Amazing Albania

Not that I had a perfectly planned itinerary, but Albania was actually not on the list of places I intended to go. However, with Greek railway system all closed down due to the economical crisis and me wanting to see coastal Croatia, where there are no trains, the best option was to travel by different buses through Albania. 

And I must tell you I am really content I did. This anonymous country is actually a lot more modern than I expected (free WiFi in EVERY café & bar), very beautiful and I have never encountered a more polite and friendly hospitable people. 

I soon learnt that what I had read about it being a code of honor for the Albanians always taking care of guests and strangers, is actually true. They are so eager to help you out that it can sometimes become a problem - if they e.g. don't know the directions you're asking for, they would rather pretend they do and find out along the way than admit that they can't help you... But mostly you will be helped out and supported by more than one person, all of them eager to talk no matter what level of English/other languages they speak.

The Pyramide, more or less the only full building left from the communist era

Albania is liberatingly free from international franchise stores and restaurants, and almost anything you will find is genuine and dirt cheap. Waiters, bus drivers and other people working within the service sector take the concept of service minded to a whole new level. I don't actually think I have been greeted and welcomed as warmly anywhere before.

After overworking my broken foot a little bit in Greece, and then spending fourteen hours sitting up on a night bus, my foot was swollen like a football arriving in Tirana and therefore my first day I mostly stayed in the hostel. Which was a nice and colorful place, with very friendly and knowledgable staff and some really nice other travelers from all around the world staying. It was nice to talk to people and hang out again, after quite lonely times in Austria, Budapest and Greece.

The next day I rented a bike for the ridiculously low price of 0,50 €/hour. That way I could see most of Tirana without having to strain my foot very much. Even though Tirana is quite a big city with heavy traffic, the speed of cars and buses was not too scary and after a while I learnt how to navigate according to the lack of traffic rules - just taking it slow, exercising the balance between cautiousness and decisiveness, and so I had a wonderful day in the sun.

More or less the only mosque left in Tirana.There is also one cathedral -
all other religious buildings have been torn down and close to
75 % of the population claims to be non-religious.

After my sightseeing tour I took the elevator up to the Skybar in the city's fanciest hotel and had a beer (presumably the most expensive one in all of Albania, 2 € for a pint), to get a glimpse of this ever-changing lively city from above.

In the evening the hostel owner took us all to a traditional Albanian restaurants where he knew the staff, and I was forced by politeness to try som Raki...

Leaving the capital, I took the bus to smaller but likewise nice and colorful town Shkodër further North, where I spent a few hours walking around, having lunch and a luxurious ice-cream to celebrate my first visit to this beautiful country.

Albania has wonderful landscapes, interesting cities, a warm climate and a stunning coastline. It is as cheap as Asia - but don't wait too long to go there to enjoy it, because within ten or fifteen years this hidden pearl is gonna be the new Croatia. Remember where you first heard it...

The most famous Albanian, Mother Theresa

From Shkodër I took another bus to cross the border to yet one for me unfamiliar country, namely the rocky Montenegro, where I spent a few days in two different places along the coast. How my Balkan adventures continue, I will let you know next.