A Frog's Fairy Tale on Gundula's Great Eurasian Roam In Montenegro đđ¸
Iâm back travellingâyay! đ After a weekâs "travel break" in London, whilst mighty Ludwig VAN waited for me patiently at Podgorica airport, we are finally reunited! đđ¨
After a whirlwind week of teaching in person and celebrating the release of my album, With Apfelstrudel & Turkish Coffee đťâđ, it seems the real party is only just starting. Already at the airport, I struck up a conversation with a wonderful Hungarian lady working at the duty-free shop. She was so fascinated by my Balkan music making that she gifted me a present box worth at least three times the value of what Iâd actually bought! đâ¨
From there, I headed straight to Lake Skadar to stay at River Camp MoraÄaâa lovely, lovely spot, so cosy, romantic, and immersed in total nature đżđ... and yet, I didnât take a single picture. Not even one! đ¸đ So I stole one from the internet just to show you! đ
The host was fantastic, a true gentleman with incredible manners and hospitality. On my very first evening, a spontaneous gathering on their houseboat with homemade rakija started my stay off in the absolute best way possible đĽđĽ.
Nothing overly dramatic happened at this peaceful place: just my first round of online teaching - my lovely students agreed to an online term so I could be free to undertake this Great Eurasian Roam! đťđ I also caught up on housework (or should I say "van-work"? đđ§š) and organised the next legs of my journey. Oh, and I met a frog who definitely got his fairy tales mixed up! đ¸đ
All the facilities were very much outdoors, and creatures of all shapes and sizesâthough thankfully smallâcoexisted with us in perfect harmony đŚđż... apart from one humongous bumblebee that made a loud, rumbling drone whenever it buzzed around your head! đđ¨
And then, of course, there was my new friend, the little green frog. One evening, I found him sitting right on the mirror, staring intensely at his reflection, puffing up his little throat and chattering away to himself đŞđ¸. I couldn't help thinking: My dear frog, "Mirror, mirror on the wall..." is the wicked queen's line from Snow White, not the frog's! đđ
The next day, he leaped right onto my face! What a sensation to have this slightly cold, a bit slimy creature with tiny soft feet sitting right on your cheek -brrrr! đ I could only tell him: My dear frog, I'm not going to turn into a frog princess - youâve got the story backwards! It's the princess who kisses the frog to turn him into a prince! đđđ¸
As the weather turned gradually to rain đ§ď¸, I'm now making my way out of the mountains and heading towards Serbiađđ¨Â Seeing more and more mosques and minarets along the way announced that the border was approaching! đ
Comments