The second week of our tour introduced us to four new countries; taking us along the Adriatic coast to Montenegro across the mountains to Kosovo, through Albania to Macedonia and back to Bulgaria.
Day 8. Dubrovnik to Kotor, Montenegro
After two nights in Dubrovnik we headed south to Montenegro. Winding our way up the coastal road we had spectacular views back over the Old Town, brightly lit in the morning sun – a chance to say goodbye to the beautiful Pearl of the Adriatic.
Not too far across the border we stopped at Herzeg Novi, a coastal town near the mouth of Kotor Bay. It’s a pretty town of creamy coloured buildings with red tiled rooves. A little church sits in the centre of the charming old town and an historic fort crouches on a rocky outcrop overlooking the bay. There’s an Italian feel to the old town; a reminder that coastal Montenegro was once under the control of the Republic of Venice.
Back on the bus we continued along the coastal road with views down to beach resorts packed with deck chairs and colourful umbrellas, winding our way further into the Bay of Kotor. The resorts gave way to steep rocky slopes rising from the astral-blue water and extending to peaks high above. Scrubby bushes dot the arid mountainsides. The road curled around the bay on a small slither of flat land between the water and the mountains. It was a hot clear day and people were swimming or relaxing under trees along the rocky shore. We stopped for lunch in the town of Perast, built on a strip along the shore. Glowing peaches and cream in the sunlight this little town is very Italian. Even more so is the flat man-made island sitting just out in the bay with the domed cathedral perched on it. It may as well have floated here from Venice.
Kotor Bay looks like a Mediterranean fjord. It winds almost 30 kilometres inland and is surrounded by the imposing Dinaric Alps. At the far end of the bay, where it is particularly narrow, lies the walled town of Kotor. We rounded the bend and were met with the sight of a massive cruise ship, looking like it was wedged in the narrow inlet and dwarfing the small walled town beside it. Another was moored just offshore. They looked far too big to be in such a small space.
We walked a short distance from where the bus dropped us and through the stones gates and into Kotor. This enchanting medieval town sits snuggly at the base of a mountain and is overlooked by a string of crumbling towers and fortifications clinging to the steep mountainside. Like Dubrovnik there are no cars or bikes inside the walls, only people and cats. But it is much smaller than Dubrovnik and wasn’t affected by the earthquake that destroyed many of the medieval buildings in Dubrovnik, so is almost entirely made up of buildings built between the 12th and 14th centuries. This magnificent cluster of medieval churches, palaces, theatres and townhouses safely encircled by walls makes Kotor a very unique place and is why it is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
A local guide took us through the town. Narrow cobbled lanes opened to charming squares skirted by honey-coloured buildings. The impressive two-towered Cathedral of Saint Tryphon sits in the middle of one of these squares. There are lots of churches in this very small city: the 13th century Church of Saint Luke, the Church of Saint Ana from the 12th century, the Church of Saint from the 13th century, the Church of the Healing Mother of God from the 15th century – the list is long. Other treasures are the Prince’s Palace from the 17th century and Napoleon’s Theatre from the 19th century; newer than many of the buildings but very much a part of the rich tapestry of Kotor. The cats of Kotor, our guide told us, are arrogant and indulged and live a pampered life on these charming streets, keeping the city rodent-free. They’ve somehow become an icon and in recent years cat motifs have appeared in souvenir shops – the “Cats of Kotor” are becoming famous.
When we first arrived, I’d eyed the fort on the hill and after our walking tour ended the other Kiwi on our tour and I decided to take it on – it was only 1355 steps to the top. The sun was setting, and the fort was a throng of activity. Groups of young backpackers were draped over the walls taking selfies and drinking beer – one enthusiastically sharing the experience with his parents back in Spain. I’d lost my tour mate but briefly befriended a young Chinese tourist and we took each other’s photos – she had some serious model poses that I was far too old to replicate.
Back down in the town I found Andrew drinking beer and chatting away to a guy from Brisbane he’d just met. He excitably told me how the beer only cost 2 Euros a bottle and was even on TripAdvisor for its cheap brews. I deserved one after my effort.
