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The unknown Balkans

The unknown Balkans

Old Mar 6, 2017, 3:19 am
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The unknown Balkans

Expect a report covering Pristina, Prizren, the divided city of Mitrovica in Kosovo, Podgorica, Kotor Bay, Porto Montenegro, Shkodër and Tirana. The adventure just started...

Regards from Pristina.


Check out my previous reports:
First trip report...an early Summer getaway to the Caucasus
Slovakia...more than just Bratislava
Daytripping...exploring Belgian cities

Last edited by MA330; Mar 26, 2017 at 5:58 am
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Old Mar 6, 2017, 12:11 pm
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Cool! Subscribed.
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Old Mar 26, 2017, 5:48 am
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Background

It was finally time for some vacation again and I had two full weeks to spend abroad. My last long getaway was back in 2014 so it was a little difficult to come up with a proper tour to make good use of 14 long days.
After a bit of research I came up with the following routing: flying to Pristina on a Friday evening after work, spend the weekend there before heading further South to the city of Prizren before continuing on to Northern Albania and Montenegro and ending my trip in Tirana. Right after, a couple of possible daytrips came to my mind.

Flights were pretty easy to find and I decided to go with Eastern Europe specialist Austrian again: HAM-VIE-PRN and TIA-VIE-HAM for around 300€.

Kosovo
For those who don't know: Kosovo is a partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe that declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Population is around 2 million with over 90% being Albanians - thus the main language being Albanian.

I had a regular day of work the Friday I left so I didn’t take any photos on the first two flights but had a good early nap instead. The second leg of the day, VIE-PRN, felt more like a military charter with few civilians onboard and mostly filled with Austrian KFOR soldiers and some American advisor/contractor type of guys. Immigration was quick and I didn’t even get an entry stamp (regular procedure?!) – I had arranged a shuttle to the hotel in the centre but that guy never showed up. The hotel owner was very sorry and said it was the first time such thing happend so he took care of the 15€ and actually changed the taxi company he was working with. (...at least there were new stickers and business cards of a different company in the lobby the day after)

I stayed in the newly built Hotel LaCorte which is just a couple hundred meters away from the main boulevard. First impression: very clean and well maintenaned with fast wifi. I paid 30€ per night excl breakfast.Hotel LaCorte Pristina

After a good night's sleep I was off to discover the city and grab some breakfast. Pristina itself isn’t beautiful city – mostly grey and dusty but the whole country feels like being on the move and ready to work. Only problem: there are very few jobs and so I did get quite a few requests if I could arrange some kind of work in Germany. Great thing in Kosovo: most of the younger people speak decent English with older people usually remembering some words/phrases in German.

Here we go:

#1 National Library of Kosovo - known for its rather unique design by Croatian architect Andrija Mutnjaković


#2 Right next to the library with its interior fully destroyed


#3 Another church in predominantly Muslim-Kosovo just across the street. Mother Teresa Cathedral (Roman Catholic), yet to be finished but accessible through a backdoor to enjoy the panorama from the top of its clock tower


#4 The view from up there is truly mindblowing (the lift can be used for 1€, stairway is closed)


#5 Quick and low budget lunch inside the hotel


#6 To the clock tower again for the rather early sunset at shortly past 6pm


#7 Looking down Bulevardi Bill Klinton


#8 Bulevardi Nënë Tereza in the centre (pedestrian zone and main boulevard of the city)


On my first daytrip I headed to Mitrovica in the North of the country to see what a divided city in mainland Europe looks like. Due to the fact I was leaving Pristina on a Sunday morning I had to catch a good old Volkswagen T3 instead of a regular bus. On the news you often hear about violent protests on both sides and more recently Serbia sent a train covered in the slogan 'Kosovo is Serbia' in multiple languages to the city, though it was stopped outside Kosovo. I've often heard about the bridge and Ibar as some kind of a DMZ between the North and South...but as usual reality is slightly less exciting (reminded me of the saying - 'if it bleeds, it leads'). There were lots of people crossing on this calm Sunday. Recent article


#9 Above the Ibar which divides the city into Albanian South and Serbian North.


