Today I am following the route of those pirates, traveling up from the Adriatic and into the Bosnia-Herzegovina hinterland. However, it is the Turkish influence that is more apparent. For almost 500 years the Turks were overlords of Bosnia, which to this day retains a Turkish/Asian flavor, with a market culture and vibrant cafe life.
It's evidenced visually at a bend in the river, when I come to Pocitelj. Badly damaged during the Balkan Wars of the 1990s, Pocitelj has been carefully restored. It clings to a steep hillside, a picturesque example of Ottoman Balkan architecture. Whitewashed houses with arched windows and slate roofs are arrayed in serried ranks. Latticed balconies, balanced on wooden corbels, hang over the narrow laneways.
I climb the cobbled streets, pausing at each corner to enjoy the view over the rooftops and the leaden domes of a medrese (Islamic seminary). Garden plots bloom with marigolds and plump pomegranates. Pencil-slim cypress trees and the slender minaret of the Dadzi-Alijah Mosque reach into a serene blue sky. An imam sits contemplatively in the forecourt of the mosque. I am tempted to join him in his reveries, but continue on my way.
Further north on the Neretva lies Mostar, the biggest city in the province of Herzegovina and home to the Stari Most (literally, "Old Bridge"), the most iconic site in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The bridge, a gracefully slender arch of white stone built by the Turkish architect Hayrettin in 1566, links the Muslim and Croatian quarters of the city.
The original bridge did not survive the wars of the 1990s: Artillery shells sent it to the bottom of the Neretva in 1993. But if its destruction was one of the most symbolically tragic events of the Bosnian War, then its reconstruction in 2004 was one of the most inspiring events of the subsequent peace.
For years, local lads have displayed their manliness by diving from the arch to the river below. In the past they did it to impress girls; now they do it for money too. Divers work in pairs: one collecting tips, the other waiting, tantalizingly, on the edge of the bridge.
As I watch, the designated diver chats nonchalantly on his cell phone while the tips accumulate. Then he makes his heart-stopping leap: He descends gracefully - but fast - then surfaces a moment later. At the riverbank I dip my toe in. The opal waters are icy cold. Fed by snowmelt, the river remains chilly even through the hot Bosnian summer.
Across the bridge in Kujundziluk, the quarter of the coppersmiths, I wander stalls selling jewelry, Turkish-style carpets and copper coffeepots. Nearby at the Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque, pious men with neat mustaches and prayer caps perform their ablutions for noon prayers, while I head off for lunch.
South of Mostar beneath a rocky outcrop, the tekija (dervish lodge) of Blagaj nestles beside the Buna River. Built by the Turks in the 16th century, the tekija is a meeting place for dervishes, the followers of mystical Islam. It remains an important pilgrimage site for Bosnian Muslims.
I climb rickety stairs to discover sparse rooms furnished with bright carpets. Other visitors include a couple of dudes in Ray-Bans and leather jackets, and a group of schoolgirls sporting hipster jeans and midriff-baring T-shirts. This is not the usual attire of the somber dervishes of old, but much of what I've seen is unexpected. Bosnia made the headlines as a place of war, but here it is sunny, peaceful, culturally diverse and remarkably untouched. Outside the window, the waters of the river babble on.
Planning
* Mostar is easily reached on a daylong tour from Dubrovnik, Croatia (around $35 per person). From Sarajevo, there are regular buses and trains to Mostar (around $8 per person). Sarajevo is served by major airlines including British Airways, Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines.
Where to eat
* In the Tabhana complex of cafes at the western end of the Mostar bridge, Restoran Babilon (011-387-61-164-912) offers tasty local dishes such as yaprak sarma (stuffed vine leaves, $4). Get a table on the veranda to enjoy views of the river and bridge.
* Originally Mostar's most popular cake shop, Pizzeria ABC (011-387-36-194-656; Brace Fejica 45) offers a range of pizzas and now pastas too ($4-$6).
Where to stay
* Set in a centrally located, picturesque stone building, Kriva Cuprija (www. motel-mostar.ba; 011-387-36-550-953; Kriva Cuprija 2; doubles from $65) has a range of suites and rooms with balconies and river views.
* On the western edge of town, Pansion Most (www. pansionmost.dzaba.com; 011-387-36-552-528; Adema Buca 00; doubles from $60) lets you hear Mostar's religious heritage firsthand, situated as it is between the bells of the church tower and call to prayer from the nearby mosque.
