Albania and Greece- Cows Kayaks and Ouzo!

05/09

From our lovely guesthouse in Ulcinj we were up and going to the Bus station where we would start our long trek from the bottom of Montenegro to the bottom of Albania in one day! We made the bus station with hours to spare before the bus would take off to Shkodra, a small town just over the border in Albania from which we would pick up onward travel. Arriving at the bus station though we were propositioned by some taxi drivers, who for the same price would take us over the Albanian border to Shkodra 2 hours before the bus would leave- with so much travel ahead of us we thought it was wise to get moving as soon as possible. Through winding roads and small Montengrin and Albanian townships we were soon in the transport hub which was Shkodra. With instructions to the taxi driver to drop us at the bus station we were dropped at the petrol station which doubles as the bus or furgon station. Furgons, according to Lonely Planet are an informal system of minibuses that form a public transport network across Albania. Negotiating a price with the Albanian driver who was rocking a sick snapback we were soon on the road to Tirana, Albania’s capital.

Picking up and dropping off as we moved ever closer to Tirana, the rural plains scenery soon turned into classic Balkan urbanism, tall drab ex-communist buildings- we knew we were in Tirana. After we paid the bus driver some extra Leke to take us to the bus station we got there and soon navigated the shambolic bus station and found our bus to Saranda. Grabbing a feed and exchanging our euros with the old man standing at the front of the bus, we were soon seated and ready to start our 7 hour bus journey along some of Albania’s best/worst roads. With a quick stop in the middle of the Albanian nowehere we were back on the bus in the dark to navigate our way to Saranda. We were soon awoken by the driver and conductor to be informed that this bus that was labelled Saranda did not in fact go to Saranda but would stop 100km short in a place called Gjirokastra. We were assured that there would be a bus to come and collect us and take us the rest of the way, but in the middle of nowhere with a strong language barrier at 9 pm we hedged our bets and splurged on a taxi to take us the rest of the way. With the driver demonstrating his strong rally driving pedigree on the windy roads over the hills Saranda, it was not long before we arrived in Saranda and we had hunted down the Hairy Lemon Hostel, on the 8^th floor of an apartment building about 5 minutes walk to the beach. A welcome shot of home-made Baileys greeted us on arrival which was optimal given our long day of travel. We were then out in search of food, after effectively not eating for the whole day and then it was off to bed.

06/09

Waking up in Saranda we were greeted with piles of Irish pancakes with 5 different spreads- this was the norm at Hairy Lemon Hostel. So feasting on pancakes we were soon nearly unable to move but we pushed through our food baby pain and got organised enough to make the 5 minute walk to Saranda’s main beach.  Walking past a cow with a large cow bell feeding out of the local dumpster we walked on the pebble beach laid our stuff down then dove in over the large diving board-style pier.  Reading the day away while intermittently swimming and sleeping it wasn’t long before 6 pm rocked around and we were soon thinking about dinner.

From eating out a lot over the past few days, or mostly not eating at all, we were up for eating a massive salad. So with ingredients in hand the boys got to work whipping up some roasted eggplant and potatoes and a fresh tomato salad. A great accompaniment to Tirana beer. Sitting in the Hostel lobby is a great way to meet the fellow traveller and it wasn’t long before we started chatting to an Australian couple from Melbourne and then two Scottish guys from Glasgow. Sick of Australians, we hit up the Scots, Stuart and Gregor, and got chatting, It wasn’t long chatting that Stuart, a kayak instructor at a adventure resort on the Greek mainland gave us tips for the following day and then invited us to the resort- from how he described it, it was going to be hard to refuse! After dinner we again reverted to the delicious home made Baileys before Harro skyped his Mum and Dad and I blogged the night away.