Before finding a place to eat we went back to a shop we saw earlier that was selling the most beautiful handcrafted Christmas decorations. I had seen some adorable wooden Father Christmases and I wanted one. Each Father Christmas was different and each exquisitely hand-painted with the kindest of faces. They have been crafted by the same families for hundreds of years in rural Montenegro. It took us a while to decide but we finally found ‘the one’. At 220 dollars he is the most expensive Christmas decoration I’ve ever bought, and I hope the certification they gave us appeases the Bio-security officers in New Zealand.
Day 9. Kotor to Pec, Kosovo
The road out of Kotor wound around the bay before rising steeply through the mountains before heading inland towards Kosovo. The drive through the mountains was beautiful – forested hillsides with the occasional house and peaks down into lush green valleys. It was sparsely populated and obviously poorer than the touristy coast. We stopped at the highest point of the mountain pass for lunch and then headed on; stopping for photos in a magnificent gorge and buying fresh figs from a roadside vendor, then passing ski fields and mountain villages to finally arrive at the border. It was a small border station in a remote location and after being stamped out of Montenegro we drove 10km before we reached the border control for Kosovo. This 10km stretch is no-man’s land – territory that is still disputed after the most recent war.
Kosovo is Europe’s youngest country, declaring independence from Serbia in 2008. Despite most the world recognising Kosovo’s independence Serbia doesn’t. This is hampering Serbia’s quest to join the EU which can’t happen until they recognise Kosovo. It’s complicated.
Our first impression of Kosovo was that it looks poor. Only twenty years ago a bitter war was raging here and it’s still recovering. Rundown buildings line the roads and shells of former factories lie in overgrown fields. The valley we drove down into looked fertile and green, but much was unused and the crops that were growing there were patchy and small.
We had been on the road all day and it was evening when we pulled into the hotel in Pec, a city not far from the border. Our hotel was rather grand, sitting proudly in the central square and looking rather out of place in its dishevelled surrounds. This was the hotel where President Tito stayed when he visited the area, back when these countries were all part of the greater Yugoslavia communist state. After checking in we walked through the town. People looked at us suspiciously. They’re not used to tourists. Pec isn’t a destination. There aren’t any buildings of note, or historic sites. It’s shabby and messy. Power and telephone lines looped across the streets and gathered in jumbled nests on poles and sides of buildings. There were lots of small shops selling gold and silver or knock-off Nike and Tommy Hilfiger. There were lots of people about. Families were out walking, there were street vendors selling divine smelling corn on the cob and the coffee shops were full of people drinking and smoking hookah pipes. The flag of Albania – a red flag with a symbol of a black two-headed eagle in the centre – was flying everywhere. It was hard to find the flag of Kosovo. There were a couple hanging on the sides of government buildings, but even then, they were flying next to Albanian flags. The people of Kosovo identify with Albania, not Serbia. There are rumblings that Kosovo may eventually unite with Albania, and this is probably why Serbia is so staunch in its stance on denying Kosovo’s independence.
Dogs are everywhere here. They seem to co-exist with the people, quite content doing their own thing. Most are friendly, but some are not. We wandered over to a group of bronze statues in the square. A gang of dogs were lying around the base and one took exception to our approach baring her teeth and growling angrily – we made a quick turn and got out of there
A thunderstorm rolled around the hills and that evening it rained; heavy fat drops.
Day 10. Pec to Prizren, Kosovo
The next morning, we drove the short distance to Visoki Decani Monastery. NATO troops are based here to police the area around the monastery because of the political situation between Kosovo and Serbia. This Serbian Orthodox UNESCO site has been the target of unrests in the region and recently as 2007 KFOR has had to defend it from grenades being thrown by Albanian supporters. Only 20 or so monks remain in this monastery, like other Serbians, most have moved north since the war, out of Kosovo. The KFOR military presence was intimidating, and we had to show our passports to get in, but once inside it was tranquil and very beautiful. In the middle of this walled monastery sits the sturdy 14th century cathedral with a rather plain exterior. Step inside and the treasure is revealed – incredible frescoes in sumptuous reds, blues, greens and yellows and of course plenty of gold. We can only hope this incredible treasure is kept safe.
