Soo close and yet so far
Today I have lots of impressions from Croatia and Montenegro. From Croatia I do not subscribe the popular saying that Croatians are arrogant and nationalistic. I am sure some are, but during our days in gorgeous Dubrovnik and Cavtat I felt like in a small village in Andalusia, where humble and authentic people almost force you to try their home-made jam, taste the flavor of their fruits, the delicate freshness of their fish...
If you have time and some money, please visit Dalmatia or any other part of Croatia (which I don't know, but I am sure you will not be disappointed)...and IF YOU HAVE LOADS of money, please buy an apartment immediately.
Our trip to the Albanian neighbors was the p.e.r.f.e.c.t holiday: blue-flag waters, great food, absolutely terrific accommodation, chez Captain Kruja, the harbor master of Cavtat, a well-traveled wonderful man. Despite the fact that we paid for the rented apartment -that we found by chance- I had the feeling of being at home, amongst friends. We enjoyed his conversation, his wisdom, his fresh fish carpaccio, his wife's Turkish coffee. The richness of the Croatian soil and soul is somehow felt just crossing the Montenegro/Croatian border. Long cypress trees bestow a sort of Eden's Garden touch, fruit bushes carpet the landscape...tasty cucumbers, apples, grapes, TOMATOES abound (pls, check previous post to understand my close relationship with tomatoes).
After our sejour in Croatia, and already in our way back to Albania, we stopped in Budva. Montenegro's mini-Dubrovnik. Montenegro has beautiful landscapes and it looks as if improvements are happening at a very good pace. Certainly, at a much better pace than in Albania. Don't get me wrong, changes are happening in Albania too; the road Tirana-Northern Albanian border could be considered a highway by Balkan standards...but, but, but...Albania is still not there. I remember something that our host in Croatia told me about how to develop the tourism industry in beautiful Southern Croatia: "in this village, we know what we need to do", he said. I am afraid, in Albania, few know what they should do for the common/public good. Correct me if I am wrong, but this idea of the Albanian Riviera, with casinos and humongous hotels all along the coast does not sound like a great sustainable business. A colleague of mine coined the sentence "Albanians are going through an individualistic state-of-mind", which I certainly agree with. It is understandable that after living under the jug of a terrible communist system (whose hardness I can not even imagine) Albanians see the freedom they hold today as a driver to enrich themselves and achieve all that their ancestors couldn't; but WATCH out! This is not the best example for future Albanian generations. Enough for today. Let me think again about the mentholated dry figs, the grilled tuna of Croatia...
As usual more pictures (the one included in this post I took from Hugo) can be found on my flickr page.
If you have time and some money, please visit Dalmatia or any other part of Croatia (which I don't know, but I am sure you will not be disappointed)...and IF YOU HAVE LOADS of money, please buy an apartment immediately.
Our trip to the Albanian neighbors was the p.e.r.f.e.c.t holiday: blue-flag waters, great food, absolutely terrific accommodation, chez Captain Kruja, the harbor master of Cavtat, a well-traveled wonderful man. Despite the fact that we paid for the rented apartment -that we found by chance- I had the feeling of being at home, amongst friends. We enjoyed his conversation, his wisdom, his fresh fish carpaccio, his wife's Turkish coffee. The richness of the Croatian soil and soul is somehow felt just crossing the Montenegro/Croatian border. Long cypress trees bestow a sort of Eden's Garden touch, fruit bushes carpet the landscape...tasty cucumbers, apples, grapes, TOMATOES abound (pls, check previous post to understand my close relationship with tomatoes).
After our sejour in Croatia, and already in our way back to Albania, we stopped in Budva. Montenegro's mini-Dubrovnik. Montenegro has beautiful landscapes and it looks as if improvements are happening at a very good pace. Certainly, at a much better pace than in Albania. Don't get me wrong, changes are happening in Albania too; the road Tirana-Northern Albanian border could be considered a highway by Balkan standards...but, but, but...Albania is still not there. I remember something that our host in Croatia told me about how to develop the tourism industry in beautiful Southern Croatia: "in this village, we know what we need to do", he said. I am afraid, in Albania, few know what they should do for the common/public good. Correct me if I am wrong, but this idea of the Albanian Riviera, with casinos and humongous hotels all along the coast does not sound like a great sustainable business. A colleague of mine coined the sentence "Albanians are going through an individualistic state-of-mind", which I certainly agree with. It is understandable that after living under the jug of a terrible communist system (whose hardness I can not even imagine) Albanians see the freedom they hold today as a driver to enrich themselves and achieve all that their ancestors couldn't; but WATCH out! This is not the best example for future Albanian generations. Enough for today. Let me think again about the mentholated dry figs, the grilled tuna of Croatia...As usual more pictures (the one included in this post I took from Hugo) can be found on my flickr page.
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