Do I surprise anyone by saying we had a leisurely breakfast again today? Probably not.
Not many photos to share today, but oh the mountains are gorgeous here!
After breakfast we took a drive to another mountainous area nearby. The road … ack! … so narrow and sometimes trucks came towards us. One tunnel is too narrow for more than one way traffic, but there’s nothing to tell you to go so you honk the horn and hope for the best. Some of the road was crumbling and the drop off was not a fun one. I just look toward the side where there is no drop off and manage to stay fairly calm.
Photos at the start:
When we got to destination number one we got out of the car and walked up a gravel road. We reached a point where there were large concrete blocks so if you had gone up in a car it wouldn’t be passable. And welcome to Montenegro! We didn’t go many steps into it, as we were told there could possibly be border control police nearby (and, in fact, there were!). (Family shot was taken across the border!)
We hiked back down (or should I say “strolled”?) and then got back in the cars to head to destination number two, which was also our “lunch & dinner combined” spot. We had the most amazing view, and a delicious, final Kosavan meal.
Then it was back down the same route we came and, sure enough, that tunnel was a bit of an issue … we were nearly out when two cars started to come in! Surely they could see us? So they had to back out. Soon after a huge truck came by and I just can’t imagine it getting through.
But we made it back “home”, and after a short while we all sat outside and enjoyed one final evening together. I’m grateful for our hosts!
So not as much to write today, but it was a fun time seeing more natural beauty. (But I’m sad to see all the litter out there.)
Couple of notes: We very rarely see women in hijabs here. I’ve seen only a few. We DO see tons of men sitting around enjoying each other’s company, but the only time I saw women sitting down somewhere was with men as well — never any tables with only women. Of course I might just have missed them. The men, for the most part, all have very short hair, and it is nearly shaved on the sides. I’m not used to seeing so much short hair! The only time I saw a man with a ponytail was in another city … and he was by a VW van! Reminded me of the 70s! Oh … and I mentioned “stray dogs” yesterday, but they are called “street dogs” here. Very sad to see so many.
Okay … awake and much better today. I think something I ate just didn’t sit well with me last night. It’s either that or my left ear issue caused some sort of problem. But enough of that.
This morning I was awakened at about 7:30 by the mosque. This is only the second morning this has happened, and if I understood Avni correctly it might not be a call to prayer, but an announcement of a death. Being entirely unfamiliar with the Muslim culture I suppose I need to read more and figure out exactly what it was. Prior to that very loud chanting (I suspect it’s called something else) I heard very faint chanting by someone both yesterday and today … I’m not sure if Dan even heard it (guess I could ask, eh?).
UPDATE: I thought I had posted the video of the person chanting … oops. So instead you saw photos of the animals we passed. So sorry!
But now to yesterday …
We woke and had our very leisurely breakfast again. Kids make things go a bit slower! Eventually we headed out. The plan was for Albania first, so off we went!
As we drove we saw the typical corn fields. We also saw large new homes being built — many partially finished at this point and I’ll write more about that later — and a large number of headstones. Some were in people’s yards. Most have pictures of the person who died on them. I’m guessing many are from the conflict with Serbia. (Something else I need to read about: I did read a little and it sure sounded horrendous.)
When we got to the border it was an easy check both to get out of Kosovo and into Albania. Then we drove what at times was an extremely narrow road, and a bridge we crossed was so narrow we just barely fit between the poles. Sometimes squeezing past an oncoming vehicle was pretty nuts. On occasion we would see bunkers: apparently the Albanians were very concerned about an invasion. Here is what Wikipedia has to say, in part:
The bunkers (Albanian: bunkerët) were built during the Hoxhaist government led by the Leader Enver Hoxha from the 1960s to the 1980s, as the regime fortified Albania by building more than 750,000 bunkers. One of over 750,000 bunkers built in Albania during the rule of Enver Hoxha.
Vanessa was saying people would sit and sit in these. Nothing ever happened. But they are plentiful, although now falling apart.
Oh … and animals. Have I mentioned animals? No, not until now. We might drive around a corner and find some cows in the road. Or horses. And down by the river there were goats. Stray, mangy looking dogs are everywhere, it seems, in Kosovo and Albania.
Photos:
But the mountains! Oh my, they are lovely. We were really astounded.
When we reached the end of the road we found a restaurant and hotel (and a playground for the kids!). It does appear that they are attempting to build more there as well, and it reminds us of Yosemite and the Awhanee. In some ways I’m sorry to see it get built up, as we know how crowded Yosemite gets and I’m thinking this will eventually have the same issue, although there is only one way in and out from what I can tell. (Worrisome when I think about fires!)
After a “light” lunch (HAH! “Light” means too much food for me!) we started to head back down the same road we came up, having no other choice, and again ran into animals. But first we saw an older man (whom we had seen at lunch as well), with an instrument — a one-stringed Balkan instrument (a lute, I believe). Avni pulled over to him and asked if he would play for us so we all got our of the cars and stood or sat in the shade as he played and sang. And yes, we gave him a bit of money for his performance. We were surprised, after we got into the car, that Vanessa came running over to climb into our car: apparently we were now giving the man a bit of a ride down the hill! (I would post the video, but it’s long and I think I need to shorten it a bit!)
After dropping him off we continued our drive and got hit by rain and were grateful we left our lunch spot early enough to miss it up there. We took a few scenic stops and I’ll bet Dan got some terrific photos.
Coming back into Kosovo Greg was told he had to get insurance. We had expected that the first time we entered Kosovo but he was told he didn’t need it. Now he was told he did. Who knows what the real story is, but €15 later he had the insurance and all is well. Then we drove and drove … Avni thought perhaps we could wine taste at a winery but by the time we go there it was closed. We went to a different winery and it, too, was closed. I think that’s it for our wineries in Kosovo!
There are so many empty buildings in Kosovo. Avni thought perhaps some were abandoned by Serbs. Others are just in the process of being built: many Kosovans (is that the word?) live elsewhere and bring their earnings back and gradually build their homes. Where we are staying is, in fact, a case in point: much of the home is finished now, but there are still things to be done. Family is very important, and the house is big enough to house several generations.
We drove to our dinner spot, near a river. I ate far too much food. And, as I wrote, something didn’t sit well with me. This seems to happen once a trip, and it’s really no surprise, I suppose: our bodies aren’t used to certain foods and the water can sometimes cause issues. (We have been drinking bottled water here, though, as was suggested to us.)
I believe today is a slow day, as some will be doing laundry to prepare for tomorrow’s departure, and some of us will just relax. Kosovo and Albania are eye-openers for me, since rarely do we see more current conflict issues so plainly.
