Day 23 Albania to Austria

Really guys, "Do the CAT"?

After assuring myself that sleeping right next to the gate would wake me up without need for an alarm I managed to sleep through about half the plane boarding before I woke up and joined the line.  A brief hour and a half flight later I was released into Austria!  

Awe inspiring.

 The Vienna airport is near the city and a train, called the CAT (City-Airport transfer), provides a 15 minute nonstop route into downtown Vienna.  After customs, and wandering for a while until I located short-term luggage storage, and negotiating with the ticket machine I headed in to the city.  I admit it I headed out into the city and spied a Starbucks, after finding out they had wifi I got a latte and did some checking in with folks.  Fully caffeinated I felt ready to explore.  Vienna is a truly breathtaking city, so much history!  The flight landed early so by the time I got into Vienna proper it was only about 8:30 in the morning and the city was just waking up, people were readying their shops for the day, restaurants were putting out the sidewalk seating, and the streets were fairly empty.  It was nice to watch the city wake up. 

Even the graffiti is cool.

I wandered around for a good 4 hours amazed by everything I saw.  I didn’t do any research, had no idea what is in Vienna and had no must see or do items on my list, it was a day free of expectations or planning.  One thing that really impressed me was the amount of bike lanes and how respected they are.  So many people biking everywhere was really heartening to see.  Also there were bikes all over available to rent, a great idea for such a heavily tourism based area of the city.  Though I thought about renting a bike I decided to continue my aimless wandering on foot.  As a Dr. Who fan I’m not sure how anyone in Vienna gets any sleep with so many weeping angels everywhere.   I got myself good and lost wandering wherever my feet took me.  Eventually I bought some kind of meat patty from a deli, which the nice woman put on a roll with delicious mustard.  Before the day was out I had also enjoyed a schnitzel from a stand as is only proper in Vienna. 

All hail the sun!

When I felt suitably lost and in need of relocating the train station I started asking people for directions, everyone was so kind and polite.  I started getting slightly worried about my plan until I turned a corner and recognized art over a bridge from earlier in the day, I was mere blocks from the train station.  I retraced my steps from earlier seeing the city awake where it had been asleep earlier, it was nice to see some streets in two very different ways.  Eventually I had to make my return to the airport, reclaim my luggage and board my flight for Tokyo!

I couldn't resist the guy on the bike.

There's no reason to get a big head about it.

 

Day 22 Saranda back to Tirana

Happy bus is cheerful to get you to your destination.

Today I woke to my last day in Albania.  I’m not ready to leave but am at the same time very ready to be home.  The day started with a long leisurely breakfast with Alma and the girls, with lots of laughing and chatting, and a bee that fell in honey, got saved and was carefully watched as he cleaned his wings until he could fly again.  I then headed down to Hotel Mucobega for my last swim in the Ionian, I swam, drank espresso, drank up the sun, chatted with folks, read and sadly eventually said my goodbyes.  I garnered some candied orange and watermelon rinds from Erjoni’s and returned to my room to finish my packing.  The bus didn’t leave until 2:00 but as it was my chance to get to Tirana I wasn’t going to chance it so Alma, the girls, and I headed out at 1:00.  They got me situated, helped me get my ticket and we hugged our goodbyes.  This really was a bus, a tour bus with a big happy sun painted on the side.  Many of us chatted waiting for the bus to load and I met a guy named Dom from Sicily.  He was charming and funny and when we boarded we sat near each other and continued chatting.  He is in his 50’s and has been traveling his whole life, he speaks 6 languages and had absolutely hilarious stories form every continent.  He was a great distraction from the fact that the weather was in the 90’s and the AC on the bus didn’t function.  We did stop a bit up the road from Cold Water and drank, filled our water bottles, washed our faces and chilled out for a few before returning to another few hours in the hot bus.  We stopped for lunch at a little roadside place, I had a quick bowl of rice with meat gravy before we headed out again, it was a whopping $1.  After more napping and ignoring the heat, any stops picking up more and more people until the bus was nearly full we started letting people off as well and shortly thereafter we were at the last stop.  Time to grab my luggage and find a cab.  Dom offered to let me hang out at his hostel for a while but I decided to head straight for the airport, thinking I may be able to check my baggage and catch a nap.  I found a cab easily enough, negotiated a price and shortly thereafter arrived at the airport.  There would be no baggage checking as the check in counter wouldn’t open until 2 hours before my flight, so 2:30 am.  I curled up on a bench with my baggage, set an alarm and napped until I could check in, after which I went through security and customs and promptly went back to sleep.

Day 21 A day in Greece

Passenger ferry to Corfu, Greece.

Corfu, Greece!

