Kotor Ferry
The ferry crosses a narrow neck of the Boka Kotor making the drive from Budva to Dubrovnik about an hour faster. Continue reading Kotor Ferry
Category: Balkans
Skala Kotor
This is the road from Kotor to Cetinje. Someone once asked the Prince-Bishop Njegos Petrovic how long it took to travel from Kotor (then part of Venice) to Cetinje, the capital of independent Montenegro. He said “For a friend, about 6 … Continue reading Skala Kotor
Nikšić and the Ostrog Monestary
Kotor
Kotor is a World Heritage Site. It is a walled city that had been part of the Venetian Republic, and then part of Austria until the end of the First World War when it became part of Yugoslavia, and then … Continue reading Kotor
Sveti Stefan
Sveti Stefan used to be a village. Under Tito it became an exclusive hotel hosting the likes of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, Princess Margaret and Robert McNamara. We first visited in 1972. We were allowed to wander the … Continue reading Sveti Stefan
Podgorica
We lived in Podgorica for a year from Autumn 1999 to Autumn 2000. It was a pleasant enough town but the best part was living an hour from the coast and an hour from the mountains. Continue reading Podgorica
Montenegro
We first visited Montenegro in 1972. It turned we visited during the last small pox epidemic in Europe. We, and our rental car, were commandeered by the Public Health service to drive vaccine to a remote village in the lake … Continue reading Montenegro
Shulyman Mosque and New Mosque, Istanbul
Topkapi Palace, Istanbul
Topkapi Palace was “headquarters” for the Balkans for several centuries. The “Sublime Porte.” Much of our work in the Balkans was dealing with the remains to three empires, The Ottoman, the Hapsburg and the Evil. Continue reading Topkapi Palace, Istanbul
Blue Mosque, Istanbul.
Istanbul Markets
These pictures are from markets in Istanbul, including the Grand Bazaar. Continue reading Istanbul Markets
Istanbul, Hagia Sophia
The first time I saw the Hagia Sophia in was in 1994. Sixteen years later I returned to Hagia Sophia and was amazed at the restoration of the mosaics that had been covered from its days as a mosque. Continue reading Istanbul, Hagia Sophia
Istanbul, 2010
This is a letter I wrote during a trip to Istanbul from Belgrade, where we lived. The Pictures are street scenes from Istanbul. There are other posts that feature the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Markets, the Topkapi Palace, and Shulyman Mosque … Continue reading Istanbul, 2010
Korcula, Croatia
On Saturday we took a daytrip to Marko Polo’s birth town, Korcula. We went through Korcula on a ferry in 1997 and have wanted to explore it ever since. Korcula is a very small walled city of gothic construction with renaissance flourishes, built on a rocky spit of land at the end of an island. The spit is less than 1000 feet across. The town is laid out to take advantage of the prevailing winds. The summer “maistral” winds come from the west and the streets climbing from the west wall to the centerline are strait to allow the wind … Continue reading Korcula, Croatia
Kosovo, June 1999
In June, 1999, about a week after NATO took control of Kosovo Suzi and I visited Prishtina for the first time. For the next two years we would be regular commuters into Kosovo, based either in Podgorica or Belgrade but managing a media program in Kosovo as well as for Serbia. Dear Friends, It was 4:22. The muezzin’s morning call to prayer drifted through the apartment window with a warm spring breeze. “God is great, prayer is better than sleep.” This time I didn’t sigh my own Christian prayer and drift back to sleep. I had an early appointment. … Continue reading Kosovo, June 1999