Liechtenstein + Switzerland

October 25, 2023Leave a comment

Warning: this is going to be a photo heavy post because these countries were so dang beautiful!

CITY: Vaduz

HOW LONG: 1 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at the only hostel in Liechtenstein: Schaan-Vaduz Youth Hostel. True to its name, it’s in between Schaan & Vaduz (which is the capital of Liechtenstein). Not true to its name, it’s not really a youth hostel as there were plenty of families. But beggars can’t be choosers, and this is a great affordable option in a very expensive country. Fun fact, Liechtenstein has the highest per capita GDP in the world. Great free breakfast & parking was available for $10 Swiss Francs. Facilities were fairly modern & bathrooms were nice. Huge dining hall like area with tons of seating.

Where to eat:

The standout meal was at Hotel Turna Malbun, where I tried Spaetzle Pfanne. Basically it’s eggnoodles with ham, bacon, onion and cheese aka obviously I loved it. It was huge so I saved half for dinner!

What to do:

Liechtenstein is tiny. Literally the 6th smallest country in the world! This means it’s very easy to see almost everything in one day, but I was happy to have 2 days to run around. Even though I knew it was small going into the trip, I still was blown away by how small it was haha. Despite its small size, I was very glad to heave a car because it made it so easy to move freely around the country at my leisure. Here are the villages I saw & what I did in each:

Also this blog post was incredibly helpful in planning my time here!

Vaduz – the capital. I took a ride on the City train, a cute little tourist train looking open air bus that took us on an hour tour around the city. We got to see the famous Rote House (Red House) & the Vaduz Castle where the prince currently lives. I got a tourist passport stamp on my Liechtenstein postcard (since I didn’t want to risk messing with my actual passport).

Triesenberg – My favorite part was honestly driving up to this village. The views are stunning as you zig zag up the mountain. Not much to do here but I walked around for 10 min (haha all the villages are tiny!).

Malbun – this was my favorite spot. Felt like I was in the Swiss Alps. Very picturesque. I had a yummy lunch (see above) and then took the chairlift up to the peak and did the hour long hike back down to the base. It was gorgeous & I got to catch up with a friend on my way down.

Stause Steg – I explored less of the village and more just went for a walk up the river flowing through here. I also had my monthly call with my friend/mentor! Pretty great spot for a FaceTime.

Balzers – Visited the castle. Great views of the whole town from there.

The hike I did on my second day here was Fürstensteig. Beautiful views were at one point you could see Austria, Switzerland & Liechtenstein! It’s about 6km and takes around 2-3 hrs. There are some parts that have a sheer drop off so I wouldn’t recommend it if you have a fear of heights.

Overall Thoughts:

I knew going into Liechtenstein that it was small, but I don’t think you can really comprehend it until you actually are here. It is comically small, but dang is it beautiful. To be fair, you basically feel like you are in Switzerland. If I didn’t tell you we had crossed the border, you wouldn’t know you were in a completely different country. It’s super beautiful, has dramatic views from the mountains, and is incredibly clean. Not tons of tourists, but there are definitely some. English was widely spoken and it’s easy to get around in your rental car or by bus. While I wouldn’t say it’s worth a visit coming allllll the way from the US, it’s certainly worth a visit if you are in the region!

CITY: Brienz

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at this incredible Airbnb. It truly was spectacular. I was there solo so obviously just needed a room, not a whole airbnb (& as we know Switzerland is expensive, so even just a room with a single bed wasn’t cheap). I wanted to be near the hikes/towns I wanted to go to + I had a car so decided against staying at a hostel in Lucerne (even though that was my original plan). I am SO glad I pivoted. This airbnb was so incredibly charming & had wonderful views of rolling green fields with cows on one side and stunning view of the lake on the other. Can’t beat it. It felt very authentic.

Where to eat:

I mostly bought groceries since this country is so expensive, but when I was in Grindelwald, the waitress accidentally thought I was with the couple ahead of me in line and asked “table for 3?” The couple chuckled and said “no, just two” before turning to me to stay “unless you want to join?” I don’t think they realized that I would enthusiastically take them up on their offer, since we all know I love meeting new people! I quickly found out that they were from Buffalo, NY and had just arrived fresh off the plane from the US. Lunch was their first stop… and, oh by the way, it’s their honeymoon. I quickly laughed while apologizing for crashing their first honeymoon activity. Luckily they said they appreciated the warm welcome as it was their first time leaving the US. They said it helped ease the culture shock. We admired the beautiful views from Bebbis and ordered our lunch. As a treat, I suggested some chocolate fondue for dessert. They happily agreed. I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant for the food, but for a drink with a great view I can endorse it. Anyway, it was so fun chatting with them. I hope to cross paths with them again!

What to do:

Oh boy. SO much. The two main activities I focused on were visiting cute, quaint towns & hiking in the incredible nature so here’s a list.

Towns to visit:

Grindelwald – probably the most quaint village of them all. Expensive, but a no brainer to visit.
Lauterbrunnen- very cute & small. Start here to then visit Gimmelwald & Murren.
Gimmelwald & Murren- both are located way up in the mountains. You take a gondola ride up to Gimmelwald and then take another one up to Murren. Highly recommend going all the way up to Murren and then do a 30 min walk down to Gimmelwald. From there, you can take the gondola back down to base. You get unbelievable views of the valley and it’s just wild to be so high up in the cliffs.
Interlaken- located between two lakes (hence the name 😉 ), a nice sized town amongst all the tiny villages. A bustling downtown with lots of shops & restaurants. Worth a stroll & a meal.

Hikes:

My favorite hike was one my friend recommended (shoutout to Joe). Don’t miss the ~5 mile loop around Oeschinen Lake. Here’s an in depth description of the hike itself. It has unbelievable views, a well-marked path, a lake with the bluest water, and a small hut with snacks half way through- what more could you want! One watch out: there were plenty of people in October, so I am sure it’s way more packed in July/August. Also, definitely take the gondola from Kandersteg up to the trailhead. You’ll get plenty of exercise with just the 5 mile hike.

First sight of the lake – water is insane

The other hike I did was on my way from Liechtenstein to Brienz. Seealpsee is one of the most beautiful little lakes and is located in the Alpstein region of Appenzell. It was about 90 min to get there & back. I can’t stress how idyllic it was. Once you arrive (be prepared for some uphill hiking), there is a little restaurant with a gorgeous outdoor deck & you can rent row boats. Alternatively, if you have time, you can make a loop around the lake.

I didn’t have time, but Joe also recommended this hike. It’s a challenging 6km point to point hike near Grindelwald.

