Thursday, September 4, 2008
Boka Ferry Ride
This hostel is very communal. Dave the owner has been operating this place for 3 years. He's from Belmont, Ca, and his girlfriend (who also works here) is from Moscow. They are both really sweet. Nadya and I have been talking about politics especially the Russia/Georgia conflict. It's interesting to hear her perspective.
The best part about this hostel is that I feel comfortable. The beds and showers are clean and every morning the owners put out breakfast of cornflakes and coffee every morning. There are lots of wild fruit trees in the backyard. I am eating purple grapes that I picked from a tree. I like it here a lot and extended my stay for two more days. Tomorrow, I am going to Lake Skadar one of the largest lakes and bird estuary in all of Europe.
I went on a ferry ride around Monte Negro's islands. I am hanging out with a girl from Seattle that I met at the hostel. She is really cool and we have a lot in common. Last night we went out to eat. Rachel was funny trying to communicate with our waitress. She pantomimed that she wanted a small piece of chicken and made a swish noise to indicate she wanted it fried. What she got was a huge steak and greasy french fries. I stuck with soup because it was the only word I could make out on the menu and it was cheap. The food here is fairly good. I have mostly tried to eat produce and fish.
We went to a fortress on the cruise called Fore Mare. It was built by a Bosnian King in 1382. The king was famous for extracting salt from the sea and selling it. The fortress is gigantic and surrounded by sparkling blue water. After the Turks took over the fortress was known as Kanli Kula, which means Bloody fortress. There was a battle here and blood was dripping off the walls. After the Turkish took over they had 300 slaves expand it and reconstructed it into a military fort. Then the Austro-Hungarians took over and they held it in their power until the beginning of WWI. Now it is used as an open theater for music and theatrical performances.
At the next stop we jumped on a packed boat to the blue cave. While we traveled down to the cave there were more old military bases. I overheard some of the people on the ferry say that the islands here were owned by Russian mafia. It is well known that Monte Negro is currently powered by the mafia, but many Montenegrins believe this will change soon. The blue cave was amazing. The water inside it looked aquamarine. I jumped off the boat and the water inside the cave was freezing. I am glad I did it, even though I was really scared.
Two artificial islands lay right next to each other in the middle of the sea. One island was named Lady of the Rock it was very small and only large enough to hold a church. The church was very beautiful with a teal roof and Romanesque architecture. From a distance it looked like a model from a movie set. Inside the church was many artifacts from surrounding areas. The chapel itself had a painted ceiling that looked like the Sistine Chapel in Rome.
On the ferry I was talking to a girl from Belarus. She was shocked that I was all the way here from the US. Another couple from Belgium reacted similarly when I told them I was from Boston. I was surprised by their response.
Our next stop was Old Town in Kotor. Kotor is the 2nd largest fjord in Europe.There was a huge cement wall around the city. The city itself had many cathedrals dating back almost 2000 years.
Signing off.
The best part about this hostel is that I feel comfortable. The beds and showers are clean and every morning the owners put out breakfast of cornflakes and coffee every morning. There are lots of wild fruit trees in the backyard. I am eating purple grapes that I picked from a tree. I like it here a lot and extended my stay for two more days. Tomorrow, I am going to Lake Skadar one of the largest lakes and bird estuary in all of Europe.
I went on a ferry ride around Monte Negro's islands. I am hanging out with a girl from Seattle that I met at the hostel. She is really cool and we have a lot in common. Last night we went out to eat. Rachel was funny trying to communicate with our waitress. She pantomimed that she wanted a small piece of chicken and made a swish noise to indicate she wanted it fried. What she got was a huge steak and greasy french fries. I stuck with soup because it was the only word I could make out on the menu and it was cheap. The food here is fairly good. I have mostly tried to eat produce and fish.
We went to a fortress on the cruise called Fore Mare. It was built by a Bosnian King in 1382. The king was famous for extracting salt from the sea and selling it. The fortress is gigantic and surrounded by sparkling blue water. After the Turks took over the fortress was known as Kanli Kula, which means Bloody fortress. There was a battle here and blood was dripping off the walls. After the Turkish took over they had 300 slaves expand it and reconstructed it into a military fort. Then the Austro-Hungarians took over and they held it in their power until the beginning of WWI. Now it is used as an open theater for music and theatrical performances.
