Mountains, Castles and Seas... ALBANIA!
Okay… to start off… we have crossed at this location probably 50 times (a day), after our morning coffee and on our way to meet our “new best friend”, we suddenly noticed the bright colors. Either we have had our heads in the clouds or this is a newly painted crosswalk! Really… wouldn’t you think we’d notice something like this??? Anyway, on with our day!
So first, let me say… this will be a slightly disjointed post. We left our flat at 7am, grabbed some Lek (Albanian currency) and a double cappuccino and headed to meet our friend. What was supposed to be a quick drive to a castle… turned into an overnight trip hours away. We have no change of clothes, no chargers, no card reader to take pictures from my camera. The only pictures are the ones I took (thankfully) with my phone! It was quite a day! As we began our unexpected day, we passed this statue dedicated to Albania’s hero… Mother Teresa. Though born in Skopje, Macedonia, Mother Teresa was of Albanian-Indian decent.
“If you judge people, you have no time to love them” Mother Teresa
After a very scenic drive, our first stop was the little town of Kruja. Our friend knew all the best parking spots and guided us through the Kruja Bazaar. It is the oldest marketplace in Albania. Over 400 years old, it was the starting place of free trade. Full of handcrafted items, we were only able to purchase an ornament and a shot glass because we are backpacking this trip. Not much room for any extras… I have photos of the shop we visited and will share them tomorrow.
Passing by the Bazaar, we began winding our way through the cobbled streets toward the castle. With more photos to come (this will be a common refrain), this location is of great historical significance. One of the biggest heroes in Albania is Gjergi Kastrioti Skenderbeu (spelled Skanderbeg in the Square). This castle was the center of Skanderbeg’s rebellion against the Ottoman Empire. Perched high above the valley, invaders could be spotted and stopped.
The view… absolutely stunning! Off in the distance, past the last mountain range… the Adriatic Sea. With a population of almost 60,000, this a bustling area with so much history! In years past, the people lived in the valley but if invaders were spotted, the moved to the castle for safety.
A simple shot of the castle gives an idea of the beauty. Inside is currently a museum with relics of war time and dedicated to their hero Skanderbeg. The tree on the right, was planted by Skanderbeg on his wedding day. Graves of family members rest in the shade beneath the tree. It is an unbelievable experience to walk the cobbled streets, take in the views. Tomorrow I will share more of the architecture on this compound.
This adorable man realized we were Americans and began an energized song and dance. Surprisingly, he repeated the names of one of our presidential candidates… so as not to be political in any way, I won’t mention which one. Suffice it to say, he was extremely enthusiastic about one and that surprised me in such a far away land… he was completely aware of our upcoming election. So cute!
On the way to our next stop, we decided to take a coffee break. Our friend told us Albania is the coffee country. I believe his since I have never seen more coffee shops in my life! It seems people drink coffee from early in the morning until late at night. It’s not often the coffee bar comes with a view like this. (Again, more photos of the view tomorrow). As we were leaving and ready to head up the hill, I made a new friend… this little bird flew right to my feet. Not quite sure what that was about but… we visited for a short time and then went on our way.
As we drove the short way to our next stop, a dog chased this family of goats down the hill. I saw one at first and photographed it but soon I realized there were several. Not a great video as we were in the car (me in the backseat) but you get the idea…
Just for fun… here are the stills that go with the videos. My little dancing friend and the family of goats.
Our enthusiasm for this castle was evident and only encouraged our friend… He insisted we allow him to take us to a second castle. It was straight across the valley, on top of the mountain range just before the sea. Who are we to say no? He was so excited to share his country… the history… the beauty. So across the valley we traveled, to Preze Castle in the town of Preze. Of course, this satisfied my affinity for arches! Such beauty… can’t wait to share the other views and sites from this castle. Though very different from the first, it was equally stunning. Built in the fourteenth century, it is another historical treasure!
Again… we were convinced there was more to see. Now our friend wanted us to see that we could go from a castle in the mountains, across a valley to a castle on the opposite mountain range and in short time be down at the Adriatic Sea. In the seaside town of Durres, we went to “a favorite restaurant”. It was amazing! With a panoramic sea view, we ordered a feast!
There was more than this but, quite honestly, once the seafood salad was delivered… I lost my mind! It was a cold salad full of calamari, shrimp, scallops, and a variety of other deliciousness. In addition to what is shown, we had a giant bowl of mussels and Barry had… a pizza… surprise! The restaurant is called 4stinet (Four Seasons). Outstanding food and service!
The man of the hour! Our gracious guide… I will find out how to correctly spell his name before putting it to print. I could spell it phonetically but somehow I think I will be way off base. Anyway, we enjoyed a carafe of wine between the three of us and our friend said… “I really wish I could show you the village of my family”. He explained that it would be a four hour drive but we could spend the night at his friend’s hotel… I mean, how many times does one get an opportunity like this. Of course we said YES!!!! We were all excited at our completely spontaneous decision. So off we went…
Though we had several stops prior to this one, I am skipping some fun aspects of our journey until I have photos to share. We stopped at another beach, an ancient arena and… traveled from the sea to the mountains. This was taken at the top of Llogara National Park. It was FREEZING! We went from sweaty hot to bitter cold in an hours time. No worries, we would be heading down to the warmth shortly… Until then I enjoyed sunset with “my heart”…
Skipping to the end of the day… we made it to Himare. A quaint seaside town. Very small, very sleepy… just my style. We are a good sized room with a comfortable bed. Actually, the room is made for three but we got our friend his own room haha… With breakfast, the total for two rooms is $50 USD. Can’t beat that! Time to dream of all our adventures and rest up for… who knows what!