Overall Thoughts:

Holy moly I forgot how much I love Switzerland. I felt at peace. I felt like I could breathe. I felt content. I felt full. I know it’s expensive, but I think it’s worth every penny. I can’t wait to go back with a more thought out plan + with more time. I don’t think you could run out of things to do (aka hikes to do) even if you spent a lifetime here. It’s magical.

BUDGET FOR 4 DAYS IN Liechtenstein + Switzerland:

Accommodation: $387 ($97 per night) Yep – let me repeat this region is PRICY, but also I stayed in a private room in an Airbnb for 3 nights, which drove up the cost.

Food: $142

Groceries: $37

Activities: $80

Local Transportation: $541 – rental car + gas (turns out it is not a good idea to wait until the last minute to rent a car – lesson learned haha)

Total: $1200 (Daily average: $300)

Transportation to next destination: $105 (Flight to London)

Walking Retreat + Bordeaux

October 11, 2023October 11, 20231 Comment

This blog will be slightly different as the large chunk of my time was at a walking & intermittent fasting retreat!

I needed to kill 6 days between visiting Abi in Sheffield and heading to Surrey for Bex’s wedding so I chose to invest in myself a bit (since I’m feeling a little burnt out) by heading to a retreat in the South of France. Here’s the link in case anyone is curious!

I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I really enjoyed it. My goal was two fold: get a taste of walking the Camino to see whether it’s something I’d want to do in its entirety in the future & try to get a better handle of my eating habits while traveling. I always struggle with my weight/eating habits while traveling (annoyingly).

The retreat delivered on both goals! I spent three days on the Camino, each day walking a different section. The first day I walked 8 miles from Eauze to Manciet. The second day was 9 miles from Manciet to Nogaro. The third day was a doozy – 19 miles from Nogaro to Aire-sur-l’Adour!! It was so grounding, calming, & refreshing to just walk for miles on end amidst all the vineyards. I enjoyed chatting with fellow Camino walkers as well. It definitely confirmed that it’s something I want to do in the future! Now just to find the time haha

I had never tried intermittent fasting before but the host explained it as basically giving our bodies time to process the food we eat & cleanse itself. When we are eating all day long, our bodies are just tirelessly trying to keep up with everything. I am no means an expert but that resonated with me. She had me start with 8 hours eating window with a 16 hour fast. I chose to eat between 11-7pm, but she said as life happens, you can always move this window around. For example, at the wedding (knowing there would be food later on and I’d be tempted to eat it), I ate between 1-9pm. I really like that it’s both structured but also flexible. I’m good at following rules, so if the rule is to stop eating after my window closes, I so far have been successful at doing so. Anyway, I’m going to try to keep this up as I continue to travel as I think this is going to work better for me than other strategies.

Lastly, the retreat had 6 horses (3 beautiful black horse & 3 miniature horses). The one other person at the retreat was actually there for a horse meditation retreat (the host also offers this program). Because there were only two of us, we each learned about the other’s retreat. I did some horse meditation and he did some intermittent fasting – a win win. Always fun to try new things!

On to the actual touristy bit: I had to rent a car to get to the retreat, which I was a bit anxious for but it ended up being awesome! After the retreat ended I booked an airbnb in Bordeaux for 2 nights. I used the journey from the retreat to Bordeaux to visit a bunch of spots along the way. There’s no way if I didn’t have the rental car that I could’ve done this.

The drive itself was a treat, just slowly meandering through small towns and hundreds of vineyards. My first destination was Arcachon. I strolled along the beach and bought a sandwich for dinner later.

Next I headed to Chateau de la Brede. Just a gorgeous property and I enjoyed walking around the whole spread. Crazy to think what life would’ve been like here in it’s hey day.

Lastly, I raced to Saint Émilion. Known as a very cute little town outside of Bordeaux, it was perfect for sitting on a bench and enjoying my sandwich while the sun set. Highly recommend a stop here if you are ever in Bordeaux. It’s a fabulous day trip!

Bordeaux itself just felt so French! As my retreat host said “it’s my favorite city in the world, it’s like how Paris was 20 years ago” Architecture was beautiful and the city felt quite clean. Lots of beautiful streets to walk around.

I did a walking tour as an efficient way to learn about the city since I only had one day here. After a girl I met on the tour and I headed to lunch at Nom d’Une Crepe, since I couldn’t go to France without having a crepe!

I also treated myself to cookie dough from Be my cookie and a cookie from Pepite cookie 😝

Overall I really enjoyed my stay in France (as always)! Fun to explore a region I hadn’t been to before in a way I haven’t done before (a retreat). As I continue to travel and inevitably get burnt out, nice to have another option for mixing it up. I might have to do more retreats in the future 🙂

Northern Ireland

October 6, 2023Leave a comment

CITY: Belfast

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Global Village, which was a fabulous hostel! Beds were comfy, had personal usb charging for your phone & a little shelf to put your stuff. Lockers under the bed fit both my backpacks for safekeeping. Also, they had a decent free breakfast of cereal & toast. Kitchen facilities were decent and the two common areas were spacious & cozy. Easy to meet people! I also met the owner who was very kind & even graciously refunded me a night when I last minute decent to go to Derry for a night with Ashleigh, an Aussie gal I met on the walking tour. The only slight downside is that it’s about a 20 min walk to the center of Belfast, but it’s an easy walk or bus ride. 9.5/10 would recommend this place!!

Where to eat:

I don’t have a ton of recommendations for sadly. I wasn’t overly impressed with the food in Northern Ireland sorry to say.

I tried JuiceJar and was pretty disappointed with the smoothie bowl. It was very icy and bland.

Ashleigh & I went to a few pubs while traveling together but nothing notable.

What to do:

The walking tour proved to be very pivotal to my time in Northern Ireland as I met Ashleigh, who ended up being my partner in crime most of the time while I was visiting. She showed up to the walking tour with very cute blonde curly hair so I went over and quickly complimented her & asked what her routine was like! We became fast friends during the tour and after we decided to go to lunch together. Then she invited me to join her to the Titanic museum. Then she suggested I join her in the rental car for the next 2 days to explore the countryside with an overnight in Derry. I decided to skip the tour I had booked and forego my night in the hostel (although I ended up getting that refunded) and said “heck yes.” I truly love being about to meet people and then changing plans to follow them on new adventures!

Okay now for what we did:

Titanic Museum – Firmly okay. We felt like we didn’t learn much in the first half of the tour, although the second half was better. It seemed to be more about the building of the ship, when obviously we wanted to understand more about why it sank.

