Kosovo is a western european country surrounded by Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, and Albania. However, the country is only eight years old! That’s right, the country separated from Serbia in 2008. The capital of Kosovo, Pristina, is actually a very modern city heavily involved in the idea of consumerism. In fact Travel and Leisure has Pristina on their top 50 cities to visit for 2015! There’s always something to do in Pristina, and today I’m going to highlight some of the main attractions.

Besides the wide array of cultural shops and restaurants, Pristina boasts one major museum worth seeing. The National Museum of Kosovo has over 50 thousand exhibits to view. Most of these exhibits revolve around seeing Kosovo through an anthropological and archaeological lens. This entails an extensive selection of pieces that detail Kosovo’s rich history; some pieces even go back as far as the Neolithic era around 8,000 years ago! One of the exhibits you can see is called The Neolithic Goddess of the Throne, or Hynesha ne Fron as the people of Kosovo have named it. This piece of terracotta was made around 6,000 BC and has always been an item of value in it’s time. It was found in Kosovo around 1956. Lonely Planet comments,”It’s well worth coming here to see how Kosovans perceive the past two decades of their troubled history.” The second museum is The Ethnological Museum Emin Gjiku is a sub-museum found in The National Museum and takes a unique perspective on it’s artwork. The Ethnological Museum Emin Gjiku has four major themes that focuses on the cycle of life: birth, life, dead, and spiritual heritage. One of the complexes involved in The Ethnological Museum is The Stone House, which contains some of the more contemporary artworks.

The Goddess of the Throne

The next major attraction to see in Kosovo is the Newborn Monument. After gaining independence from Serbia on February 17th, 2008, Kosovo unveiled the Newborn Monument. It symbolizes the newfound freedom of self-sovereignty Kosovo now exercises. It’s a typographic sculpture, much like the Hollywood sign in California. Originally painted a bright yellow, the Newborn Monument is now painted differently every year; they reveal the new design annually on February 17. This unveiling has become a routine part of their independence day celebration. In the first redesign of the monument, Kosovo painted the flags of all of the countries who have recognized their independence on the monument. This triggered international media attention, and was even featured on the front page of The New York Times. The monument weighs a hefty 9 tons! It’s dimensions are 10 feet by 79 feet by 3 feet. The Newborn Monument has received six major design awards and has sparked critical acclaim worldwide. The Kosovo Travel Blog states the monument is “One of the most historic places in the very recent history of Europa”. If you can, try to book a ticket sometime in February so you can participate in the unveiling of the monument!

The original unveiling of The Newborn Monument

Kosovo is an up and coming country that has a lot to offer. If you ever do end up visiting Pristina don’t just get lost in the endless array of cultural diversity it has to offer! Make sure you visit The National Museum and take a selfie with The Goddess of the Throne. Travel blogger Anwar exclaimed how Pristina, “From very friendly people, to its interesting yet tragic history, it really drew me in.” All in all, traveling is what you make it out to be. With that in mind, wherever you go in the world, and whatever you do, just have fun with it.

http://www.ancientcraft.co.uk/reenactment/pa_venus_vinca1.html

http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/best-places-to-travel-in-2015/35

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/kosovo/prishtina/sights/museums-galleries/museum-kosovo

http://www.beyondmyfrontdoor.com/wp/friday-photo-newborn-prishtina-kosovo/

http://www.kosovo-info.com/kosovo-tourism/newborn-monument/