And we're still in Albania

So after the closing words of my last post, it should come as no surprise to anyone that Jade and I are still in Albania. (Jade tried her best to get run over but couldn't quite manage it - there is something innately difficult about looking left and then right before crossing the road... habit of a lifetime?)

Albania is really a country of extremes, not just in its scenery, which ranges from beautiful beaches to barren cliffs to green fields, but socially and economically. During communist rule, (if Yugoslavia was the best advert for communism, Albania was the worst), the leaders of the communist party lived in luxury, in an area called the Bllocku. (Meanwhile, the people remained, essentially, in a pre-industrialised society, carrying out strange laws - like the construction of tens of thousands of concrete bunkers... just in case someone invaded.) Today the extremes are still there but for a different reason - while the whole country is crazy with bad roads, half completed houses and people driving donkeys and carts, there are a lot of multi-national companies pumping money into Albania, and this has created a huge wealth and lifestyle gap.

Jade and I went out on Friday night, to the Bllocku, which is now full of lovely bars (and the noveau riche), and got a glimpse of this foreign money first hand - the young people (who go out every night in Tirana!) are well educated, very western in their attitudes and ideas and have money to burn because, even working as a bank teller, they can earn up to five times the monthly average income. Some of the bars where amazing and the two clubs we ended up in were really good (beautiful and great music). I do need to admit that the night wasn't that straightforward - as the bars emptied out, we couldn't figure out where everyone was going and we were about to go home. Then we heard the faint sound of bass and so we followed a group of girls until they ended up at this great outdoor club. Apparently, we stick out like sore (foreign) thumbs - not only was there a lot of staring, we actually got told that you could tell we were foreign because of attitudes (eh?). We did meet a whole group of people though... and this is the reason why we are still in Albania.

The main problem with being a backpacker is that you need to rely on public transport and, especially in a country like Albania, this can be really very hard - not only does the public transport system not always make sense but, when you have time constraints, taking 7 hours to cover a distance that should take 2 hours can mean you just scrap going to certain places... this was what happened to the south of Albania - luckily, we met some locals who had a car and were going there anyway. Apparently, a lot of people from Tirana go to the coast every weekend and so, on Saturday, Jade and I tagged along with our new friends and spent Saturday night and Sunday at Dhermi, in the south, right on the Adriatic. (Oh yes, this is the life!)

After our late night on Friday, we got picked up at 11am and spent the next five hours(!) driving down the coast - had a really nice lunch at a great, 'expensive' seafood restaurant, (where I was a pain and made them make me something that wasn't on the menu). It was such a beautiful drive, not just for the sea views but also for the huge gorge and mountain pass that we drove over - the mountains are right next to the sea but are so high that, in winter, they are covered in snow. The road down from the main road down to the beach is unsealed (reminds me of Martin's Bay 15 years ago but really, really bumpy) and took about 20mins to drive - once down, the beach was so unspoilt, with hardly anyone on it. We stayed in these really cute little chalets, surrounded by palm trees and 5mins walk to the beach. That night we went to the other end of the beach (where the rich and glamorous live), to another outdoor club called Havana - yes, we have been everywhere on this holiday! Jade and I were wearing shorts and singlets - everyone else was in their best clothes... lucky we're still living according to the 'meh, we're tourists' mentality.

The next day, we slept in (Yay! Air conditioning!) and then lay on the beach until 4 o'clock - the water was amazingly clear, like it is in the islands, and really warm. (The fact that you could walk 5mins to a restaurant and get drinks delivered to you on the beach just made the whole things that much better - if that's possible!) So after lounging around on the beach all day we drove back to Tirana and had another really good nights sleep back at the hostel - Having read back over what I have written, the last few days have, comparatively, been pretty lacking in interesting events... except for the whole meeting random people and going on a road trip with them thing. (Jade and I did tell some people that we were an Educational Psychologist and a Lawyer respectively, and I made up a fake lawyer email, but that is pretty much it, in terms of crazy behaviour.)

We are definitely going to Macedonia later today - I have booked the accommodation so there will be no change of plans!! We've got a week and one day left of our trip, which is going to be spent in Macedonia.

Will write again from Skopje.

Rose x