24 Hours in Jablanica
It isn’t what it looks like, honest // © MehmetO // Shutterstock.com
I’m not going to rag on Jablanica and say that there isn’t a whole lot to do here, because such things plainly aren’t true. For a start, just getting here is a privilege, such is the beauty of the journey from Sarajevo or (particularly) from Mostar. Just under 11,000 people live here in a town that has the potential to become a base for adventurers in the heart of Herzegovina. Jablanica is a decent place to stay before hiking up to the famous Hajdučka Vrata, but guess what, I ain’t no hiker. With that in mind, here’s a day in Jablanica.
A quite tremendous museum logo // © John Bills
Morning
I’ll start at the end. Hotel Jablanica is a more than decent hotel option in town, with friendly English-speaking service, comfortable beds and all the rest. It also doubles up as a pretty excellent place for a morning coffee and a hefty breakfast, which is never a bad thing. Great beds too, which the world needs more of.
Once sufficiently filled with sustenance, make the short stroll downtown towards the lengthily-yet-accurately named Museum of the Battle for the Wounded on the Neretva River. You can probably just call it the Neretva Museum for short, because the museum itself goes into all sorts of detail regarding that historic struggle on the river. Yes, it was a big battle with loads of guns and goodies and baddies and the like, but this was as much about getting wounded people to safety as anything else. The museum is one of the best in the country, filled with information and exhibits, along with a keen look into life in Bosnia and Herzegovina before the scourge/salvation of industrialisation. All that without mentioning the big train and smashed bridge out the back? Jablanica, you’re spoiling us!
A day at the lake // © marketa1982 // Shutterstock.com
Afternoon
The Museum of the Battle for the Wounded on the Neretva River is a great reason to visit Jablanica, but it isn’t the first thing that jumps to mind when you mention this town. What does spring to mind, I hear you cry? Two words, one beast, a whole party of sensations on the tongue. Roasted lamb is Jablanica’s calling card, and no trip to the town is complete without nipping to one of the restaurants on the outskirts that dole the stuff out all day long. You’ve got options, they are all ace, but my vote probably leans towards the friendly folk at Gojko’s. You won’t regret it.
With a belly full of lamb and a heart full of joy, head 13km out of town to Jablanica’s eponymous lake, an artificial beauty created with the construction of the Jablanica Dam in 1953. See, industrialisation, this all ties in somehow. The lake is a gorgeous piece of work, as lakes tend to be, and should provide some refreshment during those hot summer months.
Red magic at NANS Rock Bar // © John Bills
Evening
Where to drink a quiet beer in Jablanica? My vote carries plenty of weight, I know that, and the best choice is undoubtedly NANS. A rock bar of sorts, this place is directly next to the museum and has friendly service, inexpensive beer and red lights. Almost always, those things point to a winner.
