Blogs from Albania, Europe

Exploring the real Albania: You are never really alone. Travelling can open your eyes. I woke up with an overwhelming urge to write. I decided to go to the local park so I could be alone. I had been in the park for ten minutes before I suddenly became aware that I was being stared at by four strange men. They all appeared to be different ages. The younger one approached me and sat down, he tried to talk to me but he couldn't speak any english. The others slowly moved towards me. They all sat down. Their clothes were dirty and torn. I was still writing as they approached. I tried my hardest to appear as if I was comfortable, attempting to smile. English was very difficult for them. We exchanged a few gestures. They ... read more

Lounaalle Albaniaan Muutaman Budvassa vietetyn päivän jälkeen oli taas aika lähteä vähän retkeilemään. Jo aikaisemmin oli suunniteltu, että Albaniassakin olisi ihan mukava käydä – ei siis viipyä mitenkään useita päiviä vaan ihan vaikka päivävisiitti lounaan merkeissä olisi riittävä tällä kertaa. Jo joskus nuorempana oli usein mielessä, että eipä olisi lainkaan hullumpi keksintö lähteä pistäytymään Albaniassa. Joskus 80-luvullahan maa oli vielä suljettu ja vaikeasti lähestyttävä mutta siten tietenkin sitäkin kiinnostavampi. Eipä kuitenkaan koskaan ollut riittävästi sinnikkyyttä lähteä kokeilemaan, että miten maahan olisi päässyt. Tirana taisi olla ainoa paikka mihin olisi edes voinut kuvitella lähtevänsä ja sekään ei olisi ollut helppoa. Mutta haaveeksi jäivät nämä suunnitelmat silloin vuosia sitten ja Albania oli si... read more

we were back on the coach today headed toTirana, Albania, it was an interesting drive as the roads were not to well maintained and interesting sights on the way. There was lots of rubbish on the roadside, lots and lots of carwashs and not quite completed buildings. When we got to tirana we got taken on a driving tour which took us past all the brightly coloured buildings with designs. After the drive tour we got taken to our accomidation for the night which was an apartment style with a kitchen, lounge, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. We were very spoilt here with the accomidation, and the beds were amazing, I got to catch up on a lot of sleep.... read more

This morning we were up at 6.15am so we could clean our boat before leaving (we had to have inspections)... problem was we were such a great team that we had the boat finished and emptied in 45 minutes... I stood guard of our luggage because our friends (the 'town dogs') may have tried to steal something! After packing up we drove to Tirana, Albania. It is crazy to come from such a pleasant, rich place (Plataria, Greece) to this incredibly poor country. We stopped at a shopping mall and I was not feeling so well. Steve told me I would be ok and I wondered if I had just been sitting funny on the bus... 5 minutes after getting back on the bus I was vomitting into a rubbish bag... not very nice but it ... read more

Berat is thought to be one of the oldest towns in Albania and is overlooked by the Kala (or castle to you and me). I spent most of the day exploring Berat and started off with the castle, which was mostly built in the 13th Century, but with origins going back to the 4th Century BC. A very beautiful place with great views of the surrounding area, as I was walking up the hill to get to it I heard the crump of artillery shells in the background, which is always an intersting backdrop to any walk:-) There must be a firing range in the area unless there was another Balkan war taking place:-) Most of the castle inside the walls is in ruins, although there is a nice church which is worth a visit. The ... read more