07/09

Waking up fairly early we were keen to head to the Blue Eye Swimming Hole on the recommendation of Stuart the Scotsman. Blue Eye is located somewhere between Gjirokastra and Saranda and it is a fresh water aquifer and the source of the large river system in the area. Divers have dived approximately 50m down the hole and the source of the water hasn’t yet been found- its pretty deep. Above the aquifer is a 4m high viewing platform for which it is ‘the done thing’ to jump off and into the clear blue water arising from the big blue hole.  With all of us successfully clearing the ledge below on our first attempt, we were addicted to the adrenalin rush of the jump and the freezing cold water. Jumping off 4 more times each it was time to head back to Saranda. Walking the back the 2km from the swimming hole to the main road we had to negotiate a controlled bushfire burn off that was growing out of control and about to jump the only road in and out of blue eye. Happy that we hadn’t lingered at Blue Eye any longer we were soon at the main road ready to make our way back to Saranda for the Corfu ferry by any means possible. Attempting to hitch on the advice of many at the hostel, we had only received car horns and strange looks but no lift. But it wasn’t long before we caught a taxi and we were on our way back to Saranda. A quick stop at the hostel  to grab our bags and we were at the pier ready to jump on the 4:30  ferry that we had booked the previous day. After clearing passport control it wasn’t long before we arrived in Corfu Town and ready to negotiate our way from the main town to our accommodation in Ipsos.

With the assistance of the Bus travel information man, we were on the right bus up the the east coast of Corfu to Ipsos where we jumped off and wandered to find The Comfy Hostel. We were greeted by the lovely Thelma who provided motherly advice about all things scooters and Italians. After a fair few beers, while heeding Thelmas advice, we were out on the town heading straight for a gyros- when in Greece. More Mythos in our systems and we were ready to party and our first stop was a cocktail bar being spruiked by a Greek kid who looked like the boy off the Mad magazine cover. Some 3 euro cocktails and were ready to make friends- friends being some English girls in Corfu for a week living up the sunshine, something they don’t seem to get in their god forsaken homeland. Harro being in a shifting mood and free shots from the Albanian bartender meant the night was going to get real. A few more cocktails and we moved on to a club/bar playing the top 10’s- Jessie J’s Laserlight went off! With Andy chasing the dragon we persisted with our novelty dance moves until it was time to call it quits and head back to the comfy hostel.

08/09

With all of us nursing  Mythos malnurtition, we were slow to get up and going. But once we were up we were on a mission t get a Gyros- we were of the opinion that this may be the best cure of a Hellas headache. With Gyros in our bellies we were off to the beach to sunbake and swim our day away. But in addition to baking and swimming novelty games and fighting off the beach retailers was on the activities agenda. One of the great Ipsos Beach novelty games included hitting the umbrella pole with a beach pebble. Like seemingly every novelty game we have had this trip- flip cup, toothpick in the cocktail etc Harro has emerged victorious! Its kind of starting to get to me!

In need of another feed we went to the supermarket and grabbed some Greek supplies for lunch back at the room- tzatziki, some version of baba ganouj, olives, salami and bread- made for a delicious lunch. While Andy was keen to sleep Harro and I were keen to make the most of the daylight hours. First we gave each other haircuts, knowing that the end of season nightclub party down on the main strip may require some sort of dress/look code. After the haircuts we were on the gravel soccer pitch opposite the hostel to run MUNBATs pre season #10. But after that session we needed a snooze. Waking up Harro felt it was a good idea to give me a Silent Bob education and watch Jay and Silent Bob strikes. While I concluded that it was one of the most random pieces of cinema I had ever watched it put us in a good mood to make it a dirty double and head out on the town- to Montecristo’s end of season party. But once we were ready and no sooner down at the main strip we were informed by our man at the cocktail bar that the closing pary had been called off. After a sigh of relief from all of us we grabbed a gyros and grabbed a relaxing beer. Browsing the other nightlife on offer on the main strip, we discovered the most happening place had a samba night. With none of us really competent in that dance genre we thought it may be better to just call it early- but by early we mean 3 am because we had only left the hostel at 1!

