Portugal, Sicily, Greece and the Balkans

[Scash]

Forgot to post this photo showing bullet holes in the building next door to our hotel. There are numerous buildings around the city that are pockmarked with bullet holes and some with even larger holes from bigger artillery.

 

[Scash]

Our last stop of the tour is Belgrade where we get to spend two nights in the Radisson Collection Old Mill. The first night is a free night and we wandered around a bit and had dinner on the boardwalk at what seems to be a fairly new shopping centre.




The locals call this building the upside down tomato sauce bottle .




The next morning we did a tour to the Church of St Sava, Belgrade Fortress and the Old Town.





The Sava River meets the Danube.



Stari Grad

 

[Scash]

And later that day we did a “Genius and the Leader” tour which included a visit to the House of Flowers which is Tito’s final resting place and the Nikola Tesla Museum. I don’t know much about Tito but what I did know wasn’t flattering. He seems to have been a polarising person and depending on your views you either loved him or hated him. He did a lot of good for Serbia but at the same time was a typical despot.



The Tesla museum was interesting but really not a lot there. Tesla's ashes are kept in the sphere as he is strongly associated with spheres and is credited with the invention of the plasma globe.

 

[Scash]

A bit of fun at the Tesla Museum

 

[Scash]

Well that’s it for the Balkans tour but there is more to come as we now venture off on our own to Slovenia. This is only the second group tour we’ve done and I have mixed feelings. Our first tour was Vietnam and Cambodia in 2019 and I really enjoyed it. This time probably not so much.

There was a lot of bus travel which is understandable given the ground we covered and the geographic’s of the Balkans, and also the fact that we visited 8 countries and I think 15 towns/sites over 14 days. The drive between towns also took a lot longer as we were often traversing mountainous roads. However I also think the itinerary was too full as we often didn’t arrive at the next destination until late in the afternoon, and then would have a walking tour followed by a group dinner so there was limited down time (and hence why I am so far behind in my trip report ).

The upside is we didn’t have to think too much. Basically everything was done for you. The itinerary was set, you arrived at your hotel and bags were delivered, you woke up next morning for breakfast and bags were collected, you hopped on the bus and off you went. We also met some wonderful people.

The additional bonus and the main reason we did this particular tour and not on our own was border crossings and transport between countries. If we were on our own I think we may have struggled at times not knowing exactly what to “provide” to the border patrol. Some seem to require a simple thing like water, others soft drink or coffee, some maybe beer or other hard drinks and then there were ones that needed “tipping”. The tour directors are aware of the dynamics so are prepared for most scenarios. Also tour buses sometimes had a separate lane so we did sometimes get through quicker than private cars.

Sorry for the rant but maybe the pros and cons of organised tours should be the subject of another discussion, if it isn’t already. I have learnt from this tour that if I do another one I will look at the itinerary a bit harder and actually map out the travel time, look at what each days activities are and estimate times we arrive at the next destination.

Anyway, onwards and upwards (or as they also say “go big or go home”).

 

[RooFlyer]

I don’t know much about Tito but what I did know wasn’t flattering. He seems to have been a polarising person and depending on your views you either loved him or hated him. He did a lot of good for Serbia but at the same time was a typical despot.

our guide in Bosnia who was born after Tito was deposed spoke a number of times in quite glowing terms of him. Called it the golden age of Yugoslavia. I suppose after he was deposed, it was pretty much war all around so perhaps I can see what they’re talking about

 

[Scash]

Following the end of the tour we made our own way to Slovenia by private transfer to Zagreb where we stayed the night. Next morning we caught the early train to Ljubljana and then a bus to Lake Bled where we stayed for two nights. For those that haven’t been there I only have one word…GO! This place is stunningly beautiful and a photographers dream.

 

[Scash]

After leaving Lake Bled we had a couple of nights in Ljubljana and happened to be there on a Friday evening when they have a street food festival. It was a great way to spend the arvo with food, music, drinks and just a good vibe.

The next day we did a trip to the Postojna caves and Predjama castle. Slovenia has an incredible cave system created over millions of years by underground rivers. The photos I took just don’t do it justice. Slovenia is worth visiting just for the caves and Lake Bled alone!

Predjama castle




Postojna caves. The tour starts with a 15 minute train ride in to the bowels of the cave.

 

[Scash]

Ljubljana has a bit of weird/eclectic thing going on.



The towns oldest pub, although it only opened in 1992! Enlarge the Did You Know part to read about it. Had a pint there just because



This is a water fountain but not sure what a kangaroo has to do with the town

 

[RB]

Skippy and the Green Dragons of Ljubljana

 

[Scash]

Skippy and the Green Dragons of Ljubljana

That’s a cool story. I hope you don’t mind me resharing it. Where did you get it from?

I did google it to find a story but nothing like this came up.

 

[RB]

That’s a cool story. I hope you don’t mind me resharing it. Where did you get it from?

I did google it to find a story but nothing like this came up.

Just did a google search & scrolled through until I got a story. Long time since we were there, did you try the horse meat? Share away

 

[Cossie]

The next morning we headed to Sofia with a stop at the small village of Arbanasi. The village is an architectural reserve known for its 17th and 18th century Bulgarian National Revival architecture and a lot of the town has been preserved or recreated. During the 17th century it was a prominent settlement and a major trading hub.

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Squat toilet
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Not sure make or model of car but guess it’s not 17th century . It has been well cared for.

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And just because I thought they looked cute.

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@Scash. Snap. It is a Soviet car, Volga, GAZ Volga - Wikipedia