Dark Hedges– Made famous from Game of Thrones! Northern Ireland played a big role in the filming of HBO’s Game of Thrones, with over 25 filming locations. Pretty stunning in real life!

Kinbane Castle – Fairly rundown but in a beautiful spot. Gorgeous walk to get to this lesser known castle and we didn’t run into a single other tourist!

Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge – One of the most photographed spots in Northern Ireland! It is thought salmon fishermen have been building bridges to the island for over 350 years. It has taken many forms over the years, but the current one was built in 2008. In 2018, the bridge had over 485k visitors.

Giants Causeway – This is what I was most excited to see! Pretty wild natural phenomenon. Almost 60 million years ago the Giants Causeway was formed, and this series of basalt rock columns is Northern Ireland’s only UNESCO world heritage site. Definitely a highlight, but it POURED rain on us on our walk back to the car, which was less fun.

We stay overnight in Derry at Ashleigh’s hotel, but sadly given our big day, we were too tired to do anything once we arrived except get dinner. Both of us were let down by the restaurant so just headed back to the hotel to watch the first episode of the last season of Sex Education, which had just been released. We had a great night’s sleep before getting up early to head back to Belfast since Ashleigh has a wedding to get to!

Overall thoughts:

I ended up having a blast, but if I hadn’t met Ashleigh, who knows if I would be saying the same thing. I’m always saying, traveling is all about who you meet!!! Also we were dying laughing half the time trying to guess if the people around us were speaking English or another language. Ashleigh even asked a few people and each time they laughed and said “of course we are speaking English.” Holy Moly is the Northern Irish accent hard to understand haha

BUDGET FOR 4 DAYS IN Northern Ireland:

Accommodation: $86 ($28.66 per night) – Ended up getting one free night since I stayed with Ashleigh in her hotel in Derry.

Food: $67

Groceries: $0 (ate out + free breakfast at the hostel/hotel)

Activities: $119 (paid for a tour I ended up skipping to explore with Ashleigh + all the entrance fees + Titanic Museum)

Local Transportation: $86.70 (higher than normal due to the rental car)

Total: $359.7 (Daily average: $90)

Transportation to next destination: $201 (Connecting flight to France)- Bought last minute 😦 * Update – because the first flight ended up getting cancelled, I got $275 in compensation – yay EU flight compensation rules! This means I ended up $75 richer from the whole ordeal – and I still made it to France 🙂

Latvia

October 1, 2023May 17, 2024Leave a comment

CITY: Riga

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Cinnamon Sally’s hostel. Overall this is a fabulous hostel, but there was one major downside. First the good:

Super social & easy to meet people; organized social activities for the guests almost every day
Location was great – near the bus & train station, and only 10-15 min from Old Town. Grocery store across the street!
Bed was comfy, rooms were not cramped, & there were large lockers for your stuff.
Free breakfast that includes yummy fresh waffles! There were tons of toppings/spreads as well including my favorite: peanut butter!
A few different spots to sit with a computer and work or just chill & meet people.
Lots of volunteers & folks working so it was easy to get any questions answered.

Then the bad:

I found a bed bug in bed: When I went to bed at midnight, I felt something on my arm and grabbed it between my fingers in the dark. I thought “there’s no way it’s a bed bug but I’ll shine my phone on it anyway” Sure enough…. it was a bed bug 😦 Luckily it hadn’t bit me so I just killed it and went out to reception to get me a new bed. Here’s where I messed up, I let them give me a bed in the same bedroom
I woke up to more bed bugs: Cut to 2:30am and I wake up to me itching my arms…. I immediately fully wake up and grab my phone to shine the light, and yep there’s another bed bug scurrying around in my bed. I count 6 bites on my arms and back. Once again I kill it, but now there is now way I can go to bed. For one, the reception is now closed and two, I won’t even be able to sleep anyway. Now I get to begin the fun process of gathering all my things and going out to the common room to inspect every inch of every item to ensure no bed bugs got into my stuff. After much research about bed bugs, since this is the fourth time I have gotten them while traveling (1x in Naples, Italy in 2016, 1x in Gili T, Indonesia in 2020, 1x in Skopje, North Macedonia in Aug, and now Riga) and bed bugs don’t tend to carry any diseases so while the bites are itchy & annoying, it’s not that different than getting a bunch of mosquito bites. The thing you have to worry about is that they are incredibly difficult to get rid of and they are happy to hitch hike in your stuff all the way to your home (or wherever you are going next). Hence why it’s common to get them in hostels & hotels (since so many people are coming & going). Given this, after you find bed bugs, it’s incredibly important to ensure that they don’t continue on your journey with you , which inevitably means taking 1-2 hours to meticulously inspect your stuff and/or subjecting your bag to heat, since extreme heat or extreme cold are the only things that kill bed bugs. One technique often used by backpackers in hot places, is to put their bag in a black trash bag & leave it in the sun for a day or two. Well now you know way more than you want about bed bugs 🙂 Your welcome!!
All in all I don’t really blame hostels/hotels because they can do their best to keep bed bugs at bay, but travelers can just as easily bring them in. Given that, I don’t get mad at hostels for having bed bugs, but I certainly judge them based on how they handle the aftermath. I would give this hostel a 7/10 in their response. They ultimately gave me a refund on the night, free laundry & a new bed in a new room for my final night, but they were a little slow to agree to it and seemed to be slightly skeptical that I’d actually had bedbugs, even though I had photos… Definitely some room for improvement on how they treated me, especially since I’d had 2 hours of sleep!

Weirdly enough, I would still recommend this hostel but I probably can only give it a 7/10 because of the bed bug situation.

WHERE TO EAT:

The hostel had a delicious free breakfast in the morning so I would fill up on that and then I cooked at the hostel for dinner 🙂

WHAT TO DO:

As always, I headed out on the free walking tour my first day there. I wrangled two Germans from the hostel into joining me and after the walking tour, we grabbed some snacks & headed to one of the many beautiful parks to soak up the sun.

I did a day trip to Sigulda to visit the Castle, do some walking in Gauja National Park, and see the highest and widest cave in the Baltics.

Lastly don’t miss Riga Central Market, Europe’s largest market & bazaar. It’s over 72,000 square meters (778,000 square feet), featuring more than 3,000 stands.

While I didn’t have time for it, another great option for a day trip is Jūrmala to visit the beach!