Me playing Tron

09/09

While a 3 am arrival home was always going to be rough in the morning, it wasn’t made better by the fact that no sleep was had the night before. Whether the number of gyros consumed that day had backfired, or I had simply contracted some sort of virus, I was hugging the toilet bowl all night with no food or liquid being able to be consumed to replace what I had lost. Naturally the next day was going to be a struggle. And knowing that it was a travel day, I was not looking forward to waking up. With a shower and bags packed though we were out the door and down the road looking for onward transport to Corfu Town and then Igoumenitsa, the port town on the Greek mainland. From Ipsos to Corfu we hailed a reasonably priced taxi and got to Corfu Town safe and sound while also gaining an insight into the state of the Greek economy- where the only thing that is free in Greece is the oxygen and soon they will have to pay for that. Arriving at the port with 45 minutes to kill before the ferry I collapsed on the bench to muster the energy to make the short walk to the ferry. But once on the ferry the empty bench seat in the saloon provided a great opportunity to crash for a couple of hours.

Waking up in Igoumenitsa we negotiated a good price for a taxi to Sivota to meet our main man Stuart from Glasgow. It was a couple of days earlier that we decided when these opportunities arise, invitations from fellow travellers along the route, you better take them! So, of the ferry into the Igoumenitse port we negotiated a price for a taxi, after we arrived after the last bus had already departed, and we were off along the windy, coast road through Plataria to Sivota. In the centre of the tiny Sivota, we gave our man a call and he soon arrived, dragged along by a small, black and white pooch affectionately named Mythos, after the famous Greek beer. After a ‘wee’ walk up the  hill that made Sivota’s main st we were in the depths of the resort’s staff accommodation and soon arrived at Stu’s 2 bedroom apartment where we met Stu’s flatmate Callum and Colin the pet rabbit. Despite thinking death was approaching, Stu’s infectious enthusiasm, got me up and about. Callum dropped us down at the resort where Stu took us out on a kayaking trip to the Blue Lagoon- a 1 hour return paddle to a hidden sandy beach with crystal blue water. Andy snorkelled, Tristan swum and I floated-hoping the healing powers of the Aegean Sea would fix a wounded traveller.

On our return to the resort, the boys settled in for some beers while we all watched the sunset over Corfu in the distance. Then it was time for a feed. And still not feeling the greatest, the boys met Callum at Georgious for some more beers and traditional greek while Stu took me to the local pizza place and then dropped me at home with a margherita to watch Moneyball and recover. But, the boys pushed on…

With Finlay tucked into bed with a pizza and wee peach the Scotts took us to one of their favourite restaurants. Having been working in Sivota for three seasons now they boys took all their hotel guests to this restaurant and we were all treated as royalty. An amazing meal was dished out; saganaqi, squid, prawn saganaqi plus plenty of Mythos for a mates rate. Moving on to the next bar one of the restaurant workers joined us and taught us all the word for bread rolls and dicks in Greek which are surprisingly similar… ordering six small bread rolls for Stu next time was going to be a success or very amusing. For a Sunday night the bar closed early and we headed back home to call it a night, but not before a quick episode of one of the great reality TV shows Sea Shepherd.

10/09

The scotts awoke early and headed off to work and we were then awoken by Colin going mental in his cage. Andy and I felt pretty dusty after a heavy shifting session but there was no time for complacency and Finlay dragged us out for some activities at the hotel. First on the itinerary was some stand up paddle boarding; Finlay and I had been in training at the Mason ranch back home so we showed Andy the way and soon the fighting started / I set my sights on boarding the other boys vessels pirate style. After this we found stu and borrowed some mountain bikes and road into town for a bakery lunch. Delicious baked goods, coffee and sweet sweet donuts went down a treat. Heading back to the hotel Stu had to take a tour and Callum took us for a closed Kayak session. Callum, about my height was a ripped unit with a lower percentage of body fat than myself; so jealous! The reason was that he used to be a freestyle wrestler for Great Britain and made the Olympic team in Athens and Beijing; what an axe. However he has now retired from that an instead works in one of the best offices I have seen teaching us muppets how to capsize and roll a kayak. After some patient teaching we all seemed to get down the basics. Class 6 rapids here we come!

