Battle Scars
On the way to the airport Mr. Mojas, host of the apartment where I was staying in Dubrovnik, showed me the not so beautiful side of the city. All these shown in the pictures below were areas hit by bombs in the war (1991-1995) mainly by then Serbia-Montenegro. Bombs were fired from the mountain ranges and hit targets more than 10k (6 +miles) away, striking the hotels, homes and villages.
Mr. Mojas who was active in the military at the time, explained how the Serbs, once they got into Dubrovnik, first took over and shut down the airport, taking machines, planes, technological and other equipment. They closed off sources of gas and water. However, the people of Dubrovnik were able to maintain access to food from the sea because they were familiar with the waters and had no problems whatsoever finding their way around. The men from the offensive countries on the other hand did not know how to navigate the Adriatic which proved to be a major disadvantage for the Serbs.
Mr. Mojas talked about the pre-war days when this part of the town was so lovely, with beautiful parks and luxury hotel resorts. The talk of the town is that with increased tourism to Dubrovnik and investor money that the communities will be restored and start to thrive again. What a fascinating story!
What used to be luxury resorts…
While the buildings remain destroyed and abandoned, the locals like to come here and still enjoy the “private” beaches…
Where energy sources were shut down by the Serbs at the time of war
Bombs fired from the tops of mountain ranges (right) were able to reach towns miles away (far left)…