I also joined a gym that was nearby the hostel because they had a 3 day trial for 10 euros 🙂

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Riga is a very approachable city with clean streets, and a healthy mixture of old & new architecture. It was easy to get around and the parks were a dream. I met a few folks that had visited Riga and then never left, so it does seem to have something about it 🙂

BUDGET FOR 3 DAYS IN Latvia:

Accommodation: $71 ($24 per night) but I did get $24 back because of the bed bugs.

Food: $0

Groceries: $37

Activities: $6

Health: $10 (gym)

Local Transportation: $11

Total: $133 (Daily average: $44)

Transportation to next destination: $128 (Flight to London)

Lithuania

September 22, 2023May 17, 2024Leave a comment

CITY: Vilnius

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Jimmy’s Jump House. Overall great hostel! Location was very central to Old Town. Rooms were spacious enough. Had a good common room to hang out in with a tiny bar, but it was fairly quiet when I was there. The owners were incredibly kind & thoughtful. 8/10.

WHERE TO EAT:

Vilnius had so many fun restaurants to check out!

Bull dog burgers– I have been making an effort to get more iron into my diet so I had a burger from here my first night in Vilnius. T’was delicious. I ate outside, which was great for people watching until it started to rain. Luckily I had just about finished my meal so paid & headed back to the hostel.

Crustum– I wanted to try some local desserts so I stopped by Crustum, which was one of the few dessert places still open at 10pm when I began my search. I tried two desserts, and admittedly I didn’t think either was that good. Šakotis (tree cake) was fairly boring & bland tasting. I would say the same for Žagarėliai. But I’m glad I tried them.

Holy donuts– wow this place was 10/10 for me. It goes without saying that their donuts were incredible…. I may have had a few to test different flavors 🙂 But, they also had a yummy alll day breakfast menu. I had been craving some breakfast sandwiches, french toast, and, you guessed it, smoothie bowls so this place delivered. They also had a location in Kaunas (my next stop) so I had some meals at that spot as well. I literally went over 5 times in my 5 days in Lithuania – whoops!!

Rosehip vegan bistro– This reminded me of Wildseed back in SF. Really fresh, colorful, delicious vegan food, that doesn’t even seem vegan. Definitely recommend a stop here.

Etno Dvaras – Lithuanian food is known for being very potato based! So I obviously had to try their traditional potato dumplings, called Cepelinai.

Pirmas blynas – Rated one of the highest rated restaurants in Vilnius, it’s located in the bottom of a church and is a socially responsible business that employs folks with all different types of developmental differences. Has a focus on pancakes so it wasn’t a hard sell for me 🙂

WHAT TO DO:

I did a walking tour, which gave me some background on the city. They recommended climbing to the top of the Medininkai castle & the St. John’s Church Bell Tower at the university for great views of the city – so I did both of those.

Vilnius seemed to have a great food & bar scene. I had so many spots that I wanted to try. I also did a day trip to Trakai, which is a well-preserved historical village with more than 5 000 residents, and includes a castle located on an island. It’s one of the biggest tourist attractions in the country with a million visitors each year. I just took a bus from Vilnius (about an hour). Very easy day trip.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I loved the food scene here! I mean a cuisine that is centered around potatoes is right up my alley. Also it was a fun city to just explore on foot. Super safe, clean, & bustling with locals enjoying the last bit of summer.

CITY: Kaunas

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Monk’s Bunk Kaunas. It was the week after universities had started back up so it was fairly quiet. I ended up having a 4 bed dorm room to myself two of the three nights I was there. I think if it had been full, it would’ve been a pretty fun hostel. Decent kitchen facilities. Beds were comfortable! Location was right on the main walking street in the new part of town and it was a lovely 15 min walk to Old Town. Definitely recommend staying here. 9/10

WHERE TO EAT:

Habits bakery– Absolute divine bakery near the church where the walking tour started. Croissant was so flakey and buttery!

Holy donut – Visited the Kaunas location obviously. I just loved this place.

Soul – Nice little spot near the main square. Reasonably priced for being in a touristy bit of town.

Talutti’s – After a 10 mile run that morning, I decided to treat myself to a nice little dessert. Except I accidentally ordered a not so little ice cream sundae. But don’t worry I happily finished it. This place had an incredible assortment of ice cream dessert options. AND they had peanut butter so I was thrilled.

Angolo Italiano – Best gelato in Kaunas.

WHAT TO DO:

I used my time to here to chill & eat delicious food. I did the walking tour + focused on just walking around the new & old town. I also went on three 7 mile + runs which allowed me to explore the river front & some different parks. There are a few day trips that you can do, but I chose to stay in Kaunas the whole time. I also caught up with so many friends since I didn’t really meet anyone at the hostel.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I really enjoyed just meandering this sunny, but cooler-temperatured city. It felt clean, manageable, & not touristy at all. I barely heard any English. Fabulous! Truly Lithuania was a complete pleasant surprise. It reminded me of a mixture of Poland, Austria & Switzerland. I would be quiet happy to live here!

BUDGET FOR 5 DAYS IN Lithuania:

Accommodation: $105 ($21 per night)

Food: $159

Activities: $15

Local Transportation: $16.50

Total: $305 (Daily average: $61)

Transportation to next destination: $13 (Bus to Latvia)

Bulgaria

September 14, 2023June 26, 2024Leave a comment

CITY: Sofia

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Hostel N1 and it was such a strange vibe. It’s known as the Rules hostel because on their site, it lists all the VERY STICT rules you must adhere to. Despite this, it has great reviews so I decided to give it a go. The rules that were listed, in general, were reasonable. No drinking at the hostel, quiet hours MUST be respected, no outside guests, etc. Overall, it’s like I can’t complain about it because the hostel was clean, safe, beds were comfy, and the kitchen was well stocked. But there were two main issues I had. None of the staff, including the owner, spoke English. Obviously while traveling I encounter folks who don’t speak English, which is completely fine given I am the one in their country where they don’t speak English. However, when you are running a tourist establishment like a hostel, it was very bizarre to have to communicate via Google translate all the time. I also would say they weren’t the friendliest volunteers & workers I have ever encountered. In the end, it wasn’t the worst thing in the world, but it did contribute to a weird atmosphere, which takes me to the second point. Because of all the rules (even though they weren’t unreasonable), I think everyone in the hostel felt like they were walking on eggshells all the time, which led to further weird vibes in the hostel. It just didn’t end up being all that social, & when I finally did have a group of folks eating in the common room with me around 9pm, we were told to be quiet multiple times (even though quiet hours weren’t until 10pm). Like I said, it just was a weird vibe overall. Not warm & friendly. The one friend I made & I concluded that if you are an introvert, this might be your dream hotel! Regardless, I don’t think I would stay here again. 5/10 (since the facilities were still pretty good & the location was great).