Today I got up early, ate a solitary breakfast, and headed to town to catch the ferry to Corfu for the day.  There was no way I was going to come so close to Greece, to watch it every day from my balcony, and not visit. I had reserved my tickets the day before  which was a good call since the morning passenger ferry was full.  There are two ferries a day from each location, one morning and one afternoon, mornings are passenger ferries, a fast 30 minute hydrofoil across the water and afternoons are slower 1 ½ hour car ferries.  I met a nice couple on the ferry, she was Finish I believe and he was an Australian, they were just finishing up their travels and headed to the airport in Corfu.  We had a fun chat about diving and were in Greece before we knew it. I passed through customs rather quickly and was off to explore.  The day was hot from the start and finding the ticket office to purchase my return ticket was a bit challenging at first I got it sorted out and headed the ¼ mile into Corfu township proper, to the historical district. 

Fish pedicure.

I picked a road at random and started exploring, I wasn’t too worried as there were maps everywhere and it was pretty apparent that I would notice when I left the old town area as the architecture would change significantly. The roads, alleys, buildings, all of it was breathtaking, history was nearly tangible.  All the old buildings are shops and initially I was not into shopping but the more I walked the more enticed I was.  It was also very apparent when a cruise ship arrived as the streets would get much fuller, then later in the day the crowds would drop or increase as the change overs occurred on the three cruise ships that docked that day. 

Most refreshing beer ever!

 I was a bit overwhelmed with all the shops, sights and cruise ship passengers, quite a change from Albania.  I spotted the fish foot baths that Effie had told me about, where the fish nibble the dead skin off of your feet. I figured what the heck and got myself a fish foot bath, initially it tickled but after I got used to it, it was rather soothing and I got to sit and watch the world go by out of the hot sun and with my feet in a cool bath.  After my fish pedicure I walked and walked, did some shopping, ate a great Greek lunch of moussaka with a delicious Greek ice cold beer, and admired the architecture.   

Architecture.

All too soon my time was over and I headed back to the ferry to be sure to get my ride home, I gathered my goodies, nice Greek salts and soaps for gifts, a purse, earrings and sandals for myself and headed to the docks.  It was a nice leisurely ride back to Albania.  I have learned to cue like an Albanian, form a crowd and then go for it, no lines or nicely waiting or you will wait forever, you have to be proactive. So I knew to wait near the front and make a beeline for the boat as soon as we were able.  I managed to secure a glorious spot on a bench on the top deck right at the front of the ferry where I could watch the island of Corfu and hills of Albania pass by on our way.  It was a nice restful time, we were overtaken and passed by a cruise ship and it really advertised out size differences.  It was also really fun to watch the Albanian families interact on their way home, I had seen many of the same families that morning on the way over.  After passing through customs I headed home, grabbing some honey baked goods on the way from the patisserie. I dropped off my stuff and went for one last evening on the waterfront.  Limoni was crowded at this more proper European dinnertime, about 9:30, happily the waiters recognized me and one of them got me a table outside fairly quickly.   

Apparently a dangerous marina.

 I enjoyed a Bera Tirana and a huge bowl of mussels steamed in white wine and garlic for the equivalent of $7 for all of it.  After I finished my waiter brought over this delicious lemon sorbet they have sometimes.  It was a really great experience for my last time there.  I made my goodbyes and wandered the waterfront for as long as I could stay awake before heading for my last night in Albania.  Alma earlier in the day had suggested that I breakfast with her and the girls and I happily agreed, she also really wanted to drive me to the bus station and make sure I got settled and I couldn’t say no to that offer either.  I packed some and fell asleep the sleep of the exhausted. 

Goodbye Corfu!

Hello Saranda!

Day 20 A Historical Perspective

Wildlife at Butrint

This morning we wished Leslie a fond farewell as she headed to the ferry to Corfu and eventually her flight back to the UK where she is studying.  Then the remaining students along with Dr. Begley, Lee, and the new student who arrived yesterday Katie, all headed to Butrint National Park.

Tile work at Burtint.

It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, located 20 km south of Saranda.  Butrint is amazing, it has been a township through the ages, there is been evidence that people lived in the Butrint area from about 100,000 BC (the middle Paleolithic). It saw a lot of change over that ages, through Hellenistic, Roman, late Roman, Medieval, Venetian, and Ottoman times and has been passed around with control going to many different interests over the years, much like the rest of Albania.  We spent a number of hours exploring, taking in the sites, enjoying the heat, and admiring all of the different times represented in the ruins as we explored.   It was really centering and gave a great perspective to be somewhere that has been inhabited by humans in one form or another for such a long period of time. 

Long time Butrint inhabitant.

