Visitors

An Italian couple, friends of mine, who visited NYC last fall, and extensively traveled the rest of the world decided to get to know little Albania too, and planned their trip here while I am in town.

The May 1st European holiday presented the perfect opportunity to hop on a plane and spend an extended weekend in Tirana. Arrived by midday on Thursday, after a 1 1/2 hour from Milan, they started to view the capital on foot since they are in terrific shape and love to walk. It’s too bad the weather turned for the worst and the rains that plagued Italy for the past few weeks, have now moved to the Balkans. Nevertheless, as good troopers, they were ready to go anywhere and we made some plans to also go out of town during the weekend.

On Friday we decided to go first to the town of Kruja in the mountains, and then to the port city of Durres and along its coast.

my friends at the entrance of Skanderbeg's Museum in Kruja

handiwork sold by locals along the way to the museum
I was amazed by the great number of new constructions that took place in Kruja itself in the past year. The town, perched up in the mountains, was crowded everywhere with local and foreign tourists traveling via private cars, motorcycles, buses, and local transport.

It's always exiting to see the remnants of the old fortress and citadel's walls. This was the home and headquarters of Skanderbeg, the national hero, who kicked the Turks (Ottomans) out of the country in the 1400's, giving Albania the only period of 'true and complete' independence from any foreign influence. Written history about his deeds and life began to be published since 1508 in Rome, and continues to this day in a variety of languages.

the old tower of the citadel

the new (mid 1980's) Skanderbeg Museum

the statues that greet visitors in the lobby


a portion of the mural depicting Skanderbeg's battles, his helmet and sword







Skanderbeg's desk chair


the visitors' register
While the weather was a bit chilly in the morning, and the clouds accompanied us during the first part of the day, when we left the mountains and the fog behind, the sun began to appear and it was nice to walk along the beach coastal area.



In Durres, we stopped for a while at the Adriatik Hotel.

I saw this hotel for the first time in 1993. It was then an empty shell of an old building, now privatized, completely modernized , and part of the luxury class of accommodations in this area.

This costal area 15 years ago was totally empty, but now it's completely built up for miles on end.

Although it's still spring, the hotel large outside pool was already filled up and beautiful terracotta pots with blooming flowers were everywhere.

The hotel is just a block off one of the main thoroughfares of Durres, but it's a place of complete tranquility and pleasure!


A wonderful fish lunch was consumed again at the great restaurant near the port area. Here they serve 3 appetizers and a dessert of freshly cut fruit topped by ice cream, all free of charge. Later we rode up the hill, along the old city walls, to have coffee in a bar that overlooks the entire city, the port and the coast. A beautiful Italian ferry swiftly was pulling into the port, while, as usual, many cargo ships were waiting in the bay area to take their turn in docking.

A Shkodra story

Last evening at the Ministry of Culture there was a presentation of a small, recently published book, entitled "A Shkodra story", which describes the history of the first maritime flags of the Albanian Merchant Marine (1913-14).

The story came about because of the curiosity and research of an Italian Navy Officer, Paul Muner, now 64 years old, and retired, who spent considerable time in Albania since 1992, when he was dispatched to work as a Commander of the Coast Guard. This unit was charged to take control of the wave of speed boats that in those days transported, every night, hundreds of illegal immigrants to the Italian coast. He hales from Trieste, where he also had the opportunity to research old records that were preserved by Austria, covering a period of maritime history along the Balkan Adriatic coast.

drawing of a early merchant transport
Balkan history is rather complex and voluminous to explain, but the subject of this book revolves around the city of Shkodra and its large lake for the following reason.

Among the many changes in the political map of the Balkans (between the late 1800's and early 1900's) there was the decline of the Venetian dominance along the Adriatic, the retreat of the Ottoman empire further south, while Montenegro at one point took over the port of Ulcinj. This port was the base of the Albanian merchant marine, which at that time was still traveling with Turkish flag since Albania was still part of that empire.

Turkey offered to relocate this fleet near the Bosphorus, but the Albanians decided instead to move themselves to the Shkodra area, which currently shares its lake also with Montenegro. Shkodra was at one point considered the capital of the Albanian region. After the recognition in 1912 of Albania as an independent nation, the fleet began to use its own maritime flag using the same colors of the national one (red and black stripes).

a view of the old Castle that towers over Shkodra to this day
After a lovely short musical opening and the customary introductions, the author addressed the audience in Italian with a preface read in Albanian. He covered many details, and explained the difficulties encountered in translating references to maritime terms and names, from the old to the new records.

the author in the middle flanked by his publisher (in white) and translator (in red)
A reception followed, while the author busily signed, with perfectly spelled Albanian greetings, the copies of the book freely distributed by the publisher.

