Middle-aged flash packers

Slept like a log last night. It was a real struggle to get up this morning. It’s either the clean Bosnian air or lack of caffeine.
Had a sneaky breakfast in our room. Asmir would have liked to serve us breakfast but at 5 euros each I think not. We will have dinner again though.
Actually found the Martin Brod waterfalls this time. Yesterday we had headed in completely the wrong direction. Brilliant, and only 3 other people there.
I noticed a sign nearby saying “Eco laundry and mill” which sounded intriguing so I dragged a reluctant Steve up the hill.
We passed two chained up dogs and some goats on someone’s patio. Walking around here feels a bit threatening, people only speak if you speak to them and tend to glare suspiciously at you.
Anyway, we found the Eco laundry which was so clever. A lady demonstrated it to us. She lifted a small sluice gate which let out a torrent of fast flowing water into a barrel. She threw a blanket in the barrel and voilà, a homemade washing machine!
Slightly offensive observation number 3 – it looks as though dental care has not been a high priority for the locals. I’ve yet to see an adult with a full set of teeth. It really is very noticeable.
Next stop was a visit to the shop to buy some picnic stuff and then off to find the hiking route to Strbacki Buk falls.
About half an hour into our walk, I did have to remind Steve that we were “off the beaten track” which meant we couldn’t rely on the accurate path signposts that have in the UK. I know the national park here claims to have red marker points at regular intervals for you to follow, but folks round here do things differently, ie they fib.
We eventually came to a big meadow/grassland area which didn’t look right at all. I’d also noticed two dogs in the distance. Bosnian people don’t have dogs for fun. It’s not like Slovenia where everyone has one which is pampered and primped and either carried or walked round Lake Bled for everyone to admire.
Bosnian dogs are proper dogs – they round up sheep or protect property, they are not fun, they are fierce.
In a cordoned off area there was a lady and her son tending vegetables. The little boy looked about 7 and was spraying the plants with an insecticide canister – eek! Where are the EU health and safety enforcers when you need them?
Anyway, the dogs were hers so from a distance we mimed we were looking for the waterfalls. She shouted back some incomprehensible instructions but pointed straight on then down. One of the dogs tried to run up to us but the lady shouted at it and it sat down with its tail between its legs.
We walked on but it still didn’t look right so we decided to head back.
Seeing us, the boy and mum came over and accompanied us to where we should be going, chatting away to us. It was so sweet of them. The boy showed us where they’d put one of the dogs’ puppies and was hugging and kissing them. The other dogs had accepted us so all was good. The lady walked with us until she was sure we knew where we were going. A nice encounter and, no she didn’t have many teeth.

It was quite a long walk but eventually we made it and it certainly was worth it as the pictures show. Incredible and we had it all to ourselves – again.

We were on a high but then – disaster (or nearly a disaster) struck. Steve decided to abseil off the path and onto some rocks. Unfortunately I missed the dramatic moment as I was LOOKING WHERE I WAS GOING! Anyway, he twisted his ankle a bit and bruised his arm but otherwise was ok and managed the very steep route home. We bumped into our new friends and experimented saying thank you in as many languages as we could in the hope they would understand. I think German hit the spot.
We got back to the car and decided it was a bit early to head home so we visited the Eco/ethnic village Asmir had recommended.
It was full of quaint little buildings and I imagined it was like a folk village I once visited in Wales. You could go in each house and see how people lived in the past. I was just about to charge in to the kitchen and have a nose when Steve told me that was the proper kitchen for the restaurant!
Got back to Villa Nana totally knackered. Glad we made the most of the day though.
Tomorrow we are heading for Croatia and hoping for a scenic journey to just outside Split. Only problem is our personal raincloud just won’t let go so it could be a very wet and miserable journey.