Weekend Trip To Budva, Montenegro
The secluded beach we found and spent our day.
Nothing is better than a 9 hour cramped bus ride through the mountains.
On a whim, Victoria, Brian, Ryan, Jon, Colleen, Caitlin, Jess, Sarah and I decided to travel to Budva, Montenegro for the weekend. Don’t ask how we found Budva, but after just one hour of planning the busses and hotels we were set to go. We had no idea what to expect, we just knew it was out of the country and had beaches, and after hearing that we were sold.
Our trip started by showing up to the bus station at 11:45pm for our bus just to find out it didn’t exist. Apparently eastern European busses are less predictable than the weather. We found out that the next buss to Montenegro left at 8am the next morning, so we headed back to our hotel for a few hours of sleep before we had to go back to the bus station.
The view we had during a stop we made on the journey.
A cozy taxi ride
The view during our taxi ride to Budva
Once we got on the bus, other than being cramped for 10 hours, the traveling went smoothly. We made regular pit stops and got stuck at some boarders, but we got to Montenegro safely. Once we ended up in Ulcinj we found out that, once again, the bus we had planned to take was not when we expected. So we found a couple taxis, piled in, and made the last hour stretch to Budva. The drive in was the most beautiful experience of my life. We came around a mountain corner and saw water to our left as far as we can see, and mountains behind mountains forever to our left. At that moment I understood the meaning of the term “breathtaking.” Everyone in our car gasped simultaneously.
The view from our hotel.
The view from our hotel.
And we continued to be impressed once we got to our hotel. It’s a little family owned apartment/hotel combo on the side of the mountains overlooking the Adriatic. We were able to walk out of our room to a pool overlooking it all. By that time, though, it was getting late, so we asked the extremely hospitable hotel owner to show us to the nearest nice place to eat. He made a phone call and walked us one minute down the road to a man greeting us outside a quaint restaurant.
The view from our fantastic dinner.
The man walked us down some mountainside stairs to a patio overlooking the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen. We sat down under an awning and enjoyed a dinner of seafood, lamb and homemade red wine. Words can’t describe how beautiful this dinner was, and we agreed that this was our karma for enduring the struggles of getting there. We continued to eat as the (also hospitable) owner’s Dalmatian and Bernese Mountain Dog (that was bigger than me) sat by our sides begging for attention. Our night ended by enjoying some Baklava while listening to “What A Wonderful World.” It was perfect.
Jess, Colleen and I looking for the beach.
Our first full day began with a massive search for the closest beach. Colleen, Jess and I walked along the narrow mountainside highway looking for the beach that all the locals said was close by. We never found it, so I went by myself for a run in search for it. After 20 mins I saw it a couple hundred yards down the mountain so I hitchhiked down to check it out– It was gorgeous. So I made the hike back and told everyone. We piled in taxis and headed there.
The drive was the definition of sketchy. The gravel mountain road was 45 degrees at some points, and our taxis slid down, almost falling off the edge. But we got down to the secluded beach. It would be impossible to explain it, so I’ll let the pictures do the talking.
After a long day at the beach, Tori and I headed down to the city to have a date night. We ended up at a little place on the beach. I guess we wanted to splurge because we got a cheese platter, seafood spaghetti, and a platter of 3 types of mussels, shrimp, calamari, fish, potatoes and spinach. We didn’t go hungry that night. After a walk along the beach we headed back to the hotel for a deserved rest.
As I’m writing this I am sitting at our hotel pool an hour before we head home. Wish us luck with the busses because, optimistically, we will get home at midnight. None of us want to leave though. We have all contemplated buying a boat, becoming fishermen and never going home (sorry mom and dad). Montenegro will do that to you. This is by far the most beautiful and welcoming place I have ever been and I definitely want to go back some day.
And don’t forget to click here to see the rest of the photos I took over the weekend.
(Update: I got home safe everyone!)
Beach, where are you?!
Jess, Colleen and I just spent the morning risking our lives on a mountain highway trying to find a beach.
Sunset Dinner
This is the view from our fresh seafood five star dinner tonight on the edge of the mountain in Budva, Montenegro
Weekend Trip to Budva, Montenegro
Tonight at 11:45 Tori and I are hopping on a bus with 7 of our friends to spend the weekend in Budva, Montenegro! We all are so excited to finally get out of the country and relax on a beach. We hope to get some R&R, find some water sports to do, and eat some more good food. Below are some pictures of where we are going, but check back here after this weekend to see more pictures of our trip.
Prishtina Golf
One of the most fascinating aspects of the Prishtina Golf mini golf course is the design of the holes. Every hole on the course was based off of a famous hole from a famous course around the world. From Belgium to France to Scotland to the USA, each and every hole is about a 1:10 scale of the real hole. Below are some of the most famous examples.
Hole inspired by number 17 from Sawgrass
Hole inspired by number 14 “Long” from St. Andrews
Hole inspired by number 17 “Nandia” from Augusta National
Hole inspired by number 12 “Golden Bell” from Augusta National
Hole inspired by number 9 “End” from St. Andrews
Hole inspired by number 13 from Sawgrass
Hole inspired by number 9 “Carolina Cherry” from Augusta National
Hole inspired by number 5 “Magnolia” from Augusta National
Prishtina Golf
Golf is probably my favorite sport back home, so it’s fitting that my first story I would write for KosovaLive is about golf in Kosovo. I didn’t know anything about it except the fact that there isn’t any golf presence in Kosovo except for one small facility outside Prishtina. So the story I am writing is about golf in Kosovo, why there isn’t a larger presence here, and what can be done to expand golf farther into the Balkans.
