Left Tirana around 1:30pm and a bit later we stopped in the suburbs of the town of Kavaja in a wonderful, warm and sunny day, and we had a relaxing, magnificent fish lunch at one of their favorite eateries. After a colorful cold green salad and a delicious variety of grilled hot vegetables with balsamic vinegar and assorted cheeses, the huge platter of spaghetti with seafood ('frutti di mare') disappeared very quickly.
As second course we had a perfectly cooked, and unboned "orata sotto sale". This is a typical Italian way of baking an entire fish completely covered by coarse salt. When the fish is done, the salt is then discarded with the bones and the skin and the fish has an heavenly taste, just the way it is with nothing else on it! Good Albanian chefs have picked up these recipes while undergoing training and getting cooking experiences in Italy, before opening up their own places back home.
We then proceeded toward the southern port of Vlora (3rd largest city in Albania), which we reached at 6:30pm, when is already dark at this time of the year. The just renovated hotel that my friends usually patronize is located right near the water, at the end of a long city boulevard, flanked by palm trees and many newly built high rises with stores, restaurants, cafes, and businesses. The hotel owner greeted us personally, speaking to me in perfect English, and ordered the clerk to give me a room with a front view.
Then we took a night ride along the coast, and finally around 9pm, back at the hotel, the owner treated all of us to dinner for free!! Another huge meal, this time with meat as a second course. Tired, but quite relaxed (after all I didn't do the driving!) I didn't feel like watching tv (notwithstanding the large choice of Albanian, English, German, Italian channels) and let myself go to sleep in the very spacious and comfortable double bed!
In the morning when I opened the curtains, I realized that the hotel was facing the most famous historical house in Albania. I recognized it since I had taken a picture of it a couple of years earlier. Here on November 28th, 1912, the Albanian flag was raised for the first time in honor of the creation of the Albanian state.
From the balcony of my room, I enjoyed the view of the Karaburum peninsula, where during WWII lots of secret operations were conducted in its many underground caves, and I watched two early ferry boats unload their cargo that included dozens of trucks and trailers that then rolled into a large yard for customs inspection.
Albania is lucky to face 2 different seas along its entire length. In the north the Adriatic and from Vlora downward the Ionian.
After a buffet breakfast on the terraced, top floor of the hotel, we left Vlora and continued our trip southward toward the mountains and the area named Llogara, which is a national park.
As we rode upward, we stopped for cappuccino at an Italian business, perched, on the side of the mountain, right over the water. It's a small, modern hotel, restaurant, and cafe' that overlooks its own tiny beach.
The weather was threatening rain, but we luckily only experienced a sprinkle or two, when we reached the top that afforded a beautiful view of the pristine, well known beaches of Dhermi way below...
In the middle of this park, we made another stop at an attractive tourist village used during the summer for its coolness, and even during the winter for its pretty scenery in the snow. Here we were surprised to find a large group of deers grazing on the ground of this resort that consists of a modern hotel and a number of separate cabins, with all sorts of facilities, including indoor swimming pool and fitness center.
The deers here, obviously exposed to people for quite a while, are fed by guests and approach visitors with boldness, seeking food.
Inside the main building a fire was roaring in the middle of a large dining area, which, however, was empty since this is an off season time. We only took a drink here and then started our descend to return home.
After saying goodbye to the deers, we proceeded down the mountains, and shopped along the road for wonderful, sweet tangerines (called 'mandarins'), and the special tea with a very strong aroma that grows naturally around this area, also known for its production of honey.
Midway back to Tirana, the weather changed for the better and the sun started to shine again over the bay of Vlora, where we stopped for lunch at a new, and very elegant restaurant.
Here we were joined by another couple of friends, who drove in from Tirana, and are also partial to fish. They ordered an array of dishes that included 'bruschetta', fish 'carpaccio' with pomegranate seeds, assorted cheeses and vegetables, fish soup and a huge 'sarago' with roasted potatoes, plus dessert and freshly cut fruits.
As the day was coming to an end, we rode back to Tirana, tired, but wishing that the time off our daily chores could have lasted a bit longer.....
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