Last leg of my trip was in Pristina Kosovo for three nights. I had last come in my first big Balkan trip in 2013. Originally I had planned to start in Kosovo but the bus connections to Montenegro were not good due to the mountains so I had to plan my itinerary to end here.
Leaving the apartment first I wanted to walk to get to the old town about 1.5 km north. This takes me past the burnt Orthodox Church one of the landmarks for visitors. Not sure when or why this was destroyed, maybe the 1990s conflicts. Nor has any attempt been made to restore it since my last visit.
In the old town the National Museum was closed for repair work. But looking at my blog apparently I had come here in 2013 [see blog entry for museum pictures -http://v2.travelark.org/travel-blog-entry/londone7/27/1381099141]
In the old town the main Mosque has been restored with money from the Turkish Government. Looking at my pics I did not come here in 2013 as that was prior to the restoration
It has very rich colours and unlike Bosnian Mosques the doors are not kept locked until prayer timers so anyone can enter to observe. There were visitors from Turkey
Across was the Clock Tower and more historic buildings. Opposite was another restored Mosque that I had visited in 2013 from my pictures
Again the doors are not locked like in Bosnia so anyone can come in and admire the artwork
Nearby was a bakery and I was surprised how cheap the food was under 1 Euro. I could not find the old Orthodox Churches on my map and didnt want to wander thru all the winding side streets getting lost
I now wanted to make my way to the long pedestrian street that cuts thru the centre. I remember it well as on my first arrival in 2013 I couldnt find any restaurants and walked up and down this street until I found a pizza restaurant
This is the central meeting place to see all the locals. There was a group of Albanian elders in their traditional caps
The pedestrian zone will end at the new Nene Teresa Cathedral at the south end by my apartment. Dont recall if this was here in 2013.
To get to the Newborn Monument you have to go to another street running parallel to the pedestrian one. It has been rebuilt several times since its unveiling when Kosovo became independent about 20 years as it has been graffitied so many times
There are new shops in front of the Communist building behind which housed an American English school where I just walked in and spoke to the Principal about a teaching job in 2013.
I tried to ask waiting cab drivers how much to the Gracanica Serbian Monastery outside town but he first wanted 30 Euros then dropped to 20 Euros when I walked away. I read online it is only about 8 Euros fare or you can try local buses.
Food was very cheap. I stocked up in a supermarket for 3.80 Euros and got a sandwich from the place that had helped call my apartment for only 0.70 cents. Its not really a tourist town and you can walk end to end and see everything in the city centre in 2 hours
See also Vlog of Kosovo [Pristina - Decani - Peja - Gracanica - Gjakove - Prizren](36 mins) - https://youtu.be/hgjHvoR_7KQ
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2025-05-22