Spring Sunday in Albania

The cloudy day turned out to be very pleasant once we left Tirana for lunch outside of the city. My friends, knowledgeable of new places springing up everywhere, wanted to try a new restaurant on the road that leads to Elbasan. There is a distance of 40 miles to that city, but we didn't have to go very far out of Tirana to reach the establishment they wanted to try.

It's a brand new, huge place, well equipped with all sorts of facilities: from a small park for children, to several terraced bars and pizzeria outdoors, as well as pools, and separate housing for lodging guests.


This entire complex, with manicured green lawns covers a vast area that is enclosed by a rustic, old fashioned stone wall.

The above main building contains an incredibly big indoor restaurant furnished in good taste and served by an efficient staff. Interesting iron works decorate various gates, doors, and all the windows of the restaurant.

The food was very good and excellently presented - my main dish was a perfectly cooked medallion of beef in a creamy green pepper sauce that melted in my mouth!

Children were playing in the nearby small park that contains also an old, "grizzly looking" bear. Pacing in his cage he knew that visitors would toss him fruits and bread that the restaurant supplies on the side for everyone's enjoyment to feed the animal.

Some of these facilities will be in full swing during the summer, but, even today, while we have 63F degrees temperature, most customers are eating outdoors.

We decided to have desserts and coffee somewhere else along the road, but it was impossible to find parking. We went by several places, but most restaurants, bars, and pizzerias were all doing a booming business!!

Closer to Tirana we finally found a place my friends like for its excellent coffee, but it's tucked away in the country side and it's reachable only via a narrow unpaved road. Here too we found lots of people lounging around, and we spent a pleasant afternoon chatting and savoring espressos along with freshly baked desserts in the calm and sunny outdoors.

We were located on a hilly area, not too far from the National Cemetery in the back (towered by the 'Statue of Albania' pictured above), but from the front, in the distance, we could also see all the way across most of Tirana, crowded by high raises everywhere!

Another holiday

Today was the turn of the Greek Orthodox church to celebrate Easter, following the Catholic Easter of a week ago. For Albania's state employees this meant a short work week squeezed between two long weekends, since every time a feast happens to be on a Sunday, the following Monday is also time off for them. The weather was cloudy most of the day, but quite mild.

Some friends invited me to take a ride with them to the port city of Durres, where we actually took a leisure walk on the beach before deciding to have lunch in town. The sun even decided to smile on us for a while while we walked among many other strollers, children playing football barefooted, and souvenir sellers rolling their carts along the water edge. The bay was crowded with anchored ships waiting their turn to dock in the port to unload their cargo.


The fish lunch at the restaurant near the port area that we have patronized other times is consistently excellent, and included also some very tasty free appetizers.

Afterward we decided to have coffee in the new cafe` bar on top of a nearby tall building that has a 360 degree view of the city and port.

It's accessible via a modern glass enclosed elevator that rides on an outside wall of the building and offers a quick. but great view of the surrounding areas.




When we returned to Tirana, my friends drove me through newly developed areas of the city, which I had never seen before. We rode through many hills with lots of green areas, some of them still quite rural, but on brand new roads that the city has obviously built to keep up with the tremendous expansion of the city. I was informed that every bit of all this land has been sold and none is available anymore for purchase. Here the air is still country fresh, and cleaner due to the altitude and the lesser vehicular traffic. New houses, businesses, and newly planted trees were already all in place along these roads.

We all ended up at my place for drinks and sharing a delicious Italian "Colomba" (the typical Easter cake - in the form of a 'dove'(=colomba), which is exported all over the world). What a relaxing day for me, still jet lagged from the transatlantic flight (!), but now ready to tackle the chores and appointments of this coming week.

Small wonders.......

Believed it or not, today I, living abroad, had the pleasure of bringing an ‘Albanian friend’ on a tour of a modern ‘Albanian shopping center’. Sounds strange?? It feels like that to me!

My friend, who is a native, and lived most of her life in Tirana, but emigrated to the U.S. 2 years ago, has just returned to the country for a long visit. Knowing well that she would not be up to date on the many and, in some cases, extraordinary changes that have occurred in Albania during her above absence, I decided to invite her to go shopping with me this morning.

I specifically chose the new Casa Italia center, just completed last year in the outskirts of Tirana, also for easy of transport. This huge 5 story complex includes large parking facilities on 3 floors, and, once you complete your shopping you can easily reach your parked car, unload your purchases, and leave the empty cart in assigned places near the elevator banks.

