Albania

Durres Harbour

And yet another contrast. We sailed 8 hours to Durres - the largest port in Albania. We called Captain Lambi Pappa - recommended to us as an agent and he met us on the huge concrete quay. What a great bloke! He found us an excellent spot underneath a loading crane at a place where the big-ship fenders were missing. That was perfect for us as the crane gave us shelter from the sun and our fenders and barge board were able to bear against the quay keeping us safe from the substantial wash created by frequent big-ship movements and the Pilot boat (which although small goes far too quickly).

Comunist Era architecture

Lambi Pappa had brought his charming daughter along to see what he does all day and we chatted for a long time. He handled all the paperwork and recommended some sights in the town and a good place to eat. The restaurant was excellent - beautifully cooked seafood and a nice bottle of New Zealand wine, excellent service and a nice view all for €11 per person including generous tip. While eating, we had watched a traffic policeman whistling and gesturing as he desperately tried to control a constant stream of cars on the road below and pedestrians crossing over. We went for a stroll after eating and ended at his crossing. Unlike most other people, we stopped and waited for him to signal us across and he actually thanked us for not ignoring him! The town is a mixture of dreadful communist era architecture and modern european café culture.

The Coliseum

The Roman coliseum was well worth a visit - it's very well preserved from antiquity still having the original stone seatings and "back stage" - giving a better idea of what it was really like than even Pula (which is heavily and not very sympathetically restored after stone looting in the middle ages).

The (closed) museum

Café on top of the Venitian Tower

We tried to see the Archaeological museum but after a long hot walk, found it closed for renovation in the height of the tourist season! Just wandering around the town was interesting for variety of "Socialist Heroic" statuary - now mostly unloved and graffiti ridden. A beer on top of the Venetian tower near the harbour entrance was an experience - and again not an expensive one.




Lucifer earned his keep as the quay was covered in spilled grain which supported a thriving rat colony. None of them came anywhere near him (and thus Rosa) though. Lambi Pappa came in the evening to check us out and asked us to pay him "What we thought he was worth". We agreed on €40 for his services with port fees for two days of about €30 on top, everyone was happy.

Bye Bye Albania

Our plan was to go into Orikum Marina but we were warned by some Germans in Durres that it was very expensive as not only were the Marina fees high but the harbour and agent fees in Vlores were also substantial. At the last minute we decided to change course and head overnight for Corfu. It was a lovely calm, warm, uneventful motor broken only by an Albanian customs rib that came over to ask us some questions - all very courteous and quick. No papers - just where had we come from, was I the owner and how many people on board.