Farewell dinner

The last evening in Albania of my Italian visitors was spent with my associates, who invited us all for a dinner in the country.

They picked us up at 7pm and drove us to a lovely and excellent restaurant named 'Reka' I've been to a few times, which is on the way to the city of Elbasan (south of Tirana).

It's located in the middle of the countryside, near the village of Bërxhite, and is known for specialty dishes from Dibra (an area NW of the capital, near the Macedonian border).

It was a beautiful and pleasant evening that allowed us to eat outdoors, under a rectangular gazebo, completely covered by flowering topiaries and in the midst of beds of roses.




All dishes were delicious.

After the usual antipastos of cheeses, such as 'gjizë, and miscellaneous salads, we tasted grilled dishes of liver, thin beef steaks, and the baked Dibra specialty of 'jufka me ragu'. Slightly crispy, home, freshly made tagliatelle, are baked with chunks of veal that melts in your mouth.


Noone could resists the 2 types of desserts, extremely sweet, followed by sliced fresh fruits, and, to close the meal a shot of local strong 'raki' (grappa) was in order.

When we left I was presented with a care package of the specialty dish, which was baked extra for me to take home.

At midnight, back in Tirana, safe and sound, we all said goodbye and retired to our respective lodgings.

Additional sightseeing and tasting experiences

On Monday morning my Italian trio came to my place after breakfast at their hotel, and had their first taste of freshly baked Albanian byrek.

The wife of one of my associates rang my bell at 9:30am and delivered a stack of these hot phillo dough wrappings filled with cheese that she knew could purchase in a specialty shop, along with individual cups of a yogurt drink.

In another bag she had more than 2 kgs (4 lbs) of gorgeous ripe cherries, and a couple of pints of local strawberrries that emanated an incredible aroma. Their taste was also incredible!

While I got busy with my own work during the day my guests spent their remaining days sightseeing Tirana and surroundings on their own. One day, I arranged for them a tour by taxi to the town of Kruja. The old citadel and the modern museum are a must to see in this habitat perched up in the mountains, about 35 km north of Tirana. I visited the place several times and have described it with pictures in previous entries of this blog in the past.

This historic place was the home of the national hero, Gjergj Kastrioti, known as Skanderbeg, who lived there in the 1400's. Also known as the 'Dragon of Albania', with his armies he not only ousted the Ottomans from Albanian territory, but kept Albania free from foreign occupation throughout his lifetime.

He also helped King Alfons of Aragon fight the barons that had rebelled against him in Italy, and later on was rewarded with land in Italy's south that became populated by Albanians, known to today as 'Arberesh'.

Every evening, around 6:30pm, my Italian visitors came to my apartment for snacks and drinks, and then we would go out for a late dinner. We tried different restaurants every day, tasted their specialties, and drank their local wines, which were very good everywhere.

Returning north

On Sunday, after a good, hearty breakfast at our hotel, included in the price of room, we left Saranda with its chaotic construction environment, and headed northward.


We planned our return via inland, instead of along the coast. Although this road northward is not as good as the one we took coming down, the route change would allow us to see other interesting areas of Albania.

Before reaching the Delvina area, we deviated toward the lake of Bistricë to visit a great source of water from the surrounding mountains, the name of which escapes me now.

Buses full of graduating students were encountered along the road and at this tourist place, full of lush greens and extremely clear, cristalline, rushing water.





Our trip then continued toward the city of Gjirokastër, where we stopped for refreshments and visited its huge, medieval castle, perched up on top of the old and new city.

This city is spreadout on different levels, and a modern section has been added in recent years, but the most interesting part of it is the old town with its stone houses, slated roofs, and many windows.




We were surprised by what we found inside the old castle: all remnants of the 2nd World War, abandoned by the Italians and Germans forces when they had to retreat from the Balkans.

Cannons of all sorts, long and short range, including anti-aircraft, and even a small Italian tank.

Outdoors were older type of ammunitions, and an American war plane that was shut down by Albanians during the communist era.








Continuing our trip northward, we went through oil fields (where some old pumps seemed to be functioning), the town of Tepelenë (historically famous for its ruthless ruler Ali Pasha), Memaliaj (a town completely built to house the miners needed in that area), and all along the road we were traveling we were accompanied by the large, and mature Vjosa river with its sandy, white shores.

After the towns of Ballsh and Patos, we returned to Fier, and Lushnjë, but never stopped until we reached Kavajë, where we wanted to have a late lunch. I have been there before. The place is known for its excellent fish cuisine, but almost did not recognize it. It has tripled in size, and, as usual, it was packed with customers.

At sunset, after a brief visit at my beach in Durres, we had dessert in the busy waterfront area of that city, where there is a cafe` known for its scrumptious, specialty cake.

By 8:30pm we were back in Tirana, tired from the long ride, but happy about this wonderful experience.

Except for my visiting trio, who had some drinks to view the night life in the now fashionable Tirana e Re, everyone else retired for the evening to get ready to face another work week on Monday morning.

Travel southward

Early Saturday morning my trio and I were picked up by one of my associates, who owns a beautiful and powerful BMW, and drove toward the beaches of Durres. There we met the other couple I know, who also has a very comfortable Nissan car, purchased in the U.S. We came from different directions, but met for a coffee stop that is 'the norm here' before embarking on a longer trip.

The sun was shining, the weather perfect, the fresh air blowing in from the Adriatic rinvigorating, and everyone was in a good mood and looking forward to spending the weekend out of the city.

With map in hand that I brought along, my guests could follow our ride southward. Our final destination was Saranda and the Albanian riviera, close to Greece, by following the road that runs along Albania's coastline.

We traveled through the cities of Kavajë, Lushnjë, Fier, and reached the 2nd largest port city of Vlore that offers quite a sight with its large gulf, the Karaburun peninsula on one side, and island of Sazan in front.


