We are now back in Albania for the rest of the trip. The border was close and as we made our way around the Albania side of Lake Ohrid we made a couple of stops along the way. One was in a smaller town called Korca where we again had a wonderful meal at a local restaurant that costs us less than 10 CAD each! Here was the meal, all freshly made and delicious…
Roasted red peppers with balsamic…many of the places we ate were family owned businesses often serving food they grew and made themselves…
That day it was cold and cloudy so we stopped in the town center for coffee…
As we drove we passed many small farms in the valley…
Our next stop was a National Park on the Albanian side of Lake Ohrid. There were sandy beaches, beautiful trails to walk and very few people.
Some pictures of our walk on a crisp winter day…
We stopped overnight at a lakeside town called Podgradec at a lovely hotel in the centre of town and unfortunately it poured rain so no exploring that evening.
The next day we headed to the mountains over very narrow and winding roads but the scenery was spectacular!
We literally ran into a herd of goats who were being hurried along by very protective shepherd dogs…we did not get out of the car!
There are few people living up this high in the mountains and we often saw them with their animals…
Then we stopped for the views and had cows for company…
Spectacular scenery and we felt very small in that place…
Large reservoirs…
As we went down on the other side of the mountain we came into an area where they grow olives which is a big crop here…
Every family has their own trees as well as commercial farms.
Our overnight stay was in Berat which is a very popular tourist town and is known as “ the city of a 1000 windows”. It is also a UNESCO heritage site because of its’ unique Ottoman architecture and a long history of religious tolerance.
The houses are built on top of each other on the side of a mountain…
The town is divided by a river with lots of pedestrian bridges…
Its’ other claim to fame is a large medieval hilltop fortress from the 4th century where people still live.
Some of the sights inside the town…
We stayed in a lovely family owned hotel just below the fortress with a hearty home cooked breakfast and lovely views…
Another few days in this beautiful country and a few more to go!
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