Road to Albania - day 7 - Kosovo

We wake up in the morning to another beautiful day in Albania.

As we pack up and ready to head out we don't even consider if it will be difficult to get to the road. After all, the small off road trip to the camping site was not so hard. However, heading out proves to be a bit more difficult, and Mrazik ends a bit stuck.

After a bit of pushing, we got Mrazik free and headed off, back to Byram Curri.

We had tons of Albanian money to spend and no place to exchange it. So we went shopping! Walking around the markets was a great cultural experience.

Radek purchased tons of Raki (the Albanian national drink), I get a scarf and a backpack. The backpack was an interesting experience, the seller tells me it is 8000 leke, which is super expensive. I was confused. A guy on the street stopped by and translated for us (he was in the US), turns out that it was only 800 leke but because of the money change, some people say 8000 for 800 while others say 80 for 800. Talk about confusing!.

After stalking up on water, souvenirs and gifts for our family we head off to Kosovo. We reach the border realizing that there is no gas station, so we turn around and go to the last one we saw. It's a good thing, we spend some Leke and exchange the rest for Euro. At the gas station was a poor dog with a injured mouth just hanging out. I felt sorry for the guy, had to take a picture.

We head back to the border, excited that there is nobody else waiting. We find out, however, that we are missing the papers. Remember way back when we entered Albania and someone told us we needed to buy some motorcycle papers for our motorcycle, but then someone else told us no? Well that "no" was wrong, and now we were having some trouble leaving Albania! Luckily a guy coming from Kosovo spoke French, and was able to translate for us (I know some French) the problem. We ended up paying 2 Euro each and heading off.

The Kosovo border was interesting as well! Turns out we needed to buy expensive insurance for the motorcycles (20 Euro each!) just to legally ride there. However the guards were very friendly with us and spoke great English. They asked us if we wanted our passports stamped. Of course! He then stamped Mrazik's passport, paused, and then told us if we were going into Serbia it might be a problem for us... errrr... So Radek and I skipped the passport stamp! Hopefully for Mrazik there wouldn't be a problem!

Finally, we reached Kosovo!

Not too far from the border we reach a town and stop at a small coffee shop.

The drive was interesting, nothing special, but Kosovo seemed a lot greener than Albania for some reason.

We reach the city of Pec and are surprised by how many foreign troops we see! Most were Italian, but we also found some Czechs!

All in all Pec was pretty nice. Though not super rich, it looked better off then the Albanian towns we went through.

We decide to head to Kuciste, and we were surprised by a gorgeous road.

Not only was the road smooth, but it was full of twists and turns, and cool rock tunnels!

The scenery was breathtaking as well!

Though we weren't planning on sleeping in Kosovo, we loved the area we were driving in so much we decide to stop at a small hotel/pizzeria. The restaurant area and hotel was new, like a wood cottage, and fit in perfectly with its surroundings.

Fresh fish were circling the outdoor eating area, keeping the drinks cold.

It was a perfect spot for relaxing with beer and wine while Mrazik figured out where we would be heading tomorrow.

After a few drinks we looked back at some pictures of our trip before going to bed. An perfect end to a perfect day.

Road to Albania - day 6 - A boat ride

We woke up in the morning slowly and got ready for our boat ride trip up to the city of Fierze. The sun is shining and the morning starts out slow, with people trickling in for the ferry, some even coming by boat.

We wait about an hour as more and more people come to the port. Soon the entire tunnel is completely full of cars. And in the distance is the ferry approaching.

I suppose nobody really thought how the cars in the ferry would be able to get out so other cars could get in!

For about 30 minutes the cars back up and make room for those departing. And in another 30 minutes the ferry is ready to start off on this already hot day and head to Fierze.

After we secure our motorcycles we decide to head up to the top of the ferry to check out the view.

What a view it ended up being! We were surrounded by mountains, and if you looked closely you could see houses where one would think no houses could be!

The river itself also was quite breathtaking.

Unfortunately the Albanians have no concept of what a trash can is. While there were trash cans provided on the ferry, nobody used them. Instead they simply threw the trash overboard, sometimes hitting passengers sitting on the lower deck if the trash was caught by the wind. A real pity as the shores of the river where slowly being destroyed.

After two hours on the river we see the port in Fierze on the horizon. With something odd curiously sticking out of the water.

As we become closer it is obvious what the object is...

A boat! Well, it is refreshing to know that we have made it to shore on this trip safely!

Debarking this boat is not so crazy as it was in Komini, though still not completely sane. We quickly start our motorcycles and head only a kilometer or so before we decide to stop to eat. Our waiter is a small boy who couldn't be more than 10 who speaks excellent English and gives us excellent service. We order locally caught fish, which hit the spot nicely.

After we eat the boy gives us our total, 1050 leke, but tells us we only have to pay 1000 leke. Supposedly bargaining meals is a regular thing. We ask him where we can get some fresh bread, and he has trouble explaining it to us. So he offered to go get the bread for us! We give him some money and in 5 minutes he is back with a huge loaf of freshly baked bread. We leave him a huge tip despite his protest and soon we are off again.

