Escape to the quiet side of the Balkans, a side comparable to the alps. Staying in the Valbonë Valley in northeast Albania you are surrounded by mountains towering over a kilometre in height. Outside of the peak season it makes for an amazingly quiet and untouched part of the world....
Undecided, I assumed I would take a bus to Tirana, the Albanian capital. I had ended up at Shköder for a few nights. The homestay owner there decided for me, I’d head up to ValbonĂ« on the Lake Koman Ferry. Frequently described as the most beautiful ferry ride in all of Europe, the...
Sarajevo holds a lot to see with history just emanating from everything, you can just explore around the city that at times is like a living museum. So you have high hopes for the national museum. But like so much in this part of the world, politics and old divisions hold things down. I was told...
I spent the last couple rainy days in Mostar, a major city in the south of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The city although physically divided by its river has seen its sides change dynamically in history. The city is probably best known for two things: the old bridge the spans high above the river, stemming from the Ottoman empire which...
After many years of missing out I finally got to ride the LAN tag flight from Madrid to Frankfurt. Previously operated by the A340 aircraft, the route now offers their latest product on the 787 Dreamliner. This flight starts in Santiago, flying to Madrid before continuing to Frankfurt. By joining at Madrid, this called...
Just flew Finnair between Singapore and Helsinki on their older but good A340 business class product. Fully flat beds, individual aisle access and some Nordic colours goes a long way toward making a comfortable 12 hour flight onto Europe. I eventually got to fly after postponing the flight a few...
Somewhat luckily we were in Indonesia for the Solar Eclipse in March 2016. Unlucky in that we had nearly travelled further north and would have been better placed to witness it but the Gili Islands provided a rather unique viewing of it.
Transiting through Hong Kong from Bangkok all on a last minute whim. I would be going to New Zealand overnight on Cathay Pacific’s flagship business class product on the Boeing 777-300ER. The flight time is a surprisingly long 12 hours down to Auckland. A long overnight flight with this product...
After a six month absence it was the right time to finally return to Utrecht. Many people I knew left long ago and the feelings were mixed. The city itself is a wonderful place but the university structure… best forgotten. If anything it is sad, sad to have left too early,...
The sad truth is I havenât been travelling for some time and wonât be for the next few years as I undertake a PhD back in Australia. The microblog is collecting dust and this blog is now looking worst for wear. But it is hard to avoid needing to go...
I was going to vote in Wien, but this has decided it. Now I can go exercise my legally enforced* right to vote in Den Haag for one of various shitty candidates including this guy. *technically I’m exempt from Australia’s mandatory voting, but hey I still feel coerced…
I needed a place to stay in Vienna this weekend. I was holding a reservation at the Le Meridien but after a Suite Night Award award didn’t get processed I thought better of it and cancelled just before cancellation deadline. I ended up not too far away and a relatively affordable...
After spending a good day just resting and writing a hotel it was high time to get out and see some of Bratislava. It is quite a small capital with easy transport links, while you can get around the central tourist attractions on foot. I worked my way through the...
I’m currently laying low in the DoubleTree at Bratislava. It’s a bit out of town but given it’s a category 2, it provides cheap award redemptions and gives me a chance to catch up on some writing (this blog!). The hotel is otherwise modern albeit rather small and focused particularly...
The capitals of Austria and Slovakia are extremely close geographically and often in history been part of the same nation or empire. Today a quick commuter train service connects the two cities. People often choose to live one side and work the other to take advantage of the lower cost...
After all my fuss and avoidance in getting a new passport I spent today back in Vienna after returning yesterday. Off for a renewal application with a pile of cash and getting the photo taken. Given it is a huge sum of money compared to any other country and mine only had...
I trying to figure out if I should go Budapest now or later while Julia was planning on going to a rock music festival with a friend. Neither of them wanted to go, her friend pulled out, exhausted after a fun run that morning. She felt obligated to go however as it was an old...
How to end up in the wrong country on the wrong day and find yourself surrounded by white supremacists.
Let’s be honest, I didn’t actually go into this lounge. Although if I had complementary access I would still would have been weary.
Having given up entering Serbia for now, I decided to just fly over the fucking country the long way. Getting down to Skopje for a flight was meant to be routine but political protests in the Macedonian capital helped add some life to the day.
I spent the day exploring Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. I arrived here last night after deciding to leave Prizren but too late to head much further than the capital. Unlike Prizren this is definitely a city, not a town. It is characteristically cosmopolitan in a surprising sense. However underneath...
During my brief stay in Pristina I visited the Ethnographic Museum. It’s small â just a couple old houses, but tries to give a glimpse into the local culture and family unit prior to global influences arrived. It’s hidden in the back streets but not far from other major sights and...
Transport around and between the border of Albania and Kosovo is difficult. There are very limited public transport, nearly all of it is not properly scheduled, making it hard to plan. Even the freedom of your own vehicle can have complications with insurance. I got stranded twice in two days, once on a quick trip to Bajram...
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