There are people talking around me... No clue to what they are saying... apparently it's English. So I think it is time to catch up on recording important memoirs.
Across the water we had been to the Greek Island of Myoknos!! 3 sweet nights, relaxing by the pool, being at the beach and riding a quad bike. Checking out the windmills, little Venice and getting lost, exploring random bays!
Further north in Greece we visited Meteora. Monasteries upon pinnacles! Such a magic place. It was in this moment I wished I was a BASE jumping wing suit pilot. I wanted to fly through the pinnacles!
Two big drive days in a row from Meteora, Greece to Tirana Albania and from Tirana to Dubrovnik, Croatia (via Montenegro). These are made longer with hold ups at the borders.
I have had the pleasure of taking literally 100s of people around Europe over the last couple of years now. It is one of the most satisfying things I have ever done - taking people on the holiday of their lifetimes, something they have saved so hard for and been counting the months and days until it started. Seeing them be excited and discover new things just like I did.
I just completed the biggest trip I have led in my time with Topdeck travel, 36 days around continental Europe. It was amazing to say the least. Happy happy.
Within this trip I went a little bit further east than the usual path that I'm used to. I got to explore more of Greece and more of the Balkans and go back to one of my favourite cities, Budapest, the capital of Hungary.
I have always wanted to go to Athens since I was a child, back when I wanted to be an archeologist... Yip, for a wee time that was my career of choice. To discover the ruins of Ancient Greece! I thought that would be fabulous.... Marry a Greek Demi god?!... Although from what I have seen ladies, there are no more Demi gods in Greece! Just going to put it out there.... Possible myth?!
I made it to Athens! I was so excited to climb the acropolis and look out across the city.
Riding that quad bike around was definitely up there with one of my happiest days! It also included one of my scariest moments...when we encountered such a steep hill I was hesitant to go down.... Alas we committed and on our way we went. The view was STUNNING, I can't describe it and even if I'd thought to take a picture in my moment of terror, it would not have done the beauty justice. A steep hill side of Mykonos dotted with blue and white buildings plummeting towards the sparkling blue sea which stretched out endlessly only reaching the clear wide endless sky with a golden ball burning high.
Two emotions at play as we move down this hill 1. In awe of the beauty in front and below me and 2. Fighting my vision of seeing this quad bike flip us forward turning this from picturesque to grotesque.
I live to tell the tail but I tell you what... Relief was not had by the bottom when we realised there was no way out but back up that hill! Is this even going to be possible?! These quads were good but not so sure there was enough power to conquer this mountain... Luckily I had been training a bit lately to strengthen them... And as for the quad bike, much the same, gutless really. Especially with the two of us on board. Well all we could do was try... I opted not to be driver, letting my friend take control (as he had half way down the hill when I panicked). He is a driver of a massive coach after all, this quad would be easy right?
Allowing as much of a run up as we could before we attempted our ascent we kept moving forward up this hill... Until halfway... Until the quad bike stopped moving forward anymore... Yip, what I had feared. This baby wasn't going any further. Thankfully we did not go backwards in any way, shape or form. We managed to safely get off and push the bike to a flattened driveway entrance from where my friend restarted the attempt to get the bike up the rest of the hill while I ran behind working out my own two quads. Whilst this occurred a few others on quad bikes were coming down the hill looking skeptical of their choice when they saw our events occur. Fun times. The stories your parents like to hear you have survived.
We encountered large ques at all of them but we made it eventually. The police at the borders can be quite rude sometimes and search the coach for alcohol or some sort of beverage to take for themselves but the Albanian police before entering Montenegro was more than friendly, even wrote down his number incase I had any troubles when I came through next time and needed to call him... Below this work number were a few more digits with 'personal' written beside it... Interesting.
The customs man on the Montenegro side was also friendly, I didn't think so at first, when I went to get the drivers document stamped he asked me to sit down because he had a few questions. This had never happened before. I quickly realised there was no real problem when the questions started to flow -
How old are you? Where are you from? Do you like wine? Would you like to try wine from Montenegro? Are you staying in Montenegro? When will you be back in Montenegro? Trying to be friendly despite my zero percent interest in order to keep this border check smooth. I was quite glad when I saw my drivers head pop into the office to see if we were all good to go as this ended the conversation and we were on our way!
Dubrovnik was another massive highlight of this trip as we hired a jet ski for the entire day and oh my word was that fun.
Zooming along the sparkling waters of the Adriatic Sea and around the rocky cliffs and islands of the Dalmatian Coastline was invigorating! Felt like a dolphin dancing through the sea's surface. Passing by the city wall surrounding the old town of Dubrovnik. Ten am til six pm tearing up the waters with a few rest stops along the way - amazing! Sore muscles and even a small part on my thumb rubbed raw. Fell asleep as soon as I got back to my room, woke up about 10pm looking for dinner.
On to the beautiful Bosnia and Serbia still scarred with visable wounds from the Balkan wars. Bullet holes decorating the buildings, some bombed out and abandoned. We stopped for lunch in the gorgeous town of Mostar, famous for its bridge. Built by the Turks in the Middle Ages, home and the spot of the oldest diving competion in the world, going for around 500 years until the bridge was destroyed in one hit during the Balkan wars of the early 90s. It was rebuilt and the competion has resumed in July every year since 2004. You can pay to do the 21m jump yourself or watch the locals do it! I'll jump out of a plane any day but that is one thing I would not be brave enough to do.
We arrive in Sarajevo for the evening and we walk to the Latin bridge where the assisination of Franz Ferdinand and his wife occurred 100 years prior on the 28 June 1914. I found it airy standing in the spot of an event I have studied so much about which was the trigger that set off the fall of those standing dominoes leading to the beginning of the Great War.
We then wander into the old town and it reminds me of a mini Istanbul with the markets and strong Turkish influence. It is crazy seeing the blend of culture and religion in the one city, mosques and cathedrals, an area you can drink alcohol and the Muslim area where you cannot.
Driving down the main street (home to the first electric tram system in Europe) of Sarajevo, is itself an eye opener. Buildings with bullet holes or the visble patch work where bullet holes were, nicknamed sniper ally after all the snipers that had been positioned on the rooftops shooting at locals as they attempted to go about their business during the siege of Sarajevo in the beginning of the 90s. Standing in Sarajevo and looking up to the surrounding hills was daunting as I thought about the Serbian tanks that were positioned on the outskirts aiming into the city. I can't really comprehend this reality. To be walking to work in the morning with the real possibility of being shot at! I went for a run the morning and passed by a girl about my age and thought how different our childhood realities were... While I was playing in the sandpit, sucking lollipops and picking my nose, here she was living in nothing short of a nightmare! An overwhelming sense of gratitude and a feeling of being so blessed filled me.
So many stories and adventures, I wish I could record them all, if I can at least capture some, I can read and remind myself when I'm old and grey... Of course I'll be that crazy old lady still up to shenanigans and writing memoirs but just in case I feel the urge to reflect on 'the good old days'.... :)
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