I sit on a stony curbside in complete darkness. My head hurts. Dogs bark in the distance. The sweet darkness of the Albanian night hugs me gently as I rub my temples, trying not to throw up. That’s not how I envisioned our first meeting, Gjirokaster. Last summer, we traveled […]
Read More• Southern Europe
Northern Albania – Mountains, Ferry, and Blood Feuds
We weren’t planning on heading north in Albania. It’s a completely mountainous region, with narrow and steep roads, wholly unsuitable for inexperienced travelers such as Victor’s mom. And we have explored so many other mountain ranges in the past – the Rocky Mountains, Smoky Mountains, Swiss Alps, Andes – that […]
Read MoreAlbania Highlights
One small change on this map – Google doesn’t do ferry routes, so the distance between Koman and Fierze is incorrect. We took a ferry down Koman Lake and then Drin River, not SH5 and SH22 roads. Places Visited Tirana Kruja Lezhe Cape of Rodonit Shkoder Koman Fierze Valbona Bajram […]
Read MoreGaudi’s Barcelona
We arrived in Barcelona early in the morning after a hellish overnight train ride that we still remember more than 10 years later. Bleary-eyed and groggy, our zombie-like entrance into the city was less than glorious. But that didn’t matter after all. We were in Barcelona. The city of Lionel […]
Read MoreFree Wheeling Through Albania
As we planned our Albanian trip, the first question that popped up was “How will we get around?” Private transportation for two weeks was too expensive, and public transportation was too inconvenient for our overbooked itinerary. The only viable option was to rent a car. But I had my doubts. […]
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