Balkan Travels

I am back in Albania, a couple kilos lighter and fairly well rested. Our “Around the Balkans in 10-days Tour” was a success.

Each of the six of us seemed to have different objectives for our travels. Some were looking for a “return to civilization”, some for adventure, and some simply for a meal at McDonalds. For me it was simply to see some new places and spend some time at the beach.

As should have been expected, getting out of Albania and into Montenegro proved to be the most complicated part of the trip. Luckily, through various connections we were able to secure a ride from Shkodra directly to Budva, Montenegro. Montenegro was absolutely beautiful and still relatively undiscovered by travelers. Montenegro just declared independence from Serbia several months ago, so it is nice to be able to say that I have been to the newest country in the world. Our time in Budva was spent cliff jumping at the beach and eating a giant fish dinner and delicious Serbian sandwiches.

From Budva, it was on to Dubrovnik, Croatia. Dubrovnik was a complete contrast to Budva, as it was packed full of tourists, mostly because of the giant cruise ships. The city itself was beautiful, but the entire atmosphere seemed a bit contrived. I don’t have many pictures of Dubrovnik because I had traveler’s sickness for one of the days. Luckily, the view from my bedroom window was nice.

After Dubrovnik, it was on to Sarajevo. This was definitely my favorite part of the trip. Sarajevo is a beautiful city with a recent, tragic history. Evidence of the four-year siege is still starkly visible throughout the city, but it is also evident that the city has moved forward and begun to recover. I would recommend Sarajevo as a must-see for anyone traveling through the Balkans. Being in Sarajevo and driving through the Bosnian countryside reminded me how large and brutal the war there really was.

Another striking aspect of Sarajevo is the scale of religious diversity. Coming from Albania, where religion is a non-issue and was even outlawed for several decades, Sarajevo had an almost overwhelmingly religious exterior. Within the city proper, there are hundreds of mosques, catholic churches, orthodox churches and synagogues. In fact, two churches, a mosque, and a synagogue all reside within a two-block area.

As always, returning to Albania begets a period of readjustment, so it will probably take several days to get back into the Albanian lifestyle.

I have posted my pictures on my flickr site. Just click the newer pictures link on the right.