#10 But first some tasty grilled vegetables at restaurant Ura (Albanian=bridge)


#11 The Serbian part looks pretty much the same but the official language changes to Serbian, you now use Serbian Dinar and there are only Serbian license plates to be seen


#12 Serbian-Orthodox Saint Demetrius Church overlooking the city


#13 Much more impressive from the inside


#14 As glamorous as it gets


#15 Not quite sure about the translation but I believe something like Mitrovica and Kosovo belongs to Serbia as Crimea does to Russia?!


#16 The Serbs stood him all along & Kosovska Mitrovica (Serbian name for the city)


#17 Back on the Albanian side before catching a bus to Pristina after an interesting day


#18 My beloved Turkish Coffee (or Mokka) which is so hard to get in Germany, the max price for it is 1€ no matter where you are so pretty cheap


#19 Exploring Pristina on my last morning once again before catching the bus to the Southern city of Prizren later on - EULEX (=European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo) carpark


#20 Stadiumi i Qytetit, multi-purpose stadium and home to KF Prishtina


#21 Newborn monument which was unveiled on 17 February 2008, the day that Kosovo declared independence from Serbia


#22 Palace of Youth and Sports


#23 High life in Pristina. Enjoying a bacon burger with pork neck, blue cheese and fig jam inside Soma Book Station for just 4,50€. Since this restaurant is right next door to several ministries it's a hotspot for the high society.


Next up: Prizren. Busses depart pretty much every 15-30min from the main bus station of Pristina; prices for the 2h trip vary between 3 and 6€ depending on your skills of pretending to be a local... If you take a regular bus be aware that it stops whenever someone wants to leave or enter! Side story...while driving on the highway the cargo door opened several times at full speed until the driver decided to use some tape to finally fix that issue. The bus not just shuttles people but quite some cargo as well - at some point we stopped at a bus graveyard to deliver a set of tires.


I stayed in Hotel Prizreni in the middle of the old town next to the main mosque of the city. I paid 35€ per night incl breakfast. The hotel was clean, wifi was fast and the heating system worked excellent - what else to ask for. For people who like to sleep in: all mosques in the city will have their sunrise prayer at around 6am in March so be aware that you will wake up! Hotel Prizreni

#24 Prizren is home to a fortress known as Kaljaja which sits on a hill overlooking the old city, it once served as the capital of the Serbian Empire. 'During the late 19th century the city became a focal point for Albanian nationalism and saw the creation in 1878 of the League of Prizren, a movement formed to seek the national unification and liberation of Albanians within the Ottoman Empire.' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prizren) It is open to the public 24/7 with no tickets or anything needed to access it. The view from up there is truly exceptional and well worth the 15min hike, the designated way up starts behind my hotel so very easy to locate.


#25 Those white barracks in the center right serve as the German KFOR base in Southern Kosovo. I expected more military presence inside the city but didn't see any vehicles or troops except for a single German Nissan with Y-reg.


#26 Dinner at Restaurant Marashi, listed as #1 on tripadvisor but not much better than average. Bruschetta:


#27 After calling it a day rather early I was hoping for a proper sunrise with me being on top of the city again. This is what I've got instead:


#28 Had to spend the afternoon inside the hotel while hoping for better weather.


#29 Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour


#30 Delicious Tiramisu and Turkish Coffee for just 2,60€. Prince Coffee Shop is a brand of the Devolli Corporation, one of the model companies of Kosovo. IIRC they also run a coffee shop in Brooklyn these days.Devolli Corporation


#31 I did some research on various food blogs to find a better spot for dinner and Akdeniz Turkish Restaurant was my choice of the day. The Dürüm Kebap was very filling and contained at least twice as much lamb as it does in Germany for just 2€.


#32 Another recommendation was Missini Sweets just accross the street. (both shops are next to the rather boring NATO memorial)


#33 I slightly underestimated the size of each piece and so it was like having another day worth of food after dinner...it was delicious!


