I took my camera on a recent trip around the Balkans. Visiting nine countries in two weeks, we saw some truly beautiful places. Here are a few snapshots.

The abandoned bobsleigh track in the hills above Sarajevo.

This photo also nabbed me an honourable mention in a photo competition. Pretty cool.

My travel companions, Ryan and Kiki, checking out a pretty great lake at Plitvice Lakes in Croatia.

A roadside picnic in Bosnia. An amazingly green country.

The waterfalls are also pretty great at Plitvice Lakes in Croatia.

This was the view from our place in Mostar, Bosnia.

The Montenegrin coast is rather nice. We travelled to the islands in the bay with a rather sketchy but very friendly local guide.

The rather majestic Kotor, Montenegro.

Close to Thessaloniki, Greece.

Some of the many strays we found. We had to exercise all of our self-control not to come back with several extra passengers.

Sofia, Bulgaria. Surprisingly green and decidedly church-filled.

We finished our trip in Serbia. The final sunset in Belgrade was rather wonderful.

I can’t recommend the Balkans highly enough. Though the amount of grilled meat I ate may have stretched my stomach to the limit, the culture and landscapes (not to mention cheap and cheerful prices) of these small nations made for an incredible trip.