Final day: Belgrade

Well, how lucky are we. We having our wonderful breakfast where we are staying (after a very good night’s sleep) - and it has started raining! Rain is predicted all day off and on. We are SO lucky we got our walking tour in yesterday!

A bunch of motorbike riders from the Netherlands at breakfast tell us it is raining all over Europe.

Checkout is 11 a.m. so pretty relaxed. 

We set off via the Gravilo Princip area but I can’t find the statue of the Bosnian-Serb assassin of Archduke Ferdinand (the incident that sparked WWI). Interesting that Serbia honours this man with a monument, gifted by Bosnia. He remains a divisive figure in the region: while many people consider him a terrorist, others see him as a hero who fought for freedom from the Austro-Hungarian empire.

We discover on the next corner a destroyed building plus a huge billboard of the Serbian army. I asked one of the guards at the sentry box - she confirmed it was damage from the NATO bombing of 1999. In fact this is the Yugoslavian Ministry of Defence building and the bombed site has been left untouched as a memorial.

Street graffiti we saw later: ‘F*** NATO’. Says it all I think from Serbia’s perspective.

Visited the Sava Temple. Absolutely amazing! This was a good pick-up hint from one of the other participants in yesterday’s walking tour. He raved about it and we can see why! Incredible!! 

Sveti Sava is the Balkans' biggest Orthodox church and has an astonishing gold-ceilinged crypt which we discovered more or less by accident when I saw a tour group going down! In the main part of the church, there are stunning ornate chandeliers, Murano glass mosaics and vibrant frescoes.

The rain cleared up and it was a lovely afternoon - 18 deg C this morning at breakfast, now 24.

We walked to where we hope to catch the bus to the airport this evening: Zeleni venac square. Long walk from our hotel. Watched buses come and go in an effort to work out the system. We have bought our all-day ticket from the kiosk (125 dinars=$A1.75!!).

Walked on towards the Bohemian area Skadarlija where we stayed the first time we arrived in Belgrade. We came across Revolutionary Square again! We keep bumping into it. I have not worked out a grid system here - it’s like walking in circles.

Found (eventually!) The Most Amazing Place for lunch/early dinner (it was by now 4 p.m.). Endorfin: just perfect for what we  wanted - fabulous food and wine. We shared a platter of starters. I had a Prokupac (an old Serbian native red wine variety) Botunjac (= pinot noir but a more full-bodied variety than we are used to): Sveti gral (= ‘Holy Grail’) 2019.

Back to the hotel then to collect our bags and re-group before the trudge to the bus station for the bus to the Nikola Tesla airport. MF has to drag 2 bags! 😝

Just prior to leaving I worked out that the monument to Gravilo Princip was in the park I had looked at this morning but further in. I ‘dashed’ down to find it. Not a particularly noteworthy statue - somewhat meek and forlorn really, which seems appropriate as far as I am concerned. 

Apparently there are also several murals around the city of Princip. 

This is an interesting article:

https://contestedhistories.org/uncategorized/contested-murals-in-belgrade/

‘His image has a political and ideological context, symbolising national pride, revolutionary spirit, the struggle for liberation, and Serbian unity… The breakup of Yugoslavia and the wars that followed it have been devastating for Serbia and the neighbouring countries. As a result of harmful politics during and after the wars, certain personalities are celebrated as war heroes even though their actions encompassed heinous atrocities and resulted in convictions.’

MF did a sterling job manoeuvring the 2 suitcases along the street to the bus station. It seemed to be shorter than when we did the recce this morning. Maybe it was the threat of an impending storm. No doubt that gave focus to the task. Anyway, we did the trip in good time and waited about 15 minutes for the bus. We had already checked out this morning that we needed to get the bags into the middle door where there was floor space - out came the ocky strap to lock the bags into place to the railing near the window and I nabbed 2 seats as we had stood all the way in when we came the other way on our arrival into Serbia a bit over a month ago and we knew it was a long bus drive and bumpy.

