Mostar Things to Do

In my opinion this is one of the loveliest buildings in Mostar. It is the home to Mostarska Gimanzija (Mostar Lycee). The building underwent a facelift during the summer of 2004. The school opened its doors in 1893. The decision to open a school of higher learning was initiated by the Serbian Orthodox Church. The present day building was put to use in 1898. One of the wings was completed in 1902.

Over its hundred year plus existence, Mostarska Gimanzija has seen more that its share of political conflicts. During WWI, all books written in the cyrillic alphabet were ordered to be burned. In 1941, the Italian army occupied the school. Despite that classes still continued until the school was closed down due to the spread of thyphus and the arrival of refugees who moved into the building.

In 1945, the school opened its doors to students again. In 1968, the school was renamed into Gimnazija Aleksa Santica, in honour of the famous poet from Mostar. The peaceful school atmosphere was once again distrupted by war in the early 1990's.

The school closed down in 1992. In 1999, the school was reopened but now the school split in two. One half of the school was housed in this beautiful building and the other half was located in the classrooms of a nearby elementary school. Needless to say the two halves were split based on nationality. Currently, the school is "united under one roof". Basically, the two schools are united but only by the roof. The students still attend segregated classes and learn from two different curriculums.

The focus point of the city of Mostar is the Stari Most. The bridge was destroyed during the war and on July 23rd, 2004 the reconstructed Old Bridge will be officially opened. Part of the opening day ceremonies will be the traditional dives from the bridge. Before the war an annual tradition was to hold a diving competiton where competitors dive off the bridge.

If you wish to see live footage of the bridge you can take a look at several live cams around the bridge available at the following website:

Stari Most Live Cam

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The vicinities of the bridge, in its both sides are a Daedalus of shops and stalls selling touristy souvenirs.

Tourism may play here a very strong role, not only providing jobs and funds, but also helping people to accept and tolerate the differences, the only way to make last the actual peace. So... be useful, and, buying or not, do visit them!

The steep, often vertical, banks of the river Neretva, with the many natural rock platforms, make it perfect for divers. Add to that a magnificent, towering bridge from which the best and bravest divers can show off their skills, and you have a recipe for a diving heritage that stretches back centuries. All along the banks young people congregate to practice diving, egging each other on to greater tests of skill and steel.

If you are really lucky you'll spot one of the bridge divers. Their breathtaking leaps don't come free, and are attended by much drama and play acting. It's not a scam - they will dive. They just want to drum up as much money for the performance as possible. One of the diving club will walk out on the bridge, walk dangerously along the bridge's edge, threaten to go home if not enough money is found... and then finally, gracefully, improbably, he will dive from the bridge into the cool waters far below.

The waters really are cold. They come direct from the mountains, and even in the 40+ degrees of summer, can be well below 20. The difference is enough to cause cardiac arrest with the sudden change. So if the divers come out during the day, part of the performance will involve getting completely drenched before the dive, to reduce the temperature shock. Otherwise they'll turn out in the early evening when the temperature difference is much reduced.

Probably the best place to view them is from below, especially enjoying a beer at one of the many bars at the river's edge. This way you don't have to pay them a cent, although I would gladly have handed over money if they'd have come close enough for me to offer some. If you are on the bridge you will be hustled, but don't sweat it: Pay up and enjoy the show!

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During the Siege of Mostar the front line of the battle formed along Bulevar Revolucije. The street became a no-mans land, littered with shells, lacerated by bullets, and gutted by fire. Some of the street is under reconstruction, but there are still plenty of buildings bearing the scars of war. After the beauty of the old town, it's a sombre experience, but an important sight in order to understand the psyche of this city.

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Mostar has a number of fine Ottoman era residences, and Muslibegovic House is one of the most impressive. The house is surrounded by high walls, to protect the privacy of the Muslim owners. Combined with the thick stone walls, this creates a wonderfully cool interior even when outside the temperatures are soaring into the 40s. And no air conditioning unit in sight.

Each of the rooms in the house highlights the life of the nobles who lived there. Dining rooms with elegant floor placements for family and guests, study rooms with intricately detailed copies of the Koran, and bedrooms for the men and women of the house. It's easy to imagine what life would have been like in those times, and judging by Muslibegovic House it must have been pretty good, if you were a noble.

The complex also has a hotel attached, so it is possible to spend your days in an authentic Ottman residence during your stay. With rooms starting at 50 euros for a single, it seemed like it would be incredibly good value.

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Like the cross on Humm Hill, the spire of the rebuilt Catholic church towers above the city. It appears at least twice as tall as any minaret. Originally constructed with the help of the Ottoman Turks in 1866, the church was destroyed during the Bosnian war. The new building, much larger than the original, was built in 2000 to serve the Croat community (the Serbs are generally Orthodox and the Bosniaks Muslim).

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This house is a small and modest museum, where you may see in detail the furniture, and uses of its old owners. Maybe too much detail - the long visit and the succession of visitors turn the waiting a little bit boring. Fortunately, the yard is cool and nice.

If you are not in an escorted group don't worry: the new owners like to show the place (for one euro) and, for a second euro, it seems that you may drink a rose lemonade. We didn't!