September 2024, and it was time for our next adventure. On this occasion we ventured to Albania in search of wide open spaces, cold war memories, and authentic places which have not been created purely for the spectacle of entertaining tourists.
We planned a road trip that would cover 618km, so nothing huge, but enough to give us a good variety of experiences. Our route would start in Tirana and head to Durres en route to Berat. From here we headed back north to Kruje, and then on to the mountain region of Theth. Finally we headed to Shkoder before ending up back in Tirana.
There were many interesting sights and some truly beautiful scenery, but there was no getting away from the fact that this is a very poor country with many people living a fairly hand to mouth existence. But, despite people's automatic assumption that all Albanians are like those in the film 'Taken', that couldn't be further from the truth. The people are lovely and very friendly despite living a less opulent lifestyle than those of us who can afford to travel. On the whole, I could count the aggressive characters on one hand, and 2 of them were at the airport prior to departing the UK!
Other than the hideous stomach bug we picked up on the last day, the trip was absolutely fantastic and Albania certainly delivered wide open spaces, cold war memories and authentic places. So whilst I would thoroughly recommend Albania, I would add the caveat that it is probably suited to the more adventurous traveller. We saw areas of poverty that were simply staggering, especially considering that this country forms part of Europe.
I have tried to do justice to this struggling yet wonderful country with my images, hopefully they give you a glimpse of the 7 days which have left us with many fond memories.