We were first to arrive at the check-in counter. Now waiting for flight to Dubai then onto Melbourne. Arrive Wednesday morning.

Walked 13 kms.

POSTSCRIPT: Flights were straightforward. Belgrade to Dubai flight was far from full. Flight Dubai to Melbourne: 2 really good films - May December with Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore; Freud's Last Session with the always excellent Anthony Hopkins.

Belgrade Sunday 2 June

Train due in 6:19 a.m. but arrived about 40 mins later than scheduled but I had read this was likely so no surprises. (Our walking tour guide later today told us he took this train 15 years ago and it came in 8 hours late …).

Should have taken a bus (even with my # arm) as we paid 10€ for a taxi which was a lot for not very far. But somewhat ameliorated by our accommodation offering us free breakfast on arrival which was very nice. We lingered over breakfast - out on the balcony in the nice sunshine - and so we were able to do our airline check-ins with the free wi-fi in a civilised fashion. Can forget the €10 taxi for now - take the good with the bad.

And our room became available early - AND I had the BEST shower I’ve  had in 2 weeks!

I had booked a walking tour for 3 pm as I knew we’d need a focus for the day after coming in early on the overnight train.

We set off for the Botanic Gardens but these were closed due to an event.

Nearby was a pub, locals lounging at sidewalk tables under trees - it looked very relaxing so we managed to get a vacant spot and got out of the sun. It is hot. About 28 deg C. 

We walked on to the Black Sheep Icecreamery (Crna Ovca) we had visited last time we were here. Yum.  Then off to Revolution Square to meet our guide. A group of 6.

Very hot so good thing it is an UNDERGROUND tour!

Stefan is a very good guide and this is a very different experience to the one we had when we first arrived here a bit over a month ago with Nebojša, the nationalist in favour of a return to the greatness of Yugoslavia.

So we follow Stefan with his bright yellow umbrella from the Republic Square along the main pedestrian thoroughfare Knez Mihailova to the Belgrade Fortress.

We visit the Roman well and Stefan tells plenty of interesting stories about it. It was built at the beginning of the 18th century, during the baroque reconstruction of the fortress and is 51m deep, 3m in diameter and has two spiral staircases that connect at a depth of about 35 m forming a DNA-like shape - like the one in Orvieto, Italy.  Alfred Hitchcock visited the well in 1964 and said that an environment like that was always a treat for him...

Close by, we visit a military bunker built in the mid-50s, the period of the Cold War. The bunker was never used for its original purpose.

We walk down from the fortress and through the very nice Kalemegdan Park along the Sava River. I enjoy seeing the fortress from a different perspective: looking up; and we walk much of its perimeter. 

Nice bike path near the river:

 

This brings us to the Austrian gunpowder storehouse also known as Barutana which is a man-made cave, built in the 16th century. Here in the Lapidarium is quite a display of Byzantine and Roman sarcophagi, gravestones, statues, sacrificial altars and tombstones. 

Finally we visit a cavern in which the food was stored and a wine cellar from the 19th century - and we get a glass of pretty ordinary white wine … I have a taste but go for the coca cola option. Good tour.

Walked through the Stari Grad (Old Town); stopped enroute at one of the many sidewalk bars. The heat of the day is starting to dissipate and there is a nice breeze. My feet are exhausted. 

Stop by a sidewalk pasta bar where we get 2 bowls for 9€. Amazing. Yummy too.

Nice walk back to the hotel in the evening light.

There is a supermarket near our hotel - a tube of 20 effervescent Magnesium tablets is about $A1.50 (Chemist Warehouse back home: $A4 for 10).

Walked 12.7 kms.

Departure from Tiranë to Podgorica then onwards to Belgrade

We are up early for taxi to bus station which was changed earlier in the trip via phone call from GetByBus when walking through Bascarsija, Sarajevo's old bazaar - because they had noticed their email to me to advise me of this had bounced - good service! Changed bus station is 8 kms out of the centre of Tirana and there were police at multiple points enroute so not sure what is on today.

