Transforming Tirane

The capital of Albania is where its own stark contrasts become most obvious. There seems to be a huge difference amongst the people who live here, drawn clearly along generational lines. The older people who lived through the communist years are reserved and modest while the younger generations are embracing capitalism and western culture as fast as they can. Old women in black shawls walk arm in arm with 16 year olds in miniskirts and heals with mobile phones attached to one ear. Old men line park benches deep in conversation while young guys hang about in café’s sporting slicked hair and Italian fashion. The place is on a capitalism crash course and things are changing quickly.

Not only though, are they embracing the free market; they are also rediscovering religion. Being the only official atheist state during the twentieth century, the people are discovering (or reasserting their right to practise) organised religion. This means the country is fertile ground for missionaries, and it didn’t take long before we met a few. Its seems Catholicism is a current front runner, especially since the main cathedral recovered from its tenure as a volleyball court under the communist regime. Islam is also popular, helped along by the stunning central mosque, the only religious building in central Tirane that was spared by the Communists. It is truly eye-opening to see the conviction of the American missionaries out here, some as young as 21 years old.

After a few hours wandering around Tirana, where most things were shut due to it being a Sunday, we settled into to some huge leather seats at the Sheraton cinema for some relaxing down time. Seeing a movie is not usually on the Lonely Planet list of must do’s in a city but it can be a great way to spend a few hours. "The boat that rocked", while not quite doing the subject justice was a light-hearted look at pirate radio through the golden years of music. Its soundtrack, as you may expect, was fabulous.

Photos
1 - The National Museum (The communist star has been removed from the red flag in the mural)
2 - A local restaurant with a familiar logo.

Gloomy Gjirokaster

Birthplace of Enver Hoxha, First Secretary of the Albanian Party of Labor and leader of Albania throughout its 50 year dabble with Communism, Gjirokaster climbs out of the clouds like something out of a vampire movie. Shrouded by mist and surrounded by savage mountains, the stone city is watched over by its castle, a dark, gloomy outcrop of stone, with a chilling history. It’s the type of place dictators are born (see above) and writers dream up dramatic stories and become famous (Ismail Kadare, novelist and inaugural winner of the Man Booker International Prize lived here as a child). We spent a few days soaking up the Bram Stokers atmosphere and enjoying the slower pace of life amongst its steep cobbled streets. It other claim to fame is being the host of the semi-annual Albanian folk festival, which last ran in 2004. No so disappointed we missed that one.

Photos, Photos, Photos

The photos from Italy are up on Facebook, including a pretty cool shot of lightning over the Cinque Terre.
There in 2 albums, one Northern Italy and the other Southern.
North: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=98652&id=603243044&l=85c56aa8bc
(Cinque Terre to Perugia)
South: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=100432&id=603243044&l=ab94065c57
(Rome to Sardinia)

Love to all
Kel and Ryan

Sweating in Sarande (Albania)

As we move north the travel has stepped up a gear. We have a date to keep and we are trying to squeeze in countrys left, right and centre. We must be in Dubrovnik by the 26th Aug to meet Ray, Rach, and Adam, all friends from Uni. The original plan was to travel overland up through Albania and Montenegro to Croatia. But then we started talking about Bosnia Herzegovina. Steeped in modern history Kel’s favourite kind), its seems criminal not to visit Sarajevo when we go so close. That means a few more 2 night stopovers, where you’re forced to get to know a place in just one day.




From Corfu we caught the early ferry the 25kms to the Albanian seaside resort of Sarande. The differences from Greece become immediately obvious as you step off the ferry. Rubbish collection has yet to arrive in Albania it seems, and unfortunately the streets are full of it. The roads are also in dire need of a bit of work, and coupled with novice Albanian drivers (most learnt to drive in the last 10 years) make for a pretty hair-raising transport experience. Natural beauty though is not lacking. The place has heaps of it (such an Australian way to put it we’ve discovered), and it’s as yet pretty, much undiscovered by non-Albanians. The beach at Ksamili is an especially stunning bay dotted with small islands close enough to swim or wade to. You can enjoy your own private little beach cove then swim back to the main beach for lunch. Lunch, of course, costs about five Australian dollars, in a picture perfect location overlooking the water. It is a truly affordable beach holiday (minus the few thousand it costs to get here).

A quick mention for our hostel in Sarande, The Hairy Lemon. Ran by an Irish woman and often helped by a few backpackers keen to stay still for a while, the hostel is an apartment on the 8th floor of a building overlooking the beach. With pancakes for breakfast, free internet, 3 Euro a load washing and a fantastic host the place is hard to beat.