We continued on our way towards Prizren. The highway was lined with a single string of urbanisation and behind the vegetable shops, carwashes, houses and wedding halls was a patchwork of fields with small clusters of crops, seemingly unorganised and of no significant scale. The wedding halls were odd – lavish establishments in faux-Grecian style with garlands of garish plastic flowers, often with white Hummers parked outside and totally out of place beside dilapidated buildings in semi-rural settings. We were told they love their big blingy weddings here.
It was just after midday when we arrived in Prizren. It was hot and humid and rain clouds were threatening overhead. Andrew left me in the hotel room blogging and went to find water and fruit. He came back excited by the vibrant town he’d discovered; people were everywhere, and the restaurants and cafes were overflowing.
Our local guide met us at 5 for a walking tour of his city. He was in his 30’s and owned a backpacker hostel. He started by taking us to the Catholic Cathedral opposite a Jewish community centre, then to the heavily guarded Serbian Orthodox church and finally into his own place of worship, the beautiful historic Sinan Pasha Mosque where the very funky young Imam greeted us warmly. Our guide kept stressing that Kosovo is not overly religious, that all religions live here peacefully, and he has plenty of friends of all faiths. Being in the tourist industry he has a vested interest in ensuring the message conveyed to tourists like us is that Kosovo is a modern multi-cultural society that embraces its diversity. The heavily guarded Serbian monastery we visited earlier and the security around the mostly idle Serbian orthodox church in Prizren challenges this.
The politics are complicated, and who are we to comment. We were here to learn about this region’s complex history and culture and enjoy the warm and charming city of Prizren. And it really is charming; the shallow Bistrica River flows through the middle of the Old Town crossed by a beautiful historic stone bridge, a fort sits on the hill above, and the historic centre is jammed with lovely character-filled buildings dating back to the 14th century. I had noticed a lot of Audis and BMW’s with German, Swiss and French number plates. I asked our guide about this and he told us that these will be Kosovo people who fled the war returning to visit family for summer. He laughed and cynically said they probably spent their annual salary on a flash car as it’s their status symbol to impress family in their homeland. He told us Prizren is also where the Albanian national awakening began when a political organisation defending the rights of Albanians was founded in the city back in 1878. As a result, a lot of ethnic Albanians from all over the world come to Prizren as a sort of pilgrimage. We visited the building where this awakening began, and sure enough loads of people were having their photos taken outside, many posing with the hand gesture of the two-headed eagle.
We finished our tour where the path up to the fort started and surprisingly Mr Love suggested we walk up. He normally leaves me to conquer forts alone. It wasn’t too much of a climb and the view across Prizren and out to the mountains was lovely. Families and friends gathered on the lookout, posing for photos and sharing jokes. The sun was starting to set, and the place was bathed in hazy pink and gold. A call to prayer wafted up from the mosques below.
Back in town we went souvenir shopping and found some lovely hand-painted ceramic bowls, perfect for olives and humus. It was hard to find a place to eat, not from lack of restaurants but because they were all so full. We finally found a table for two squeezed at the back of a traditional restaurant. Dinner was more grilled meat with shope salad, white cheese and pita.
Day 11. Prizren to Tirana, Albania
We were woken at 5am by the most beautiful call to prayer I’d ever heard, followed by the clang of church bells. No rest for the wicked.
There is only one checkpoint at the border between Kosovo and Albania. Normally you pass through two, one to exit the country you’re in and the other to enter the new country. This relaxed approach says a lot about the relationship between these neighbours.
The first thing we noticed after crossing the border were the concrete domes scattered across the countryside. These are bunkers. 750,000 were built under the direction of communist dictator Enver Hoxha, who ruled Albania as one of the most isolationist Stalinists from the end of World War II until his death in 1985. It is known as “Bunkerisation” – my new favourite word. We also noticed the state of the roads. They were big highways for very little traffic and there were many new bridges under construction. How could a poor country afford such roads? In New Zealand even one bridge would take years. Later we asked our local guide and he told us the funds come from the EU and also the Chinese who have mining interests in Albania. Perhaps NZ could apply to join the EU.
