Nobody should waste a chance to see Thessaloniki. Officially, we had waved goodbye to the Balkan Ride 2018, with a fantastic last day, which continued late into the night. Some teams braved hangovers to head home, or to further adventures, while others took the chance to explore the city a little. Still, there was a […]
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The Great Balkan Recap: Day 8
A memorable last day of the Great Balkan Ride 2017. Photo by Theodore Marković The final day of the Great Balkan Ride was eventful, as we squeezed in sightseeing, another border, and a fantastic final meal. We departed the picturesque City of Stone and travelled through (very underrated) Northern Greece, on our way to one of […]
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Highlights of the Albanian Coast
The Albanian Coast is one of Europe’s best kept secrets. The Great Balkan Ride may concentrate on adventure — driving off-road in places like the mountainous highlands of Montenegro and remote river valleys in Northern Albania — but there’s still time to relax: it’s a holiday, after all. And anybody who is new to the region […]
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Sarajevo’s Winter Olympic Memories
Sarajevo has suffered greatly in the decades since it was the center of the sporting world. Photo via Creative Commons Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and the start city of the Great Balkan Ride, hosted the Winter Olympics in 1984. Since then, Yugoslavia, the country of which Sarajevo was once part, has broken up, the […]
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The Great Balkan Recap: Day 5
Day 5 was another exciting day driving through remote Albanian nature. Many questions were waiting to be answered by Day 5 of the Great Balkan Ride: Would all the teams make it back from the mountains? Would Barbara make it to the airport? Would “Lola the Corolla” have survived the night? And most importantly… how […]
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The Great Balkan Recap: Day 4
Day 4 was the most dramatic day of the Great Balkan Ride 2017. Photo by Theodore Marković After a relaxed evening the previous night, the journey ahead on day 4 of the Great Balkan Ride promised to be memorable. And boy it delivered. We were heading to Thethi, Albania’s mountain paradise, and teams were offered too possible […]
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The Great Balkan Recap: Day 3
From Peja to Shkodër, on Day 3 teams left Kosovo and made their way to beautiful Albania. Photo by Theodore Marković Day 3 of the Great Balkan Ride 2017 began understandably slowly, after Day 2 had ended with a late night out drinking rakia of the lively boulevard of Peja. Once teams had recovered enough to […]
Continue ReadingThe Big Book of Balkan History
You can read 700 pages in a year, right? Besides the incredible scenery — mountain peaks, tranquil lakes, golden beaches, and more — and of course the warm hospitality, a great attraction of visiting the Balkans is the rich and complex history. There’s no better way to learn about the region’s past than by visiting […]
Continue ReadingThe Great Balkan Recap 2017: Day 2
On the second day of the Great Balkan Ride, we entered the magical country of Kosovo. Photo by Theodore Marković After a busy first day of the Great Balkan Ride, more stunning scenery awaited the teams on Day 2. There was still much of North-Eastern Montenegro to explore, after which we would be introduced to yet another country: […]
Continue ReadingHow NOT to Get Help When Lost in the Balkans
How to NOT make friends in the Balkans. Photo by Cameron Strandberg Every year, the Balkan region is hit by spates of dangerous forest fires. This year has been particularly bad, with sustained spells of high heat with no rain. So when a tourist in Montenegro got lost, his method of alerting rescuers did not […]
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