Now we are heading to Bajram Curri, a much larger city but very poor. We do not stay long, simply change some more money, get water and gas, and head off to Shpella e Dragobise. We don't get very far, we are all exhausted and tired of the dirt roads (we found ourself on another one). Radek's clutch breaks, and as we wait for him to fix it we decide we do not want to go much further. Not too far of the road is a great camping site. The only problem? How to get the bikes there! Luckily we had two expert off road riders and both Mrazik and Radek are able to get their motorcycles safely to our little haven for the night.

Once we set up tent we are able to enjoy a very cold and quick bath in the crystal clear river near by.

I am so exhausted from our travels that at 8 o'clock I go lie down a bit and end up falling asleep until morning.

Road to Albania Day 5

I watched a little bit but eventually gave up as the animal disappeared around some bushes. The mystery would have to be solved later, now it was time for breakfast!

After we finished eating we starting packing up our things. As I was rolling up the tent suddenly an old lady all dressed in black walks by on the road. I thought it was odd to see her here, and I think she thought it was quite odd to see us! Not far behind her was following my little alarm clock, the mystery bell!

Little did I know it would not be the last animal we would see on the road that day!

Just as we were about to leave an off road jeep came up the road. In it were a French couple. They asked us the way (there was only one way) and I got to use my terrible broken French. Fun! We said goodbye only to run into them often during the day on this one way journey back to civilization.

We started off on our motorcycles, assuming we did not have far to go. Ops, how wrong we were! All the better, lots of fun dirt twists and turns to try. Every once in awhile we would come across animals in the road...

Some even being herded by children!

We also got to enjoy so more gorgeous views of the Albanian mountains.

There were also some great places for waterfalls, but unfortunately in the middle of summer the weather was simply to hot, and the falls were all dried up.

After about two hours of some nice off road riding we reached a peak with a small... it wasn't a restaurant... it wasn't a bar... it wasn't a stand... it was some place that had drinks and a person working there! So we took a break, sat down, and stared at the bee hives.

Suddenly we realized... do we have enough gas to get back? Yesterday was a full day of off road riding and today was proving to be another one. How far was the nearest gas station? Radek has a larger tank, but I only had a 9 or 10 L tank, same with Mrazik. We tried asking the guy who worked at the...place. He showed us 4 fingers... 4 km? Or 40? We had no idea, so we decided to conserve gas, meaning.. down hill, motors off! What an adventure! Luckily we had a lot more down hill to go, with some more amazing views.

After the road flattens out a bit we come to a river. Yes, water! By this time the noon sun was high and we were hot. We find a nice place to stop, head down to the river, rip off most of our clothes, and relax in the cool, refreshing water.

The formation of the rocks caused by the water was beautiful, yet dangerously slippery!

After cooling off in the water a bit our French friends in the jeep pass by, honking and waving. Unfortunately it will be the last time we see them! We decide it is time start off again, and reluctantly get dress in our gear. Off again once more!

Not long we start seeing some signs of civilization. "Buses" pass us full of people, going who knows where (where we just came from!). Soon, we see a tower of a...?

Not long after the road turns to pavement. Just then, as if on cue my engine goes pooottttttt and dies... Ah reserver tank, I love you! And we hit a town, Shkoder.

Yes! Food! Gas! We immediately smell something delicious. A restaurant that is grilling meat outside. Our stomaches growl with hunger.

Inside the restaurant it is quite impressive. Only men (I think Albania is populated only by men, women were far from few in the cities), and oh yes, me! The decor was also very nice!

The waiter asks us what we would like to order. I look over at the table across from us. They have something that looks good. So we say "Some meat, and whatever that guy is eating." Little did we know that we were ordering a feast. No worries, we had room for it all!

It was all delicious! And half way through our meal a guy came and bought us drinks. He said "I was in the U.S. once. Here, on me!" Right on! I like Albania.

We thanked our hosts, said goodbye and headed off. We quickly found a gas station and tanked up. A young boy was there, spoke to me a bit with excellent English. He told me that in school they are teaching English so now most young people know it. It was surprising how many children throughout Albania could speak English.

I said goodbye to the child and we headed off, going through Shkoder to get to Komani where we will take a boat up river. We get a little lost as there are absolutely NO SIGNS at all. And I thought Czech Republic was bad! Not only that, the drivers are completely crazy, passing and honking like they all have an emergency. No worries, we survive and get to see some city highlights!

Finally we are heading in the right direction. The roads are nice, but it is hot and we are exhausted. We stop only once for Mrazik's nicotine addiction. At the end of the day we are almost at Komani. We decide to stop right before the damn and get some refreshments.

I have to say, so glad we did! They had just the coolest (and stinkiest) toilet there! And I got to use it! Hey Mom, look what I can do!

We head off, only about 1 km of road left. We go through this long dark tunnel, and my headlight is not working properly and I can barely see! But we make it out alive! The Komani port is... one building? Yep, a restaurant/bar/hostel. We get a room, small, but only 5 Euros per person. We quickly change out of our stinky clothes.

And then we head down to the port for a swim and bath and some fishing. We don't catch anything, but no matters.

We have a bit of something to drink by the port, watch the sun set, and then head to bed as we are completely exhausted... and we have another long day ahead of us tomorrow!