We arrived in Tirana, checked into our hotel and went out to find lunch. Under communism many old buildings were destroyed and replaced, so most buildings here are not older than 50 years and many have been built since Albania opened up in the early 90’s. We found a produce market that was under a spanking new glass marque in a newly paved square and surrounded by restaurants. Lunch was the most beautiful tomato salad with white cheese and a chicken shisha each. Both of us ate for $10 NZD. It is absurdly cheap in Albania.
Our local guide met us outside the hotel at 4 for the walking tour. Tirana is spread out and this was the longest and furthest walking tour of the trip so far. He was my age and had plenty of stories from growing up in the 80’s in the most isolated communist state in world. He didn’t own jeans until he was an adult, they had no TV, he had never seen a banana – his mother was too afraid to try one when they first arrived in 1992, but they’re now her favourite food – and there were only a handful of cars in the country and they were for the politicians and people of power. Most people had never driven when cars arrived in the early 90’s. Can you imagine the mayhem of the roads? Our guide told us Albanians are still getting the hang of driving so be careful crossing the road.
He took us first to Skanderbeg Square – an enormous space of gently undulating granite. It had recently been repaved at cost of 15 million Euros and the tiles are already showing signs of wear and cracking in places. Understandably this has caused some contention. This grand square is flanked by communist-style buildings: The National Library, the Palace of Culture, and the National Museum of History with the famous mosaic billboard called “Albanian” – communist propaganda depicting ancient to modern figures of Albanian history. An enormous flag flies from the Palace of Culture and another above the statue of Albania’s founding father Skanderbeg, Lord of Albania on a horse. We walked on past the 18th century Et’hem Bey Mosque which was closed for renovation and across to the art gallery where in a parking lot at the back of the building we found decaying statues of Lenin, Stalin and Hoxha – placed out of the way, but still accessible as a reminder of their past.
There is a lot of modern art in the city and the current Prime Minister, Edi Rama is himself and an artist, and a former basketball player. Even the traffic lights are arty. The entire pole glows green or red. A canopy of lights straight from an old-style Hollywood theatre or a casino hangs above the entrance to a government building. There’s a sense of playfulness about the place, like they’re making up for years of suppression by being as wacky as they like. Edi Rama is a colourful character. You may have seen the photos of him towering over Merkel and Macron in a suit with white trainers. It was his statement about freedom of expression after a lifetime of suppression. Our guide is optimistic about Albania’s future. He says people are returning home from abroad and young people are not leaving. The economy is picking up and they’re regaining their identity
We walked past the graffiti covered Pyramid of Tirana. Built as a museum to honour Hoxha and designed by his daughter and son-in-law, this huge eye-sore now lies abandoned. The people of Tirana don’t know what to do with it. However, our guide told us agreement has finally been reached to preserve it and renovate it, turning it into something positive. After all, it is part of their heritage, however dark that may be.
In the newer part of town, where the hip bars, restaurants and designer stores are, is Enver Hoxha’s former residence. It is a mansion built in the 60’s and would not have looked out of place on a Californian boulevard. Once again, debate on what to do with this mansion has been ongoing but it is likely to be turned into a museum of some sort. We noticed a KFC and asked our guide how long it had been here. It had recently opened but there is no MacDonald’s in Albania and apparently no plans for it and likewise there is no Starbucks. Food and coffee are so cheap here, perhaps they just can’t compete.
That evening we ate another beautiful local meal and even with a glass of wine each the bill only came to $18NZD.
Day 12. Tirana to Berat, Albania
We left Tirana and headed to Berat, an historical town and listed UNESCO World Heritage Site. Berat is famed or its handsome white Ottoman houses that tumble down the hillside to the Osum River. The town has been lovingly preserved and the funding that came from the UNESCO listing has been used to create a wide paved pedestrian boulevard lined with shops and eateries on one side and a park on the other. Our hotel was in a traditional Ottoman style building and was one of nicest we’d stayed in.
Our walking tour in Berat was of the castle on the hill. This town has been inhabited for over 2,400 years and in its early history the castle was the city. Inside the castle, they built churches with valuable frescoes and icons, and uniquely today, residents still live within the castle walls. The ensemble of the Byzantine churches in the castle is extraordinary. We were shown through the Cathedral of Saint Maria, now a museum that displays the works of famous iconographers of the 16th century. There are over 100 gloriously sumptuously paintings of icons on display.
