I’ve wanted to do a trip around Eastern Europe since I
arrived in Croatia in September. When I came back to school I found out again
that I had three magical weeks of no class. I decided to stay in Dubrovnik for
a little while to just hang out and relax, but the consisted of sitting inside
watching movies because it was raining all day. I had enough of the rain, so I
packed my backpack and began my journey with a bus ride from Dubrovnik to
Sarajevo.
My main reasoning for this journey was to visit two of my
friends Puki and Rebekah and to meet the Jewish communities in Sofia, Bulgaria
and Skopje, Macedonia. In order to get to these cities I was able to experience
a couple other places along the way.
When I told my mom my travel plans of course her first
reaction was “please do not go by yourself” and “please be safe.” I had to
remind her that I have been in Europe for five months and nothing bad has
happened to me, but after being in America for two days during my winter break
my mom’s car was broken into and my wallet was stolen. Many people have a
dangerous view of Eastern Europe. Yes, I agree that we must always be aware of
our surroundings and be safe and smart when we travel, but I think many people
forget that big western European cities like Paris and Madrid are dangerous
too.
Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina
I failed to mention this part to my parents, but at the time
of this trip there were many protests and riots going on in Sarajevo because
the citizens were tired of their corrupt government and low unemployment rate.
I even got a message from my study abroad advisor about a travel alert in
Sarajevo....oops. It’s okay; I am home safe and alive. I only went to Sarajevo
for one night because it was my connection to Belgrade. The owner of the hostel
was nice enough to pick me up from the bus station because the main roads were
closed during protesting times. During my one day there I ate delicious cevapi
and bought homemade slippers. It was the first time I was the only person in
the hostel, but that was okay because I stole all the pillows off the empty
beds. The next day is when the trip really started.
Belgrade, Serbia
For those who don’t know, Serbia and Croatia were at war
with each other twenty years ago. There are two sides to every story, but I
have been taught that Serbia started the war, but if you ask a Serb they will
justify their actions for trying to keep Yugoslavia together, either way they
both strongly dislike each other. When I told people in Croatia I was going to
Belgrade (the capital of Serbia) I got mixed reactions. The younger generations
would tell me that Belgrade was an awesome place to party, while the older
generations told me not to go there.
When I first arrived in Belgrade it was a grey, cloudy day
and there were only 4 other people in the hostel. I was beginning to
regret my decision of doing this trip during off-season by myself. I also
arrived on Valentines Day, which is not the best day for solo travelers to
experience a city. My crazy Friday night consisted of trying a local food,
pljeskavica, which is basically a big hamburger on a plate), and watching a
couple episodes of Girls and the Wolf of Wall Street at the hostel with some
other travelers.
Saturday was a beautiful day with blue skies, sunshine, and
warm weather! I decided to give Belgrade another chance. I started my day
walking down the main pedestrian street. It is a huge street full of happy
people, many stores and cafes, and no cars. I’m not sure if it was the nice
weather, but everyone was outside. It was really hard to not smile while
walking down the street and observing my surroundings. You would see cute
little children running around, people playing with their dogs everywhere, and
many freelance musicians playing wonderful music. My breakfast even consisted
of chocolate and fruit fondue at a chocolate café. After that I knew it was
going to be a good day.
I met a guy named Oliver while I was wandering around. He
was born in Dubrovnik, raised in Holland because his family was placed as
refugees there during the war, and is now working with the EU in Serbia. The
pedestrian street leads all the way down to the fortress, which also serves as
a big park that overlooks the river. We sat for coffee at the fortress and he
tried explaining to me the history and politics of Belgrade and how it has
served at the capital for seven different empires. After a while it all became
so confusing that I was totally lost. We spent the day chatting over coffee and
walking around the fortress. We even got to watch the sunset in Belgrade and it
was beautiful of course! We went to “the best” sausage restaurant in Belgrade.
For just $2 it was definitely one of the best meals I’ve had in Eastern Europe.
