Vacation time over !

Sunday was the last day in Tirana for the visiting friends from Italy. In the morning we rode up the Dajti mountain that overlooks the capital and had coffee in a brand new restaurant-cafe` that offers a breathtaking view of Tirana and its suburbs (the green area seen in this picture) all ready to be developed!).

The day was gorgeous, but somehow my camera produced a funny colored picture!

I wanted us to ride by car all the way up to the Dajti National Park, as I had done in 1995, but I was dissuaded by my Albanian friends, who told me the roads currently are in very bad condition. The new cable car system, instead, installed just a few years ago, now easily transfers visitors to the mountain top in 1/2 hour, directly from the edge of the city. I used it 3 years ago, when I found that top area under great development.

other views in my blog entry of Nov. 26, 2006
Now it probably has more places to lodge and eat. The ride is comfortable and offers great views of the various mountain levels and their environment. From there, in a clear day, one can see all the way down to the Adriatic sea.

But today our hosts wanted to take us, instead, north of Tirana toward the town of Lesha, where the area called Patok with its lagoon, offers the best fish around. After traveling about 25 miles, we stopped in a rustic restaurant they patronize frequently. The place was bustling with activities and people, mostly eating outdoors, family style, in wooden, gazebo-type, dining areas. A table was ready for us upon arrival because our hosts had called ahead and made all the arrangements.

Another fabulous and unhurried fish luncheon, consumed outside in a quiet, pleasant, and comfortably warm atmosphere!

On the way back to Tirana, it was time again for another 'espresso', but dark clouds were intensifying on the horizon. We hurried to our cars, after drinking our "Illy cafe`". When we reached the outskirts of the capital, we were riding under a deluge of water. It was the perfect time to have a rest!

Around 7pm my friends came to my place for aperitifs and snacks. and then we had our last dinner together in an Italian restaurant in the new part of Tirana. We practically had the place to ourselves due to the end of the long holiday weekend and the inclement weather. In the morning they return to Milan, but, I believe, they have enjoyed their first Albanian experience.