Pristina Favorites

Favorite thing: hi bjorn,

regarding ur question for an apartment.

u'll find a lot of, since i'm a local, i know it.

be carefull when it comes to the price, since the locals request higher values for internationals, then for locals.
the best way to prevent this is, to let a local call the renter and deal the price.

but u can expect a price around 10euro/day, depending on the term of stay.

for any question write me on meriton_167@hotmail.com

bye

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Favorite thing: It seems as though most of the internationals living long-term in Pristina live in Dragodan. Dragodan has its advantages - namely beautiful views and close proximity to most of Pristina's foreign embassies/"offices." An area of town that is also worth considering if you plan to move to Pristina for an extended period of time is Tophane. More of a traditional neighborhood, Tophane is considerably cheaper than Dragodan, but also suffers from more power outages than the rest of the city. I enjoy living in Tophane because it feels more like you are living amongst the general population of Pristina, whereas Dragodan is somewhat of an international "bubble." Consider living in Tophane if moving to Pristina!

Fondest memory: During Byram, Tophane turns into a massive sheep market for the entire city, with thousands of sheep being sold in the streets for the practicing Muslims from all of Pristina.

Favorite thing: fly into and out of Skopje (Alexander the Great Airport), as opposed to Pristina International. The weather in Pristina is often extremely foggy during the winter months, which regularly cancels or otherwise delays flights. The Skopje airport is nice and is only an hour and half away from Pristina.

Favorite thing: on the website www.rrethi.com you can find an aerial map of prishtina with search enginge covering most of the businesses/entertainment facilities in the city. unfortunalty still can not search for addresses.

Favorite thing: There are no entry requirements for citizens of any country as long as one has a valid passport. However, is the duration of stay is more than 90 days, everyone has to register with local government and have temporary residence. To do so, one must have a valid working contract with any institution (local or international) and a local residence address.

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Favorite thing: Most of the Kosovar Albanians who I have met openly discuss the events of 1999 and are happy to discuss the current politics in Kosovo - which are quite complex. That being said, as a foreigner, it is important to be sensitive to the history of the region. Many of the current residents of Pristina and elsewhere in Kosovo were subject to severe violence at the hands of Serbian military and para-military forces.

On the mind of most people now (August 2007) in Kosovo is independence. This can also be an extremely sensitive subject (but also a very interesting one). Tred carefully.

Discuss such topics with appreciation and respect, and be prepared to listen.

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Favorite thing: If I had to take a person somewhere in Pristina, I'd probably take them out to the Monastery in Gracanica and to the Fatih Mosque in Pristina. These are the two oldest religious symbols near Pristina that I know about.

A great thing about Pristina is there are a ton of nice restaurants and the prices are quite reasonable. Most nights you can eat under 10-15 Euros with a full meal.

Fondest memory: If you visit Kosovo at the beginning of June or in September, try to catch the International Children's Day festivities on Mother Theresa in downtown Pristina. The road is closed so children from all around Kosovo can perform traditional dances as they parade through downtown.

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Favorite thing: ...it is the fact that it was not what I expected. I had the good fortune to sit next to a Kosovan guy on the plane who spoke very good English and so I had the opportunity to discuss Kosova, its history and the war - so by the time I landed I was already getting a sense of the place. My fellow passengers who were mainly Kosovan were very chic...but this could have been the elite who could afford the fare. When I travelled through the city it was bussling and exciting ( we had passed through some difficult areas on the way through - so like most places - there is poverty - not unexpectedly). The following day when I had a chance to walk round more, and interact with the people it was clear that this is a place which is working hard to pull itself out of the war-torn, decrepid, poor, villainous reputation that it has in England to an entrepreneurial, young, vibrant city - the infrastructure is poor....but the spirit of the people is high.