The dissolution of countries is never a pleasant affair, but I can never understand what goes through the minds of politician’s when they draw up new borders. With the ending of Yugoslavia in 1992, a small stretch of land, approximately 5km on either side of the coastal town of Neum belonging to Herzegovina and Bosnia, splitting Croatia. So, anyone in Dubrovinik that wanted to drive to Split would need to deal with the delays and inconveniences of crossing two border posts!!
Well as of 26 July 2022, this is no longer the case with the official opening of the 2.4 kilometre cable stayed Peljesac Bridge. An idea conceptualised in 2007, but which took a further 10 years before any construction commenced but the final product is a gorgeous (this is my fascination with bridges) unification of a country. The bridge has 13 spans, five of which are 285 metres long, six centrally placed reinforced concrete pylons with a height of 33 metres. The bridge is also 55 metres above the water to allow for the free flow of passenger ships. At a staggering cost of €526 million, a cost that many Croatians feel was a necessity and that will bring a massive economic boost to the country. It is the price of staying connected.