WHERE TO EAT:

Boom Burgers and Booze – I have been trying to mix in more red meat into my diet since the anemia diagnosis. This spot did not disappoint! Burger was delicious and the fries were some of the best I have ever had.

Keba – I don’t normally have bars to recommend because I never go out, but Alex (new British friend from the hostel) convinced me to get a drink with her. I am a sucker for twinkly lights and this bar was full of them. Such a cute spot!

WHAT TO DO:

In continuing my kick for trying to remain active on the trip, I decided to join a gym in Bulgaria, which was kinda fun. The gym had locations in each of the cities I was going to so it was perfect. It was only $90 for the month (and since I was in Bulgaria for 12 days, it was a daily cost of $7.5) so I was pretty happy. I think I went about 12 times so it ended up being incredibly worth it.

I did a walking tour and it was pretty interesting learning about the incredibly long history of Sofia and how it was under so many different regimes/empires of the centuries. It’s incredible how all around the city, you can still see the different layers. You’ll see ruins from the first settlements, with the roman empire layer on top of that, then the Soviet buildings on top, and modern buildings next door. They shared that every time the city tries to build a new subway line or dig deep for a new building, it gets very delayed because they inevitable find more ruins and have to stall building to deal with it. Pretty cool!

I also did a day trip with 4 other solo travelers from the hostel to do the Rila Monastery + 7 Lakes hike. I originally wasn’t going to do it, but Alex had signed up so I extended my stay at the hostel one night so I could join her. I am so glad I did! Definitely a highlight from Bulgaria. The monastery was beautiful but obviously the hike was the more exciting part. WOW OH WOW did I miss the mountains. It felt so incredibly good to be in the crips mountain air, hiking past beautiful lake after beautiful lake. Even just eating a sandwich on the trail felt like a bit of home (aka like being at my cabin in Tahoe). There was also just this really lovely vibe around going hiking with 4 other solo female travelers (representing the US, Australia, Germany & the UK) who otherwise wouldn’t have met. It was one of those moments where I am really grateful I get to do what I’m doing.

Starting the hike with a chairlift to the trailhead

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I really liked Sofia! I honestly felt like I could live there. It was so easy to walk around, felt incredibly safe, and had a real charm to it. Also helps that it’s so cheap.

CITY: Plovdiv

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

This had to be one of my favorite hostels I have stayed at: Hostel Old Plovdiv. When I arrived they had my name on the whiteboard welcoming me! Then they promptly told me to drop my stuff and head outside in the backyard with them to hear about the hostel & Plovdiv over their homemade lemonade. It was so cute & sweet. The building was incredibly old and it was decorated to maintain its antique vibe. No bunkbeds – all the beds were cool old Victoria looking beds. Cozy atmosphere and it was very easy to meet people. I actually ran into a girl I had met in Kosovo a few weeks prior. Beds were comfy, AC in the room, breakfast was available for a few euros, & location was great. 9/10 would stay again.

WHERE TO EAT:

Rahat Tepe – this spot was recommended by the hostel for some good local Bulgarian food with a view. On a beautiful sunny day that was a bit cooler, it would be great to to sit outside at this restaurant. Unfortunately when we went, it was SO hot outside so we sat inside near a window, which luckily meant we still got a pretty good view overlooking Plovdiv. Food was great + service was lovely.

Green Library– As per usual I am always on the hunt for a smoothie bowl in these hot months. Green Library had a few fabulous smoothie bowls to choose from and I tried a few since I managed to drag friends from the hostel and we split two both times I went.

Savi– Delicious gelato! They even had a peanut butter flavor 🙂

WHAT TO DO:

Plovdiv is a very pleasant town to just explore on foot. I did a walking tour but honestly it was so hot and the guide wasn’t great that I ended up bailing half way through. Given the heat, we decided we needed to find an activity that was indoors & in air conditioning so we landed on going to a movie. I ended up seeing Barbie for the 3rd time – and still LOVED it 🙂

It’s fun walking around the old town, but I liked the Kapana area better. Really cute walking streets and it has a fun, bohemian, trendy vibe. I also found a woman wearing the same dress as me! We got so much joy out of the exchange and chatted for about 30 min 🙂

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Other than the heat, I loved Plovdiv. Overall just a cute city to walk around and enjoy.

CITY: Burgas

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

Despite being a major city on the Bulgarian seaside, there were no hostels. Very strange. I ended up deciding to just book an apartment with two twin beds. An Aussie I met in Plovdiv joined me for two of the three nights so that helped lower the higher cost of the apartment. It was so nice to be able to cook and spread out my things a little.

WHERE TO EAT:

I mostly cooked while in Burgas! Such a treat 🙂

WHAT TO DO:

Burgas is a seaside town so the main activity is to head to the beach! I enjoyed walking along it for an afternoon, maybe with an ice cream cone in my hand 🙂

Beyond that, there are many cute smaller towns that are worth day tripping to. Dan (the Aussie) and I headed to Nesebar, with our one day together. It’s an easy one hour bus ride away. Nesebar is an UNESCO ancient city (dating back to 6th century BC), referred to as the “Pearl of the Black Sea. Lots of cool ruins & a beautiful little beach for a dip in the sea. Sometimes it’s hard to go swimming while being a solo traveler since you don’t have anyone to watch your stuff, so it was a treat to be with Dan. We took turns taking our first ever swims in the Black Sea!

Sozopol is another great day trip option, but I didn’t have time to get there this trip.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Burgas itself didn’t blow me away. Felt like a bigger city with minimal charm, but it just happens to be near the sea so it becomes a “destination”. In hindsight, I would’ve rather stayed in a cuter smaller seaside town.

CITY: Sveti Vlas

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I had planned to head to Varna as my final stop in Bulgaria, but after realizing that it was just another big seaside town AND ironically, even more importantly, there was no gym location there, I decided to go Sveti Vlas (I did a cross search of where gym locations were near the beach haha). Sveti Vlas is just past Sunny Beach (a very touristy beach town), so I liked that Sveti Vlas was a slightly more chill option. Once again, there were no hostels, but coming off the apartment, I was inspired to just do another stay like that. This airbnb was PERFECT. It was part of a resort complex, so there was a pool & restaurant (but I just cooked the whole time because the kitchen was so fabulous). The place had a laundry machine which was a treat. Most importantly it was a 5 min walk to the gym & 7 min to the beach. It felt like a mini staycation, but in a resort town. So kinda like a vacation, but I am in the middle of long vacation so who even knows what’s happening hahaha.