So yesterday (Sunday) I went to the facility just outside of Prishtina with a man I met, Lavdim, who is running the show there. He drove me out to the facility for the day so I could play some golf, take pictures, talk with everybody, and watch a local mini golf tournament. I had an amazing time. Lavdim and everyone else there was so welcoming even though I wasn’t able to communicate much, I felt like I belonged. I played a found of mini golf with Lavdim, his friends, and the children, I had a nice lunch with them, I got to take some pictures, talk to some local people who were playing there, and watch the tournament. I got plenty of useful information for my story and I can’t wait to publish it later in the week.
Below are some pictures from the day. Later I will make a post about the golf course at the facility. It’s very special and you will see why when I post it.
Lavdim and I
One of the holes on the mini golf course
The overgrown driving range reflects the months of unpaid rent for the land. Unfortunately, Prishtina Golf may lose the driving range at the end of the summer.
This picture shows the priorities for the golfers. The mini golf is what is important to them. They would rather lose the driving range and keep the course maintained than put equal effort into both.
Day Trip to Prizren
Yesterday the entire MU group took a day trip to Prizren. This old city is known for its small businesses, museums, and historical monuments. Our first stop of the day was the Prizren Castle. Below you can see the view from this former Ottoman castle that sits on top of the hill to rule all of Prizren. We hiked up the mountain on an almost-paved path that gets almost 45 degrees at some points. Once we finally stood atop the destroyed walls the view almost knocked us off the edge. The pictures can do the describing for me…
The Prizren Castle overlooking the city.
Walking up to the castle.
The view from a guard tower. See other views in the gallery below.
Our next stop was the League of Prizren Museum. The museum was once Albanian homes but they were destroyed by NATO bombings in 1999. They were finally restored to as close to their original condition as possible. (I was not allowed to photograph)
Third was a famous Turkish Hamam. A hamam is a public bath, and this one was the most famous in Prizren. It was under construction to restore it, but we all got a good feeling of what it was once like. The innovation from the 1400s is unbelievable. We were able to see the tunnels that ran under the large bath that allowed steam to travel through and heat the bath. Google “Turkish Hamam” to get a feel of what it was like.
Next we stopped at the Sinan Pasha Mosque, the most important of all mosques in Prizren. It was the first mosque I have ever been in so it was exciting for me. The girls covered their hair and we all took off our shoes as we were blown away by the beauty. Prayer had just gotten out, so we got to see some locals doing their daily rituals. The mosque was built by the Ottomans with eggs and goat skin. The building was the biggest of its kind during the time it was built, and in order to achieve that feat the walls were built 2 meters thick. The pictures below show some of its beauty.
50+ windows line the walls and ceiling.
The separate worshiping area for the women is because of the pure, clean focus that needs to be achieved within the mosque. The segregation still raises some questions in my mind about how, in some ways humans are stuck in the traditions of hundreds of years ago.
The dome ceiling.
We finished the day by stopping at a Saraçhane Tekke. Basically this is a place for a denomination of Islam called Soshi to worship. Unfortunately we were not allowed in, but we got a feel from the outside. We got a view of the outside fountain as sen below.
A local Albanian man peers through a window of the Tekke. Inside this particular window is the mausoleum where bodies of the most important Tekke leaders rest. He struggled on his cain across the city to get just one peek of people so important to both his history and his religion.
All in all, besides the flash rain storm, the day was fun. We got to see this historic city all day and explore every nook and cranny. During our free time we did things such as explore the cobblestone streets and get a horse and carriage ride through the city. See all the pictures from the day in the gallery below, or in my photography tab.
A group of selfies from Prizren
The group and I had a fun time taking selfies in Prizren today, but we did a lot more. Pictures and posts from the trip will be coming soon!
Prizren!
Tomorrow we all are headed to Prizren, Kosovo for a day! I’ll be posting later in the week about all we did.
My Internship
The Kosovalive.org newsroom where I will be spending my time.
I want to write a little about my internship after my first full week on the job before I get used to it and before I fall into the swing of things. That said, this post will most likely be a rant to clear my mind. I, and my classmates, have a lot to say on this subject, and we make sure we always say them over beers every night.
So as most of you know, I am writing for KosovaLive, a news agency stationed in Prishtina. The stories I am working on involve complex issues common to the nation and how they relate to and are impacted by its current state. Every day we have class from 8:00-noon, an hour break, then half the group goes to work at their internships at different NGOs, and the other half stay in the newsroom to write (that’s me). We spend 4 hours, 1:00-5:00, in the newsroom unless we don’t complete all our work for the day.
Beginning the second the clock strikes 1:00, we are pushed to get outside and interview people for our stories. Ask questions. Observe. Get the details. Find everyone who has a voice and hear their stories. When we get back from two hours of interviews we are asked what is next on our list of things to do. In the newsroom you don’t need a plan B and C, you need plans E F and G. If you aren’t writing your story or interviewing people, you are doing something wrong.
For lack of a better term, it’s a bitch. Its grueling work. Even worse, its frustrating. Journalists’ jobs are completely dependent upon other people helping them out. If your only source doesn’t get back to you, you’re dead in the water. It doesn’t make it much easier that we are in a reforming country and are seen as annoying American students. Out of the 50+ people we collectively contacted today, no more than 6 or 7 got back to us. How do you write a story this way?
I don’t know. And that’s why I am writing this blog. I have no idea how I am going to complete a story this week. I don’t know how I will survive 8 weeks of people turning me down and not understanding me. My hope is that in a couple weeks I look back to this post and laugh at how unnecessarily worried I was because I will be easily getting my work completed. If all of this works out, this will be the best summer of my life. I am an international journalist writing more complex stories than the actual news agency publishes. I am doing what I love to do, but right now I am frustrated. I want it to come easy to me so I know that I am good at what I do. I think it will come eventually, I just hope it’s soon.
Kosovo - A World Unwritten 
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