This weekend marked one month of Balkan summer — 9 different cities/towns! — and I am happy to report that I have, in fact, learned some things. It is time to reflect.

Yet… I don’t feel I have much to say. That is, until I remember there is much I’ve already said.

I now present unedited excerpts from my notes app: Balkan Summer edition.

Maggie PecorinoAugust 15, 2024Comment

Bosnian Connections

An old man with a room to let. A half-Russian actor from Albany. A local bartender with a penchant for eco-tourism. A Serbian entrepreneur based in Stockholm. A man-about-town smoothie company owner.

And the way each one of them led to the next.

A series of anecdotes. A deeper look at the statement: people are the reason why I travel.

Maggie PecorinoAugust 8, 2024 Comments

Train-sience

Transience (noun)

the state or fact of lasting only for a short time; transitoriness.
"the transience of life and happiness"

What this is not about: the joy and contentment that comes from savoring the present moment.

What this is about: the pleasure of movement — physically and psychologically. Temporality. Sandwiches, turkey & cheese. Coconut Trees.

Maggie PecorinoAugust 1, 2024Comment

The 45 Minute Fish Paprikash

It is Sunday afternoon on Lake Palić, and I am happily waiting 45 minutes for a fish stew, seated outdoors on a 90 degree day at a restaurant resembling a nautically-themed shack.

There is no breeze. No wifi. No one to talk to. Nothing to do.

For one full week has passed back on the backpacking grind — three different towns, three sleepy trains — and I’ve managed to complete all work-related to-dos.

There is nothing left to do, but nothing.

Maggie PecorinoJuly 25, 2024Comment

The Sombor Shuffle (or, The Merits of Slowness)

I am making a pilgrimage.

To a quiet place. A place of legend. Where few travelers ever go.

And, via train — my favorite! Except… this train. This train must be cursed. It must be the slowest on Earth. I didn’t expect the Serbian rail network to be the Shinkansen, but I get the idea that I could outrun this piece of metal if I tried hard enough.

Huh. Maybe I just discovered the origin of the Sombor Shuffle.

Maggie PecorinoJuly 18, 2024Comment

The Fable of Fabel Friet

Once upon a time — sometime in the 1600s, to be more exact — a group of people figured out that when you put sliced potatoes in boiling oil, they taste really fucking good.

Over the years, love for the fried potato grew and grew and grew. Accessibility became widespread thanks to the emergence of the “frites stand” — vendors selling frites for takeaway.

One stand in particular rose above the rest. So much so that people traveled many, many hours to visit — even though there were many, many other stands much closer by.

This is a tale about hype culture.

Maggie PecorinoJune 28, 2024Comment