One of the most poignant pictures I have. A friend - a young muslim woman- reflects on the what 'was' and has passed on. She stands beside an ancient cross (about 900 years old) where Christians, and maybe Bugomils, long, long ago habited the hilltop; and now her family's blown-up and abandoned village lies behind her. Time may help heal the memories, but scarred ruins and vacant villages throughout BiH still bear testimony to the recent vicious wars of 92 and 93.But it isnt just man who turns inward and attacks its own civilization. Time is an accomplice. There are many abandoned ruins around BiH that once stood for a high state of civilization or marked a unique expression of culture and spiritual beliefs. But for one reason or another, ruins of castles, fortresses, townships and other forms of civil societies have been left behind - to suffer the assault of time and nature. There are many stories to explain the gradual decline and decay of these ancient structures, but for now, they are accessible to anyone who takes the time to venture into the hills and backroads of BiH...avoiding the modern method of destruction - land mines.
About 2300 years ago the Balkans were inhabited by tribes of resiliant people called the Illyrians. Here on this hilltop are two Illyrian burial mounds that we hiked up to one day. They watch over the modern village of Bugodo 20 minutes out of Mostar,
The Illyrian legacy emerged centuries later in the stecci that can still be found throughout BiH.,,, The stecci are unique to this part of the world. The bugomils lived high up in the mountainous regions and practiced a pagan form of christianity leaving the stamp of their culture on these burial stones in sites found only in Bosnia and Hercegovina.
The roman stadium in Pula in Croatia is an amazing structure - hulking over the west side city streets - and making the wanderer inside its walls feel very puny. The remains still command respect for the accomplishments of the engineers and architects of that time...
I have not been able to figure out what this is for. It is about 1600 years old - just outside of Caplinja
These ruins lie within walking distance of Caplinja which is a 30 minute drive from Mostar
This is the ancient fortress of Herceg Stjepan who ruled the area of Hum which is Hercegovina today. It is built upon old Roman ruins which were also built upon the really old Illyrian ruins. The castle is reached by a windy path that zig zags its way up to the cliff top. In the summer it is a challenging climb because of the heat, but in the winter it takes only 20 minutes.
A fabulous view of the Neretva valley can be seen from the middle of these ruins....
...And just 50 metres away from the stecci, we too leave our contribution to the legacy of human kind ....
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