THE MAIN FEATURE – MONTENEGRO 2 – KOLASIN (Day 35 covering 111km to 3,842km)

This post sees us drive from Berane to Kolasin in Montenegro via Manastir (Monastery) Sudikova, Mojkovac and Biogradska Gora (Lake Biograd).

 

Our 6am rise in Berane presented us with a mountain range covered in mist and roughly 15C. This is summer. We can’t even imagine how cold it must get in winter but we could hazard a close guess based on the mountains of wood already cut and stacked up in all the local houses that led to our first stop in the Sudikova Monastery. We were greeted by the only nun living in this Monastery for 10 years now. She showed us the Church of the Entry of the Theotokos. The only Church in the Monastery was built in 2005 on the ruins of the original Church built in the 14^th Century and destroyed by the Ottomans but founded here because of the miraculous spring that appears ever few years and heals many people who bath in it. The iconography in the Church is simply stunning, as you will see below.

 

The town of Mojkovac is surrounded by mountains and the perfect place to relax. For only the second time in our trip we sat down to breakfast, which was the best to date. Three eggs, two sausages, feta cheese and plenty of bread (toast does not exist in Montenegro) were delicious and only cost us 5AUD each. Ridiculous. The Latte Coffees were served in glasses like in the past in Australia and cost only 2AUD. Double Ridiculous.

 

Biogradska Gora (Lake Biograd) is 3.3km in perimeter, 12m at its deepest, 1120m above sea level and a refreshing 17C to swim. I know because I dived into the lake to bring you a full report in the upcoming movie !!!

 

Kolasin (Pop 8,380, Elev 1,016m, Founded 17^th Century) is the main Ski Centre for the country and surrounded by peaks topping 2,000m. A nice sleepy town with a pedestrian strip and colourful homes with steep pitched roofs.

 

Our day in Kolasin was perfectly capped by a sumptuous local food feast in a fabulous stone and wood restaurant right on the river only 5min walk from our apartment. The outside temperature dived but the opening Montenegrin Cabernet quickly warmed us up. To follow was local trout for Leo and I and smoked pork for Paris. In the centre a totally local dish of stewed beans and the big one – potato salad drowned in 3 cheeses !!! The only green stuff was cabbage and parsley - we noticed that cabbage is big in the Balkans. Despite that, we “limped” back to our apartment…

Enjoy the mountainous north of Montenegro…

BERANE:

We stayed in that little green house on the left... magic!

Manastir (Monastery) Sudikova:

Mojkovac:

Biogradska Gora (Lake Biograd)

Mojkovac

Berane

Mojkovac

Biogradska Gora (Lake Biograd)

Koalsin

Biogradska Gora (Lake Biograd)

Kolasin

YUM YUM:

Potato Salad drenched in 3 cheeses,

Cabbage

Smoked Bacon and Potatoes

Stewed Beans

Trout

THE MAIN FEATURE – MONTENEGRO 2 – BERANE (Day 34 covering 98km to 3,731km)

This post sees us leave Kosovo (Country 5) and re-enter Montenegro (Country 2) for the second time to visit the towns of Berane and Kolusin in the northern part of the country before returning to the Capital Podgorica to return our Skoda Fabia and reclaim our Peugot 308 SW Wagon.

 

The drive from Peje in Kosovo to Berane in Montenegro was very scenic, full of mountains and valleys. The White Drin Waterfall is only 11km from Peje and 25m high making it the second largest in Kosovo. There is plenty of water and it is freezing and very drinkable. There is a resort spa located there making it perfect for conventions and a weekend getaway for the locals.

 

After the waterfall we ascend up to 1750m along very windy roads to pass into Montenegro. The border controls have a no man’s land nearly 8km long with several farm houses in between leaving us wondering what their address is ??? The Montenegrin border entry was the funniest so far. I was wearing just my cozzies having dipped into the waterfall. After our passports were stamped the police officer pulled us over to check our boot (first ever check) and asked me to put on a top. I put on my singlet inside the car and then stepped out in my budgies – the officer laughed – he did not expect it !!!