#34 I did feel a little depressed after the amount of food I just ate so I had to do a little walk around the city. A very weird situation to follow...first of all - tow away in the Balkans?! Never seen before. Then a police officer approached me asking why I was taking photos; after explaining Abschleppservice is the exact word for tow away service in German we had a good laugh. His English was pretty decent so I guess he received some Western training.



The next day I caught a bus to Shkoder - expect the other half of my trip report covering Albania and Montenegro in the next couple of days.

Have a good Sunday.

Last edited by MA330; Mar 26, 2017 at 7:57 am
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Old Mar 26, 2017, 11:02 am
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Thank you!!

One of my regrets is not visiting that part of Europe - it was planned, but had a last minute cancellation and I have not had the opportunity again.
Your photos and narration are great.
Looking forward to the the rest of the TR.
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Old Mar 27, 2017, 1:13 am
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I would bet the Abschleppwagen saw once German roads Also funny the Exquisa was in German language.
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Old Mar 27, 2017, 5:23 am
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Mitrovica looks like an interesting place to visit.

Funny how Russia doesn't recognise Kosovo, but used it as an example of unilateral declaration of independence under international law when they took over Crimea.

Cool start and looking forward to the rest. A part of Europe I really need to visit.
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Old Mar 27, 2017, 8:40 am
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Originally Posted by roadwarrier
Thank you!!

One of my regrets is not visiting that part of Europe - it was planned, but had a last minute cancellation and I have not had the opportunity again.
Your photos and narration are great.
Looking forward to the the rest of the TR.
Thanks. You should some day - it's rather unknown in Western Europe and even more underrated.

Originally Posted by offerendum
I would bet the Abschleppwagen saw once German roads Also funny the Exquisa was in German language.
It sure did. Pretty much 98% of the trucks/busses/cars in Kosovo are imported from Germany. Can't remember how many Speditionen, Heizungstechniker and Reisegesellschaften xyz I've seen. One bus still had a huge on photo of Mozart on its body. I've also seen a first generation BMW X5 with an additional Mercedes E-Class W211 stock exhaust attached to it... only the crazy stuff in this part of the world.

Originally Posted by DanielW
Mitrovica looks like an interesting place to visit.

Funny how Russia doesn't recognise Kosovo, but used it as an example of unilateral declaration of independence under international law when they took over Crimea.

Cool start and looking forward to the rest. A part of Europe I really need to visit.
You should - getting to that region shouldn't be too tricky with a transit in ATH or Istanbul.

Last edited by MA330; Mar 28, 2017 at 10:51 am
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 7:41 am
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Hi mate,

I really enjoyed your write-up (and even more, your photos!) of my home away from home. Never did I think I would see the day where someone would do a Kosovo trip report on FT. Again, I really enjoy the film look of your shots. Hope you managed to grab a coffee at nearby Dit' e Nat' as well
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 10:27 am
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Originally Posted by dcfromdc
Hi mate,

I really enjoyed your write-up (and even more, your photos!) of my home away from home. Never did I think I would see the day where someone would do a Kosovo trip report on FT. Again, I really enjoy the film look of your shots. Hope you managed to grab a coffee at nearby Dit' e Nat' as well
Thanks for the kind words. #18 has been taken inside Half & Half Café. So the good spots are well known, eh!?

Regards, Marvin

Last edited by MA330; Mar 28, 2017 at 12:44 pm
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 11:18 am
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Great to read something a little different - thanks for sharing.
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 11:19 am
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Very interesting read and photos. Something a little different. Thanks for sharing.
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 11:21 am
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Oops didn't mean to reply twice!
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Old Mar 28, 2017, 12:26 pm
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Originally Posted by sftrvlr
Great to read something a little different - thanks for sharing.
Appreciate the kind words, thanks.
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Old Mar 29, 2017, 8:37 am
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Nice report so far. A few years ago a friend and I flew OS into PRN, then went to Prizren, Skoder, Budva, Kotor, Dubrovnik, Mostar, Sarajevo then Split. It's a great region to travel though, especially in the summer.
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Old Mar 29, 2017, 10:22 pm
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great report, MA330. really enjoy your photos as well. I mean, wow, Kosovo.

looking forward to hearing from your journey on Montenegro and Albania as well.
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