Dubrovnik has been a famous tourist attraction for many decades. But nowadays, the old town becomes crushed by its own popularity. More than one million cruise ship passengers arrived in the port of Dubrovnik last year. Each day, 300 buses were circling around the city center. For all the crush of the crowds, it is […]
Balkans
ALBANIA: FASCINATING KORÇA
A few months ago we made a trip through the eastern part of Albania. One of the places that impressed me most was Korça, in Albanian called Korçë, not far from the Greek border. I think it is exactly this Greek/ Macedonian influence that contributes to the creation of a specific exotic atmosphere in this small […]
RESTAURANT RAPSODIA: AN AMAZING CULINARY EXPERIENCE IN ALBANIA
There is a place in Albania I visit very frequently. And that is Hotel Restaurant Rapsodia in Shengjin, municipality of Lezhë (2 km from the highway Shkodra-Tirana when you pass Lezhë). Why would we travel more than 100 km from Podgorica for just a dinner? Why would we take all our friends and relatives to […]
ALBANIA, TAMARË: THE NEW KELMEND ROAD
The area around the Cijevna river (in Albanian: Cem river) has always attracted me, so the information that a Joint action plan for its ecological defense and the sustainable environmental development of the cross-border area was started this year made me quite curious. A draft feasibility study on eco-tourism development in the surrounding villages […]
ALBANIA, SHKODRA: A BIKING TOUR TO URA E MESIT (MES BRIDGE)
Enjoying the Indian summer, we spent a relaxed weekend in Lake Shkodra Resort (a perfect place to spend a few days and only 55 km or one hour driving from Podgorica!) with our friends from the Netherlands. The weather was sunny and it was a good opportunity to hire bicycles and make a biking tour […]
HERZEGOVINA HIGHLIGHTS: POČITELJ, KRAVICE WATERFALLS AND MEDJUGORJE
Tourists who spend their holidays on the Dalmatian Coast or Dubrovnik Riviera, and even those who plan a longer stay in Mostar, have the opportunity to make an interesting day trip to three special highlights in Bosnia and Herzegovina. These tourist attractions can be found close to each other, 30-40 km southwest of Mostar and […]
ISLAND HOPPING IN CROATIA: THE ELAPHITI ISLANDS
When you are spending your holidays on the Dubrovnik Riviera, a boat tour to the Elaphiti Islands – a small archipelago stretching northwest of Dubrovnik – is a “must”. We booked a day trip from Slano with a visit to Šipan and Lopud, two of the three permanently inhabited islands. Of course, it is easier […]
STON, CROATIA: MEDIEVAL WALLS, SALT PANS AND OYSTERS
Ston, a small fortified town on the Pelješac Peninsula, about 54 km north-west of Dubrovnik, is becoming more and more popular as a tourist attraction. The defensive walls that surround the town are absolutely unique, but Ston is also famous for its oyster production and the 2000-years old salt works in the vicinity that have […]
DISCOVER VJETRENICA: THE “WIND CAVE” IN BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA
Most tourists traveling along the Adriatic Highway from the Montenegrin border in northern direction do not know anything about „Vjetrenica“, a cave in Herzegovina that is visible on a well-marked road sign along the Highway, around 30 km north from Dubrovnik near Slano. Strange enough, this is one of the most impressive caves in the […]
SKOPJE, PLAN 2014: A HISTORICAL REMAKE OR A KITSCHY THEME PARK?
Three years ago I visited Skopje. At that time, many people were talking about „Plan 2014“, initiated by Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski. It was the government’s intention to redevelop the existing city center to include around 20 neo-classical and baroque buildings on the banks of the Vardar River, as well as over 40 monuments and […]