At the next stop we jumped on a packed boat to the blue cave. While we traveled down to the cave there were more old military bases. I overheard some of the people on the ferry say that the islands here were owned by Russian mafia. It is well known that Monte Negro is currently powered by the mafia, but many Montenegrins believe this will change soon. The blue cave was amazing. The water inside it looked aquamarine. I jumped off the boat and the water inside the cave was freezing. I am glad I did it, even though I was really scared.
Two artificial islands lay right next to each other in the middle of the sea. One island was named Lady of the Rock it was very small and only large enough to hold a church. The church was very beautiful with a teal roof and Romanesque architecture. From a distance it looked like a model from a movie set. Inside the church was many artifacts from surrounding areas. The chapel itself had a painted ceiling that looked like the Sistine Chapel in Rome.
On the ferry I was talking to a girl from Belarus. She was shocked that I was all the way here from the US. Another couple from Belgium reacted similarly when I told them I was from Boston. I was surprised by their response.
Our next stop was Old Town in Kotor. Kotor is the 2nd largest fjord in Europe.There was a huge cement wall around the city. The city itself had many cathedrals dating back almost 2000 years.
Signing off.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Monte Negro
I finally made it to Podgorica (capital of Monte Negro)from Belgrade. There's nothing here, but overpriced accommodations and everything. The money collector at the bathroom wanted 1.50 euros. It was worth it having just been on the train for 8 1/2. There wasn't any toilet paper in any of the stalls on the train. For dinner I had sesame crackers called Pardon and a coke zero. I forgot how difficult it is to travel in a country where the majority of the population doesn't speak English. Luckily, in Monte Negro the signs are not spelled in the Cyrillic alphabet. I am going to take the bus to the coastal town of Budva because it is the only place in all of Monte Negro that has a hostel. Monte Negro also has the 2nd largest canyon in the world next to of course the Grand Canyon. Plus they have one of only two rain forests in Europe and the second largest fjord.
I went on a tour today led by one of the guys from the hostel. We went to an Austro Hungarian military fort from 1980. It was fully abandoned and there weren't any gates blocking it off. The guy from the hostel found it while driving up the mountain range in his old VW. He thought it looked interesting and decided to walk inside. A building like this would not be opened up like this in any other country, but it is the 2nd newest country and rules in other places don't apply. The inside reminded me of old spooky building in the movie "Hostel." Inside were many rooms each having rusty hooks on the walls. The hooks were probably used to hang up guns. Some of the windows here were only big enough to point guns through. This base had two levels. The second level did not have any windows. There wasn't any light, the only thing illuminating our walk way was our tour guides flashlight. He pointed on the ground the safe path and were not to step because of holes in the wall or pointing out old elevator shafts. I was happy when the tour of the base was over and I was safe again.
After the tour we drove up to a small mountainous town where a man sold cured ham, goat cheese, and lohsa (homemade brandy) out of his house. Lohsa is potent. It had 53% alcohol. I could barely finish the small amount he poured, but didn't want to be rude by refusing it. The smell of the meat curing cellar was awful. There was rows and rows of ham hanging from strings that had been curing for about a year. We gathered our supplies and went back in the car for a long drive up to the top of Lovcen National Park.
After going along the bend of the narrow road for an hour we came to a monastery high up in the hills. There were hermitage monks living in an old church like ruins. The monks wouldn't let me in unless I covered my shoulders. They gave me a cloak to wear and gave the other four travelers the same. Usually it is just the women who have to be covered. This is something I learned by going to the Vatican in Rome. For some reason all of us had to wear these funny white robes. We didn't stay for very long because there was other sites our guide wanted to show us. The monks appearances with their long unruly beards and dark black cloaks will probably have a lasting impression on me.
We hiked down a dangerous rocky mountainside to see a tiny village of three people. The villagers looks liked something out of National Geographic. There were many farm animals roaming around freely. Two puppies came up to see who we were and play. You could hear the goats along the mountain. While donkeys were roaming wildly outside of their garden of figs and grape vines. The villagers were very humble and didn't seem to mind us walking through their property. These people were pretty much landlocked in their environment. The only way out of the valley was to hike up the mountain and since it was so exhausting I don't think they make that trek that often. They were very self sustained with running water from a lake outside and food from the animals and produce. The villagers knew that the four of us couldn't speak Serbian. We purchased even more cheese from them. The word "Ciao" was exchanged back and forth several times. They treated us like it was a remarkable occurrence for them to see us, but really it was remarkable that we got to see them.
