The jazz show in Kotor was really excellent and I wanted to stay longer but I knew the alarm would come early. And after a 6 hour bus ride here I am having dinner in Tirana Albania.
The trip was uneventful. Only a couple stops and plenty of time to nap. Thankfully we were never full. We stopped in Budva and Podgorica - the Montenegrin capital which was surprisingly big and modern.
We then headed to the Albanian side of Skhoder lake. It was surprisingly Tuscan. Large villas with vineyards and a lot of open space. The other thing I noticed was how many nice cars and car washes there are. I guess if you have a Mercedes you want to keep it clean.
Skhoder is the start of the Albanian alps hiking region so the town was not surprisingly geared to tourism. (Except that the typical trek from Valbone to Theth is a full eight hours, I think it would be interesting)
Tirana is a large, bustling capital city. There seems to be new construction everywhere. But new and very posh mostly restaurants are overshadowed by the remaining blight and loads of trash and litter.
My cab driver was a hoot trying to teach me Albanian. (Yes, it’s all different from the last few weeks. As is the money 100/1 USD to LEK)
The hotel is fine. Simple. And hopefully we’ll located in the trendy Blloku area which was a restricted enclave when Xoha was in power. His former residence is here somewhere.
I took a little walk to get my bearings and have a snack. There are a few big parks and squares and then what i initially thought was a street fair but turned out to be a bit of a tourist trap.
The food options have varied a bit and I am in a highly recommended Albanian and of course pizza restaurant. I have decided on feta cheese stuffed grilled peppers and veal meatballs in the most amazing sage and tomato based brown sauce I have ever had. The lack of octopus on the menu is refreshing.
It’s nice to be in a big city again. Completely different vibe than the small medieval walled cities. And there is a nice mix of people. Even at dinner, definitely tourists but locals as well.
I’ve rearranged the schedule for Albania a bit to take advantage of the weather forecast. I just need to book a final car and the bus to Thessaloniki.
Two weeks left.
(I’ve decided it is almost impossible to spot nationalities except for maybe some physical features. Tourists with the Eddie Bauer safari gear are obvious -mostly - Americans. But Under Armor, American logo t-shirts, baseball caps - it’s a bit of free for all. Where what you want. You will be fine.)
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