Hard to believe this is the reverse journey that we made 2 weeks ago on the day I suffered the # arm.

Fortunately little traffic at this hour so we arrived early without any hiccups. Bus also early as were some other passengers so we were fortunate to get seats up the front.

Police presence trailed us all the way out via the airport. Traffic by now was incredible, particularly coming the other way

Eventually the bus could speed up a little - but it still looks like a slowish trip to the border.

Bus driver lowers his window and lights up a cigarette … they are so addicted everywhere in the Balkans.  At least his taste in music is good (sometimes) - Carmen is playing.

We come into near Shkodër (our 1st stop after Tirana on our Intrepid tour); we recognise Edith Durham Street which we walked along 2 weeks ago to lunch … We move into a different part of Shkodër that we never saw on the Intrepid tour. How did we miss this??

And like we noticed back 2 weeks ago, there are bikes everywhere. It is real heart-in-your-mouth stuff as bus and other vehicular traffic negotiates their way through. Mad. Fascinating.

INTERESTING! Mary Edith Durham was a British artist, anthropologist and writer who is best known for her anthropological accounts of life in Albania in the early 20th century. Her advocacy on behalf of the Albanian cause gained her the devotion of many Albanians who consider her a national heroine.

We pass one of the many fairytale wedding venues which are popular in Albania. BIG weddings. BIG show. BIG deal. No doubt BIG expense!

So off to Hani Hotit on the edge of Shkodër Lake for the border crossing and bye to the Kastrati service stations (and nearly always a lavazh/car wash) that line the roads here.

The lake is huge: the largest in southern Europe. The road climbs and winds as we skirt the perimeter. We pass a sign to Bar … now 20 mins to Podgorica. 

So since our visit here 2 weeks ago, the garderoba (left-luggage) at the bus station has gone up in price from 2€/bag/day to 1€/bag/hour. Que?

So initially we declined.

We walked the 100 m to the railway station and no garderoba there. But we did get a free loo. Now, can you believe: the capital city of Montenegro, main railway station, and the loos are squat toilets. 

So with bladders relieved, we worked out a strategy. Criteria: 1. Coffee 2. Our night train to Belgrade doesn’t leave until 8:40 p.m. and it is now 12:30. 3. We want to see something of Podgorica despite the fact that most internet sites ‘bag’ the place.

The other issue is that the rail tickets we bought in Belgrade at the start of this trip for tonight’s train have lost most of the ink and are now pretty much illegible. Hence another reason to be at the railway station.

The girl at the counter speaks excellent English AND can read the ticket (x-ray vision eyesight). She writes down on a scrap of paper our carriage and seats. 

Ok. So next plan. I HAD considered that we take the earlier local train as the night train leaves AFTER sunset so we won’t in fact see much/anything. This has been dilemma all trip for me as this is meant to be one of the great train journeys of the world; the daytime train no longer runs so that was not an option.

The Man in Seat61 says the journey over the celebrated Bar to Belgrade railway is one of Europe's most spectacular train rides. It's 476 kms long and is a marvel of engineering, with 254 tunnels and 435 bridges between the Adriatic and the Serbian capital. 

Construction of the line started in the 1950s but was only completed in 1976, opened by President Tito himself.

Now, given that our local train trip from Podgorica to Bar two weeks ago was also meant to be scenic but the windows were disgusting,  I’m not holding my breath. 

Anyway, the girl at the station confirms we can do the earlier local train to Kolašin as I planned and then pick up our night train as it comes through later. Hmmmm. 

Yes we have to buy the local ticket but I had thought that would probably be the case and at 3.20€ each it is hardly a deal-breaker.

So we agree on a compromise. Pay the bloody new fee at the garderoba and go look around Podgorica (after a coffee first) then get the bags after a couple of hours (as a compromise) and have a late lunch close to the station so we don’t have to trail the bags along too far.