I went on a tour today led by one of the guys from the hostel. We went to an Austro Hungarian military fort from 1980. It was fully abandoned and there weren't any gates blocking it off. The guy from the hostel found it while driving up the mountain range in his old VW. He thought it looked interesting and decided to walk inside. A building like this would not be opened up like this in any other country, but it is the 2nd newest country and rules in other places don't apply. The inside reminded me of old spooky building in the movie "Hostel." Inside were many rooms each having rusty hooks on the walls. The hooks were probably used to hang up guns. Some of the windows here were only big enough to point guns through. This base had two levels. The second level did not have any windows. There wasn't any light, the only thing illuminating our walk way was our tour guides flashlight. He pointed on the ground the safe path and were not to step because of holes in the wall or pointing out old elevator shafts. I was happy when the tour of the base was over and I was safe again.
After the tour we drove up to a small mountainous town where a man sold cured ham, goat cheese, and lohsa (homemade brandy) out of his house. Lohsa is potent. It had 53% alcohol. I could barely finish the small amount he poured, but didn't want to be rude by refusing it. The smell of the meat curing cellar was awful. There was rows and rows of ham hanging from strings that had been curing for about a year. We gathered our supplies and went back in the car for a long drive up to the top of Lovcen National Park.
After going along the bend of the narrow road for an hour we came to a monastery high up in the hills. There were hermitage monks living in an old church like ruins. The monks wouldn't let me in unless I covered my shoulders. They gave me a cloak to wear and gave the other four travelers the same. Usually it is just the women who have to be covered. This is something I learned by going to the Vatican in Rome. For some reason all of us had to wear these funny white robes. We didn't stay for very long because there was other sites our guide wanted to show us. The monks appearances with their long unruly beards and dark black cloaks will probably have a lasting impression on me.
We hiked down a dangerous rocky mountainside to see a tiny village of three people. The villagers looks liked something out of National Geographic. There were many farm animals roaming around freely. Two puppies came up to see who we were and play. You could hear the goats along the mountain. While donkeys were roaming wildly outside of their garden of figs and grape vines. The villagers were very humble and didn't seem to mind us walking through their property. These people were pretty much landlocked in their environment. The only way out of the valley was to hike up the mountain and since it was so exhausting I don't think they make that trek that often. They were very self sustained with running water from a lake outside and food from the animals and produce. The villagers knew that the four of us couldn't speak Serbian. We purchased even more cheese from them. The word "Ciao" was exchanged back and forth several times. They treated us like it was a remarkable occurrence for them to see us, but really it was remarkable that we got to see them.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Last Day in Belgrade
I really enjoyed my stay in Belgrade. I only have a couple of hours left until my train departs to Monte Negro.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Where to...
My friend Emily who is living in China just confirmed that she wants me to visit! Emily is one of my good friends who I went to school with and greatly admire. In China, she is researching people living with bipolar disorder. She received an unbelievable grant from a philanthropist fellowship to do any research that she chooses as long as it helps to understand or advance humanity.
I found a ticket for only 300 dollars to fly there rather than fly home to Boston on the 6th. STA is truly amazing! Plus, I don't need a visa to fly to Beijing. It would be a wonderful opportunity to see Emily again and Beijing!
I also contacted my friend Claudia. I met her last year while working for Let's Go. She and her friend Nina live in Switzerland. They said it would be alright if I wanted to come for a visit. So I either go West or far East.
First things first. Tomorrow I travel to Monte Negro.
I found a ticket for only 300 dollars to fly there rather than fly home to Boston on the 6th. STA is truly amazing! Plus, I don't need a visa to fly to Beijing. It would be a wonderful opportunity to see Emily again and Beijing!
I also contacted my friend Claudia. I met her last year while working for Let's Go. She and her friend Nina live in Switzerland. They said it would be alright if I wanted to come for a visit. So I either go West or far East.
First things first. Tomorrow I travel to Monte Negro.
I walked down to the train station in Belgrade and it looks like there are no trains leaving to Dubronik until Friday. I think I am going to try an alternative route. I will travel by train to Monte Negro. Its right on the coast and should be very nice. Then I will go to Bosnia for a day and from there make my way down to Croatia. The train ride tomorrow is seven hours and leaves at 10 in the morning. I probably can only stay in MN for a day since they are on the euro and it is an expensive beach resort town.
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