The Yugosphere Part II

Montenegro: Kotor is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and I don’t think anyone can help but be impressed once they arrive in town. I certainly was! When you take a moment to look around, these massive mountains are sort of in your face. It’s quite dramatic and truly breathtaking. I was a bit bummed out at first because it was raining heavily (again!) and the one thing I wanted to do was hike up the 1300+ steps along the fortress wall. Luckily, the rain stopped and as I hiked up, the view over Kotor and the bay just kept getting better and better.

I think I took about 200 photos just on the hike up! The rest of Kotor is charming, but is nowhere near as spectacular as the fortress/view; the old town had the usual cobblestone streets, old churches, and former palaces :) In terms of food, Montenegro doesn’t really stand out, but there was an amazing little pizzeria near the hostel that sold giant slices of pizza for 1.5 Euro :)

I ended up meeting two guys, Matt and Andriy on my fortress hike: Matt is a New Yorker working at the American embassy in Sarajevo and Andriy is a Ukrainian working at the German embassy in Sarajevo. When they told me they lived in Sarajevo, I was being conversational and mentioned going there the next day. Matt’s response was a cheery, “Do you want a ride?!” and I ended up driving with them on one of the most beautiful drives I’ve ever been on! We crossed the Bay of Kotor on a ferry and then after crossing the border into Bosnia and Herzegovina, the scenery never stopped being incredible. We passed mountains, lakes, and national parks and weren’t even trying for the scenic route. Apparently, every route in Bosnia is the scenic route!

Bosnia & Herzegovina: The country is divided between the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (majority Croat/Muslim) and the Republika Srpska (majority Serbian). You see different flags as you enter the different territories and the Republika Srpska is reputed to be safer for tourists. Schools are still segregated and the two entities even print their own money. (The notes look similar, but the money printed in Herzegovina uses Cyrillic first, then Latin, whereas the money printed in Bosnia prints Latin first, and then Cyrillic. Even though the faces on the bills are different as well, all Serbian Dinars are accepted throughout the country.) Matt an Andriy taught me a lot and if I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t have learned so much about the country. Thanks, guys!

I spent time in both Sarajevo and Mostar and after having had a few days in Bosnia & Herzegovina, I realized that I had seen more graveyards in those days than I have seen in my entire life. The graveyards are a very prominent part of both cities, as are buildings scarred from an unimaginable amount of shell firing. 

In Sarajevo, they’ve turned parks and even soccer stadiums into graveyards too. The Bosnian Historical Museum gives a brief recap of the siege of Sarajevo (that some people in the Federation deny ever happened!) with pretty graphic images of deaths and people suffering. My visit to the museum was a very sobering experience… here was more history I just really had no grasp of whatsoever…  

In terms of sightseeing, Mostar boasts an old town with an old bridge (UNESCO Heritage Site):

Mostar was significantly bombed during the war and you can watch footage of the destruction and the collapse of the bridge (that has since been restored). Sarajevo also has an old town, a fairly lively downtown area, the bridge where Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, and a lot of memorials to the deceased…

Food was relatively exciting in Bosnia & Herzegovina especially since I didn’t really have anything except pizza in Montenegro. Bosanski Kafe is good – just like Turkish coffee! If you are in the Federation, however, it’s just the “house coffee.” One of the most popular foods is cevapi (chuh-vah-pee) or cavapcici (chuh-vahp-chi-chi), small sausages that remind me of breakfast sausages with different spices. You eat it with somun, a local bread, with raw onions. It’s okay: 

Cevapi

But the Bosanski lonac (Bosnian stew), klepe (mini ravioli with oil and sour cream), and Sarajevski Sahan (mixed stuffed dolmas) were fantastic! I also got to try the pastrmka (trout) – also delicious! Good eating in Sarajevo… good tap water too!

