In last month’s travel story I wrote about Lake Ohrid which I visited during my journey through some of the Balkans countries. I went on a rail adventure starting from Slovenia (which I have visited previously), Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and North Macedonia.
During my Balkans adventure I enjoyed a lot of wonderful sights, wonderful people, delicious food and seamless travels. Each country is beautiful in their own way from its distinct cultural heritage to its landscapes and how welcoming they are to visitors.
This month I am writing a short travel story about one sight from each country I visited. I am not including Slovenia in this story as I have previously written here about my Slovenia travel covering Lake Bled and Ljubljana. Starting with the way I travelled in these countries here are some sights I truly enjoyed.
Plitvice National Park, Croatia
From Croatia’s capital city Zagreb I took a day trip to Plitvice National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The travel takes about 2.5 hours but road conditions are quite good so the journey was smooth.
Once I reached the main entrance, there were maps available showing many hiking trails in the park. Because I was there for half a day, I took the help of a guide to cover the main spots within the park.
Plitvice National Park is absolutely stunning with its magical landscape, breathtaking scenery and stunning waterfalls. The walk in the park and the boat ride in one of the lakes was a wonderful experience. Walking on the wooden paths between the clear waters of the lake, standing beneath the waterfalls and looking up or down based on wherever I stood remains an unforgettable experience.
Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
While in Bosnia and Herzegovina I took a very scenic 3 hour ride through the mountains from the capital city Sarajevo to Mostar. I stayed in Mostar for a night so could spend the entire day in its famous Old Town and also in the new town area.
Mostar is known for its iconic bridge, the Stari Most which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Stari Most was reconstructed after it was completely destroyed in the Bosnian War. The Old town still has an Ottoman feel with its winding cobbled stone streets and skyline dotted with domes and minarets.
The Old Town is dotted with shops, restaurants from some of these wonderful views of the Bridge can be enjoyed. Mostar was quite crowded on the day I visited which I heard is normal. I chose to sit in one of the restaurants overlooking the bridge to enjoy a relaxed lunch and Bosnian coffee.
I found something interesting in Mostar’s Zrinjevac City Park. There is a life sized statue of Bruce Lee which was the first public monument of him in the world unveiled on 26 November 2005.
Kotor, Montenegro
In Montenegro I spent half a day in Kotor on my way to the capital city Podgorica. The drive to Kotor along the Bay of Kotor is extremely scenic. Kotor is a coastal town in Montenegro located on the Bay of Kotor in one of the most indented parts of the Adriatic Sea. The fortified city of Kotor is included in UNESCO’s World Heritage Site list.
Surrounded by the Orjen and Lovcen cliffs, Kotor is one of the best preserved medieval old towns on the Adriatic Sea and its surrounding area form a very impressive landscape. In spite of the rainy day that I enjoyed walking on the city walls and the quaint old town of Kotor.
The small Scurda River flows beside the ancient walls of Kotor. Here stands the Kampana Tower, the medieval-era bastion which is part of the fortification of Kotor.
From Kotor the journey to Podgorica continues along the same scenic route via the town of Budva, which has the spectacular Jaz Beach. The road passes through the 1,637 m long Vrmac tunnel which connects town of Kotor with the Adriatic Motorway and the rest of Montenegro.
Novi Sad, Serbia
From Belgrade, Serbia’s capital city, I took a day trip to the city of Novi Sad, which is about a 30 mins train journey on a sleek, superb, efficient double decker train service on which food and drinks orders are taken at the seat and served within a few minutes.
Novi Sad located on the banks of the Danube is the second largest city in Serbia. The city is thought to have originated and expanded from the historic Petrovaradin Fortress which has many tunnels as well as 16 kms of underground countermine system. There are museums within the complex, displays of cannons along the walls, military barracks and watch towers.
Novi Sad’s symbol seen around the city is the Petrovaradin Fortress Clock Tower whose hands are reversed so fishermen could see the hour clearly.
In front of Novi Sad Town Hall there is a monument of Svetozar Miletic, a Serbian lawyer, journalist, author and politician who was the mayor of Novi Sad. Also stands in this town square is the imposing the Name of Mary Catholic church which is Novi Sad’s largest Gothic Revival church.
After my visit to the fortress and sights around the town square I enjoyed a Serbian lunch and took the train back to Belgrade.
Heraclea, North Macedonia
During visit to North Macedonia, I took an early morning train to Bitola from Skopje and travelled to the ancient Macedonian city of Heraclea.
The ancient city of Heraclea Lyncestis was built by Alexander’s father Phillip II in 4th century BC approximately, but discovered only around 2nd century BC by the Romans. Though most of the site is in ruins, there are still some excellent remains of the ruins including an amphitheatre once used for gladiator fighting and some very well preserved mosaic floors.
Walking along the central road the ruins on both sides are signposted with descriptions of what they were. The well planned drainage system of this ancient city can still be seen today. There is also a small museum within the Heraclea complex.
I stayed for a night at Bitola and enjoyed parts of the city. I will write about Bitola and all the other sights which I visited in the future.
Hope you enjoyed this short travel story.
HELPFUL HINTS:
- Plitvice National Park has clearly marked hiking trails. Proper hiking shoes are a must.
- It is best to take the help of a guide to enjoy the trails in an efficient way if you have just half a day.
- Mostar can get very crowded specially around the Old Town and Stari Most. If you walk a little further away from the Stari Most there are wonderful places with the gorgeous views to enjoy a meal or Bosnian coffee
- If you are after local handicrafts do check if they are made locally or made in Turkey.
- Kotor is a hidden beauty and should not be missed.
- Staying in Kotor or Budva is a great option for its scenic beauty and beaches.
- Novi Sad can be covered as a day trip from Belgrade but you can choose to stay a day for a relaxed sightseeing.
- The Serbian National Theatre in Novi Sad is a must visit for theatre lovers.
- Heraclea though not that well preserved still is worth visiting.
- The mosaic floor in Heraclea is covered during winter months so if you are travelling there in winter then it won’t be visible
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