We returned to Saranda for lunch and then Effie, Dave, Cameron and I headed to our second UNESCO World Heritage Site for the day, Gjirokastra a town from the Ottoman times with a gorgeous castle at the top of the hillside. The castle began about the 12th century AD and saw a lot of work in the early 1800’s and in the 1930’s King Zog of Albania expanded the prison facilities. We spent our afternoon exploring the castle, it was very open and amazing. We were free to explore anything unlocked and to walk all over. Up on the top level is an American spy plane that was shot down during the cold war, it is weathered and old these days but clearly illustrates a different time in history.  Scattered throughout the land in Albania are small cement domes, pillboxes or bunkers, shelters for when the Americans attacked. Albania was communist until the late 1990’s and between 1945 and 1990, 700,000 bunkers were built, one for every four people in Albania.  It is not surprising that they are still a very visable part of Albanian history.   Today there really isn’t any liability in Albania so be careful because it’s your own fault if you get hurt.  Because of this we were able to hang out of open window ledges high up in the castle walls, to peer at bunches of bats roosting on the ceilings above huge drop offs, to explore unlit tunnels by the light of Cameron’s flashlight and our camera flashes. 

American spy plane.

I have to give Dave credit here for allowing me to cling on to his backpack for the first 10 meters or so, I have a fear of spiders and there were quite a few in these dark, unexplored tunnels.  I stuck to the back of the group and after I stopped clinging to Dave I walked down the middle of the path and tried to be my bravest me.  While we explored huge rain clouds rolled in and we could actually see the wall of rain headed our way.  We ignored it and continued exploring outside all splitting up, walking the top of the exterior wall, poking around sunken rooms, taking pictures of insects and having a grand time.  The sky opened up on us and we all scattered for cover reaching the same covered walkway about the same time.  

Effie explores.

We decided this was a perfect time to visit the military museum inside, it was mostly focused on the communist times and was very informative about daily life in the area through history.   We wandered through the town after the rain let up, found our cab driver and headed home, everyone napped in the car, tuckered out after our exciting day.  After dinner everyone else packed and went to bed early, they had a 15 hour bus ride ahead of them that would begin at 4:30 am.  I set my alarm for their departure and wandered bleary eyed in my pajamas down to wish everyone safe travels and say my goodbyes before falling back into bed.

Time to head inside to explore.

The town of Gjirokastra.

Day 19 Relaxation and fireworks!

Today I slept later than I have so far in this journey.  I woke up nursing a headaches and headed to breakfast, Leslie was up and chatting with Alma, apparently the guys ate and went back to bed I took their lead, ate and returned to me room to snooze as well.  After a bit more sleep we all motivated enough to decide a lazy day on the beach was called for.  I headed to the beach and made it I bit before everyone else, it was so nice just to lay about, drink espresso and read a book.  We rested away the afternoon doing just this, hanging out being lazy on the gorgeous beach one last time together.  After our relaxing day we grabbed everyone else we could and headed in to town for one last crepe and a final round of bumper cars. I left early for some waterfront wandering and ended up having a rocket salad and bruschetta at Limoni so I had a dessert crepe, banana, nutella and almonds, delicious. We had to go to the “free diving” shop in town that we thought had closed but in reality had moved a few doors down.  It was quite an amalgamation of snorkeling gear, spear fishing goods, fishing supplies, kitsch and nick-knacks.  Cameron even managed to find a few fireworks, which he purchased as it is the Fourth of July and no one here was planning a celebration. Bumper cars are ridiculous fun at any age and we had one last go one them as a group, we laughed quite a bit while ramming into each other.  We wandered the boardwalk for a bit, everyone else got gelato, then Effie, Dave, and I did a little shopping.  We then headed back home to set off our fireworks.  After gathering Alma, the girls, and everyone form the program Cameron lit off the two fireworks he purchased, they were a little lack luster but we all had fun and joked about it being the fourth, Ada told us they were crap fireworks and we agreed. Regardless we all had a good laugh and what really was a memorable fourth away from home.  After I returned to my room I was able to video chat with Eric for a bit, and he was having a BBQ, so I got to say hello to and catch up with a bunch of friends I was starting to miss pretty intently.  I knew I was starting to get homesick when I kept thinking I was recognizing people on the street that were in no way actually in Albania.

Fireworks!

