Gourmet products
We recommend one or two jars ofajvar, a Balkan spread made of red bell pepper, sweet (or hot) pepper and garlic. The best ones are those sold on the markets (between 2 and 3 € per jar). Another Balkan specialty: pickled vegetables(turshi in Albanian, turšija in Serbian) served with rakija (brandy). These pickles come in several versions: cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, mixed vegetables, green peppers stuffed with cheese or red peppers with garlic (3-5 € for a large jar at the market). Easier to transport are the loukoums(llokumi in Albanian, rahat-lokum in Serbian) that are eaten everywhere in the peninsula with Turkish, Bosnian, Greek or Serbian coffee. But in Kosovo, the most famous are those with rose or walnut made in Prizren. The city has several workshops and the factory Liri which supplies the whole country. Still on a sweet note, you will not fail to see on the roadside honey stands (mjaltë/dušo). Some small producers offer very good honey (5-10 € per jar). Be careful, however, because in recent years, fake honey has appeared. Obtained by adding sugar syrup and starch, it smells like a scam. There is no doubt about the Sideritis scardica, a flower used as an infusion that grows in the Šar Mountains and the southern Balkans. Called "mountain tea" in Albanian (chai mali) or "tea of the Šar Mountains" in Serbian (Šarplaninski čaj), it has been known for its many beneficial properties since ancient Greece. The dried bunch is sold for 1-2 € in markets, herbal shops or organic stores.
Gourmet products
We recommend one or two jars ofajvar, a Balkan spread made of red bell pepper, sweet (or hot) pepper and garlic. The best ones are those sold on the markets (between 2 and 3 € per jar). Another Balkan specialty: pickled vegetables(turshi in Albanian, turšija in Serbian) served with rakija (brandy). These pickles come in several versions: cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, mixed vegetables, green peppers stuffed with cheese or red peppers with garlic (3-5 € for a large jar at the market). Easier to transport are the loukoums(llokumi in Albanian, rahat-lokum in Serbian) that are eaten everywhere in the peninsula with Turkish, Bosnian, Greek or Serbian coffee. But in Kosovo, the most famous are those with rose or walnut made in Prizren. The city has several workshops and the factory Liri which supplies the whole country. Still on a sweet note, you will not fail to see on the roadside honey stands (mjaltë/dušo). Some small producers offer very good honey (5-10 € per jar). Be careful, however, because in recent years, fake honey has appeared. Obtained by adding sugar syrup and starch, it smells like a scam. There is no doubt about the Sideritis scardica, a flower used as an infusion that grows in the Šar Mountains and the southern Balkans. Called "mountain tea" in Albanian(chai mali) or "tea of the Šar Mountains" in Serbian(Šarplaninski čaj), it has been known for its many beneficial properties since ancient Greece. The dried bunch is sold for 1-2 € in markets, herbal shops or organic stores.
Wine and rakija
From experience, we find Kosovo wine often very good on the spot (powerful, fruity), but without interest once back home. Don't let this discourage you from discovering this little-known vineyard that has existed since antiquity. The only real wine region is in the Rahovec/Orahovac valley and the Serbian enclave of Velika Hoča (23 km east of Gjakova/Đakovica). There, about 20 estates producing mostly red wines from Balkan (vranac, prokupac) and Western European (cabernet sauvignon, merlot, pinot noir, gamay, blaufränkisch) grapes. The two largest estates are Bodrumi i Vjeter and Stone Castle. They are the result of Yugoslav cooperatives founded in 1953 and produce mainly wines for export, which are easy to find in Pristina or Prizren. For better quality, it is better to go locally, to independent winemakers like Sefa, in Rahovec, and Hočanska Vina, in Velika Hoča. Famous for its churches, the village of Velika Hoča actually produces the best rakija in Kosovo as well as the wine sold in the monasteries. For half a liter of rakija, count on about 8 €. For wines, prices start at €2 per bottle and climb to over €16 for some vintages (2017 in particular). Otherwise, among the wines of neighboring countries offered at wine shops, do not hesitate to taste the very good kalmett, a red that comes from northern Albania (from € 13 per bottle)
Wine and rakija
From experience, we find Kosovo wine often very good on the spot (powerful, fruity), but without interest once back home. Don't let this discourage you from discovering this little-known vineyard that has existed since antiquity. The only real wine region is in the Rahovec/Orahovac valley and the Serbian enclave of Velika Hoča (23 km east of Gjakova/Đakovica). There, about 20 estates producing mostly red wines from Balkan (vranac, prokupac) and Western European (cabernet sauvignon, merlot, pinot noir, gamay, blaufränkisch) grapes. The two largest estates are Bodrumi i Vjeter and Stone Castle. They are the result of Yugoslav cooperatives founded in 1953 and produce mainly wines for export, which are easy to find in Pristina or Prizren. For better quality, it is better to go locally, to independent winemakers like Sefa, in Rahovec, and Hočanska Vina, in Velika Hoča. Famous for its churches, the village of Velika Hoča actually produces the best rakija in Kosovo as well as the wine sold in the monasteries. For half a liter of rakija, count on about 8 €. For wines, prices start at €2 per bottle and climb to over €16 for some vintages (2017 in particular). Otherwise, among the wines of neighboring countries offered at wine shops, do not hesitate to taste the very good kalmett, a red that comes from northern Albania (from € 13 per bottle).
