Parts of Italy, Kosovo, Nth Macedonia, Greece, Albania, Poland and Germany.

[RB]

Skyline Apartment Peja Skyline Apartment 1, Peje (updated prices 2025)

Really enjoyed our 3 nights stay in this near new apartment. In a big block but serviced by a lift. Big (90sqm) two bedroooms, 1.5 bathrooms, air conditioned, big balcony, washing machine, dishwasher, good wi-fi. Only a minutes walk to markets that sold fruit & veggies, beer, wine & basic essentials & a 10 minute walk to downtown & the Old Bazaar. Very generous with kitchen & bathroom supplies and the 7th floor balcony gave us excellent 180 degree views of the city and mountains.











Surprised at the lack of light fittings given the overall quality. We had very comfortable beds during the holiday


Found that you are supplied with slippers in Kosovo, so shoes should be left at front door


Extra toilet

 

[RB]

On board! Very interested in your report as we just recently visited some of these places and are are interested in visiting some of the others.

Have been reading your posts and enjoyed your perspectives

 

[Scash]

Have been reading your posts and enjoyed your perspectives

Thanks @RB. I've been MIA for a few weeks (I think I just ran out of energy!) but am now home and will finish up the report.

 

[RB]

Around Peja

There are plenty of food choices, an apparent oversupply of pharmacies, mobile phone shops, gold & silver shops and many glamorous dresses are in shop displays. Great coffee was readily available at 1 Euro . Toni helped us source an e sim set up that included Kosovo Macedonia Greece & Albania. All shops we saw were individual shopfronts with no modern shopping centre as we know it.
We organised with Toni to take us on a day trip to cover the sites. It was a very leisurely pace but spaced out locations meant it filled our day.

Our first night we just wandered into town




The Bazaar was all packed up-has been rebuilt a few times




Still trying to turn a dollar-excellent variety of fresh produce


Peja - Wikipedia

Our first call was a drive through parts of the Rugova Canyon that is pretty close to town. Next was The Patriarchate of Pec Monastery, Radaci Cave and finally the Visoki Monastery.

Rugova Canyon-one of Europe's longest (25km) & deepest canyons (1,000m). The Accursed Mountains are a natural border to Montenegro & we see the similarities from our 2019 visit. The mix of decidious trees & evergreen forests hold the key to seasonal colours & there are plenty of dramatic cliffs. It is early in the tourist season so the ziplinners, mountaineers, skiers & hikers are thin on the ground. We see people collecting water from the natural springs for their bottled water business and there are a few roadside stalls but no customers.

 

[RB]

A few more photos of Rugova Canyon












A climbing rope in centre of photo

 

[RB]

On the way back to town from the canyon was our next stop the Patriachate Of Pec. The monastery is set back off the road and a first for us, we had to pass a check point & show our passports for entry- no other signs of enhanced security once we were past here. As with every attraction we visited in Kosovo there was no monetary charge.

Bit of background
Patriarchate of Pec
Patriarchate of Peć (monastery) - Wikipedia

Road between security check & the complex








Bell Tower-relatively recent 20th century


I believe parts of the 14th century palace








Some detail of the frescoes The Patriarchate of Pec: The Narthex

 

[RB]

On the way through town we visited Restaurant Era-an excellent rooftop view over town while we enjoyed a coffee & met the owners.



Next stop was Radaci Cave-a walk & stairs from the carpark but beautiful surrounds. More crowds here & the associated restaurants, cafes & stalls selling water, strawberries & various other fruits. There are great waterfall views from the main walkway or you can venture down more steps to get amongst the streams & pools. Sleeping Beauty Cave wasn’t discovered until 1968 but Neolithic human remains dating back 6 thousand years have been found within the cave along with a bullet from WW1. Our visit coincided with a few hundred school students on end of school excursions (some from Turkey). Considering only a couple of chambers were open & groups of 25 went through at staggered times, we passed on going into the cave.

 

[RB]

Our day wound up with a slow drive out to Visoki Monastery- built-up area most of the way & plenty of 30km/hr speed zones.

Visoki Dečani - Wikipedia
Visoki Dečani Monastery: A Historic Treasure in Kosovo

This is another World Heritage Site with the site founded in 1327. There is Byzantine architecture, well preserved frescoes from the 14th century & peaceful surrounds during our visit. The monastery certainly has a history of neglect, natural disasters and conflict and during our visit we were greeted by NATO/KFOR forces who held our passports during our visit.







Over 1,000 frescoes



A rare manner of depicting Christ- armed with a sword (sword is the cutting blade for sin)





Bit of wear & tear on display










Bit of camouflage work on the loos

 

[RB]

Historically, Peja city was a major religious center in medieval Serbia and was made the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church back in the 14th – 18th centuries.More than 80% of people’s homes were damaged during the tragic Kosovo War in 1999.There was further damage in violent inter-ethnic unrest in 2004. Most Kosovo Serbs have now left the town and live in a village nearby. There is a sizeable Bosniak community in the city while significant Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian communities reside in urban and rural areas.

On our 2nd full second day there was a little light rain at times as we walked around the town centre - sadly highlighted by memorials and some excellent statues.
Our first stop was the bazaar, it is one of the oldest commercial areas in the region, dating back to the Ottoman period and you can still find original artisan shops here, such as the Albanian cap-makers, gown-makers, tapestry-makers, shoemakers, watch-makers, and even goldsmiths. Some of these shops have been operating for decades although the premises have been renewed.
The Lumbardhi Pehja river flowing through the city & the Rugova Mountains as a backdrop helps to "soften" the memorials. We had read of a few stories of litter but found the streets to be immaculate & generally people had a lot of pride in showcasing Peja. Stray dogs do pose a bit of a problem but we didn't notice any aggression & some dogs had a liking for hanging around butcher shops- we did see some tagged dogs that indicated that they had been desexed, wormed & vaccinated and there were some people feeding the strays at night.

