Have we got some tasty travel bits for you! You may have missed them before, but we're giving you the delicious dibs on them once more. Don't miss them this time. Salut! 5. Balkan Odyssey Part 8: Berat, City of a Thousand Eyes: Wow! Talk about an amazing set of photos from ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Albania
GADLING'S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 23
Have we got some tasty travel bits for you! You may have missed them before, but we're giving you the delicious dibs on them once more. Don't miss them this time. Salut! 5. Balkan Odyssey Part 8: Berat, City of a Thousand Eyes: Wow! Talk about an amazing set of photos from ...Balkan Odyssey Part 11: Valbona, Albania
Not many people get to northern Albania. I suppose it is off the beaten path in a country that itself is off the beaten path.
During communism, northern Albania marched to its own drum. It was somewhat cut off from the rest of the country by mountains and a rugged ...Photo of the Day (7/27/06)
I couldn't resist sneaking this photograph of four stylin' gangster types out for a stroll in Berat, Albania. Although they sure look like members of RIMA (the Retired Italian Mafia Association), I'm sure they're just a couple of locals decked out in their best duds and on ...Balkan Odyssey Part 10: Lake Komani, Albania
Before I left the states, I was able to dig up only a little information about it, but I did learn that the ferry ride across Albania's Lake Komani promised to be one of the most spectacular boat trips in the world.
Surprisingly, the remote lake, located high in the ...Balkan Odyssey Part 9: Albanian Transport, Living to Tell about It
Prior to 1992, it was illegal to own a car in Albania. There were, of course, a few automobiles running around but these were either driven by high communist officials or municipal employees doing their job. No one actually owned the wheels they were driving.
In March ...Balkan Odyssey Part 8: Berat, City of a Thousand Eyes
Fortunately for mankind, someone many years ago had the foresight to designate the ancient town of Berat a "museum city." It was this designation which helped spare the town from city planners who ran amuck during communism tearing down churches and mosques.
Berat, located ...Balkan Odyssey Part 7: Tirana Photo Essay
During communism, the buildings of Tirana, Albania, like all eastern European cities, were smothered in depressing gray monotones. Painting these buildings more cheerful colors after communism fell, however, would have been expensive and cash-strapped governments throughout ...Balkan Odyssey Part 6: Tirana Accommodations
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Despite being the capital of the poorest country in Europe, Tirana has a surprisingly decent selection of places to stay. As a service for those of you who may consider venturing here, I've spotlighted four great hotels for four separate budgets.
Rogner Hotel One of the most ...Balkan Odyssey Part 5: Eating in Tirana
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One of the most frustrating things in Tirana is simply finding a good place to eat. The problem isn't one of quality, however, but of quantity. Tirana must have the fewest restaurants per capita of any city in Europe. At first glance, this doesn't seem to be the case. The ...GADLING'S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 16
Lots of exciting things happening here at Gadling these days. I've just wrapped up my cross-country adventures with Steps Across America, Erik is hanging out around Newfoundland and Neil is just starting to divulge the details of his Balkan adventure. With the forces ...Balkan Odyssey Part 4: Drinking in Tirana
Tirana is not the place to go if you want to cut loose and go a little crazy. Nightlife here, which really didn't exist under communism, is calm and relaxed and very mellow. Dancing on tabletops and getting visibly drunk is just not done.
That's not to say there is nothing ...Balkan Odyssey Part 3: What to See in Tirana
Like all former communist capitals, Tirana was socially engineered with the required injection of culture in the center of town. Skanderbeg Square boasts a Palace of Culture, National Library, and National Historical Museum-all of which loom above the expansive square where ...Balkan Odyssey Part 1: Getting to Albania
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Places so far off the beaten path rarely have good air connections. Albania is one exception, sort of. Shortly before planning my trip, British Airways announced that they would start flying direct to Tirana, the capital of Albania. This was a no-brainer: fly into London and ...Balkan Odyssey: Or, What I Did on My Summer Vacation
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Today begins a short series on a long trip from which I've just returned. As you can tell from the title, my journey took my through the former Yugoslavia. Fifteen years ago, the majority of my trip would have been a visit to a single country. But today, after far too many ...GADLING'S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 2
It's Friday and that means show and tell time here at Gadling. Ultimately we show you what you may have missed and you tell us what you like. Here we go. 5. Unique Hotels: It wasn't until last year sometime when it really started to dawn on me how much of an experience a ...Word for the Travel Wise (06/02/06)
As some of you may recall, Neil is on his way to distant lands and I can't say how green with envy I am. Sure, I'm bopping around the U.S. on a walking tour, but nothing thrills me more than coming in contact with a completely different culture and people. Although, I must ...Red Corner: Albania as the Next Great Outdoor Destination?
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Albania has a reputation that's been difficult to shake. Most outsiders only know of it as a backwards, communist hermit kingdom that is dangerous and tourist-unfriendly. This is no longer the truth--at least according to a recent article in The Tirana Times.
"Off the ...Red Corner: The Joys of Croatia, Montenegro and Albania
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I was a bit surprised to run across the following article, "Trip Lives up to Eastern Promise: Croatia, Montenegro and Albania provide a rewarding alternative to tourist traps," for the simple reason that those are exactly the same three countries I will be visiting shortly. ...Red Corner: Albania and Montenegro Advice
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I'll be leaving in a few weeks to tour through popular Croatia, less popular Montenegro, and virtually unvisited Albania. While I've come across many guidebooks and suggestions for Croatia, the other two countries are remote enough that very little travel literature exists ...Red Corner: Corfu to Albania
While visiting the Greek island of Corfu in 1990, I heard a rather frightening story. Apparently two college students rented a little paddle boat and headed out to open waters. They went a little too far, got caught in the current and were swept across the channel. They ...