I said goodbye to my new friend and headed back to the hostel. Some people from
the hostel and myself decided to experience Belgrade’s nightlife, which we realized
was hard to do if you didn’t know the right place to go. Every bar we walked
into was completely full. We met a local named Danko and he came with us to one
of his favorite bars. We sat for hours chatting and tasting their home brewed
beers. At one point I went to the bathroom and one of the girls standing in
line noticed that I didn’t speak Serbian. She was really nice and in her broken
English she asked me what brought me to Belgrade. I tried to explain that I
study in Croatia and wanted to travel Eastern Europe. After our short
conversation she was returning to her table and she said to me “Bye, you are so
nice and have a good time in Belgrade because it is way better than Croatia and
I don’t like Croatia.” I had very mixed feelings after that interaction. She
was so nice and didn’t say anything wrong, but it was very interesting, as an
outsider, to experience the smallest aspect of hate within this ongoing
internal conflict between Serbia and Croatia.
The next day a Swedish girl named Marie and I were invited
to hangout with one of the Catalonian guys in our hostel named Jon and his
Serbian girlfriend and her friends. It was a very interesting group dynamic.
Jon and his girlfriend communicated in Spanish, Marie, Jon, and I communicated
in English, and Jon’s girlfriend and her friends communicated in in Serbian
with very little English. It ended up being really fun to hangout with a group
of locals. We walked along to river for a couple hours and ate the biggest
pancakes ever. We would all laugh at each other when we couldn’t understand
what the other was trying to say. Everything would take much longer to
communicate because the friends would first decide where we were going in
Serbian, then Jon’s girlfriend would say it in Spanish, and then Jon would tell
us in English. Overall the day was filled with laughs, broken English,
delicious pancakes, and new friends.
I was supposed to stay in Belgrade for only three nights,
but I was enjoying it too much to leave so I extended 1 more night. My last
full day in Belgrade consisted of hanging out with an American named Sam from
our hostel who was studying in Germany. We took a bus to a popular lake and
just walked around and relaxed on the rock beaches for a couple hours. We had
some time before it got dark so we decided to walk back to the hostel. The walk
took an hour and a half, but it was worth it. Sam and I were both heading to
Sofia as our next destination and we were deciding if it was better to take the
bus or train. While we were walking along the river we came across a half
sunken boat with some graffiti on it that was a fish saying, “take the bus.”
Clearly it was a sign. When we arrived back to the hostel we decided to spend
our last night relaxing so we went with Marie and our other American friend
named Eric to the roof bar next to our hostel.
The next morning I went to buy my bus ticket and realized
that we got the bus schedule wrong, so we had three hours to either sit at the
bus station and wait or go to a café to find WIFI. Clearly we chose the latter
option. Instead of finding a cute Eastern European café we shamefully went to
McDonald’s. I usually do not eat McDonald’s back in America, but there is just
something about the McDonald’s in Europe that appeal to everyone and we do not
have any fast food restaurants in Dubrovnik so it was a must. Maybe they are
just a slight reminder of home or maybe it is fun to see how each country
offers something different. Either way we spent the remainder of our time in
Belgrade feasting on breakfast hash browns and WIFI.
Belgrade might not be the prettiest city in Europe (at least
it had cool art on the doors), but it is one of the liveliest cities I have
experienced (that says a lot considering I’ve visited 35 European cities).
Sofia, Bulgaria
My hostel in Sofia (Hostel Mostel) was only 8€ a night and
it was one of the best hostels I’ve stayed at. It is very rare to find a full
hostel in the middle of February, but Hostel Mostel was just that. I arrived in
the evening and went out with some people from the hostel. We mostly wandered
around not knowing where to go on a Tuesday night and we ended up in an Italian
wine bar… after a glass of wine we all agreed that we should experience
somewhere a little more local. That is when we discovered Art Hostel. I’m not
really used to partying at different hostels other than the one I am staying
at, but Art Hostel was different. It had an underground bar that served as a
hot spot for locals. I wish I took pictures of this place; the walls were
covered in awesome designs, paintings, and doodles!
The next morning my friend Puki picked me up from the hostel
and gave me a fabulous tour of his city. Puki and I worked together last summer
in Israel, so I was really excited to be able to visit him and meet the BBYO
Bulgarian teens. BBYO is an international Jewish youth group that I was a part
of in high school, so I was really excited to meet the members of the Bulgarian
Jewish community. Bulgaria has a pretty amazing story when it comes to its
Jewish community. Bulgaria is one of two countries (the other being Denmark)
that were allied with the Nazis during WWII that saved its own Jews.
