Tirana, the capital of Albania was about 200 kilometers, so I figured 200k = 120 miles = maybe 2 1/2 hours? But many of the roads have a speed limit of 40 k/hour, and even on the faster roads they have this unique idea that you should slow to 40 k/hr (from 60 or 70) when you go under an overpass. No change in the road, just a short lower speed limit.
In the end it took about 5 hours for the trip - plus a few hours for a visit to a winery and lunch inside an old fortress.
Albania has about 3 million people and a little over a million live in Tirana.
This is a bustling city with a lot of new construction .. plus a lot of buildings that still need major work. Overall unemployment is about 30% but our guide, and other young people I'm told, are optimistic about the future.
Today was Sunday so I did my usual walk around before breakfast.
Tirana Square is a great open space. On one edge is the oldest mosque in Albania. And there is the monument of the "George Washington of Albania".
He started the war of Albanian independence from the Ottoman Empire, and in the end Albania won. But the general was long dead...the war took over 500 years. Definitely the long view as far as history goes.
Here is the pyramid the dictator (came into power after WWII, died in late 1980s with a relatively peaceful transition) built for his legacy....now a TV media center. So much for his planning ahead.
This morning I visited the underground bunker of the secret police. Now a museum to remind people of the horrors of a dictatorship and to "never forget".
Today we van once again - into Montenegro. Then 5 days of cycling to finish our Balkan tour.
A google photos link to my pictures for this trip thus far.
If we had 30% unemployment for even a month it might be big trouble for whoever was in office.
ReplyDeleteI remember my old Croation relatives commenting about their homeland and the surrounding countries "Those people just love getting into fights."