Albania was my mystery country. I had no idea what to expect as I rode in from Montenegro. All I’d heard up till now about Albania consisted of gangsters, thieves and stolen Mercedes’. Ten minutes into the country and I hadn’t been killed or kidnapped but I had already been overtaken by a dozen different black Mercedes with various European license plates. Odd.
The city of Shkodër (or Shkodra?) is built along the shoreline of the lake Shkodër (or Skadar?), a cute city in a beautiful location with access to the Theth and the amazing Albanian alps. Getting an early morning bus out to the national park, I arrived in Theth before lunch and quickly set off on a hike along the mountain trails. Six long, hot and dusty hours later I’d crossed a couple of rivers, swam in a few waterfalls, drunk cold cold beer while dipping my toes in the cold cold river, been chased for a few kilometers by a loud & drunk goat herder and ultimately found my way back to the village before the sun eventually set. What a fantastic day, and definitely deserving of a beer and a plate of roast meat (apparently vegetables are a rare commodity around here!).
The ride from Shkodër to the capital Tirana was essentially one long straight, hot & dusty ride, broken only by a mysterious man standing on a bridge wearing a three piece suit, holding a white rabbit and inexplicably enthusiastic to high five me as I rode by. Tirana was a fine city but not particularly interesting to the passing traveller and so I rolled on, riding further south and east, slowly making the miles towards Turkey.