Bosanski Lonac

Klepe

Sarajevski Sahan

The people, however, were perhaps my least favorite of the countries I’ve visited so far in the region… In Macedonia, they were very friendly and chatty. The woman sitting next to me on my bus to Ohrid, for example, gave me a lot of tips on what to see and do in the city as well as her phone number in case I needed any help. In Kosovo, they love Americans and loved hearing that I was from there. In Bosnia, however, they weren’t mean, but they weren’t very… sympathetic. I very much got the vibe that they don’t care about you and your problems; I guess they’ve had harder stuff to deal with…

Downtown Belgrade

Belgrade: I left Bosnia & Herzegovina from Mostar on a bus bound for Belgrade. I had heard that the Serbs might try and cancel out my Kosovar stamps but they either didn’t see them or didn’t care :) Belgrade was fun! 

Political artwork on one of the main pedestrian streets in Belgrade

Karadordeva Snicla: A uniquely Serbian food consisting of a pork-and-cheese schnitzel. My usual dinner, however, was pizza! The default in the US is cheese or pepperoni, but here it's ham and mushroom! My favorite!!

I spent the first day in Serbia enjoying the sunshine and checking off my list of sights to see (Kalemegdan Fortress, Saint Sava Church, Danube River, National Assembly, etc.) and the second day treating myself to a three-course lunch and Titanic 3D. After my fit of unhappiness in Kosovo, I’ve really started to make an effort to have more fun … forego the “sights to see” I don’t care about in favor of relaxing and enjoying the good life. I’m also realizing that I’ve got less than two more months (!) before I get back to the real world (and have to find a job and be responsible….). 

Enjoying the sunshine at Kalemegdan Park :)

Slovenia and Croatia are the last two countries in the Yugosphere I haven't covered (because I haven't been yet*) but before I do, a recap of Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia! Just posted this blog while on a Polskibus going from Warsaw to Krakow... Poland is awesome!

The Yugosphere Part I

I left winter in Bulgaria to find Spring and sunshine in Macedonia (pronounced mah-keh-dough-nee-uh)! It was my first entry into former Yugoslavian territory and I definitely enjoyed the days I spent there. Skopje (pronounced scope-yeh), the capital, was a nice city, but perhaps not the most exciting in terms of sightseeing. What sticks out to me most is that I happened upon a free concert promoting diversity in the main square. Volunteers wore “Free Hugs” t-shirts and passed out balloons. (But from what I could see, I was one of the most “diverse” members of the audience*) 

Macedonia Square

Mother Teresa was born in Skopje; this is a chapel built at the site of her former home 

Mt. Vodno and the Millenium Cross – one of the biggest crosses in the world. It only cost about $2 to take the cable car up to the cross… pretty awesome especially when I compare it to the ~$30 I paid to see the Christo in Rio!

Ohrid is a small city about three hours away from Skopje; it is said to be the jewel in Macedonia’s crown and is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city sits on the famous Lake Ohrid; the lake is very deep and I think I read that at the deepest point of the lake, the Eiffel Tower would dip just below the surface! There were a lot of centuries old churches and monasteries, and some of them were quite beautiful. 

Church of St. John at Kaneo

Tsar Samuil’s Fortress was perhaps my favorite part of the old town – it had a really amazing view over the city and the lake. 

The picture doesn't really show it, but it was almost as if you could see Spring blooming around you with these cherry blossom-like trees sprouting pretty pink flowers everywhere. The weather was pretty bad - rainy and cloudy when I was in town - but on the upside, it was low season and I had a hostel to myself!

A lot of the food in Macedonia was similar to Bulgarian food, the exception being tavche gravche – the national dish:

It’s basically a bean stew and I thought it was terrible! The one I had at least was very bland and just kind of made my stomach feel uncomfortable after eating it. I guess “national dish” doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll find something that tastes good :) They Do like to do bacon-wrapped chicken skewers that were amazing (!) and I also rediscovered stuffed peppers! 

Stuffed Peppers - Polneti Piperki (or Peretz Farshirovani in Russian)

My favorite thing to eat in Russia were the stuffed peppers and I was thrilled to see it on menus here. Unexpectedly, fast food consists largely of burgers and hot dogs, and the burgers I had were fantastic: Massive, delicious, and oddly stuffed with french fries and cabbage. 

This chicken burger was as big as my face!

