Decane Monastery and Kosovo's Peaceful Mountains

Who would have thought a day in Kosovo could include strolling the grounds of a beautiful Orthodox Monastery and then hiking high into the hills of an unpolluted mountainside with nothing but colors, sounds and nature all around. Not to mention I was in the wonderful company of my new friend Pranvera who I met at my party several weeks back. So the day after our first fantastic date she agreed to join me and a fellow co-worker to visit Kosovo's most historic and religiously significant monastery of the Serbian Orthodox order. Normally no big deal but since PranV is Albanian and the Monestary is Serbian and heavily guarded by the Italian KFOR, this simple 2 hour day trip was a little bit more challenging than visiting the city park. First and foremost I was VERY happy to hear from her that she had no issue about going and was comfortable and open about trying (MANY Kosovars would never step foot in this area). Second, with 2 American passports and our project vehicle, I believe we were able to pass through the first armed checkpoint without too much delay or questions about her background.

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Of course once we entered the serene grounds with the most perfect patch of grass in all of Kosovo, we found that the actual church was closed for the next hour. No worries. We enjoyed finding some shade outside to sit and marvel at the grounds, the building and the monks walking about tending to their daily chores. I just wanted to roll around in the grass but we figured that might draw too much attention from the armed patrols that would pass through the yard. Instead of sticking around for it to open we decided we would head far back into the woods to take a nice hike and return when it was open again.

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Would have worked out well had we not found such a perfect place to hike. Well into the mountainside via a pathetic dirt road, we finally bounced out of the jeep in a cloud of dusty smoke and the smell of exhaust. The scorching heat we have had during the past several weeks prevented any type of mid-day activity so we were blessed with a slight cooling of the weather and patchy cloud cover providing some shelter for the hike. Which was actually just straight up. Zac (co-worker) gave it his best for 20 minutes and then decided a vertical hike wasn't his thing for the day. PranV and I traversed the beautiful stream that paralleled our trail for a bit and then we headed up a number of switchbacks under the cover of trees and kept attentive by our great conversation, butterflys and the smell of fresh mountain air. After an hour we pulled of the main trail to a hidden vista that unveiled the entire valley and a precipice that made you want to take a flying leap off with a base jumping parashoot (ok, maybe that was just me). None the less, a perfect resting spot for a quick nap.

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Concerned that Zac might leave us due to boredom, we eventually strolled back down the mountain to retrace our steps and check out the church on the way out. Of course we arrived10 minutes too late and I missed actually seeing the main attraction for the second time (3rd is a charm right). No matter since the company kept and the scenery enjoyed couldn't have made for a more perfect average Saturday in Kosovo.