It is really amazing how much knowledge Europeans have about
their own cities. Puki gave me an in depth tour around his city, including a
detailed history lesson. I always wondered why I never appreciated history and
I think I finally understand why. Being from a young country, though we do have
an interesting history, we cannot just walk around and see Roman ruins or
buildings from the Ottomans. During the tour we came across a huge painted egg
which is called the "Egg of Happiness" and every time you pass by it
you are supposed to touch it and make a wish.
After touring the city we went for a traditional Bulgarian
lunch. Puki was adamant about me trying tripe soup orШкембе чорба in Bulgarian,
which he described as a milky soup with cow stomach. Although the description
did not sound appealing, it was actually very good. The meat was too chewy for
me, but the broth was delicious! Bulgarians also love their cheese fried, so
that was a must try. I think we ordered half of the items on the menu and
everything was so good! After lunch we wandered the city some more and found
ourselves walking towards the Starbucks. Again, another American company that
is not in Dubrovnik. Puki tried telling me how inexpensive Starbucks is in
Sofia, but I refused to believe him…until I actually saw the prices on the
board. Picture the prices at your local Starbucks, now imagine the same numbers
but instead of in dollars the numbers are in Bulgarian Lev-which is basically
half the price.
After a full day of exploring we went to the Jewish
community center to meet up with the BBYO teens. Puki is a program director so
he was there to oversee the meeting. After meeting all of the teens it was time
for the meeting to begin. One of the teens planned a program about living a
healthy lifestyle. Puki translated the entire time for me, so I was able to
understand everything going on. In high school we always had fun at BBYO
meetings, but I am pretty sure the Bulgarians have way more fun. After BBYO,
Puki invited me to hangout with his friends for a night of watching football
(soccer). Puki lives in a Moishe House, which serves as a place that holds
events for young Jewish adults to gather together.When we went to his home he
introduced me to his friends and roommate. Now this is just another testament
that the world is a small place. Puki’s roommate Martin and I met four years
ago in Dallas, Texas at BBYO’s International Convention. Martin and I became
Facebook friends, talked maybe a couple times after meeting in Dallas, and now
(unexpectedly) here I am four years later hanging out with him in his own city
and own home.
It was so nice being able to catch up with two friends and meet
the wonderful Jewish teens from Sofia. Not many people from I know can say that
they visited friends in Bulgaria and for that I am fortunate to have these
incredible opportunities. If I had more time I would have loved to stay and
explore the city more, but because I spent an extra day in Belgrade I had to
continue on with my trip if I wanted to make it back in time for class in a few
days.
Skopje,
Macedonia
Macedonia is another Balkan country that, embarrassingly, I
had never heard of before. The only reason I made my way to Skopje (the
capital) was to meet Rebekah, another friend from BBYO.
On the bus ride from Sofia to Skopje I met Travis, a fellow
American who has been traveling for one year. We chatted during the bus ride
and said our goodbyes once the bus arrived to Skopje. Now fast-forward about 3
weeks later. I am sitting on some rocks in Dubrovnik overlooking the sea and
guess who walks in…Travis! It just proves that we do live in a small world. 
Rebekah and I actually never met before this trip. We worked
together in BBYO on different projects and talked through Facebook and e-mail.
We have many mutual friends that put us in contact with each other when I
arrived in Croatia because Rebekah helps with the Jewish community in the
Balkans. She greeted me at the bus station and immediately it felt like we had
been friends forever.
The day began with dropping my bags off at the hostel (which
of course I was the only person at again) and then heading out to grab some
food. Later that night Rebekah invited me to the Jewish community center to
meet the BBYO teens and some other members of the Jewish community. Two of the
teens that were there had just returned from BBYO’s International Convention in
Dallas, Texas and it was so interesting and exciting to hear about their
experiences. Never in a million years did I think I would get to hangout with a
Jewish community in Skopje, Macedonia.
