A girl and her church.

It's been a long time, longer than I care to admit, since my last visit to Visoki Decani Monastery so it was only natural that my heart went a-thump as I was walking up to the front gate of the monastery's estate. 

This is the sight that awaits you the moment you open the gate...

The monastery was established in a chestnut grove by Serbian King Stefan Uroš III Dečanski in 1327. Its original founding charter is dated back to 1330. The following year the king died and was buried at the monastery which henceforth became his popular shrine. Indeed, the epithet Dečanski refers to the king's foundation of the monastery. The construction was continued bz his son Emperor Stefan Uroš IV Dušan until 1335, but the wall-painting was not completed until 1350. Read more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visoki_De%C4%8Dani

Still, none of it even begins to describe the beauty of this quiet giant, the sense of tranquility that overcomes  you the moment you set foot inside the church or the proud humility of the monastery's brethren.  

I do not know if it's allowed or not, but I did not even try to photograph the inside of the church.

You can see some of its frescoes here: http://www.kosovo.net/dec_frescoes.html

After a long chat with a monk (a former party animal and a huge rock n'roll fan from Zajecar)
 I engaged in some serious shopping.  This is just a part of the lot I brought back home with me: 

Pomace brandy or lozovaca, red wine, aged cheese kackavalj or caciocavallo and herbal honey.

One of the dozen bottles of wine I brought back died for a good cause....

...celebrating a happy return home.