WHERE TO EAT:

I cooked the whole time so no recommendations.

WHAT TO DO:

Go to the beach 🙂

I spent a lot of time catching up with friends over FaceTime, going to the gym, reading by the pool, cooking & doing trip planning since that is never ending haha.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I am not sure I can really speak to Sveti Vlas since I almost just treated it as regular life, which meant I didn’t explore too much. But overall I adored my time here. A much needed rest!

BUDGET FOR 12 DAYS IN BULGARIA:

Accommodation: $487 ($40.50 per night)

Food: $124

Groceries: $137

Activities: $68

Health: $100 (gym membership)

Local Transportation: $140

Total: $1,072 (Daily average: $89)

Transportation to next destination: $178 (Flight to Lithuania)

Cyprus

September 5, 2023September 30, 2024Leave a comment

CITY: Larnaca

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

After an exhausting, but incredible, time in Egypt, Stephen and I knew we would want to have a few days to completely relax & recuperate. Sentido Sandy Beach was the perfect spot to do so! It was such a treat to have no agenda other than to enjoy a resort stay 🙂 We opted for the half board meal plan, which meant food was taken care of. There was a gym we took advantage of. The pool had plenty of spots to find a chair in the shade, and the beach was only a few steps away. I will say it was very, very hot, so we also enjoyed lounging inside the main area of the hotel, which had incredibly comfy couches to read, play cards, and catch up on the blog! Lastly, our favorite thing about the hotel was the free Lemon Water, Sparkling Lemonade, & Pink Lemonade. 10/10 would highly recommend this hotel if you find yourself in Cyprus.

Where to eat:

We mostly ate at the hotel, but we had one INCREDIBLE meal outside the hotel. The reception recommended Lysia Meat Tavern for some local food, and holy moly it did not disappoint. The chicken was cooked to perfection! Stephen raved about his pork as well.

Also, despite being a buffet, the hotel’s restaurants did an excellent job with the food. I felt like everything was delicious!

What to do:

If I haven’t made it clear thus far, we really didn’t do much while here because the main goal was to CHILL (which I am not very good at, but I very much needed at this point in the trip). Our days looked like this:

Sleep in
Workout
Breakfast
Read by the pool
Play cards inside to beat the heat
Eat dinner
Watch a movie in bed

We did manage to get a few games in at the local bowling alley which was quite fun! We were the only ones in there so she let me play my music (obviously I put on Cian Ducrot’s new album). Not your typical fun bowling music, but Stephen humored me. He also managed to beat me in all three games unfortunately. Luckily I schooled him in our running game of rummy over the course of the two weeks so it all evened out 🙂

Lastly, we spent one afternoon exploring the city of Larnaca. We walked by the castle, the beach front & the church, as well as trying some Loukoumades (Greek donuts) since Stephen hadn’t had them before. They were yummy, but nothing beats an American donut hehe.

Overall Thoughts:

I am not sure I can really speak to Cyprus or even Larnaca as a whole, but we really, really enjoyed our stay at Sentido Sandy Beach. We felt like our room had the best view in the entire hotel, and we just fully were able to relax, knowing there was nothing we “needed” to do while here. The only to do was enjoy ourselves. I continue to appreciate seeing some nooks & crannies of the world that a lot of Americans don’t ever get to see in their lifetimes 🙂

Budget for 4 days in Cyprus:

Accommodation: $483 ($121 per night)

Food: $18.35 (because we had half board at the hotel)

Activities: $19.50

Local Transportation: $19.50

Transportation to next destination: $132 (Flight to Bulgaria)

Total: $672 (Daily average: $168)

Comments: This was very much a vacation amidst my trip, but despite this being more expensive than more normal budget, for the experience we had, it felt very reasonable!

North Macedonia

August 22, 2023June 26, 2024Leave a comment

CITY: Skopje

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed in Skopje for one night before going to Ohrid and one night after (before flying to Egypt). Weirdly I had health issues while staying at both (some related to the hostel and some not haha)

First night, I stayed at Hi Skopje. This was very far from the city center and it was quite a hike to get there on foot. If you are here just one night and either arriving or leaving by bus, I would recommend staying at Shanti instead (only a 10 min walk from the bus station). Hi Skopje was fairly basic (beds had plugs & curtains), but had a cute golden retriever & some great hammocks outside. Thank god for the hammocks because at 3:30am I woke up with my legs & arms being so incredibly, painful itchy so couldn’t sleep at all. I finally got out of bed and just called my mom (thank god for the time difference) in the hammock outside. Finally got a hold of a doctor who told me just to get antihistamines (spoiler alert it was not an allergic reaction, but more on that later). This was obviously not the hostels fault, but I just didn’t have a great stay here. The host also got slightly snarky at me when I asked some questions (but I was just not feeling well so needed some help). Overall, this place wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great. 6/10

My last night in Macedonia (after Ohrid) I stayed at Shanti Hostel. The beds had curtains & plugs. Smallish kitchen. Little patio outside to sit & chat. Not enough bathrooms. Did have AC. Great location. The people working there were LOVELY. They even let me keep some stuff there while I am in Egypt (I am returning for one night before going to Bulgaria). However, sadly I did wake up at 2:30am to itchiness on my arms & hands…. and sure enough I quickly found 3 bed bugs in my bed 😦 Such a bummer since I had just gotten over the previous health issue while in Ohrid. Also I was leaving for the airport at 5:30am so I decided to just get up and out of the bed/room. I spend the next 2 hours meticulously inspecting everything in my bag and every clothing item to ensure no bed bugs got into my bag. So frustrating! Despite this, I would actually stay here again… and in fact I am as I mentioned, just in a different room this time haha. Bed bugs are bound to happen while staying in hostels for 18 months and when I told the hotel they responded perfectly & said they would refund my stay as well as spending the whole day inspecting the room & working with a outside team to rid the room of them. I thought they handled everyone appropriately, so kudos. 7.5/10.

Where to eat:

I didn’t spend much time in Skopje so the only restaurant I went to was Markt Kitchen. It had yummy salads, avocado toast, and you guessed it, smoothies! It was great to get some eggs + a smoothie in the AC after walking around in the heat of the Old Bazaar in Skopje.

What to do:

I really only had an afternoon here so I chose to just walk around and see all the crazy, large, ornate sculptures & statues as well as the Old Bazaar. It’s really strange how many incredibly large statues there are around the city. It’s like instead of investing money into beautifying the city with greenery, they decided to funnel all the money into over the top sculptures.

