I will start by saying I hate blogging on an iPad. I spent the last 45 minutes typing up the post to hit a wrong button and lee almost all of it. Ths may be shorter than planned because I'm a bit furious at the moment....
The day started out fairly early. We had made arrangements to meet our guide at 9am by the entrance gate to the city. We made a successful trip to the bank to cash some travelers checks. Well successfulbis relative. Everyone in there was Croatian except us. There appeared to be a number system for the order but we couldn't figure it out. There was an ATM looking machine but it was all in Croatian. I stared at it for a bit and the local lady next to me looked at me. Never bothered to help so we waited patiently. Patiently for 15 minutes. Then some other foreigners came in and the local lady pointed them towards the funny machine and helped them get a ticket. Soon they had jumped in front us. Josh jumped the line and played dumb. The bank teller told us she couldn't help us since we didn't have a number. I asked how we could get a number since everything was in Croatian and no one would help us. We were next... That was the only time I had felt disrespected in this country so far. Inthink it must have been an age thing rather than country background.
We got our money, found some cheap danishes and were right on time. Zoran pulled up at 9am on the dot and we jumped in. Immediately I was at ease with him. We are used to nice and knowledgeable guides, but they all usually feel a bit like a salesman or are working for an American tip.
Our first stop was a village that mixed Muslim architecture with Christian architecture. Apparently it was first Muslim and then the Christians took over and added renovations and additions. At least I think that is right. Josh and I somehow managed to get lost in the tiny hillside town and found a path the connected us back to the roads. It set the stage for Mostar. I didn't realize it but Bosnia has a small strip of land on the coast. We exited Croatia. Entered Croatia. And exited again to get to Mostar. The Bosnia folks didn't pay any attention until the last checkpoint. I excitedly asked Josh if he thought we would get stamps. Zoran turned around grinning and said he already asked. He also confirmed that only Americans get so excited about stamps. Nontheless, I was thrilled with mine.
We parked in Mostar and Zoran started spewing history as we walked towards the town. I knew two things about the town prior. It was pretty and had been destroyed in 1993 by the war. As we walked I saw a lot of the damage but very little beauty. Almost immediately after thinking that the old town came into view.
It's hard to put everything into words or even show with pictures. I could hear the sadness in Zoran's words as he described the prewar and postwar Bosnia (and Mostar). Before it represented acceptance. Anyone could befriend, marry or live as they pleased. Race and religion didn't matter. Now everything is based on segregation. Even Mostar is visibly east of the bridge versus west of the bridge. Even though the Muslims and christians live together pea fully, the mosques and cathedrals compete to see who can be higher. 
We went and viewed a photo exhibit that showed photos from the war. We watched live footage from the bridge tumbling. It was very sad. I wasn't expecting that from the day. The town was beautiful and quaint but subtle reminders of the devastation were everyone. I'm so glad I got to experience that.
The lighter side of the day was making it through the tourist section and not getting accosted by the vendors. I was tempted by the vintage coffee grinder though.
Zoran led us to a small out of the way restaurant and gave specific instructions on what to order. I had heard rave reviews about "his restaurant". After a failed ordering attempt with the owner who spoke no English I got up and pointed out the actual food. I must 
After lunch we toured an old Turkish estate that was turned into a national monument. The architecture was impressive and we learned that back in the day the mothers were not allowed to sleep in the same room ad their husbands for 40 days but instead had to sleep with their baby alone. Interesting...We took a bazillion more pictures and headed to find Zoran. We headed out of Mostar and he asked if we wanted to see waterfalls. Sure! Who doesn't like waterfalls? It was getting later in the afternoon so I wasn't sure if were going to still get our oyster farm in. We went with the flow.
By this point we had beat the odds. The forecast for the day had been heavy rain. Other than a few sprinkles we had lucked out. It was actually gorgeous while we were at Mostar. When we got to the waterfalls it was starting to rain so Zoran drove us down to the viewing site and we hopped out. When he said waterfalls I wasn't expecting anything this big. I never envisioned this when I thought of Bosnia!
We hopped back in the car and started back towards Croatia for our oyster stop! Josh was given the okay to take an hour nap. Shortly we were headed over to Ston on the peninsula. You could see the oyster farms everywhere in the bay. Zoran warned us that we might not get to eat them right out of the water like we were all hoping. Something to do with inspections, diahrea and a 20 day no sale period for the entire region. The farmer he knew was very safe, sustainable and by the books. We might have to go to a local restaurant to actually eat them. Confused I asked where those oysters came from. Oh, the same area farms we were passing. Apparently most cheat the system, sell the oysters and orovide fake certificates of sale from other regions of Croatia. Awesome. Zoran expained the health issue was no big deal. Part of the natural oyster cycle. Hmmmm. We made our way down a hairpin driveway and pulled up to a house on the water. Zoran greeted the woman of the house and we made our way to the oyster shack and equipment. They wouldn't budge on the rules. They couldn't risk being shut down by the inspectors. We told them no problem. We really just wanted to see the operations. Zoran pulled up the holding containers of oysters and mussels. Showed us the work that goes into cleaning everything and let us take photos. I could have relaxed there all day with the breeze on the water. What a life.
We thanked the owners and set out for the restaurant. We made a quick stop at the old salt factory and got to the restaurant in Ston. I shouldn't have been surprised ut was all locals. The food was about 1/2 the price as in Duvrovnik and much better quality according to Zoran. (he had been a chef for 15 years at the restaurant sister of our first night pick. He said he had to get out of the business when the industry lost it's integrity. His belief is that if h doesn't see the chef at the market every morning, they are getting their food elsewhere and it isn't fresh. He's obviously opinionated with his restaurant choices). The oysters we ordered were the best I've ever tasted. You could taste the salt water in them. Delicious. We chided down and hoped we wouldn't be punished with the diarrhea.
It was after 6 so we sadly paid and headed back to town. Zoran gave me a list of wineries to visit on the way to korcula, noting which ones had good wine and which ones were just cool to see. He told us the acceptable restaurants in town and made arrangements to get us in to the national water polo championship on Wednesday. We said our goodbyes and headed to the apartment. We kept our promise to Zoran and got ready for dinner rather than take a nap. Moby Dick was his rec. We found our way there and grabbed a seat. They were packed which is a good sign. They also brought out their fresh fish to see. Another good sign. We opted for a seafood plate. It was nothing short of massive. Mussels, prawns, squid ink risotto, calamari. And two barracuda fillets. The mussels, risotto and calamari were all to die for. I've never had squid prepared so well. It was a pricey meal but I can't imagine how much something of that quality would be back home.
After dinner we visited our new favorite, dolce vita. We had discovered the ice cream parlor the night before and cones for $1.20 were a steal. Zoran confirmed to us it was the best in town. All the others use water to make theirs. Not sure what the proper way is but we were proud of ourselves. Quite full we headed hone and were happy there wasn't a discotheque going on outside. Just a movie crew. Really? Are we back in Greece. Another great day.
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