We made the last-minute decision to head to Kosovo this weekend to celebrate my husband’s birthday. The moment school let out on Friday, we threw together a couple of backpacks, booked a hotel, and we were on our way.
So, why Kosovo? Several reasons, actually. First of all, the tickets from Istanbul to Pristina were incredibly affordable and the flight times were perfect. Secondly, everything we read about Pristina mentioned that the cafe scene there is top notch – a fact that this coffee nerd can now attest to. We spent most of our time in the city trying to find the coolest cafes and testing out all the coffee. The city’s specialty is an espresso machiatto latte – and my god they were delicious. I’m not normally into milky coffee, but the quality of the milk and the ratio of milk to coffee made this drink an exception for me.
Not only did all of the cafes serve incredible coffee – they were also incredibly quirky and charming!
In addition to an amazing cafe scene, Pristina has an up-and-coming food scene as well. I was really surprised by the quality of all of the food we ate there – especially considering that we didn’t do any research about the food at all; we pretty much just wandered into whichever restaurants seemed appealing in the moment and were not disappointed.
The whole city has a funky, eclectic vibe that will probably only get cooler with time. It’s kind of crazy to visit a country that is only 10 years old. Pristina has updated their iconic Newborn sign to reflect Kosovo’s 10th anniversary as a country.
Kosovo’s ever-changing face is evident in its confusing mix of architecture. Old, abandoned churches stand next to newly-built mosques; modern cafes line the streets next to Communist-era structures that look like the backdrop of a creepy sci-fi movie. It’s very weird – in a good way.
Another quirky-cool highlight for us was the Museum of Broken Relationships. We actually wandered into it by accident, but decided to check it out and it was 110% worth the 2 euros! It was very unique and surprisingly moving. If you’re planning to visit Pristina anytime soon, definitely check it out.
We really loved our little getaway to Pristina! I highly recommend it as a very cool and budget-friendly destination. With only two weeks left of school, I am already getting pumped up for more adventures very soon.
Seriously though…how crazy is this library?
Going Groundless 