We made it safely from Zlatibor in just over three hours, and that included an unmarked detour in Bajina Basta, and a pee stop. It’s in the mid 70s and sunny. We are back in our same apartment. We like it aside from the lack of shower curtain and having to hold the shower head to wash our hair. Other than that and its funky quirks (itbhas the weirdest mechanism for opening and closing the door to the balcony), and too much furniture it is fine and a good deal. The owners don’t speak English but welcomed us back kindly. Their daughter, Maja, in Belgrade is who we communicate with if we need anything. Jim is not thrilled with being here and is still ruing the fact that we didn’t go to Montenegro. I’m still stressing about where to go from here. Hopefully we will be patient with each other as we figure out a plan.
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We both love the drive from Zlatibor to here (I’d love it more if we were the only car on the road, but luckily traffic was light). The two lane road is in fair shape, good enough but one must keep alert for occasional obstacles. We had a close call with a raised divider in a weird place but luckily our car clearance was high enough that the car didn’t hit it. The drive is through mountain forests much of the way with sweeping views of mountains and valleys. The road passes through numerous villages and as always we are amazed when we see orange roofed houses perched high on steep hillsides across the valleys. I always wonder how people originally chose to build houses where they did.
Jim is off at the forest gym across the road. When he returns we will go to the market and get our usual staples. Then we will go to Contact for dinner. We booked this place for 4 nights with the option of staying 2 more. We hope our way becomes clear to us.
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I don’t know exactly why I like this little town so much. The town itself is not flashy or noteworthy. I like the size (about 4400 people in the area), and it is very walkable. And the large green spa grounds with tended gardens, large fountain, walking paths, venders, stray dogs, cafe, 2 restaurants and spa buildings have a relaxing vibe. Even without getting medical or spa treatments I feel the place somehow improves my health by simply being there. But I think much of the special feel of the place comes from the fact that it is in a beautiful spot nestled against the steep forested hillside at the base of Gućevo mountain, and bounded by the wide green-blue Drina River on the opposite side. Bosnia is across the river. When the air currents are right you can hear calls to prayer coming from across the river. Meanwhile, in town next to the spa (and a stones throw from our apartment) there is a lovely Orthodox church that rings its bells throughout the day.
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Last evening we did go to Contact for dinner, then to the market as planned. The sunny day temperatures in the high 70s dropped to the mid forties at night. I slept too little, as usual.
We had a slow morning today. We ate breakfast on the covered porch, then set off for a walk to the river. As the crow flies it is much closer, but on foot it is about a mile and a half from our place. It’s a pleasant walk past fields, then across the 2 lane highway and up to a path on a raised berm about 15-20 feet above the road, then down the other side to a dirt road past tiny vacation houses (some on stilts to survive flooding), then into woods until finally you can access the ‘beach’ (they refer to the stony river shore as the beach). We walked along the ‘beach’, stopping often to look at stones and to admire the clear water. We saw large schools of small fish and heard larger fish jumping from time to time. It’s a beautiful river but very low this year because of the heat and drought all summer. When we were here a year ago in the spring we could not access the river at all because the road to reach it was flooded. Serbs who live in communities along the river still say the water is clean, maybe the cleanest in Europe. But I’ve read several times in recent years about factories and mines in Bosnia illegally discharging waste into the river. In any case, maybe it is among the cleanest rivers in Europe but that doesn’t mean it is especially clean.
We came upon a rustic almost make-shift looking cafe (and a fish restaurant next to it) next to the beach. We weren’t sure if they were open but indeed when we approached the covered seating area a man in a T-shirt that said in English ‘world testicle cooking championships’ came to the table and asked what we wanted. We both ordered a domača (Serbian) coffee. We saw the man go to the side of the shack to pump water. Then he went into the area behind the bar counter and used the water to rinse out some cups, then made the coffee using the spring water. We crossed our fingers that the water is safe to drink. I have no idea how often any officials check the water quality, but the cafe gets good reviews on Google so I imagine the water is safe. We drank the coffee (hoping that the boiling water would kill anything pesky that might be in the water). But I did not drink from the orange glass he gave us filled with water (serving a glass of water with coffee is the norm here). Jim drank some. So far so good.
We enjoyed our coffee that was made even tastier by the peaceful view, then left the beach and walked the silty dusty road past numerous small , low tech and rustic little dwellings on the bank above the river. I don’t think anyone lives in these year around but rather come on weekends or in summer. If there are building codes they are minimal, or not enforced. Nor did there appear to be utilities or plumbing. But some of the larger plots were nicely done, very simply.
When we got back to the high berm our plan was to cross the highway and take a small road through fields back to town, but we came across an older woman intent on talking to us. She encountered Jim first and when I caught up to them she smiled and looked me over and took hold of my arm and kissed me several times on the cheek. She continued talking animatedly in Serbian. We identified words but weren’t sure what she was saying. We also weren’t sure if this was her personality or whether she had some sort of cognitive issues. We told her where we were going and that we wanted to take the little back road across the highway. At first she said no, but then took off across the road and waved for us to follow. We walked on the narrow weedy dirt track with her as she continually talked. She pointed to what presumably had been her dad’s house and now her brother’s. Then pointed to a house ahead that seemed to be hers and said she had lived there ten years. But she also indicated she has a place or used to have a place by the river and that she has always lived in Banja Koviljaća. She crossed herself and pointed to the sky and mentioned the wind and seemed to say a prayer of protection for us from the wind. There is a superstition here that wind makes you sick. When we got to our turn to head back to town we parted on friendly terms, just a little puzzled about what all she had actually said. But we enjoyed our little encounter, so unlike encounters in the U.S. Very few old women back home would be so immediately forward and physically affectionate. I didn’t mind but wished I knew what was in her mind.
The little weedy road was pleasant to follow. The silty dirt was soft. Fields, some fallow, some weedy, and some still with corn were lovely in the afternoon sunlight. The big green Gucevo mountain and blue sky provided contrast to the tan and yellow fields.
When we arrived at our place neighbor Dule was outside and invited us for coffee. We regrouped and took a bottle of carbonated mineral water to the little table under the fig tree where we had sat with him four weeks ago. He brought glasses, rakija, and a 2% grapefruit seltzer out on a tray. He poured the rakija, we toasted, and had a nice chat. He again said he is old, lonely and life as an old man without his wife is hard. His old Yugo (car) is very old but he sees no point in getting a new one. He asked if I have been writing and he said to be sure to not sugarcoat what I say. He wants me to include the good and the bad. Before we went home he gave us several big bunches of green grapes from the vines on the fence. He gave us way more than we can eat, as is always the case.
In the evening we walked to the spa grounds and ate dinner on the terrace at the big restaurant there. We both got chicken (which came with grilled vegies and fries), salad, and rolls and corn muffins. I want to find the recipe for the eggy muffins.
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