Trip to Prizren

We went to Prizren, in southwestern Kosovo, on Sunday. It's a town at least as large as Pristina and looks to be somewhat more prosperous. There were a lot of people enjoying the balmy weather in town and just as many escaping the heat and going into the mountains above it. This picture is of part of the mountain chain we wound around on the way home. Gorgeous, isn't it?

This is another shot from the same place as the first photo. The village at the bottom is only accesible via one road; lots of villages like that in the country. It really makes for picturesque scenery. Up close, there's a lot of trash near and on the road and people do the picnic thing anywhere they can find a clear spot. They bring lawn chairs, some food, and an umbrella, and spend the day. There are also a lot of restaurants with outdoor patios that let you picnic without the stuff.

This Roman Catholic church sits on the edge of Prizren's old town. When we saw it was locked, we were going to just pass it by, but someone local insisted that we knock on the rectory door and ask one of the nuns to let us in. I'm glad he did. It was a surprise. While small, the murals were of the caliber found in cathedrals.

The apostles lined the barrel vault ceiling. As you can see, the colors were vivid and the quality of execution was excellent. The nuns did let us in, very graciously, and even turned on the lights for us.

Here is the focal point of the church - the altar is right in front of the mural. It's of Our Lady of Fatima, and for some reason is much darker than the rest of the paintings.