The other two main things to do are visiting the caves at Matka canyon & going to the Millennium Cross (with views of the city). If you have time, add these to your list!

Overall Thoughts:

The theme of not loving Eastern European country’s capitals continues with Skopje. I’m glad I only had 2 nights here in total & they are were frankly necessary as it’s a transit hub. I don’t think you really need to spend much time here.

CITY: Ohrid

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at two hostels, both fabulous in different ways:

Old Town Hostel Ohrid – Wow – this might be one of my favorite hostels of the trip! Sadly I was just too sick to enjoy it much. The beds had curtains, plugs, personal light & a shelf. Great wifi. Cozy space downstairs to read or lounge. Outside had a picnic table under the shade where people tended to gather and meet one another. Staff were INCREDIBLE, especially helping me navigate my health issues, including visiting a doctor. They also organize activities, including some dinners, which were great for meeting people. It’s also in the perfect location, just one street off from the main walking area of town. This place ALWAYS books up, so don’t be afraid to just book this as soon as you know you are going 🙂 10/10

View from my room at the hostel in Old Town!

Robinson Sunset House– as I mentioned, Old Town books up, so I was only able to snag 2 nights there. After I moved to Robinson Sunset House, which has a very different vibe. While Old Town is very social and in the heart of Ohrid, Sunset House is a 15 min bus ride out of town along the lake, and is a tranquil little paradise. Both were fabulous, but make sure you are okay with being out of town with more limited access to town. Although it was very easy to grab a bus or hitchhike into town (I did both). That being said, the family who runs this hostel are incredibly chill, almost too chill. Like I had to track them down to pay because they were no where to be found. Another backpacker checked me in and showed me to the room because they were no where to be found. While comical, and while it all seems to work out in the end, it’s slight too laid back given this is still supposed to be a hostel. The room was very basic and clean. Had an ensuite bathroom. Best part of this hotel was by far the views. It’s perched up on the hill so sunset is dreamy. I loved hanging in the pool & the hammocks. Truly this place is special. 8.5/10

Where to eat:

All these places are in Ohrid:

The Lion – Another backpacker recommended this place to me. It was delicious! Classy vibe and slightly nicer than the normal backpacker dinner spot. Also right along the water front. Great spot for a drink + dinner.

Fruit box – Are we even surprised at this point that I sought out a smoothie spot haha. I went here so often that the people knew my order by the end 🙂 Luckily it was about a 3 min walk from Old Town hostel. The smoothies were dynamite & the customizable Chia pudding was perfection. This is the a great breakfast, lunch or snack spot.

Bros. Burgers– Honestly one of the best burgers I have had. The fries also had a really yummy seasoning on it. Don’t miss a dinner here!

There were also tons of cute little stands that had desserts at night – not sure if that’s just because there was a festival going on though. I had some gelato and a waffle stick covered in chocolate that was so delicious.

What to do:

SWIM IN THE LAKE! Also just enjoy being in the sun & walk around the lake front. There’s a beautiful church to watch sunset from. But truly the main things is to slow down, read by the lake and then cool off with a dip in the water. My favorite kinda place.

The other main thing I did was finally go to the doctor 😦 After waking up in Skopje with the itchiness & starting to take the antihistamines (per the tele-doctor’s instructions), I didn’t really start to feel better (still was itchy + really exhausted) & my joints started to feel incredibly swollen & stiff (which I had never felt before). After getting past the American anxiety of having to go to a doctor and not know how much of my net worth I will have to shell out, the owner of the hostel told me to go to a clinic a 5 min walk away and that it would likely cost $30…So I trudged over and was seen immediately & had blood drawn. They told me to return 3 hrs later to get my results! I couldn’t believe how easy it all was. I went & treated myself to a smoothie from Fruit box before heading back to the clinic. While waiting in the clininc for the doctor to read me my results, I admittedly started to get very scared/nervous/sad/defeated/homesick and began to silently cry. Feeling sick in a foreign country with no one familiar to lean on is not fun!! I was verging on a mini anxiety attack, when a sweet Macedonian grandmother sat next to me noticed and in broken English began chatting with me. She snapped me out of the panic spiral I was heading down and I am eternally grateful for this kind person. She probably doesn’t even know how much I needed the distraction in that moment. Soon after, I saw the doctor, and with the help of a nurse to translate, it was revealed that I was very anemic & had low red blood cells. They said the itchiness is from the anemia & the stiff joints were from all the antihistamines I was taking that weren’t actually treating anything. My friend said maybe all the smoothie bowls are taking a toll, but regardless it was a huge relief to finally know what was going on, and that it wasn’t anything more serious. With my new iron pills in hand, I was already starting to feel better… Oh the joy’s of traveling!! Also, the two doctors visits, the blood draw & a 2 month supply of iron pills cost me $75. Healthcare outside the US is a dream.

Overall Thoughts:

Despite feeling quite unwell while here, I still loved it! I just wish I could’ve spent more time swimming & meeting fun people at the hostel. I truly would’ve been happy to spend another week here. Hopefully I get back here at some point in my life!

Sunset from the beach in front of Robinson Sunset House

BUDGET FOR 6 DAYS IN North Macedonia:

Accommodation: $98 ($24 per night)

Food: $82

Groceries: $15

Health: $83

Local Transportation: $73

Miscellaneous: $5

Total: $362 (Daily average: $60)

Transportation to next destination: $250 (Flight to Cairo)

Kosovo

August 19, 2023September 5, 20231 Comment

CITY: Pristina

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Oda Hostel – overall a very good, basic hostel. Probably the best bet in Pristina, but nothing overly special about it. There was an area with couches that we used late at night to listen to a bunch of folk songs & singalong to them. The bed had curtains + a plug + a light. Bathroom ensuite. Good location + wifi was decent. Not overly social outside the room, but luckily I met a fun trio from the UK when I arrived in my room so had a blast exploring with them the entire time we were in Pristina.

Where to eat:

I swear to god every restaurant & cafe in Pristina was so flippin’ cute. I wanted to go inside each one. Fairy lights were everywhere and the insides were so adorable & cozy. Our favorite dinner spot was Soma Book Station. Food was so yummy, but cheap. Felt like a fancy meal but us backpackers could easily afford it haha.

The star of the show was Green + Protein. As we all know, I am in constant search of smoothie bowls and this place delivered. They also just had so many yummy (mostly) vegetarian options, between salads, bowls, wraps, and more. We went here probably 5 times hehe.