Later that night Rebekah invited me out with all of her
friends. Everyone always says it is best to party with locals and everyone is
right! One of her friends’ bands was playing at a local café so the night began
by meeting some friends and heading to watch her friend sing. His band was
awesome and it was so funny because they were singing a bunch of older American
songs like “Hit the Road Jack” and “Sweet Home Alabama.” After his band
finished we headed to a nearby park to celebrate her other friends’ birthday.
Yes, they have birthday parties in parks at night and they are so fun! All of
her friends were super nice and they all had amazing English. I didn’t expect
the people from Macedonia to have the best English, but it goes to show how
surprising Eastern Europe can be. The night ended at Club Marakana where we
danced to a mixture of Macedonian and American music all night. It definitely
was one of my favorite nights out in Europe so far!
The next morning was kept short because I had to catch a bus
to Kosovo, but Rebekah was nice enough to invite me over to her house for tea
and walk me to the bus station. Like I said before I never would have thought
that Macedonia would be on my travel list, but I am so happy it made it on
there. Skopje is an interesting city, full of wonderful people. I definitely
would not have enjoyed my time in Skopje if it were not for Rebekah and warm
her hospitality.
Pristina,
Kosovo
Kosovo has a very interesting story behind it and I’m going
to try and explain it as simply as possibly. Again, I never heard of this
country before taking my European Union class last semester. Kosovo is a very
disputed territory and has still not been formally recognized by a
large number of states, including neighbor Serbia.
Kosovo used to be a part of Serbia, but its Albanian
population declared independence in February 2008. The two countries were at
war with each other in 2004 killings thousands of civilians. The fact that
Serbia does not recognize Kosovo as a country becomes problematic when
traveling around the Balkans. The rule is that if you start in Serbia then you
may enter Kosovo and return back to Serbia, but you cannot do the opposite. You
cannot enter Serbia from Kosovo if you did not begin your journey in Serbia
because Serbia will look at your passport and pretend like the Kosovo stamp
does not exist.
Along with being a fairly new and controversial country, it
is also one country that is loves Americans. Pristina, Kosovo’s capital, is
probably the only city in the world with both George W. Bush and Bill Clinton
boulevards. This love came from Bush’s influence and support for NATO's bombing
of Serbia, which led Serbian military to withdraw from and Clinton’s support
for Kosovo’s independence. You can walk through Pristina, buy an American flag
on the street, and see a 10-foot tall, golden statue of the Bill Clinton. They
say that Kosovo is one of the most pro-American places in the world.
Kosovo was on my way back to Dubrovnik, which allowed me to
spend one night before making it back in time for class. I was excited because
I got to stay with my friend Theresa who I met at my hostel in Montenegro. She
is one of those friends that even though we only spent a couple hours together
we bonded right away and have kept in touch since. A couple weeks after this trip Theresa and her friend came to stay with
me in Dubrovnik!
My first day in Pristina started with a quick tour around
the city. Theresa has many visitors so she is basically an expert tour guide.
We stumbled upon an abandoned church and then the National Library, which was
voted as one of the ugliest buildings in the world (second picture below).
After our tour we went to Theresa’s favorite local café. We ended our night by
eating a delicious meal at a Thai restaurant, which I really enjoyed because we
do not have any restaurants like that in Dubrovnik.
After a relaxing day in Pristina with Theresa I began my
long adventure back to Dubrovnik, which consisted of two bus rides, sleeping in
a bus station from 2:00-6:00AM and making it to my 12:00 class!
Have you ever had someone approach you on the street and
just shake your hand just because of for your nationality and demand to take
you for a coffee? If not then you should visit Kosovo, where you will feel
appreciated as an American.
My adventure around Eastern Europe was everything I hoped it
would be and more! I saw cities I never thought I would ever visit, I met
people from all different cultures and backgrounds, I ate delicious food, and I
learned so much about each city. Eastern Europe is definitely an underrated
region and if you ever have the opportunity to explore it I highly recommend
going!
I have mentioned a couple times how I believe traveling
alone is the most rewarding and exciting experience. After I returned home from
this trip I wrote an article for The Abroad Guide on why people should travel
alone. Check it out: http://theabroadguide.com/travel-alone-study-abroad/