For the afternoon Andy got hold of a speargun and disappeared into the ocean for a couple of hours while Finlay read about Africa and I worked on my Russian. Unfortunately he came back empty handed, however saw a octopus. Stu informed us that the way to kill one was bite a hole in its head and then invert /pop it…. strange. Callum and Stu were kind enough to host a BBQ at their house. Amazing chicken and pork kebabs cooked away and while we sunk beers with the lads plus one of their other mates Jack, Caroline and a strange British couple who were guests at the hotel. I was a little down as Andy decided that he was no longer going to travel with Finlay and I – We were to go to thessoloniki the next day then Turkey and Andy wished to stay in Greece and hit up Athens. This called for a celebratory bottle of Ouzo. Finlay still wasn’t up to drinking so it my Andy, Stu and My responsibility to make sure the Ouzo disappeared. Although Andy wasn’t that excited about this it was part of this responsibility. Stu and I were the last to go to bed after some interesting man love chats and left Andy to chase the dragon. Getting into bed with Fin I soon feel asleep before waking him up to point out stu standing in the corner on the room spinning a glow stick…Finn informed me that it was just a light and the ouzo made me see things.

11/09

While I was back on the wellness the train, the other two boys were feeling rough after beers and a bottle of ouzo in a classic Glaswegian drinking session. But regardless, we were up and ready on time to catch our lift with Callum in the red transit van after he kindly offered to drive us to Igoumenitsa rather than catching the 7 15 bus. However not before a team photo and walking Colin the rabbit. Back along the windy coast road with Greek Metallica covers playing on the radio we soon arrived back in Igoumenitsa where we said our goodbyes to Callum and headed up to the bus station to buy our tickets; Andy to Athens and Tristan and I to Thessaloniki. Yes, this was the time where the No Longer Anchored Wolfpack or NLAW was to return to its original duo (after some quick calculations we worked out that Tristan and I had only travelled as a duo for about a week before we started adopting people). Anyhow, we headed  across the road to the bakery to grab some supplies, skyped gk quickly with bakery wi-fi, said our goodbyes to Andy and then jumped on the bus to Greece’s second city. I shed an ouzo tear for you my man!

4 hours later we arrived at the Thessaloniki bus station where first on the agenda was to investigate a bus to Istanbul. Our first investigations were met with a negative response which left us having to search for the train station. With the directions of a local stranger (who said it would be a 1km walk) and our map, we set off in search of the train station. An hour later, we arrived at the station hot and sweaty after a massive hike to find that all Greece’s international trains no longer run. So using some fast food wifi we were able to track down a tour company that did in fact run buses to Istanbul. So we headed to their office, bought some tickets and headed off to the city centre to kill time before our 10pm overnight bus.

Thessaloniki is Greece’s second largest city, however, unlike Athens it seems no tourists really go there or if they do go there it is in transit to Bulgaria, Albania or Turkey. Lonely Planet and the guy at the tourist agency informed us that the waterfront was a nice place to go, relax and eat so we headed down there to check it out. After we walked to the end of the pier and took some stupid photos, in a delirium caused by an exhausting few days, we were walking back to town to get some food when we stumbled across the Thessaloniki Museum/Gallery of Modern Art. The  gallery was showing an exhibition entitled ‘It’s the Political Economy, Stupid!’, a title that plays on the words of President Clinton’s statement about the economy when he held office. The exhibition consisted mainly of videos which documented reactions to the Global Financial Crisis of 2006 centring on failures of the political economy to deal with such a crisis. We only had an hour to check it out as it closed at 6 but we could’ve stayed longer- clever and extremely interesting exhibition! From the exhibition we headed to grab a bite to eat at a nice but reasonably priced restaurant serving traditional greek food. Saganaki, meatballs, salad and souvlaki were devoured quickly before we were served some gratis ice cream. It was then time to head back to the travel agents. Along the way, a photo battle ensued where Harris and I with cameras in hand, searched for the perfect artsy fartsy photo- the fruits of which can be seen below. Soon enough though, 10pm rolled around and we were on the bus, saying goodbye to Greece and bound for Istanbul, Turkey!!!