I was right about her amazement. Although she was aware that life continues to rapidly change in Albania, she never visualized what she saw this morning. She kept remarking that these facilities are as equal as any in the U.S., spotless, with a full gamma of local and imported products, well organized, and efficiently serviced by an Albanian staff that is in full uniform, and, in most cases, is also tri-lingual.

I was so pleased that she was impressed since my hope was to offset a bit of her negativism of past life experiences in this country and reinforce instead some positive developments. I pointed out also some things and services that are typical European, and not usually available in the U.S supermarkets. These include a different way of cutting meat, and food preparation that is not already pre-packed. At the time of purchase in Italy, when you buy cold cuts, for instance, you can specifically ask to vacuum pack them for fresher, longer storage; and this service is also provided here on the spot.

In some of my previous posts I’ve also already remarked about the different flavor of imported foods, which, I am convinced, are much better tasting here since they have a shorter distance to travel from the closer European suppliers. Needless to say we both ended up buying quite a bit, rode home in style, and all this was done in just 2 hours, door to door!

BTW, the weather in Tirana has been beautiful since my arrival with 70 to 73 degrees temperatures at midday. Onward I go, and you keep tuned in!

Travel to Tirana

After another great travel with Lufthansa, I’ve arrived in Tirana safe and sound, and now am trying to adjust to European time, after a sleepless night on board.

The airbus A340-600 used by this airline for its transatlantic flights is a mammoth flying machine, impressively big and long compared to other crafts, especially when, looking at it through the glass walls of the airport waiting room, and comparing it to the other planes parked nearby.


The airbus is equivalent to a 3 story building, and I can’t help wondering how this massive structure can be maneuvered so gently and be lifted off into the skies from such a small cockpit!

Watching the logistics of loading its cargo, catering services, baggage, and passengers is also a very interesting pastime while waiting to board. Even fully loaded, it runs quite silently and, most importantly for my taste, it offers more comfortable seats that the usual 767’s.

The Lufthansa service is, as always, impeccable, and the food very good. In this trip I enjoyed the cuisine of a known Italian woman chef from the Piedmont region. The chicken dish I chose even had the meat pre-cut, so that it was easier to handle it in the tight elbow space, although this time I was lucky to have a thin, petite woman as fellow passenger on the window side.

Due to the long holiday weekend, N.Y. JFK airport was packed. There were no vacant seats at all on our flight. Everything was handled with typical German precision, and we left the gate in perfect timing (on my watch, even 2 minutes ahead). The staff courtesy and efficiency handled all sorts of situations including accommodating a family traveling with a young man completely disabled. He was wheeled to the plane door, then 3 service men lifted him onto a smaller chair that could roll inside the narrow aisles of the cabin and finally they repeated the maneuver inside the plane to make sure he was comfortable in his assigned seat.

This was one of the smoothest transatlantic rides I’ve ever had, including the landing in Munich, where, this time the sun was shining and there was no fog.

When I booked this trip I’d asked for assistance due to my problematic knees, and I was not disappointed. In exiting the plane in Munich I found a uniformed young lady, who facilitated my movements via a special elevator, through the security check, and then drove me in no time to the next gate. When the time came to board the connecting flight to Tirana (usually a good 10 minutes bus ride to another corner of the airport) I was met by 2 young men, who also made me avoid the stairs, took me by special van directly to the plane, and even carried my hand luggage.

I must admit that I was not expecting a similar service when arriving in Tirana, but was pleasantly surprised. Local airport personnel took care of my hand luggage, thus facilitating my descent out of the plane, via the few, narrow steps and drove me in a special car (that also services as an ambulance) to the arrival terminal. Here I was given priority through passport control, and was whisked out with my ‘priority’ (so marked at departure) luggage to meet my friends in waiting.

Tirana skies and surrounding mountains were dark with clouds, threatening rain. The spring weather of last week turned back to cold, just like in NY, but in this Mediterranean climate one rarely experiences the worsening effect of wind.

BTW, from Munich southward the view of the European snow capped Alps was a fascinating sight.



One more note regarding an intriguing comparison of prices: in Munich a small cappuccino and a small bottle of water came to $11.90, while in Tirana the purchase of a few staples (6 eggs, 1 ½ liter of milk, 4 liters of bottled water, 4 pieces of fruit, 100 grams of butter, one whole round loaf of freshly sliced bread), at the neighborhood store amounted to $5.90!

In my apartment everything works; as you can see, I'm online, and, as I write, the sun is back shining splendidly!