So, on dropping off the bags, we notice an appealing-looking restaurant right near the station, lock that in, pass a very nice cafe shortly after and have good coffee and a delicious piece of mud cake shared, then aim for the Old Town and the Old Ribnica River Bridge.

Now as I said, Podgorica is generally said to be an unappealing destination.

However, given it’s undergone 5 name changes, passed through the hands of everyone from the Romans to the Turks to the Austro-Hungarians, and twice been wiped off the map entirely, it still has some appeal: its streets are a hotchpotch of Ottoman oddments, Austrian shopfronts, brutalist blocks and shiny new malls.

We pass by the Clock Tower and have a lovely stroll through the Old Town (Stara Varoš) - an Ottoman-era neighbourhood - and along to the lovely Njegošev Park past the old bridge over the Ribnica River.  Very picturesque but also a magnet for the Instagrammers - argh!!

We walk back as planned to get our bags and lug them to the restaurant we had noted earlier: the loveliest vegetable risotto for me and a 2018 red Croatian wine. No complaints from me and none from MF who has been walking around all morning like something the cat has dragged in. The Reluctant Traveller seems perfectly happy now  …

And EXCELLENT toilets; and the 2 hours over lunch have flown by.

The plan was to go to the station at 4:30 p.m. to get our tickets for the earlier 5 p.m. train as far as Kolašin. We need to go as far as Kolašin as the overnight train doesn’t stop anywhere between Podgorica and Kolašin.

So let’s see what happens now …

Purchased our tickets - the woman at the counter this time doesn’t speak English at all … Train duly arrived - completely different from the previous one to Bar 2 weeks ago: beautifully clean windows and comfortable seats - 6-seater compartments so we had to squeeze our luggage into one of the seats one bag on top of the other and tie them down with an ocky strap so they wouldn’t fall off.

There are 2 local girls in the compartment too and they are very kind: squashing up to allow us and our luggage to fit in.

The scenery certainly was amazing - tunnels, mountains, cuttings, steep gorges, aquamarine river below, viaducts, mist, sun on the peaks, beautiful forests. 

The Mala Rijeka Viaduct located about 25 km north of Podgorica, was once the highest railway bridge in the world (surpassed by one in China in 2001). It is located above a deep cut some 198 m high.

Kolašin is a ski centre. We are high - 1016 m.  It is quite cold; the puffer jacket finally gets an outing.

Lots of athletic types. I would think good hiking here. I saw 2 people with arms in slings so I am simpatico. We stop at Sherpas. Pretty upmarket. Great music. Good food but I can’t eat it all: too rich, too much. Would like to re-visit one day.

We went for a walk through the town as darkness fell: lots of apartments and chalets and lots more being built.

Back uphill to the station. We had used Google Translate earlier to ask the woman at the station if we could leave our luggage in the office which she kindly consented to (Леви кофер? Хвала вам = left luggage? Thank you).

It was good to see the station attendant was still there when we arrived back to connect up with the train at 10 p.m. She was inside with the door closed and the room full of cigarette smoke; I don’t know how she could breathe!

We are a bit early AND the train is a bit late. It’s certainly cold. We share the platform in the semi darkness with a couple of hikers who came striding in just after we arrived. 

Train appears out of the darkness and we clamber on board with some nice assistance from the conductor.

Our couchette is very cute - probably one of the best fitted-out overnight trains I’ve ever been on. Toilet down the end of the corridor … in the middle of the night I always have the horrors as I return and all the couchette doors are closed and I try to remember which is ours … (!).

We settle in and quickly fall asleep (well, MF certainly does - I can hear him snoring in the bunk above). 

Fortunately passport control is smooth. No issue with the Kosovo exit stamp, although woken about 1 a.m. for this (just as I had fallen asleep - argh!). Slept reasonably OK to the rhythm of the train chug-chugging through the night taking us out of Montenegro and into Serbia.

Walked 10 kms.