I was also able to try homemade ajvar, a mix of spices and crushed bell peppers and eggplant that you can eat by itself or with bread/cheese; the hostel owner gave me some that her mother had made – it was really, really good!

Shkembe Chorba - Tripe Soup typical of Bulgaria and Macedonia

Albania: From Ohrid, I took a “private taxi” to Struga and a bus from Struga to Tirana, the capital of Albania. (While the hostel owner and I were waiting at the bus stop, a man pulled over and said “Struga?” He offered to take me for 50 MKD, but I only had 40 MKD because that is what the bus costs. The hostel owner gave me 10 MKD and I was on my way. Random. The man picked up other passengers, smoked the whole way, and drove terrifyingly fast, but I made it okay!) Albania is not part of the Yugosphere and barely worth a mention actually…. It’s not that it sucks, but the part I visited was very uninteresting and basically a waste of time. The weather was crappy, the city was gritty and unimpressive, and there weren’t even uniquely “Albanian” foods to try! Perhaps the most interesting thing about Tirana is the fact that they have a street named after George Bush because he visited in 2007 :)

Kosovo: I spent about 15 hours in Tirana before I was on a bus to Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. I fought hard for a fair cab fare and ended up with a nice guy who told me America and Kosovo are buddy buddy. (He showed me his fingers locked together to signify the relationship). This was a nice start to Kosovo, but soon after, I hit one of my lowest points in my travels so far. I ended up with the WORST map ever and got very lost. I hate being lost. Not only did I have no idea where I was, but it was cold, rainy, and I didn’t care at all about the “sights to see” in Pristina (not that there were many anyway!). I was tired of the crappy weather and cities without much to see or do…. It felt stupid to be unhappy and wasting money in Eastern Europe when I could be home relaxing or otherwise enjoying life. I was so miserable that day that I even started googling flights home. Clearly my “crisis of (travel) faith” passed, and I am plunging forward as usual, but it was the first time I’ve ever truly considered going home.

One of the most interesting buildings in Kosovo: University of Kosovo Library

There really isn’t too much to see in Pristina, and in fact, the “thing to do,” is to have a macchiato and people watch. As one of the poorest countries in Europe, people don’t have a lot of money to spend so they spend their time being seen instead. This was fun to watch and a nice way to spend a Saturday morning – I don’t think I’ve ever had a macchiato before :) My favorite thing in Pristina was a goofy statue of Bill Clinton that sits on a boulevard named after the former president:

There are odd little homages to America with an “American Corner” in the university library and even a store called “American Beauty” selling (awful-looking) clothes. 

The one Kosovar food that I wanted to try that seemed unique was flia – an unhealthy layered pastry. It tasted like layers of pasta with oil and butter… it was interesting to say the least :)

People were very nice to me in Kosovo, even offering to help me if I stood puzzling over my incomprehensible map. Usually, I’d blame myself, and not the map, but locals were even confused as they stared at it and tried to rotate it into making sense. One security guard directed me to the center and told me it was a very long walk. I didn’t mind, but he ended up passing me by on his way home from work and he offered me a ride. I refused initially, but then got in the car. Ironically, he told me not to get into cars with strangers, and then he drove in traffic (out of his way) just to drop me off in the city center. Nice guy :)

Generally, people seem proud of the Republic of Kosovo and there’s a lot of graffiti that says simply “Kosova Republikë.” There aren’t many signs of the recent conflict apart from numerous postings throughout the city of people who were killed and the continued UN presence. I felt safe there. 

@ the UNMIK building; Definitely eerie to see all the UN vehicles around town...

I know I’ve only covered two of the seven countries in former Yugoslavian territory (and only one really if you side with Serbia in not recognizing Kosovo), but there’s more to come! Next stop, Montenegro!  

Blusterous Bulgaria

Bulgaria was COLD and I was pretty miserable there actually. I allotted exactly one day for Sofia, the capital, and the city didn't do much for its reputation of being the worst of Bulgaria. With the weather being as miserable as it was, however, I may not have enjoyed any other Bulgarian cities either. It was awfully snowy and windy, the sights to see were unspectacular, and it was a Sunday so most shops were closed.

