Blogs from Albania, Europe - page 4

Monday - in the morning, after the previous evening's cloud-mist, the setting of the hotel looked positively idyllic. What a shame that the hotel breakfast was the worst of the trip - fried eggs which had been fried some time earlier and then just left out on a cold plate anyone? (OK, yes there were other things too but nothing appetising). Dropping down the mountain side we stopped at the coastal town of Vlore for a coffee stop... and an opportunity for a nice pastry to make up for the appalling breakfast. Flag Square in Vlore was where the Albanian flag was raised in 1912 when Albania became independent, represented by an impressive monument erected during the communist era. So, although the monument celebrated events in 1912 the figures shown, in pose and in dress style, ... read more

Arriving in Athens, then a quick flight to Tirana, the capital of Albania. Our plan was to take a multi day hike in the North which included a ferry and then into the Albanian Alps. Trying to escape the forecasted rain we quickly moved on to Shkoder, a 2 hour bus ride north to catch the ferry. Still trying to decide whether or not to do the hike, we received notice that the ferry was cancelled, due to low water levels! So, a quick change of plans and we were able to rent a car and decided to drive to Dubrovnik, Croatia, 4 hours away. Considering we made this decision Sat afternoon, we were able to contact the one of 2 car rental places in Shkoder, and actually managed to pick up a car on Sunday ... read more

Tuesday morning - the group started in Tirana in the morning. Not an early start as the first place was the National History Museum which didn't open until 9am. Alfred had booked us a museum guide, the best one he reckoned. And very good he was too. The museum is arranged over 3 floors and clearly arranged chronologically. It contains some impressive artefacts from Albania's history, from prehistoric times to the relatively present day. But the services of the guide were really needed as there was very little in the way of English captions. Some of the artefacts seen are in the photos. The guide described one of these - an embroidered funeral shroud - as being rated one of the best medieval objects in existence. When it was displayed at the Louvre a while back ... read more

The journey back over the long and winding road from Theth to the main SH1 highway on Saturday morning was a comparative doddle compared to the drive over on Wednesday. Maybe it was the time of day, who knows. However, the main highway was as if everyone and their dog had bought their car out for a drive. We had extended sections of driving at barely 40 or 50 km per hour for most of the journey back towards Tirana. You can almost understand the impatience of some drivers and why they overtake in stupid positions. Remember our reference in Albania blog 1 to the number of roadside flowers. And, along one stretch of road there was a hold up. As we approached we passed a small car stopped in the middle of the road, facing ... read more

Many of you will be aware of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books, written by Douglas Adams. In that book the entry for Earth was simply "Mostly harmless". Fewer of you, though, will be aware that the title idea for that work of fiction derived from a travel book from 1971 - The Hitchhiker's Guide to Europe, a book which Paul used for hitching in Europe in his university years (and which we still have on the bookshelf in the study). In the chapter "Communist Countries" - a sign of the times back then - the entire entry for Albania reads simply "Forget it." Things have changed now, especially since the end of communist dictator Enver Hoxha's leadership in the early 1990s, and Albania is regarded as a current up and coming travel hot spot. ... read more