Valeria and Vladislav of VAL get engaged atop scenic Montengro mountain

It seems October is a month for joyous marriage proposals! The next couple to put a ring on it is Valeria Gribusova and Vladislav Pashkevich of Belarus’ Eurovision 2020 duo VAL. Vladislav popped the question atop a scenic mountain in Montenegro. But as Valeria explained, getting there was an epic saga in itself.

The couple have been vacationing in Montenegro, far from the social and political turmoil back in Belarus. And while that hadn’t stopped VAL getting involved in some heated discussion with broadcaster BTRC, it seems that the duo have been using their time in Montenegro to destress and enjoy the outdoors.

But as Valeria described with a post on Instagram, their planned hike up a scenic mountain didn’t quite go as planned — but it had a very happy ending!

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A post shared by VAL = VLAD & LERA ??? (@val.music) on Oct 2, 2020 at 4:11am PDT

VAL’s marriage proposal

Valeria described the epic story of the marriage proposal on the duo’s Instagram account, originally written in Belarusian.

“Forever 💍

“Yesterday was International Music Day and our life together was almost 5 years old. Very symbolic, isn’t it?
⠀
‘We decided to climb a very high point in Montenegro. Mount Lovćenis located at an altitude of 1,749 m above sea level.

“First, we drove to the historical capital of Montenegro, Cetinje. The road took 2.5 hours along a picturesque winding mountain road. Arriving there, we chose a point where, as it seemed to us, an observation deck at the top of the mountain would await us, with the opportunity to see the scale of mountain landscapes in all directions.

“Trusting the walking route offered by maps.me, we set off on a difficult path over rocks and rocks. On the way, we enjoyed incredible Montenegrin flora and fauna. Horses, goats, cows and unknown bird species greeted us with their completely different voices. And at the same time, we did not manage to meet a single person for the entire route. Periodically, the forces left us to go further, but then returned. At the end of the walking route, a cafe was marked on the map, but upon reaching it, it turned out that the building was for sale, not a soul was around. 132 storeys, 23,465 steps, and 16 kilometres (according to the Health app), and we wander into a dead end, in the middle of the forest wilderness.

“We had to walk a little bit back, returned to the road (the part along our minibus went), to wait for a hitchhiker, who would bring us somewhere where there was civilisation. There was not much traffic, we passed one car in 15 minutes on average. Only two cars honked greetings to us, but the third one stopped. The conversation with the two women inside was a mix of Russian, English, Serbian and Belarusian. They agreed to bring us to the nearby hotel/restaurant, where they called a taxi for us and brought us the summit of the highest mountain in that region. By foot, we wouldn’t be able to see the sunset, given the inadequacy of the terrain for hiking trails, and also the long kilometres, mountainous terrain around it.

“Going up to the entrance of the mausoleum of Njegoš, we enjoyed the unbelievable landscapes of the mountainous terrain, extending for many kilometres further. Unfortunately, that same mausoleum happened to be closed, but it did not prevent the most important moment, that happened during the whole trip, to become unbelievably moving and nervewracking. After having caught some air, Vladik started to dig around in his backpack. He asked to take his phone out, got down on his one knee, and proposed to me.

“After the cherished “da”, we together teared up, we felt embarrassed and moved from that unique moment. A few people who were nearby responded with cheers and applause. That moment will always be in our memory.

“Eternally! 01.10.2020.”

The team at wiwibloggs wishes Valeria and Vladislav all the best for their future together!