Go TO KOSOVO!

 








I am sorry to report that the only thing I knew about Kosovo is that it was the location of a nasty war agains the Serbs in 1998-9 . The UN and Bill Clinton stepped in to save the day. Clinton is still revered here, thus the giant photo, statue and "Clinton Square" (which doubles as a parking lot).




The Battle of Kosovo, 1389, is a big deal for the Serbs because little Serbia  took on the mighty Ottomans. It ws the only time an Ottoman Sultan was killed in battle . But the Serbs lost the battle..big time.  And the Ottomans took over even more Serbian turf to add to  their empire. So I am not sure why this is such sacred place to the Serbs, but every June 28 they celebrate the battle as a national and religious holiday.   

And they still want to thwart Kosovo's desire to become and remain an independent country after declaring itself so in 2008.  Kosovo is not recognized as a country by Russia or China and a whole bunch of other countries (Spain and Greece who have their own seperatist issues). But there seems to be a tiny thaw in the relationship. As of January 1 of this year, the Serbs say they won't hassle folks with Kosovar licensce  plates and allow the free movement of all vehicles with Kosovo plates into Serbian territory. Let's call that a small victory for peace. 



Speaking of cars...we (Stephen and I and our other Fulbrighter Christina) drove to Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, about two hours north of Skopje. We spent half the day there and then headed for the hills. Pristina( pop. 1,761,864   feels a lot larger and wealthier than Skopje pop,606,000 with more traffic., more western chains, and lots of mosques and churches.  












We had lunch, walked around the center and visited  a funky national library  with 99 domes of different sizes (and is entirely covered in a metal fishing net -- (kind of funny for a land-locked nation). It is supposed to encompass both Byzantine and Ottoman influences, an olive branch of peace in a hotspot of Christian/Muslim tensions. 





The war in the late 1990s is still front and center with memorials all around. 







And then we headed for the hills....or in this case the "Albanian Alps". We were advised to go to the mountain town of Prizren to find traditional carpets. I assumed we we were going to some tiny village in the mountains that I'd never heard of. Clearly I had not done my homework. Prizren is the second largest city in Kosovo and it is a lovely, historic, community nestled into the gorgeous Sharr Mountains. We arrived just as the sun was setting and the night lights were coming on.



We had dinner along the river at one of the many lovely sidewalk eateries. This one had a beautifully crocheted afghan blanket surrounding the trunk.

 




The next morning we went looking for carpets but to no avail. We then hiked to the top of the mountain to a thousand-plus year old fortress that has been nicely restored. And in the distance we were surrouned by snow covered peaks and the bluest sky I've ever seen. Maybe this is heaven (or heat exhaustion from trekking up here?) 

Read all about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prizren_Fortress









Down the mountain we go...in search of traditional carpets. No luck. After searching for a couple of hours, we gave up. Then a guy we met the day before asked us if we had found carpets yet. We said no and he pointed us to the store. Lovely traditional clothing but not too many rugs of interest. They seemed to me more like heavy blankets with the fringe hanging loose on the underside. We went home empty handed. 









But no regrets....except perhaps road construction on the way home. Stephen managed the insanely crazy mountain passes with no guard rails and no pavement at times. Thank God I was not driving. 
Gorgeous..... but my blood pressure is still adjusting. 






Not sure what this says -- the international shit sign?? A good metaphor....





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