Bazaar








Sadly all lost their lives in 1999






Milestone anniversary of peacekeeping mission

​

 

[RB]

More of Peja



Bank of Kosovo building- I read that it was a great example of 1970's Brutalist archicheture







The statue of Ibrahim Rugova is revealed in Peja - KOHA.net




To lighten the mood

 

[RB]

Peja to Prizren
We opted for a car transfer for 40 Euro door to door - again with Toni. Very steady drive - heaps of built up areas & generally low speed limits with mostly a 2 lane road. Some small farms, orchards, and one area where herb growing dominates. Apparently they are family owned farms but contractors are used for harvesting - all activities seem to have modern mechanisation.

Toni was great company, a very safe driver and we would highly recommend him for transfers/transport around Kosovo

 

[RB]

Nani Apartment Prizren Nani Apartment, Prizren (updated prices 2025)
We had an excellent 2 night stay in this very stylish apartment. Two bedrooms in what was an excellent, central location (easy walk everywhere we went) and very quiet. We had excellent views, all the modern facilities were in tip top shape and there were generous supplies of basic requirements. There was a store with fresh fruit & veggies & basic supplies across the road and a few hundred metres away was an excellent liquor store. The owners were prompt in meeting us & giving access to the apartment & they gave us a lift to the bus station when we were departing. The only downside was quite a lot of steps up to the apartment.

Bedroom 1




Bedroom 2


Separate laundry


Excellent bathroom


Lounge/dining/living




Balcony area


Views from apartment

 

[RB]

Prizren Prizren - Wikipedia

Prizren Fortress overlooks this city full of Mosques (gave up counting at 30) and churches dating back to the 14th century. It has the best preserved old town in Kosovo - managing to have largely avoided the communist rebuilding schemes and the ethnic and religious atrocities of the 90's. In 2004 a mob destroyed many of the churches but they are now being restored - including St George where we were denied entrance due to wearing shorts. The only noisy mob in town now consists of hundreds of school kids enjoying time in this beautiful place before the summer holidays. It seems like everyone is out and about in the perfect weather.

It’s very much walking accessible but a with a lot of cobblestones. There is a very flourishing lifestyle for most, but a small band of beggars with drums haunts the area around the main square with it’s bars and restaurants. Food & drinks are still cheap. The fashion is more modern & expensive than Peja, although the Peja shop fronts had more extravagant displays. There is also a bigger Turkish & Muslim influence here than Peja. On our last night there was an excellent classic car display and retro music festival to mark the start of the summer festivals. For us I think the fortress climb & view were the highlights.

Day 1 photos
Always reminders of unrest


A beautiful setting a couple of minutes walk from the apartment-bit of updating happening on the left


The fortress dominates the landscape






A lot of emphasis on meat grills


A few shops in the main square selling just lollies-pay by the kilo

 

[RB]

On our full day in Prizren we slogged up the path to the fortress that was built in the 11th century-a good path all the way up but steep in some sections. The fortress grounds are such a massive structure that there is no crowding (around 1.2ha, more than 1km of walls). Back down at town level we basically looped around at a steady pace & caught most of the "highlight" mosques, churches and museums. There are many coffee & pastry outlets. The stone bridge is certainly a beautiful structure and the Ottoman houses dot the landscape.

Fortress Photos- hard on the feet in sections

 

[RB]

Prizren continued

Sinan Pasha Mosque-Built in 1615 using stones from the nearby Serbian Orthodox Monastery of the Holy Archangels, the Sinan Pasha Mosque is listed as a Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance. The minaret, at a height of 143 feet, is easy to spot from both the river and the Prizren fortress.




A couple of locals


Church of St Nicholas-apparently built in 1331


Part of the Catholic Church complex-seems to rival some of the wiring in parts of Asia!


A bit neater from this angle


Prizren League Complex. An old complex where its namesake political organization was founded in June 10, 1878. The Albanian Prizren League began with a gathering of 300 representatives of all Albanian regions. In the meeting there were also Bosnians from Bosnia and Sanjak. The aim of the meeting was to form an autonomous Albanian state that would cover the Ottoman regions (vilayets) of Prizren, Shkodra, Monastir and Yanina. The League was the first serious effort to create a united Albanian region since the medieval era of Skanderbeg. Now a museum




Maksut Pasha Mosque-17th Century




Local cheese


The pony was available for photos or led rides. The fountain is in the main square-Shadervani Fountain "This cultural monument, located in the middle of the city square, is one of Prizren’s main symbols. Its four streams are reflected in its name, which translates to “fountain with many streams” in Persian. The fountain is often looked at the point where social, economic, and cultural development intersect. It’s also associated with a local myth, which states that if you drink from the fountain, you’ll marry a local girl and stay in Prizren forever!"


Cathedral of St George-set on fire in roits of 2004. There is still a police presence in the grounds

 

[RB]

Just down the road from our apartment the Old Timer Fest & Fiva Youth Forum-advertised as 20yrs of classic passion & youth engagement
"Oldtimer Club Prizreni, the official FIVA representative in Kosovo through its ANF status, plays a vital role in preserving and promoting technical heritage in their country. This year, as the club celebrates its 20th anniversary, the FIVA Culture and Youth Commission will take an active part in the festivities by organizing a dedicated Youth Forum. This initiative will bring young enthusiasts together, fostering discussions on heritage, innovation, and the future of historic vehicles, ensuring that the next generation remains engaged in preservation efforts."