Prizreni

Picture a charming Balkan city. A city draped along thebanks of a shallow river and backed by towering green mountains, a city linked to the coast and the interior by ancient trade routes, a city dotted with elegant old buildings constructed over many centuries, a city covered by snow in the cold winters and by dust in the hot summers, a city that has seen many different people and rulers come and go, a city that has seen destruction and restoration many times over, a city that has survived and overcome adversity, a city that is now looking firmly to the future. Prizren is this city. As Kosovo’s ‘cultural capital’ with many summertime festivals and the prettiest city centre of the country, Prizren has what it takes to make an interesting destination for foreign leisure and business travellers. This old city with its young population is a great place to visit, be it on a quick stopover en route from Pristina or Skopje to the Albanian coast, or on a longer trip taking in the beautiful mountainous surroundings. Prizren’s delightful city centre is the best-preserved and most picturesque in Kosovo, with a good collection of religious and profane buildings and quaint residential quarters, all within close range of each other. The city’s long tradition of religious and ethnic tolerance is apparent in the close proximity of Catholic and Orthodox churches,mosques and tekkes, many of them hundreds of years old. A full day will allow you to see many of the sights reviewed here,though it’s recommended to call ahead to check.