Count the Aussie yobbo on Corfu

Arriving on Corfu early in the morning we were herded like cattle through the incredibly inefficient check-in procedures of our next hostel. A hedonistic temple to the gods of alcohol and sex, the Pink Palace is not your average hostel. Its spring break mixed with school camp with a little university college thrown in. Packed to the gills in summer with four to five hundred mostly under 22 year olds, the place is not for the holidaying family. It’s full of shirtless boys sporting plumber’s cracks trying to drink as much as possible and impress everything that’s female. In saying that, we did have a good time. As everyone is young and drinks too much, no one gets up before four in the afternoon, leaving the daily activities (like quad bike or kayak tours around the island) well under subscribed.

Adam, Kelly and I indulged our hoon side for a day and toured the island on 4 wheelers with the help of a guide. Despite getting lost on the off-road section and losing our guide, the day was great fun, and as always at the pink palace, was finished with a compulsory shot of Ouzo. We all felt proud we had actually left the backpackers as it seems hardly anyone staying there does. More of a resort complex than a backpackers, it professes to have everything you need. When asked the location of the nearest supermarket one of the reception girls said (in such a strong southern drawl she reminded me of Huckleberry Fin), ”what would yo’all want with a supermarket, we’ve got all you’ll ever need right here”.

After a few more days on the beach and a few nights with some like-minded Aussies (slightly older and past wet T-shirt competitions) our time in Greece had come to an end. We said our temporary good-byes to Adam (we’ll meet up again soon in Croatia) and he headed back to Athens on the way to London, U2 and the Edinburgh festival. For us it’s north, up through Albania, Montenegro, and Bosnia Herzegovina, and back to travelling as a duo.

Photos:
1 - Adam and Ryan with view over Cofu.
2 - The 4 wheeler tour group
3 - Adam and his Wheels
4 - Kelly offroad

Grinning in the Greek Isles

After the dirt and sweat of Athens it was time for some cleansing, so to the delicious aqua water of the Greek Isles we headed. First we would meet up with Pasq (who we had visiting in Perugia) and Adam (another friend from University) on Santorini. Widely regarded as the most beautiful of the Cyclades (southern Greek Islands), Santorini was stunning. Despite one member of the party describing the sunset from Oia (a postcard perfect town in the north of the island) as rubbish, the spontaneous applause when the sun finally set from the hundreds watching reveals how special the view was (see top 2 photos). In case the stunning views weren’t enough the island also sports some great black volcanic sand beaches (see bottom photo) and a party scene to match. Although not as notorious as Mikonos or Ios, Santorini still has great night life. There’s Parissa (where we stayed) with its beach clubs where bikini clad under 25’s swap cocktails for a quick dip in the seaside pool, or Fira where the more dedicated dance fans head. Pasq had all his Italian mates from Perugia with him so we arrived with a ready-made group of friends, hell-bent on having a party.

For a change we hired a small car for a day and I took on the roads, Greek style. While not a totally relaxing experience we made it around the island and ticked off most of the sights. Using the car as a tripod for a group shot was probably the worse idea of the day as we almost left the gearbox behind when backing back down the hill. The car (and its occupants) arrived home safe though and its driver recovered over a few ales.

After Santorini it was time to say goodbye to Pasq as he headed off to meet a friend (or more than a friend) in Paris. For Adam, Kelly and I though it was on to Paros, another Greek island. Slightly more laid back than Santorini, Paros while also being the ferry hub for the islands, is a great place to relax for a few days. After Santorini we were keen for a few days on the beach and little else. For a bit of entertainment (or adrenalin if you’re Kel) we hired scooters for a day and headed off around the island to visit some different beaches. Able to indulge his hoon side, Adam absolutely loved it! A few nights playing 500 where Adam would invariably shock us by bidding misere with the Joker and we were back on the Ferry bound for Athens. There would be little time to rest though as we had tickets for the overnight bus to Corfu, another Greek island. This time in the north, Corfu is considered by some to be the most beautiful of the Greek islands. It is certainly only a 2 horse race between Santorini and Corfu, and we had to find out for ourselves.

Ancient Athens

Essentially just a stop over on the way to the Greek Isles, Athens was a lot nicer than expected. Despite arriving at 1AM and sleeping on the roof as our booking had disappeared, the city impressed us in the short time we had there. A few nights with their liquid obsession (Ouzo) and a day at the Acropolis made for a pretty enjoyable time. The acropolis is definitely worth a visit, just not in August when it sits around forty degrees. Being the most important and most impressive ancient Greek archaeological site it also suffers from overcrowding. Getting a photo without 14 German tourists in their sandals and walking sticks in it is considerably difficult. Having been off the backpacker trail for a while it was great to meet a few Aussies and Kiwi’s on their way around the world. The hostel, while not in the best location, is run by great people and it’s intimate bar is a nice place to meet people.

