Blogs from Albania, Europe - page 8
October 28th 2008
At the bus station in Saranda, there was a bus going for Tirana so i decided to take it, so much for Gjirokaster, I really wanted to see the town it looks interesting from the main road when we passed it from Berat but there is also a part of me that wants to get to Montenegro as soon as possible. It will be 8 hours bus journey and I knew we are passing through the zigzag mountains when the conductor started handing out plastic bags to the locals, puke bags!! Luckily none did though got a bit dizzy once again. We stopped again in Gjirokaster, and saw the tower from a distance, maybe I was not meant to visit it at this time.. Stopped for lunch somewhere, and when we arrived in Tirana heavy traffic ... read more
October 26th 2008
At dinner last night I was told by the waiter that i have to move back my watch tonight before going to bed, daylight sdavings time occurs on last weekend of october. So i have extra hour of sleep. Woke up had my quick breakfast and said my goodbyes to Cathy and Keith and off i went to the bus station. Found the bus for Saranda quite easily, the driver simply asked me Saranda? and I said yeah he took my backpack and put it under the carriage. Half an hour later we left. It stops every so often to towns even on the road to pick passengers up or unload them. It took us almost 6 1/2 hours to get to Saranda, fell asleep and when i woke up I saw this beautiful scenery of ... read more
October 25th 2008
At the bus station in Prishtina i asked the ticket seller which platform my bus leaves he told me 19 but when i showed my ticket the driver said no, it will be the next bus, i tried to get on the bus 20 past 5 my bus leaves at 6pm, turns out all departures on 19 leaves for Tirana, every half hour, a few stopping in macedonia en route and different companies which added to my confusionm when it left was relieved to see my bus pull in. We left on time, the conductor collecting our passports to make a passenger list. An hour into the trip we pulled over and a car pulled next to us, i think he was telling something to the driver about our bus, turns out the cooling thing is ... read more
October 10th 2008
It's fair to say that Albania suffers from an image problem. Communist for so long and isolated because of its refusal to become part of Yugoslavia in 1948, plus the breaking up of relations with Russia and China, it suffered more than anyone when the old regime collapsed in 1991. The country's economy collapsed, the capital Tirana was swamped with migrants now free to travel there, and infrastructure was found totally wanting. Five years ago we would probably have shyed away from this poverty-stricken nation, but things have changed. Money has been invested from abroad and the capital city has been transformed. We arrived at 5am on Monday morning and were taken to our apartment by the sleepy owner who was late meeting us because of his very human mistake of overusing the snooze button on ... read more
August 17th 2008
I feel guilty to say this but when I lived in Tirana, in a way I felt a bit bored and understimulated. I didn't see alot of culture or arts in play. The city's residents seemed a bit conformist to me and the entertainment options seemed limited. Now, on this trip, I see a new Tirana. The residents are going through a transformation where there is more diversity, more demand for culture, arts, style, entertainment, etc. The city's visual appearance is changing to become more modern, bigger, and more prosperous. There is more activity everywhere. Today, I walking from the apartment and I saw the clear blue skies and the mountains behind the city. I just felt taken by the city and its march to a brighter future. But I still some signs of the rough ... read more
August 15th 2008
After Lufthansa refused to allow me to change my ticket to Georgia, I have decided to spend the rest of my holiday in Tirana. Actually, it's very good because I am really enjoying having the time to spend here and re-connect with this place where I used to live. The transformation of Tirana into a modern European capital is amazing. Today, I was walking near the lake and I was just taken by the beautiful of the lake, the pine trees, and these huge mountains to the east. It's really a beautiful and under-appreciated country. South of the lake is a new neighborhood with many apartment buildings under construction and I feel that this would be a good investment. It's a quiet place without too much noise and pollution from the city, yet only a 3 ... read more
August 11th 2008
We left an empty, hot Tirana on Sunday morning and took the three hour drive down south to Vlore. The road passes through Durres which had become a parking lot of cars with foreign plates--Albanians home for the summer holidays--and teenagers on holiday walking to the beach. The road winds down along the coast, past some abandoned factories, empty railroad tracks, and a million roadside restaurants and gas stations. The roads follows the thin coastal strip between the mountains and the beach. Bledi and his friend Olsi were playing Albanian pop music the whole way down. It seemed a shame to me to see so much land not under cultivation when the world is experiencing a food crisis and the sun shines brightly on Albania. The entire route was lined with wedding processions, usually one guy ... read more
August 7th 2008
When I first came to Albania in 2004, I landed at a small shack-sized airport and drove into a city where alot people looked and acted the same and where the country was still struggling to take its place among European countries. Yesterday, I landed in the morning to the city's new airport--which although still sized for a small country (ie, only one luggage belt for arriving passengers) had all the modern trappings and architecture you expect in 2008. A modern, organized parking lot has taken the place of the mud field where the driver once picked me up two years ago. A new road leads into the city center, where buildings have sprouted up and businesses have taken the place of where young guys used to wash cars and still out front of businesses with ... read more
July 4th 2008
Happy 4th of July. I am writing this now for the 2nd time because the internet connection just lost my blog entry. So here we go, I will try to recreate. I am now in Tirana, Albania and wanted to wish everyone a happy holiday. This has been quite an adventure so far and we are having a fabulous time. Here is a short and quick overview of what we have done so far. Plane from Stuttgart to Zagreb, Croaita. Few hours to see the sights and eat a large plate of meat. Watched Spain win their seat in the final match of the Euro Cup against Germany. Overnight train from Zagreb to Split. Saw the sights in Split, ate half a watermelon from the market. Beautiful palace on the water. Gorgeous beaches out of town. ... read more
July 1st 2008
We woke early to head up to Montenegro by early afternoon, after a disagreement about how we should get to the bus stop at 6 am (cat won) we walked up to the top of town, then sat backpacker hobo style on the side of the road hopping we were at the right place. A few wanders later to see if the stop was elsewhere a swanky new mini bus and some kiwis arrived and before long we were on our way up to Budva. We arrived in the north of Albania with a bump as the driver slammed on the brakes to avoid steel poles flying in through the windscreen, causing the car behind to smash into the back. Out the drivbers got after a quick exchange and a laugh they both happily got back ... read more