 

We had booked a house in Berane (Pop 11,073, Elev 663m, Founded 1219) but Google maps sent us to a gravel road with a 10% incline – forget it – we could not make it up. We returned to town and phoned the owner and he sent his brother to take us up using another road – success – after one hour of waiting for the brother we finally arrived – a cute triangular Hansel & Gretel ski house with terrific views of Berane. We had another terrific Balkan Grill of every meat imaginable, which we did take-away style since a storm was brewing. That evening it rained for only the second time in 35 days. As the rain fell our water supply inside stopped – the pump had probably short-circuited since we were out in the bush and relying on rainwater tanks. Our sleep made up for it. Given the rain and elevation we slept like babies in the silence of our house.

 

Kosovo was indeed an interesting experience since it highlighted the plight of ordinary people in a terrible conflict. We saw this in the 21min short film SHOK released in 2015 and nominated for an Academy Award.

Enjoy our entry back into magical Montenegro...

THE MAIN FEATURE – KOSOVO – PEJE (Day 33 covering 134km to 3,633km)

This post sees us drive from Pristina to Peje in Kosovo via Grembeer Brewery in Gremik, The Serbian Orthodox Patriarchate of Pec & Rugova Canyon.

 

What a day ! My 7am run through Pristina was at 25C and by the time we left the capital the thermometer had already hit 30C. The drive from Pristina to Peje was very flat and uneventful. Very industrial. Companies selling construction materials, large shopping malls surrounded by farmland. A strange incongruous landscape.

 

The highlight of the day was the Grembeer Brewery in the town of Gremik run by an Albanian Kosovo family. It is a craft brewery only 8 years old making a lager beer that 100% natural – no preservatives and no filtration. They have hit 3,500 litres per month and doing well despite COVID. The CEO Artur called in his 16-year-old daughter Leone to translate for us. She was excellent. We toured the stainless steel fermentation tanks and adjourned to a beautiful beer garden and tavern to sample the brew. Excellent. Easy to drink. No bitterness. Great head. Had a great chat on Kosovo and tourism. Gave them heaps of tips on listing with the most popular internet sites and ended up sending them a boatload of photos after this post to include in their website.

 

The stark contrast was the next visit to the Serbian Patriarchate and Female Monastery of Pec (Serbian for Peje). This monastery is heavily guarded by Serbian Police since it is the Spiritual and historical capital and home base of the Serbian and Macedonian Orthodox Churches since the 12^th Century and now surrounded by the Muslim Albanian emerging nation of Kosovo. This place continues to be the headquarters of the Autocephalous Macedonian Orthodox Church but the Serbian Orthodox Church is now administered from Belgrade. I showed the police my Ozzie license with the icon of St George on the back and we were immediately invited in. This place is so peaceful that all you can hear are the summer sounds of cicadas and several birds. The centrepiece is the bright red rooved Church of St Dimitrios built by Archbishop Nikodim in 1324 after 8 years of hand-building. Inside are another 3 chapels dedicated to the builder, Virgin Mary and St Nicholas. The Iconography covers all the walls and cielings with amazing colour remaining. The stand-out wall-icon is that of Jesus Christ with white hair and beard – yes – you read right – the “white” in this icon makes Christ look old and symbolises the “Christ before Creation” – given creation is old then so is He – an amazing explanation given to us by the Abottess of the Monsatery which came out to meet us when the gate police informed her we were Greek Orthodox from Australia – she had never met such a visitor. Amazing. I asked to inetrvoew her but she said she needed permission from the Archbishop. It is hard to believe the Milosevic used this place as his grand excuse to justrify the Kosovo War to keep the Serbian Orthodox Faith “safe” from Muslim hands – this is obviously a front for a man who detested the Albanian Muslims. So sad that religion becomes a weapon of politics.

 

Our final drive through the Rugova Canyon was spectacular. The best canyon so far at the base of the huge mountain range that we would cross tomorrow back into Montenegro – indeed Monte = Mountain and Negro = Black or Dark !!!

Enjoy the surprise sites of Kosovo…

FOOD:

I thought Croatia loved grilled meats - Kosovan's love it more. There are "Grill Houses" on every corner with no menus. You just rock up to a huge counter of raw meats that looks like a butcher - pick your cuts and they get cooked. Sausages, beef paddles, chicken, pork, lamb, beef with cabbage and potato washed down by local Peja Lager. We had all the food and drink below for 35EUR or 52AUD. Not only amazing value but delicious having been cooked over hot coals. On our way back we noticed the Kosavan verison of Maccas - enjoy the laugh !!!

 

FAREWELL KOSOVO: