The Balkans

Istanbul in Tukey

On 3rd May 2023 we flew from Colombo, Sri Lanka to Istanbul, Turkey via Dubai. Luckily the whole process was relatively easy, and we landed around 9:30 in the evening and jumped in a taxi, however the drive was pretty scary. It was probably one of the most dangerous moments of the trip as the driver was going so fast and kept falling asleep and we were swerving all over the place. We didn’t think we would make it out of the tunnel which crosses under the Bosporus Strait between Asia and Europe, however Rory promptly started asking him lots of questions in a desperate bid to keep him awake. We survived and got dropped off at our hotel in the Sultanahmet District on the European side of Istanbul.

We spent 4 nights in Istanbul exploring the sites and different neighbourhoods. We visited Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Sultanahmet Square, Basilica Cistern, Topkapi Palace, the Grand Bazar, the Spice Bazar, Galata Bridge, Galata Tower, Istiklal Street and Kadıköy area. We particularly liked the beautiful celling in the Blue Mosque and the underground columns in the Basilica Cistern which are all lit up in different colours. Visiting the Grand Bazar was very impressive as its one of the world’s oldest covered markets and was filled with so many little shops selling everything you can think off, also loads of fake designer bags and clothes. We also really enjoyed the Spice Bazar and kept going back as they offered lots of freebies of yummy Turkish delight.

Although it was cool to visit Istanbul as its one of the world’s largest and oldest historical cities, we did think it might be prettier and we were a little underwhelmed. 

Sofia in Bulgaria

On 6th May we caught an overnight bus from Istanbul to Sofia the capital of Bulgaria. This arrived around 7am on a beautiful bright Sunday morning after a very quick and easy border crossing. We had a little trouble communicating with our Airbnb host as our phones didn’t work and it was also rather early, however after a warming hot chocolate in a local café we manged to get WIFI and arrange to get into our room.  This would be the start of our whistle stop tour of the Balkans, where we had planned to only spend a brief time in each country. We had a wonderful day in Sofia and really loved the city, although the excellent weather may have helped. We joined a walking tour, where we learnt a lot of history about the country during the Ottoman and more recent Communist rule. We saw lots of different styles of architecture, including Orthodox cathedrals, mosques, and many big Soviet style buildings. There are plenty of trams that travel the city and a metro which was reportedly very hard to build as so many Roman ruins were discovered as they excavated. Most of the country is Bulgarian Orthodox and although there used to be many Mosques during the Ottoman empire a lot of these have now been turned into different things and according to our guide only around 10% of the country is now Muslim.

That evening we went to a traditional Bulgarian restaurant where Liv ate a mixed meat and fermented cabbage stew served with a pastry top, which she really enjoyed. As we wondered home, we pasted plenty of cool bars and restaurants and socked up the atmosphere of this small but lovely city. We would highlight recommend Sofia as a great city break destination. 

Skopje in North Macedonia

Our alarm goes at 5:30am and we make our way to the bus stop with our backpacks on ready for the four-hour journey to Skopje in North Macedonia. It’s another lovely sunny day, a tad chilly so early in the morning but it’s lovely to see the snow-capped mountains in the distance.  We cross the border nice and quickly as there are only 3 other passengers on the bus, annoyingly we didn’t get given an entry stamp in our passports! The rest of the journey is very scenic as we wind through little villages with alpine style wooden houses and large, neat log piles.

We had two days in Skopje and really liked it, not as much as Sofia but it was very nice. The city centre is filled with impressive status, often of lions, there in a nice bazar and also an old fort on a hill. We did a walking tour which was very interesting and made us feel rather sorry for North Macedonia who seems to have had a troubled past as all its neighbouring countries have at some point ruled over them. They are desperate to get into the EU and have even changed their name from Macedonia to North Macedonia and changed their flag, all to appease the EU and Greeks. Our tour guide told us there are regular peaceful protest, but like many governments change comes about slowly, if ever, and the politicians focus on lining their own pockets.  Although some of the architecture is nice and old, 80% of the city was destroyed in an earthquake in July 1963 and was rebuilt in the Brutalist style characterised by the large use of concrete and blocky appearance.

We had some hights and lows regarding food here. An amazing evening meal of pork wrapped with prunes, apple and bacon as well as delicious pork mushroom stew, however Liv also had the worst meal of the trip to date. This was a take on a Moussaka, but it was discussing and was filled with layers of old chewy egg omelette. 

Prizren in Kosovo

 We travelled the short 3-hour journey from Skopje to Prizren in Kosovo late one afternoon arriving in torrential rain. The next day we spent exploring the city which was pretty small but had a nice river flowing through the heart with a beautiful old stone arched bridge. A sweet little square was filled with people sitting around drinking coffee and eating Burek, which is a filo pastry tray bake filled with cheese and sometimes spinach. It’s delicious warm and normally served with a small pot of yogurt which is meant to help cut through the grease. We walked to the castle ruins which are well preserved and give great views of the city’s red roof tops and the river and canyon heading into the mountains. We went in a beautiful mosque but couldn’t go in any of the church’s as they were all locked. We had the worst lunch of the trip, as Liv was served some gone off smelly chicken, we complained but they just took it away and still charged us!

Whilst in Kosovo we saw lots of war memorials and flags belonging to NATO members, a stark reminder of the war which we saw on the news when we were children.

Later that day we got a bus the 80 miles to Tirana in Albania, it cost us 15 euros each and we drove past lots of beautiful rivers and snow-capped mountains on the way, with another easy border crossing. 

