France has been (easily) displaced from the top of my list for europe's most beautiful country.
I'm sitting in a computer shop in montenegro using dial-up(!) internet, so I can't get any pictures of what I saw up yet, but suffice to say southern Bosnia and Northern Montenegro was one of the most spectacular areas I have ever visted - to bike through it was truly the oportunity of a lifetime.
In Bosnia, picture the landscape of BC with desiduous forests (just beginning to change colour) of eastern canada. Massive valleys and rock faces, coated in green and gold trees. As I crossed into montenegro, things got rockier, a little barer, and the mountains rawer - I would liken it to the pyrenees a little, or the canadian sheild on steroids. I chowed down on about 100 km each of the two days it took me to get to Niksic (using american keyboards - funny accents missing), and the second day was a real leg-buster. Climbing all day long, and when not climbing battling headwinds. Next tour I am bringing a bike computer with an altimeter so I know just how many vertical meters I ate - I suspect it was a lot yesterday.
Niksic is your typical country town, one main street that the locals walk up and down and up and down all saturday night. I got drunk with some Montenegran kids who thought I was quite the novelty and fed me free drinks all evening. I've been ordering food having no idea what it is (its either written in cyrillic or is just some crazy word I don't recognize) and I can't seem to explain to anyone that I want to buy a map, and could they please tell me where I could do so. In Spain and Italy, I thought I didn't know the language and had trouble communicating. My experince here makes me feel like I am fluent in both of those languages (indeed, I find myself accidentally reverting to some wierd mixture of the two when I try to communicate). Now I REALLY dont know the language.
I still have both legs after bosnia, and plan to make my way to the sea before entering Albania. That is, assuming I can find a map!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Former Yugo's gorgeous. Stanka, my Montenegran friend, always raved about the beauty of her homeland - glad you're seeing it first hand. Loved the photos from Italy to Croatia, not to mention the tales. So glad you met your pal. Even gladder you skipped the mine fields. R U cycling thru Albania into Greece, or taking a ferry? Any way we can forward a letter or TINY parcel... American Express Athens?
LuvDad
I have been researching our trip to Montenegro next summer. We will be staying in the summer pastures and a eco friendly lodge called Vila Jelka.
I ran across your blog and thought I'd offer you the phrase for map.
It is "plan okolice", pronounced - "plan ok-ol-eetseh"
You will most likely find one (if one exists) in a tobacco store.
haha I figured out who the song is By. it is Cypress Hill.
Rock supertstar!
Good luck
midnightmiles.blogspot.com is very informative. The article is very professionally written. I enjoy reading midnightmiles.blogspot.com every day.
fast loans
payday advance
Post a Comment