What to do:

After doing so much sightseeing the previous few weeks, I had planned to have a chill couple days in Kosovo and go see Barbie!! Randomly the British trio also independently suggested doing this, so I extended my stay in Pristina so we could all go together the next day. The main “site seeing” thing the boys wanted to do was go see the Bill Clinton statue haha. We took our photos before heading to the mall to see Barbie. With some time to kill, we grabbed food, did some window shopping, and went bowling. Barbie was INCREDIBLE and I am obsessed. Beyond that, it was incredibly lovely to have what felt like a very normal weekend that didn’t look all the different to what I might do at home.

Overall Thoughts:

While the city isn’t the most beautiful and there isn’t much “to do,” I really enjoyed walking around. In the evenings, the city really comes alive (after the heat subsides a bit) and everyone is out at cafes soaking up catching up with friends. Also, the restaurant scene was wayyyyy better than I imagined it would be. Lastly, English was widely spoken & I was incredibly impressed. It made it very easy to travel here.

CITY: Prizren

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

Ura Hostel – definitely stay here while visiting Prizren! It’s a delightful hostel with excellent facilities. Beds had a curtain, personal plug, & shelf for all your stuff. Rooms were very quiet & there was AC. Lots of cute spots to sit & read or socialize in the common areas. I didn’t cook so can’t speak to the kitchen facilities. Wifi wasn’t the best, but I was able to make a few calls.

Where to eat:

Noja Kuhzine – I ate here both dinners. It might be one of my favorite restaurants of the trip!!! Unbelievably delicious local, fresh vegetarian food. It is a crowd favorite for good reason. The chef came out and offered us something not on the menu since folks in our group had already tried everything on the menu. SO fun and cool. I could keep going, but basically if you ever find yourself in Prizren, just go here.

Cheesy pasta + Cheesy French Toast – can’t explain how good both were

Best Ocakbasi– I had a decent breakfast here. Tried the local breakfast special. Nice, big restaurant with good people watching.

Gazza – Came here for some dessert with some people from the hostel. They had yummy waffles + juices + good wifi. Also when we walked in they handed us sparkles and cranked the music to celebrate Americans visiting their store. Pretty fun!

What to do:

The main two things to do are stroll around the main part of the old town + head up to the old fortress for sunset. The rest of my time here I used to catch up on my blog + call some friends 🙂

Overall Thoughts:

Prizren is definitely the cuter of the two largest cities in Kosovo. I really enjoyed its charming walking streets and the views from the fortress. Overall a very small lovely stop on my Eastern European tour. Highly recommend coming to Prizren if you are in Kosovo!

BUDGET FOR 4 DAYS IN Kosovo:

Accommodation: $49 ($12.25 per night)

Food: $72

Activities: $18

Local Transportation: $20

Miscellaneous: $13

Total: $173 (Daily average: $43)

Transportation to next destination: $10 (Bus to North Macedonia)

Serbia

August 15, 2023September 5, 2023Leave a comment

CITY: Belgrade

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Balkan Soul Hostel and it was a pretty great hostel. Fabulous location (15 min walk to the bus station, 5 min walk to old town + main walking street with restaurants + shops). The beds were comfy + had storage lockers underneath the bunk beds. Downstairs there was a a kitchen + common area to hang out in. Each night, the hostel organized something for everyone to participate in. One night was a home cooked meal with traditional Serbian food (super yummy) and another night they took us to some silos turned into a bar.

Where to eat:

The star of the show was Ice Box. They had ice cream + toppings but you do the toppings yourself and pay by weight (just like a froyo place). AKA this was my dream. Toppings at ice cream shops are few and far between in Europe so I literally was a kid in a candy store haha. I obviously went twice (the only reason I didn’t go all three nights was their power was out on my second night there due to all the crazy storms).

Acai Mania was also a hit. I had two delicious smoothie bowls from here.

I didn’t have time to go to Milky, but I wish I had tried this dessert/crepe spot!

What to do:

I did the typical things I do when arriving to a city: walking tour + walk around the main part of old town. Nothing felt overly special about Belgrade if I am honest. Some may feel different, but it just didn’t speak to me. There was a cool fortress over the city, which is good for sunset.

My favorite thing I did was take a day trip to Novi Sad. It was an easy 50 min train ride (and the train was high quality) and immediately I fell in love with the Old Town there. The streets & buildings were bursting with color and I just thoroughly enjoyed my time there. I took myself out to a fun brunch spot called Vida, found a bench in a park to spend an hour reading my book in the shade, and drank some lemonade along the famous street called The Dunavska Street, enjoying the people watching. I wish I had spent one night here instead of spending all three nights in Belgrade.

Overall Thoughts:

I think it’s clear that Belgrade wasn’t my favorite. Consider spending time in Novi Sad vs Belgrade. I don’t think I need to visit Belgrade again in my life.

CITY: Bajina Bašta

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Mystic River House and it was a perfect base for exploring Tara National Park and it’s located a 10 min walk away from the center of Bajina Basta, which is cute for dinner. The hostel was cosy & basic. The backyard with hammocks and seating areas was fabulous. Easy to meet people because it’s a small hostel. I would stay here again. The owners are generous & kind. They organized day trips & activities for the guests.

Where to eat:

I didn’t eat anywhere notable. I mostly grabbed stuff on the go from bakeries & grocery stores, but there are some restaurants in town if you are here. Bajina Basta is definitely less touristy

What to do:

The main attraction is Tara National Park & Drink River, which is the border between Bosnia & Serbia. You either need a car to explore the park or if there is enough people/interest, the hostel will organize for one of the workers to take you around the park. I was lucky enough to have two Polish guys & a guy from India join me on the day trip. We explored different lakes, view points, a walks, before finishing with a swim! It’s gorgeous!

I also spent one morning kayaking down the Drina River with a guide (turns out he is a semi-professional kayaker and it cost me $30 to have him take me 🙂 ) & we finished with the famous Drina River house. Talk about lakefront views!! It was insanely peaceful and we saw no one else on the river. It was also so interesting seeing the wreckage that still is visible on the Bosnian side (from the Bosnian War).

Overall Thoughts:

Tara National Park was definitely the highlight of my time in Serbia. It was so lovely to get into some nature after being in cities for so long. It was a treat to go swimming in a lake! If you visit Serbia, don’t miss it. Serbia wasn’t my favorite spot, but I am glad I got to experience a taste of it, since I realistically might not be here again.

BUDGET FOR 5 DAYS IN Serbia:

Accommodation: $94 ($18.80 per night)

Food: $73.42

Activities: $59

Local Transportation: $23

Miscellaneous: $28

Total: $276 (Daily average: $55)

Transportation to next destination: $19 (Bus to Kosovo)