Warm summer days. Albania+
In one round - 5 Balkan countries. We visited Romania, walked around Belgrade (Serbia), rested for 8 days at the sea in Albania, enjoyed the beauty of Macedonia, saw the ancient and current capitals of Bulgaria (Veliko Tarnovo and Sofia).
I was pleasantly surprised by the "last mystery of Europe" - until recently closed Albania. With its gentle Adriatic and Ionian seas, majestic mountains, ancient fortresses, historical monuments of ancient Greece, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires. Bunkers of the era of "communism", modern new buildings... And most importantly - people: open, "non-spontaneous", kind and sympathetic. Their only drawback is that they are not yet accustomed NOT to litter.
The use of GMOs is prohibited in Albania. Products are fresh, tasty and inexpensive. I have never eaten such delicious tomatoes and watermelons before! Tomatoes are sweet, like our watermelons.
The hotel in which we stayed in Durres - "Skampa": small, neat, with an excellent pool and friendly staff. The distance to the sea (about 400 - 500 m) was overcome in a matter of minutes. The beach (on the Adriatic! ) is its own, sandy, large, with free sunbeds of an interesting design: they are all equipped with additional "peaks" in order to hide the riotous heads from the scorching sun. Breakfast was a buffet, but those who are used to overeating at such “stomach feasts” in Turkey would not be very pleased with the amount of food served. We had enough though. But the dinner was just great - with service, huge portions of a variety of yummy, home-cooked.
Tours around Albania were wonderful! The country is simply fabulously beautiful, the nature is pristine, the water in the streams and mountain rivers is crystal clear and surprisingly tasty. Views are awesome! During a trip to the south of this far from northern country, almost on the border with Greece, we stopped in Ksamil - and were stunned by the amazingly turquoise water of the Ionian Sea.
PHOTO from Albania see here:
https://www.facebook.com/chufromchu/posts/10209749039578044
From Durres they made a "raid" (more precisely, a "hit" by bus) to neighboring Macedonia - to Lake Ohrid. Which also gave a lot of unforgettable pleasant impressions.
The way back from Albania also lay through Macedonia. The small capital of a small country - Skopje - is a very pretty city with a fortress (Kale), a lot of monuments, sculptures, fountains, double-decker buses. Good, but not enough: there was not enough time to go around and examine it all.
PHOTO from Macedonia see here:
https://www.facebook.com/chufromchu/posts/10209795653023351
On the way home, we spent the night in Sofia, and then walked along Veliko Tarnovo, where we were able to appreciate all the Bulgarian flavor, of which so little is left in the coastal cities of Bulgaria.
And here we are in Ukraine! The roads ended, pits and potholes began... By the way, it is worth noting the impeccable and filigree work of our drivers from Lviv - Lubomir and Peter, who drove us not only over domestic potholes, but also along mountainous Albanian-Serbian-Macedonian-Bulgarian serpentines, along narrow (however, with high-quality) Romanian tracks. And they were always collected, responsible, friendly.
Well, Maria. Accompanying the group from the "Accord-tour" Maria Twentieth. Honestly, she was the first for us! She was the first to demonstrate such professionalism and respect for tourists on a foreign tour. Always elegant, smiling, she communicated with everyone courteously, but with dignity, without familiarity. In a word, the standard guide! Thank you very much!
And I would like to express my gratitude to Olga from the Kharkov Bronnikova Travel Agency, who helped me choose this tour and, traditionally, supported me with many practical tips. Olya, we will come back to you again!