During a snowstorm, I saw a lot of churches:

The famous Alexander Nevsky Cathedral:

Sofia’s version of the Hagia Sophia:

St. George Rotunda:

You can see the snow falling!

and St. Joseph's (Catholic Church):

I Did luck out that it was Sunday because I got to hear the choirs performing in their churches and get a taste of the amazing acoustics in these buildings.

Unfortunately, Sunday also meant that every place I passed with Bulgarian food – with the exception of fast food (kebabs/doners/burgers/pizzas) – was closed. I had McDonald’s and KFC before I could find the moussaka I’d been longing to try. I’m not sure how authentic it was because I got it from a (chain) restaurant called Soupteria, but it was delicious!

I think I thought moussaka was either a soup or bread-with-filling, but it turns out it’s more lasagna-esque than anything. It is a mix of minced meat, eggplant, tomatoes, and potatoes with cheese on top. For dinner I had one of the “must-try’s” of Bulgarian food: Shopska Salad.

Yuck!

Shopska salad consists of tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, cucumbers, and sirene (feta-like) cheese. I didn’t think it was possible, but it was way too cheesy and I felt pretty sick afterwards. I’ve seen it on almost every menu I’ve seen since leaving Bulgaria, but I will pretty much never order it again. I'm living and learning :) One other famous Bulgarian food is the banitsa, a flaky, burek-like pastry with a variety of fillings.

This is but one small piece of banitsa; they usually bake it in great big round tray in a spiral. (See also http://www.dobrinite.com/nay-vkusnata-banitsa-mesyat-v-sofiya.html)

The meat one I had was just okay, but the homemade one with egg and cheese from my hostel was delicious!

Before getting to Bulgaria, I had read that people were friendly...they were! I asked a woman for directions to the post office and she in turn asked two people how to get there on my behalf. She then went with me to buy stamps from a kiosk, waited while I filled out the envelopes (they made me put the postcards in envelopes), pointed me to the mailbox, and 10-15 minutes later, went on her way wishing me a good day. Such a nice lady :) Then again, the person whose help I didn’t want at the bus station followed/"helped” me and then requested a tip. That’s definitely one of the hardest parts of traveling for me… I just never know who is actually nice and who is trying to get money from me (by selling something/asking for tips/thieving...).

Anyway, I saw the sights, ate the foods, and sent some postcards; less than 24 hours after arrival, I was on a bus for Skopje, Macedonia. I know Sofia isn’t supposed to be the best of Bulgaria, but I can’t honestly see myself coming back.

Off to Skopje!

Up Next: The Yugosphere!

Turkiye

View of Eminonu and the rocking balik ekmek boats

Skipping Russia: Originally, I planned to take a ferry from Sokcho (South Korea) to Vladivostok (Russia) and begin my Eurotrip adventure from there. Obtaining a visa for Russia became far too cumbersome that I decided to skip Russia, Mongolia, and the Transiberian railroad altogether. In Indonesia, they said I had to be a resident of the country for 90 days to obtain a visa in Indonesia as a U.S. citizen. In Korea, they said it could be done, but it would take a week. Because they require a passport when visiting the JSA, the earliest I would have been able to turn in my passport would have been March 26^th. The next ferry after visa processing time wasn’t until April 4^th! Basically, I wasn’t willing to hang out in Korea that long and then have to rush through Russia to be in Venice by May 4^th. (Mom, Stacy, and Kamal are coming to meet me!)

I ended up flying from Seoul to Istanbul because it was the cheapest flight out of South Korea that wasn’t to China (though I did have layovers in Beijing and Urumxi before arriving at midnight in Istanbul). I spent the night at the airport and have since hit the ground running without any foreseeable “break” in the near future. :)

Inside the Hagia Sophia

Istanbul Day 1: I liked the city immediately. It was beautiful, busy, and full of interesting sights even in the ride from the airport to the city. I loved the Blue Mosque, named after the thousands of tiles that decorate the interior walls of the mosque.