Tirana, Dhermi & Beret in Albania

 Pick up our hire car, a very comfy Citron and head to Vlore, a city south of Tirana on the coast of Albania, for a very good lunch. Torrential rain, so we don’t spend much time there and carry-on driving to Dhermi a small hilltop town, where we are staying the night. The drive is stunning, as we head through the Llogara national park the road goes through the mountain (over 1,000m high). Annoyingly it’s so wet and the clouds are too thick so we can’t see the views of the coast, but I imagine they are amazing. We arrive at our guesthouse which is run by such a cute old lady. She’s so kind and although she doesn’t speak any English, she keeps hugging Rory. We walk down to the beach and see the beautiful clear water. There are loads of cool beach bars which are being built ready for the summer months. Unfortunately, its far to wet and cold to swim.

The next day we make the decision to cut short our Balkans trip and head to Egypt. The weather in Albania is set to be wet and raining for the next 2 weeks, so we decide to cut our loses as clearly, we won’t be spending the next few weeks swimming in the sea and enjoying the beautiful beaches. We still have 4 more days before our flight, so the decision is made to super-charge our plans and drive to Montenegro & Bosnia in this period.

 Before we leave Albania, we spend a night in the city of Berat, which is inland on the fast-flowing river Osum. We really enjoyed our time in Berat as it had such a nice atmosphere. The town is on both sides of the river, with little white ottoman houses built into the cliff which leads up to a castle on the top of the hill. The walled castle area was very beautiful with lots of winding cobbled street and is still inhabited. Another lovely old Albania lady checks us into our room, as is very happy to have us stay in her guesthouse.

Budva in Montenegro

 A 5 hour drive over the border to Budva in Montenegro. The views were stunning on the drive, and we passed lots of beautiful wildflowers, it was just a shame it was raining still. Budva has a gorgeous old town, filled with narrow cobbled medieval streets surrounded by stone walls built by the Venetians. The city reminds me a of ones I’ve visited in Croatia and is very pretty with lots of doors leading into the town and a little beach on the edge of the wall. Just outside the old town walls is the harbour which is filled with super-yachts. Although, Montenegro is expensive, we would love to come back in the summer months.

The next day, we are up early and drive 30 minutes to the picturesque, fortified town of Kotor in Montenegro. It is situated on the most beautiful clear sea lake and the town is backed by a limestone cliff mountain. We wonder around the narrow car-less old town stopping at a bakery for breakfast. We had originally wanted to drive onto the village of Perest but there was a running race around the lake, so the road was closed, and we were forced to take a different route via a ferry and drive a few hours to the border with Bosnia.

A bit of a disaster at the border, as we can’t go into Bosnia as we don’t have a green card for the hire car, and they don’t sell them at this border. We then drive another 2 hours to a different border crossing. It’s a tense wait in the line but fortunately we pay 25 euros and can enter. Luckily the drives were so beautiful with views of the lakes and sea, so we don’t mind that much.

Trebinji in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Once entering Bosnia, we drive down a beautiful windy road, alongside a green river which has such clear water. The scenery is very luscious, and we arrive at the town of Trebinji where we are spending the night. Trebinji has a river running through it and a sweet small old town which is very pretty. The area is clearly pro Serbia & Russia as we see lots of their flags. We have a very good pizza for supper, half the price of Montenegro!

The next day we drive 5 hours back to Tirana in Albania crossing two borders easily and quickly. We drop off the hire car and then spend the afternoon in Tirana and go for dinner at a delicious sea-food restaurant.

Nice breakfast provided by our guesthouse (although the ham was pretty scary looking) and we head to the airport that afternoon to fly to Cairo on 16th May 2022.

2 amazing weeks were spent in Egypt which you can read about in our Egypt blog and then we fly back to Europe via Athens to Romania for our final leg of our world trip.

Bucharest, Brasov, Dâmbovicioara, Bușten, Sighisoara, Sibiu & Targoviste in Romania

Over the next week we drive around Romania focusing on Transylvania region, which is very beautiful, green and old-fashioned, filled with lovely small historic towns.

We arrive in Bucharest, which seems nice enough, lots of strip clubs in the old historic town but also nice architecture, with plenty of 1920’s Parisian style looking buildings.

After collecting our hire-car we drive towards the Carpathian Mountains, stopping at Peles Castel which is impressive and worth visiting. Then onto Bran Castle which is the official Dracula one. Rory gets an automated text message warming him that there is a Bear which is alarming but shows they are more common than we think. Liv buys a sheepskin rug which she is very chuffed about, as it’s so affordable.  We spend the evening in Brasov which has nice colourful buildings and a very pretty square.

The next day we do a 5-hour hike in the mountains which is fun, and luckily we don’t stumble across any bears, although we do see one as we are driving on the edge of the road, which is exciting. Eat the hearty traditional local dish of bean and pork stew which is served in a loaf of bread!

Drive onto Viscri a rural little village on the way to Sighisoara. This is where King Charles has a house. It’s very sweet and rustic, with people driving horses and cart, it feels like we have gone back in time. There is a beautiful, white-washed fortified church which we explore which as great views from the roof tower.  

Sighisoara, our next destination is pretty but busy, with a fortified old town, which has nine watch towers on the wall and lots of hilly cobbled streets.

The following day we do a lovely drive through the beautiful sunny countryside stopping at the village of Biertan and onto Sibiu which is also a lovely city with a nice big square. We have a really good meal out to celebrate the end of the world trip.

Our final day is spent at Therme Spa complex on the outskirts of Bucharest which is the biggest relaxation and wellness centre in Europe. They have 10 different style saunas, 4 swimming pools, multiple bars and lots of water slides! A fun and relaxing way to spend our last day of the trip before we fly back to London that night.

We were really pleased that we travelled the Balkans and in particular Romania. It was a shame the weather was so temperamental in Albania, but it did mean we ended up in Egypt, so we can’t complain!