 5 minutes of confusion has helped me in some way?

Between Medjugorie and Mostar, we bantered about who would jump from the bridge, trying to goad one of our friends into doing it!

Mostar

When we pulled into Mostar, it was quite apparent that there had been a war here. There were plenty of buildings that were holed with gun wounds, derelict buildings, or buildings that had collapsed.

As you walk closer to where the bridge is located, it becomes an ‘Old Town’ which is endearing and lovely. The streets are lined with war memorabilia, iron items, and other more unique tourist shopping gifts than your ‘I heart NY’ t shirts.

We were taken into the small Mostar bookshop which also houses a 5 minute film about the war and collapse of the bridge, on loop all day. One of the employees of the book store came out after the film to tell us that he himself was there in town as a small child when the war happened and became quite emotional telling us about what life was like back then.

This made our visit all the more real and moving.

Stari Most

From here it was but a short stroll to the bridge, which we first walked across, before taking a route to the river-side to gaze up at it. Crossing the bridge was extremely difficult for me in my havianna flip-flops. The local stone used was so slippery that I had to hold on to the side wall to walk up, down or on a flat surface!

Our talk of jumping off the bridge quickly fell away when we saw the height of it and how dangerous it could be!

Down by the riverbed we were lucky enough to see an Aussie traveller getting ready to dare to jump! We stayed as long as possible, and he finally jumped, right from the centre of the arch. The river flows extremely fast so it was a struggle for him to come back onto the River bed but when he made it the crowd that had gathered all cheered as one! What a legend!

After the excitement of the jump, we had worked up a hunger. We were given advice to find a place that sells Chevapi, a local dish. Chevapi are little meat sausages served with onion and pita bread. And they are daaaaaamn good! I could really go for some Chevapi right about now..

Having lunch sitting by Stari Most was pretty lovely..

After lunch we strolled the markets of Mostar before heading back to the van. It had been a lovely day in the sun checking out a tiny town that really did leave a mark on my heart.

Along the road back to Dubrovnik we stopped a couple of times for a driver’s rest and encountered more beautiful scenery! Bosnia is somewhere I never pictured going but I’m so glad I did!

Bosnia is an absolutely delightful country! Have you been?

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About Lesley

Australian expat, married to a Dutch guy, living in Amsterdam. Previously lived in London for 3 years, too! Lover of travel, coffee, brunch, beaches, fresh flowers, and family. Now a new mum, navigating life with a baby!