Blue Mosque Exterior

Blue Mosque Interior

I also did a compulsory visit to the Hagia Sophia. It has been a Byzantine church, a Roman church, and a mosque in its history and is now currently a museum. I could have given it a miss because I didn’t really get much out of my 20TL admission fee. I find icons boring, who knew, but here's a particularly famous (and old) one of Jesus:

I wandered through the Gulhane Park that borders the famous Topkapi Palace and was unfortunately just a week or two too early for tulip season. It was a lovely day and a great start to Turkey :)

The next day, I visited a hamam, went to Asia for five minutes, ferried to Eminonu, wandered around the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar, and then took a 10pm overnight bus to Pamukkale. Such a random day! A hamam is a traditional Turkish bath house. First, you lay on a hot marble slab and sweat (a lot). I had paid extra for the scrub down and massage so after a while, my attendant arrived and gave me a rather abrasive scrub down all over my body. I had so much dead skin on me! It looked like little blackish/gray worms all over my skin. (Gross!) She rinsed me off and then had me lay on the marble slab for the soap massage portion of our session. She had a soapy cloth, lathered me, and then gave me a quick (and again abrasive) massage. It was unique, to say the least. I lay on the marble slab for a bit longer, rinsed a bit more, and after an hour and a half total, I made peace with the hamam. People rave about the experience being really relaxing and feeling cleaner than ever… I can’t say I felt either of those things, but I’m glad I had the experience. :)

Istanbul is the only city to straddle two continents which is why I was able to go to Asia for five minutes. I took a ferry from Besiktas to Uskudar, and then left soon after on a ferry from Uskudar to Eminonu. The Grand Bazaar was fun, but the Spice Bazaar was even better! I had no intention of buying anything yet ended up buying tea for Mom and sampling really good pistachio Turkish delight :)

Pamukkale: 10 hours away from Istanbul is the city of Pamukkale. Pamukkale is famous for its spectacular Travertines.... I loved them!

Calcium and carbonate react to create calcium carbonate and limestone creating the “Cotton Castle” of Pamukkale. The Travertines were absolutely stunning and, in and of itself, worth the trip from Istanbul. Above the Travertines lies the ancient city of Hierapolis:

Since admission to Hierapolis was included in the 20TL admission to the Travertines, I visisted the amphitheater, the Martyrdom of St Phillip, the agora, and the necropolis. The ruins of Hierapolis were cool to see and parts of the walk were really beautiful with red poppies and flowers springing up over the ruins.

I, however, devoted most of my time and attention to the magnificent Travertines. Definitely go visit Pamukkale if you’re ever in Turkey!

I took an overnight bus from Pamukkale back to Istanbul and had one last day to visit Camlica (CHAHM-lee-zha) Hill, buy some souvenirs, and eat all the Turkish foods I hadn’t tried yet.

View from Camlica Hill

Depending on what you’re eating, food is CHEAP in Turkey! For my first meal, I started off with a 3TL chicken doner and ayran (signature sour yogurt drink of Turkey).

~$1.68 for a chicken sandwich and drink?! Awesome! The ayran wasn’t so good, but then again, I don’t really like yogurt. Manti is Turkish ravioli – bite sized ravioli covered in sour cream and butter/oil; it’s not the healthiest dish, but it’s very, very good:

Gozleme is a Turkish pancake – I had one with spinach and cheese that was reminiscent in taste of a Costco spanakopita. Pide is both a type of bread and a Turkish pizza; the one I had with meat, cheese, and egg was delicious:

Lastly, I tried balik ekmek, a fish sandwich consisting of grilled fish, onions, and cilantro. There are floating boats in Eminonu that only sell balik ekmek and on a Saturday afternoon, the area was packed with people enjoying their fish sandwiches. :) There were also (usually) men everywhere selling simit (basically a sesame bagel ring), roasted chestnuts, and roasted corn.

I had four full days in Turkey and they were wonderful! I’ll be back in May when our cruise docks in Izmir :) I left on my third overnight bus in a row bound for Bulgaria and as of this writing, my Eastern European adventure has officially begun!

Next Up: Bulgaria and the Former Republics of Yugoslavia