Stayed: Aphrodite hostel. Great place, would go back
.

Sunny, Steep, and Sticky Sardinia

Sardinia (or Sardenga locally) is a rather large island off the western coast of Italy that is made up of a mountainous interior surrounded by stunningly beautiful coast (either beach or cliff). Despite being larger than Sicily it is hardly mentioned in the travel literature as it’s both a little hard to get to and a little hard to get around. A car is very handy as the public transport is more of an occasional sort of thing. Despite our best attempts we eventually resorted to a private taxi for the hour drive to the airport on the final day. But aside from these shortcomings the island is a great mix of friendly people, tasty local food, and dazzling natural sights.

We only had time for two stops (as the trips goes on we are staying in fewer places, for longer), Cagliari and Cala Gonone. Cagliari, at the southern tip of the island is its main city. A day on the local beach, and a day seeing the old town and we were headed north to the coastal resort town of Cala Gonone. Essentially a seaside resort full of holidaying “in the know” Europeans, its main drawcard is the coast to the south, dotted with stunning beach coves and cave-like grotto’s. The biggest grotto is imaginatively named “blue grotto” and is made up of two cave systems each of around 7km in length. It is possible to walk into one of these for around 900 meters without any extra equipment and marvel at this weird underground world. Huge stalagmites and stalactites feature and the floor becomes a perfectly still, almost 100% reflective pool of seawater. No photos allowed of course due to “copyright reasons” (read falling gift shop profits).

The other attractions are the many beaches, accessible by boat that dot the coast south of the town. Some of these have featured in big films with the likes of Madonna strutting their stuff in front of the lens. They’re exceptionally beautiful but somewhat marred by the other 200 people crammed on to the small stretch of sand. Our only other activity was a small bushwalk (mostly to keep Ryan happy) into a huge gorge in the interior of the island. Our guide spoke only a little English but valiantly attempted to tell us everything he knew about the local flora and fauna and how the gorge came to be made. Groppu gorge also features one of the hardest rock climbs in Europe, which we attempted in flipflops to no avail.

Sardinia was our last stop in Italy and we’re both very sad to say goodbye. Despite eating pasta most days we are not even a little bit sick of it, and know we will miss the food a lot. Now we’re in Greece, having suffered an easyJet flight from Sardinia, via Gatwick to Athens, but that 16 hours is another post in itself.



Italy Summary:
Days in Italy: 39
Stops: 13
Coffee: Short, Black, Strong, Cheap and of course Brilliant.
Pasta eaten (estimate): 4kg each.
Family members met (estimate): 30
Double kisses received: 100+
Expected chance of a return visit: 100%

Strolling up Stromboli, Underwater on Ustica.

After Kelly’s Australian family left Sicily bound for Rome we continued on our way, now just the two of us again. After a day visiting Agrigento and wading through a stunning volcanic gouge we set off for Stromboli, the furthest island in the Aeolian group and home to the active volcano of the same name. Our plans to climb Mt Etna had been thwarted by the weather so Stromboli offered another chance to get up close and personal with some red hot lava. Although our plans were again affected by the weather (strong winds this time preventing us from taking the mandatory guided trek to the summit) we hiked up as far as we could go alone and witnessed an incredibly dramatic natural firework show. About every 20 minutes Stromboli has a mini eruption, spewing bright red lava and ash into the air. It’s quite a sight and not like any we’ve seen before. After dark it gets even more exciting when you can spot the red lava flowing down the mountain after the eruptions. After a night volcano watching the only other thing to do on Stromboli is relax on the black, volcanic sand beaches; just don’t try it without a towel!! (See photo above)

Photo - View of Stromboli's lava flow by day.

Continuing our volcanic island theme we next headed to Ustica, a haven for diving in the Mediterranean. With everything set up by the Sicilian relatives the few days diving were an absolute breeze. There’s something about diving places all over the world that just means everything is a little more relaxed. Ustica fit the mould perfectly, being easily the most laid-back, relaxed place we’ve been in Italy. It was great to waste away the afternoons at a café overlooking the sea chatting about the mornings dives with a beer or two. I could have stayed a week. (Photo below - Stromboli erupts)

Time is ticking though and another “locked in” date is approaching. We must be on Santorini, in the Greek Isles on the 1st of August to meet Adam, a friend from Uni. Thus we made the difficult decision to scrap our plans for Tunisia and head to Sardinia instead. So a night in Palermo and then a flight to Cagliari brought us to the largish island off Italy’s western coast. There’s only time for 2 stops here then it’s off thanks to easyJet bound for Athens.