Past Orikum, we deviated inland to have a late lunch in the mountainous, national park of Llogara. This was the place to taste the traditional roasted lamb. Everyone was famished and devoured more than one plate of extremely fresh, crunchy salads, to which we added the typical, yummy yogurt dressing. Here we also tasted the local, highly rich, creamy goat yogurt that is served with the lamb dish. It's impossibile to make a comparison of these local yogurts with the commercial ones sold around the world.

On the peaks of these rugged mountains the wind blows fiercely. It was difficult to stand up to take pictures without holding on to each other.

From above the view of the beach of Dhermi, on the Ionian sea, is breathtaking.

I had seen it previously from the park of Llogara, but this time I also enjoyed very much walking on it, with its broken down bunkers, and fine sand covered by loads of small white stones.


From here we drove upward again and had a coffee break in a lovely bar overlooking this long beach area.



Afterwards we reached the town of Himarë, followed by the gulf of Porto Palermo, a fishing area with an old fortification.



Taken a couple of pictures pictures, we proceeded southward toward Saranda, which we reached in late afternoon.


After an hour rest at the Hotel Brilant where my associates had made reservations, we took another car ride in an area of Ksamil, which took us practically to the Greek border. Its was too late to visit the archaeological ruins of Butrint. Here we found the roads unpaved and rough, but under reconstruction. They'll probably be completed before the summer rush of tourists.

By 9pm we were back at the hotel and had dinner at a nearby restaurant, which was quite crowded. Saturday night was the date for the European Soccer Champion match between the Italian and Spanish teams. It was watched by everyone throughout Europe on TV.

This was the place to have excellent fish, and, between outbursts of joy and yells from the soccer fans, we all enjoyed another very good meal and local wines.

After dinner we took a stroll on the promenade along the water, where bars and discos were quite lively and busy. This area during the summer gets jam-packed with tourists that come from Greece, and all the way from up north, especially Kosovars, who now flock into Albania to enjoy the seashores which they lack.

Unfortunately, Saranda is overbuilt and constructions do not follow any rule or urbanistic plan. The result is an overcrowded place that is ruining the beauty of this entire area.

Our Saturady was a long, but interesting day that ended
around 1:30am, when we all hit our respective beds.

First contacts

After breakfast at the hotel, included in the daily price I negotiated with the management for both my cousins and their lady friend, my trio enjoyed Italian coffee at my place before beginning a long stroll that took us to 'Tirana e Re'(new Tirana) where we planned to visit my property before having lunch in that area.

One of my cousins also wanted to make contact with a shop manager on behalf of someone else in Italy, who needed some information about a special brand of clothing. The shop was just one block away from my property, in a very new, modern, fashionable and highly priced center. The woman we were looking for runs a "Versace" shop on the 2nd floor, with imported outfits and clothing for men tagged with astronomical prices!

The visit went perfectly, and by 1pm we were at "La Tavernetta' for lunch. I frequented this trattoria type of eatery for several years now, and both owner and waiters recognize me when I return. One of their specialty is a 'salad bar', which, however, has nothing to do with what we name the same in NYC.

There are no raw greens on their display table that surrounds a fire place. With the exception of a delicious cole slaw (that does not contain any mayo), all other dishes are cooked. The choices include cauliflower in light winegar, roasted peppers of all sorts, sauted sweet carrots, grilled zucchini, and eggplants, beet salad, huge green olives in oil, small meat balls in tomato sauce, Albanian 'byrek' (phillo dough stuffed with cheese), and the ever present light yogurt sauce (that includes garlic, shredded cucumber, and even dill sometimes). These salads are usually consumed while waiting for the main entree` which could be pasta, or risottto, or gnocchi, or any meat dish.

There is not a place in Tirana where I have not enjoyed the local meat, whether it's chicken, veal, pork, or beef. My favorite is what they call 'bifstek'; not a steak at all, but 2-3, thinly sliced, beef cutlets, well grilled, very tasty, tender, and juicy! For me, they beat any time any bloody and thicker filet!

After our leisurely lunch, we began walking toward the center of Tirana and its main, large square, named after the national hero, Skanderbeg, which is now under reconstruction all the way around, and thus a bit difficult to navigate.

We passed the building that currently houses the Ministry of Defense, but used to be the High Court when I was a baby, and my Father ex-office now display the flags in the picture below.

After some money exchange, my guests were curious to see the little old mosque that has been part of this huge square since the 1700's.

We didn't know whether it was open or whether we could visit it, but, we decided to try since it was not a Friday afternoon, time of high prayer.

We took our shoes off, when a young man that spoke Italian and English motioned that we could enter the main hall. All floors were completely carpetet.


The inside was kind of dark, and there were a few men around (especially young ones), who were praying. One elderly got up and went to turn on the lights so we could enjoy the beautiful drawings and decorations. He even motioned that we could go up the narrow, high step, round stone staircase that leads to the minaret. My trio went up, but I declined since I knew my knees, after all the walking we had already done, would not take this effort kindly.



Then we strolled down the main boulevard, toward the Art Gallery. The entire area was quite busy at the time (almost 6pm), notwithstanding the light rain. It was one of the several events organized by the Italian Embassy in the past couple of months to promote closer relationship between the 2 countries. Its logo, translated, is "two people, one sea, one friendship".

There was a cocktail going on and a large outdoor exhibit of Italian and Albanian books - a real book fair - of which we took a tour. Then, we walked some more to the modern European Tower, where I did some food shopping. At that point a taxi was in order. Everyone was tired, but would not admit it.

The evening continued with drinks and snacks at my place. I invited two business partners who I knew were planning to drive us sightseeing during the weekend.
Dinner at another nearby restaurant concluded this day.