Breathtaking Bosnia

Looking for another road less travelled in Europe for yournext vacation? Try Bosnia-Herzegovina.

A decade after the world equated the Balkan nationwith internecine bloodletting, a commercial appreared recently on CNN presenting Bosnia's natural beauty and recommending tourists come visit.

"Enjoy breakfast, enjoy music, water, nature, silence ... peace, enjoy Bosnia, enjoy Herzegovina, enjoy life," is the message to be shown on CNN over the next three months. Each of the nine clips shows some aspects of Bosnia-Herzegovina beauty, from unspoiled nature and ancient monuments to good food and wine served in picturesque towns and villages.

"Bosnia-Herzegovina deserves to have the world's opinion about its change," said the head of Bosnia's Foreign Investment Promotion Agency(Fipa), Mr Haris Basic.

Part of Fipa's " Now is the time for Bosnia-Herzegovina" campaign, the clips should help "change the visual perception of Bosnia-Herzegovina as the country of war", Mr Basic said.

"Such a stereotype has been one of the main obstacles in our efforts to attract foreign investors ... We hope the images of these video clips will provoke the interest of international tourist operators to mark Bosnia-Herzegovina as a freshly discovered top destination in Europe," he added.

The promotion for which the country has spent some US$146,000 should definitely change the country's image in the world and bring in more tourists, said Bosnia-Herzegovina's Foreign Minister Mladen Ivanic . "More and more tourists are coming here, even to places our citizens don't often go."

Bosnia-Herzegovina, bordered by Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, covers about 51,130 sq km of Balkans. Most of the country has a temperature continental climate, while the country's south, Herzegovina, has a Mediterranean climate.

Strongly infuencing the culture and traditions was the country's turbulent history from Roman and Byzantine times, through Slavic dominance, followed by the Ottoman Empire, Austro-Hungarian rule, a Yugloslav Kingdom, and communism, making for a unique cultural mix.