I feel so much gratitude for my organised round trip through the Balkans.
It has given me wars and ruins, rivers and mountains, caves and bridges, baklava… and, of course, wine tasting. 😊
Until my trip to Albania in June, I knew very little about this part of the world. Since then, my curiosity has only grown.
And yet, there’s something I feel I missed on this journey. Something one won’t find on a map.
The people.
I want to sit with them.
Listen to their stories.
Get a little closer to understanding their why.
What does a tradition mean to the person who carries it?
What makes someone preserve it, generation after generation?
What memories, wounds, hopes and dreams lie beneath the things we call culture?
And how do patriotism, family values and resilience coexist in times of uncertainty and change?
For me, travelling is about more than discovering places. It’s about getting close enough to another person’s world to begin wondering why they see it the way they do.
Not to find all the answers, or to assume I could ever fully understand, but to listen, ask questions and allow my own perspective to shift.
Perhaps that’s the part of the Balkans I have yet to discover.
And perhaps it’s a good reason to return.
#TheBalkans #Travel #CulturalCuriosity #HumanConnection #LifelongLearning