Upcoming

Best wishes to one and all for the upcoming holidays of
PASSOVER and EASTER
To all my friends in Tirana, see you next week!

Congrats

Congratulations are in order for both Albania and Croatia that this week are formalizing their entrance into NATO as the 27th and 28th member, respectively.
Below also the Press Release from :

Congressman Eliot Engel
Representing the Bronx, Westchester, and Rockland Counties
Offices in the Bronx, Mount Vernon and West Nyack
2161 Rayburn HOB, Washington, DC 20515
Contact: Jason Steinbaum at 202-226-9980
For Release: Wednesday, April 1, 2009

ENGEL CONGRATULATES ALBANIA ON NATO MEMBERSHIP

Washington, DC -- Rep. Eliot L. Engel, Chair of the Congressional Albanian Issues Caucus, congratulated the Republic of Albania on joining the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) alliance today.

"I extend my warmest congratulations to the people of Albania as their country takes its rightful place among the democratic member states of NATO. Only twenty short years ago, no one would have predicted that Albania, previously the most closed nation in Europe, would have become a member of the North Atlantic alliance. This is a great day for Albanians everywhere and another step forward for European security." said Rep. Engel, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Albania and Croatia became NATO's 27th and 28th member states today after their ambassadors to the United States filed their instruments of accession at a ceremony in Washington. "It is remarkable that NATO's two newest members come from a region which faced multiple wars during the last decade," said Rep. Engel

"Albania, which has sent troops to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia, has already been taking up its responsibilities as an active and reliable partner in Europe. Its addition to NATO only further demostrates the positive security contributions Albania is already making," said Rep. Engel.

Rep. Engel was the author of the resolution which passed the House of Representatives in November 2003 urging the incorporation of the Adriatic Charter countries, including Albania and Croatia, into NATO. The resolution passed by a vote of 416-1.

Spring chores and plans

A bit of milder temperature is just budding out in NYC, a day here and there, although nights are still cold and the wind, as usual, never subsides in this city.

Having taken care of all the annual accounting and tax chores, I'm now undergoing routine medical checkups, and this week will start planning my next trip to Albania, where, I am told, winter is finally over.

Meantime, I see that Albania's entry into Eurovision Song Context that will take place in Moscow next May is taking shape. The chosen song ("Carry me in my dreams")that will represent the country is now also in an official English version, clearly delivered by the 16 year old Kejsi Tola. Video and comments are available here online.

Washington trip

As usual, this time of the year I find myself busy gathering and organizing all sorts of documents and figures needed to file the required annual tax returns; thus, the month of February silently slipped away from me. However, I also spent the last part of this month in Washington, DC, where I went to attend a couple of meetings, and where I was a guest of long term, local friends, whom I had not visited in quite a while.

The excuse to make this trip came when I received an invitation to attend a celebration of the 1st anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Kosovo and in honor of the visit in that city of its President, Fatmir Sejdiu. I decided to ride in comfort, via the Amtrak train, which takes about 3 hours to cover the 210 miles from New York.

There is no exiting scenery along this stretch of flat land and waterways, but it’s a relaxing experience to just have lunch on board, enjoy the tranquility of a “quiet” car, and just let the smooth train motion lull you to snooze a bit.


Washington is always a beautiful, orderly, and spotless city, a real contrast to the chaotic New York City. My friends live in a lovely, quiet, and centrally located, cooperative apartment, just off one of the main large thoroughfares in this city, and my stay there was, as usual, very comfy. We had a lot to catch up with, and I also enjoyed seeing one of their son and his family at dinner one night. In another evening we attended the projection of a very interesting film by Giulio Amelio in one of the halls of the Italian Embassy, which I had never visited previously. It’s an extremely modern building, with a huge entrance hall, almost completely surrounded by glass, which is used for large receptions, and is full of large paintings and sculptures.



The Kosovo reception took place one evening in one of the large Washington hotels (Embassy Suite) and, to the surprise of many, it was mobbed! Nobody guessed there would be such a huge attendance of Albanians that flocked into Washington for this occasion in great number. It was quite difficult to move around and with all the lights, the cameras, and the people the hall became a real steam bath! Some of the pictures that I thought were taken didn’t turn out at all, but I was able to briefly talk with President Sejdiu, Prime Minister Thaci, Albania’s Amb. Sallabanda, Albania’s representative at the U.N., Amb. Neritani, and to say hello to a large number of other Albanians I know that came from New York, Boston, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Chicago.


Overall, this trip provided me with a needed break, away from home. The Washington weather was mild, but I returned to NY just in time for some rain and a winter storm that is expected to leave us tonight with 10 inches of fresh snow!!