It was dusk when the walking tour finished, and we descended from the castle on the hill back into town. The quiet town that we had arrived in at midday was now a hive of activity and the empty restaurants and bars were overflowing. Where had all these people been hiding?
Day 13. Berat to Ohrid, Macedonia
The next morning, we headed off towards Macedonia. The countryside we drove through was barren, dry and mostly deserted. We passed donkeys pulling carts piled with corn or watermelons and there were lots of dogs wandering along the roadside, sometimes deciding to cross causing some heavy breaking.
Just before the border we stopped at a service station for the driver to have a break. Across the road was a hill covered in bunkers, some quite large. A couple of us walked across and climbed the hill to see these bunkers up close. A dog came out of a small bunker wagging her tail in greeting. She was followed by her tiny puppy. We walked inside the large bunker. It was a round concrete dome semi-submerged with a slot to fire your gun out of. Hoxha had no friends and thought everyone was out to get Albania. There is no doubt that man had issues.
As we drove down the hills into Macedonia the landscape became greener and more fertile. It wasn’t long before we were driving beside Lake Ohrid, a beautiful lake and our destination for our last night on tour. We arrived in the pretty town of Ohrid and were greeted by a couple of friendly local dogs as we got off the bus. Our hotel was right on the lakeside and after checking in we walked along the promenade into town to change money and have lunch. Ohrid is a busy resort town and the pedestrian areas were lined with souvenir shops and bustling with tourists.
That afternoon our local guide took us through the quaint old quarter filled with traditional red-roofed houses and cobbled lanes, up past the ancient Greek amphitheatre that was discovered accidentally by developers in the 80’s, to the impressive Byzantine Holy Mary Perybleptos church and up to the centuries-old Samoil’s Fortress that dominates the skyline. We climbed the fortress walls and admired the expansive view across the lake before walking back down to the beautiful Church of St John at Kaneo sitting on a point overlooking the water. This church is the iconic image of Ohrid and we’d seen it many times on tourist sites promoting Macedonia.
Someone in our group asked the guide if Macedonia was a potential candidate for EU membership. He laughed and said Macedonia would be lucky to be considered as a candidate for candidacy. Macedonia, like its neighbours, is a developing country. There is over 21 percent unemployment here.
It was our last night on tour and a farewell dinner was arranged. Two taxi boats collected us from our hotel and took us to the old quarter to a restaurant where we had a table over the water. Our amusement for the night came from feeding the hundreds of fish who went into a frenzy when anything was dropped into the water. They liked bread and lettuce but went absolutely crazy for chicken. An old widowed swan came by for a look too, the waiter told us she’s been around for a very long time.
The moon was almost full and lit up the lake as we walked slowly back along the shore to our hotel.
Day 14. Ohrid to Sofia, Bulgaria
The next day was mostly taken up driving the long distance through Macedonia to Bulgaria. It was a pretty drive with lovely scenery of mountains and green countryside. Macedonia is very rural and sparsely populated. To break our journey, we stopped for lunch at a beautiful monastery tucked amongst the trees in the hills just before the border.
Going back into Bulgaria we were re-entering the EU, so Andrew missed out on another stamp in his passport. Back in Bulgaria and it was obvious this country is far more modern and developed than its neighbours. Simple things like the absence of supermarkets. Here there were large supermarkets again – the German owned Lidl is everywhere – and industry, and largescale farming with big machinery.
It was night by the time we arrived at our hotel in Sofia. We found a place for dinner and reflected on our trip through the Balkans. Sarajevo was a highlight for both of us – the contrasting cultures displayed so obviously in the divide between the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian architecture of the old and new town, and the story of the Siege of Sarajevo and the hardships experienced and the resilience of the people of Sarajevo. There were many other highlights. For me, Kosovo was an eye-opener, and the beauty of the Adriatic coast cannot be overstated. In two weeks we only scratched the surface of this complex and colourful region but the insights into these countries, the culture we experienced, the history we witnessed, the scenery we soaked up, and the people we met will stay with us for a long time.
The following morning, we were off to the airport to catch our flight to Bucharest for our next adventure in Romania.
We went on the Penguin Travel Balkan Kaleidoscope tour and highly recommend this tour company.