Shopping at the monastery
Kosovo's three UNESCO World Heritage Serbian Orthodox monasteries each have an interesting store. At the monastery in Gračanica, Peć and, especially, Dečani, you can get some of the best wines, rakijas, honeys and cheeses in the country. The prices are a bit higher than elsewhere (count €10 for a bottle of rakija), but the quality is there. You can also find icons hand painted by monks and nuns (from 20 €)
Shopping at the monastery
Kosovo's three Unesco World Heritage Serbian Orthodox monasteries each have an interesting store. At the monastery in Gračanica, Peć and, especially, Dečani, you can get some of the best wines, rakijas, honeys and cheeses in the country. The prices are a bit higher than elsewhere (count €10 for a bottle of rakija), but the quality is there. You can also find icons hand painted by monks and nuns (from 20 €)
Handicraft
Prizren is the historical center of crafts in Kosovo. But of the 50 or so trades (tanners, silk weavers, coppersmiths, cutlers ...) that the city had a century ago, only two traditional activities remain: the manufacture of kilims and filigree. Of Persian origin, the kilim(qilim in Albanian, ćilim in Serbian, pronounced "chilim" in both languages) is a light woven wool carpet that covered the floor of homes. Those of Prizren and the southern Balkans are in the medieval tradition of the kilim of Pirot (southeast Serbia) with their geometric patterns and a preponderance of the color red. A few workshops still weave them by hand and it costs about 100 € for a kilim of 2 m2. The Byzantine art of filigree(filigrani in Albanian, filigran in Serbian) is also found in the southern Balkans. It consists of silver (or gold) threads finely welded together to give the effect of embroidery. Of the 200 specialized craftsmen who existed in Prizren in the 1980s, there are still ten gathered in the Filigran ShPK cooperative. This cooperative offers necklaces, rings, brooches, bracelets, earrings and decorative objects made of silver filigree starting at 30 € for a bracelet. You can also find them in Pristina, like at Dodo Silver, on the pedestrian boulevard Mother Teresa. Lovers of traditional stringed instruments will have a hard time. For the ancestral Serbian and Albanian music is being lost and the last luthiers in the country are now old. You can try your luck in Pristina on the Zahir-Pajaziti square, at the bottom of the Mother Teresa pedestrian boulevard. There, Mehdi Kryeziu (born in 1947) normally plays every day and sells his instruments: from 15 to 90 € for a small çifteli and up to 400 € for a šargija.
Handicraft
Prizren is the historical center of crafts in Kosovo. But of the fifty or so trades (tanners, silk weavers, coppersmiths, cutlers ...) that the city had a century ago, only two traditional activities remain: the manufacture of kilims and filigree. Of Persian origin, the kilim(qilim in Albanian, ćilim in Serbian, pronounced "chilim" in both languages) is a light woven wool carpet that covered the floor of homes. Those of Prizren and the southern Balkans are in the medieval tradition of the kilim of Pirot (southeast Serbia) with their geometric patterns and a preponderance of the color red. A few workshops still weave them by hand and it costs about 100 € for a kilim of 2m2. The Byzantine art of filigree(filigrani in Albanian, filigran in Serbian) is also found in the southern Balkans. It consists of silver (or gold) threads finely welded together to give the effect of embroidery. Of the two hundred specialized craftsmen who existed in Prizren in the 1980s, ten remain within the Filigran ShPK cooperative. This cooperative offers necklaces, rings, brooches, bracelets, earrings and decorative objects made of silver filigree starting at 30 € for a bracelet, for example. You can also find them in Pristina, like at Dodo Silver, on the pedestrian boulevard Mother Teresa. Lovers of traditional stringed instruments will have a hard time. For the ancestral Serbian and Albanian music is being lost and the last luthiers in the country are now old. You can try your luck in Pristina on the Zahir-Pajaziti square, at the bottom of the Mother Teresa pedestrian boulevard. There, Mehdi Kryeziu (born in 1947) normally plays every day and sells his instruments: from 15 to 90 € for a small çifteli and up to 400 € for a šargija.
Bimbeloterie
Souvenir stores display all kinds of nationalist bric-a-brac: carpets decorated with "heroes" of the KLA, key chains, magnets, mugs or T-shirts in the colors of Albania, statuettes of Mother Teresa, engravings of Skanderbeg's helmet or the Albanian double-headed eagle, bad copies of Ottoman-era knives, etc. In some Serbian enclaves, the same materials come in other colors, such as the T-shirt with the words Косово је Србија ("Kosovo is Serbia"). If you don't want to take sides, opt instead for a reproduction of the Goddess on the Throne(Hyjnesha në fron/Boginja na tronu), an alien-looking Neolithic figurine on display in the Kosovo Museum, copies of which adorn almost every home in the country.
Bimbeloterie
Souvenir stores display all kinds of nationalist bric-a-brac: carpets decorated with "heroes" of the KLA, key chains, magnets, mugs or T-shirts in the colors of Albania, statuettes of Mother Teresa, engravings of Skanderbeg's helmet or the Albanian double-headed eagle, bad copies of Ottoman-era knives, etc. In some Serbian enclaves, the same materials come in other colors, such as the T-shirt with the words Косово је Србија ("Kosovo is Serbia"). If you don't want to take sides, opt instead for a reproduction of the Goddess on the Throne(Hyjnesha në fron/Boginja na tronu), an alien-looking Neolithic figurine on display in the Kosovo Museum, copies of which adorn almost every home in the country.
