The Pearl of the Baltics

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We decided to catch a flight from Belgrade to Ohrid to both save time and border problems between Serbia and Kosovo. What I didn’t realise was that the plane was so small it had propellers, this may sound ridiculous but I am terrified of flying and the smaller the plane is, the more it moves around in the air and the more my irrational fear shows its pretty face.

The flight ended up ok…I only left Mikaela with minor bruising on her legs. Lake Ohrid it turns out has an airport so small it does not have an ATM so our first problem was that we couldn’t get any money out for a taxi. The second problem was that in our laziness of travel lately we decided not to write any directions down in the local language or even English assuming that either there would be Wi-Fi at the airport, the driver could speak some English or that the driver would just know every hostel in Ohrid. All of these assumptions were wrong and the drivers were also overcharging us by about $10 for the taxi trip that should cost $5. In my stubbornness not to pay anything overpriced in such a small drive refused to get in anyone’s taxi until I found someone who would take us for the ‘right’ price. We did find that person luckily after some stern bartering from me using both English and Georgian, neither or which anyone could understand.

The main reason for us to go to Ohrid and skip the capital was of course the famous Lake Ohrid, the most beautiful lake in the Balkans! Well it didn’t disappoint, it is one of the most beautiful places that we have been to and definitely takes your breath away when you see it for the first time. Our hostel was located a 30 meter walk from the lake and only 50 meters from the main square which was amazing. The lake itself is nestled between mountains that are up to 2800 meters high, with the old town leading up those mountains from right on the bank.

We walked around the old town which is small but very nice to walk through as its winding cobblestone roads go up the hill and end at the fortress where you can get a magnificent view of the lake and main city from. On your way up we walked past many old churches and also St Sophia Monastery which is located on the edge of a cliff and which is nice to look at even if the reconstructions are a bit too modern looking. We also had a look at the Antique theatre left from Greek times which was impressive considering the size of Ohrid through the ages. At night this little lake side city really comes alive, with people shopping and walking along the lake esplanade. We ate dinner most nights for under four dollars right on the lake shore which was beautifully lit by the cities lights.

We spent the whole of our second and most of our third day laying on the pebbled beach reading, swimming and having a few beers, the weather was nice and we did exactly what we wanted to do, Relax!

After this our next job was to make our way to the bus station in Struga to catch our next bus to Tirana, this was a lot more of a problem then we thought it would be, more about that in our next blog!

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Comments

[Alex]

Arguing in Georgian is always the best way to deal with any situation. Give 'em an "ar minda" and they know where it's at!