Day 18 Wrapping up the program

Today started with breakfast and our last morning meeting on the patio.  We were given some time to finish our exams and  pack our gear up from the dive locker. Dave and I also had one final task to accomplish.  Derek, Dave and I headed into town to conquer our single breath hold portion of our swim tests.  During out time in Saranda workers have skillfully re-stuccoed the area surrounding the swim area including the steps and the entire surround area, it is beautiful.  Dave and I decided it was a sign.  This time we brought a meter tape which we laid out on the bottom so we could judge our progress.  This final task has lingered on my mind, worrying me since I failed to accomplish it on the first official day of the program.  Once in the water, which was brisk so early in the morning, we joked and warmed up a bit, and we were ready to go.  I took off first, I was starting to get nervous and refused to let it effect me.  The tape really made a difference, I was able to read it as I swam along and know how I was doing, I reached the end jubilantly and with much more breath left then I anticipated.  These last few weeks really kicked my butt into better shape, especially my cardiovascular system.  Dave finished strong as well and we high fived, rolled up the tape and headed back to Quirjakos finish up and last minute work on our final exams.  Our last day in the ice chest, we reviewed our final exams together.  There were great discussions as many of the questions were situational and responses to the situations are fluid and change with every person.  Amusingly Derek uses student and instructor names in the questions, which caused a fair amount of amusement.  Happily we all passed!  After we wrapped up our discussions we were free to do what we pleased, as long as our gear was packed up.  In the evening we students headed into town to celebrate our successful course completion.  

Delicious Albanian celebratory wine.

 We had a fancy dinner at one of the nicer restaurants , we sat on the open air top story patio and drank in the view along with the amazing food and delicious wine we had a celebratory shot for dessert and moved to our next location.   We choose a bar on the waterfront for our next spot, choosing an outdoor table with a view of the boardwalk for good people watching.  We chatted and relaxed, enjoying one of our last evenings together.  Intent on making a night of it we wandered in the direction of home keeping an eye out for an enticing bar.  Upon reaching the intersection at the end of the boardwalk we decided to head to Club Africa down the road that we had chatted about but never investigated.  Down the road a ways a sign pointed down an ill-lit driveway but we persevered and found a large modern night club at the bottom, two stories, full of lighting, lasers, couches and loud music.  It was all we hoped or, except that we shared it with only one other table.  Not easily dissuaded we made ourselves at home, Effie and Cameron taught the bartender about lemon drops, and I think they were instant heroes.   Folks went to check out the beach at one point and when I came downstairs a group of Albanian guys invited me to their outdoor table to await the return of the others.  We started chatting and got along great, they live in the US 9 months a year and return to Albania in the summers to run the bar. 

Walking the boardwalk, hatching plans.

When everyone else returned I decided to stay and hang out, Effie made sure I was safe and would check in when I returned home, and everyone else headed home.  I stayed another hour or so chatting and was able to get some questions answered that I had been unable to articulate with language barriers so far.  Military service is not required in Albania, though it was up until two years ago but apparently very few men actually did it and the requirement was abolished.  Homosexuality is legal but hush hush, they said it isn’t something people advertise and everyone lives and lets live though the attitudes are changing and people are becoming more accepting as time passes.  Eventually I was yawning more than chatting and made my goodbyes.  The guys insisted it was late and that it was safer if one of them gave me a ride back to Quirjakos after they found out how far it was (about a mile) so I hoped in Elton’s pretty blue Mercedes.  He laughed and said I was for sure an American when I put on my seat belt, that I was the first person to use it since he had come back for the summer.  He quite politely dropped me off at home and headed off into the night.  After assuring Effie that I had returned safely I promptly fell into a deep sleep.

This artistic expression was in an empty bar, it made us pause.

Day 17 Flying over the deep aka the blue water rig

Lee acts as the surface while Derek explains how the rig works.

Our last day of diving together has arrived too quickly!  As always breakfast on the patio with the rest of the gang at Quirjakos was delicious, the coffee was strong and the jokes were silly. Our morning meeting was short and sweet before we headed down to the base for a hands-on demonstration.  Today we got to dive by boat in order to experience the blue water rig. 

Everyone on the boat lent a hand when it came to our technical delay resolution.

We had a good time watching Lee act as the surface holding the float above her head from which the blue water rig is suspended.  It allows divers to clip into lines and extend out to preset distances at a set depth.A safety diver stays at the rig and everyone can focus on their work without visual reference. Today we are going to write essays.  The blue water rig works well over extreme depth hence its name.  As we learned later is a wonderful tool of science, and fun.  Fun science is the best science.  We stayed on track and were packed up and ready when the boat that Howard had chartered arrived.  The Eda is a beautiful small(ish), maybe 25 foot, wooden boat with a cheerful captain and a hold just big enough for him.  We loaded up and headed out to Saranda Harbor.   After a brief technical delay (knot) we got started and the dive went flawlessly.  It was incredibly calming to float in the quiet above the abyss (or over 100 feet).

Lee and Dave switch out safety diver responsibility.

The entire team worker really well together to use the blue water rig especially when switching out safety divers. Overall it took about 45 minutes and we drifted about a mile.  After we returned to the boat we had a nice relaxing return trip in the sun back to the harbor.   Since it was the last day in the field we rinsed and hung everything, tidied up our areas and headed home to work on the final exam. We plugged away until it was time to get ready to go to our fancy dinner.  Everyone tidied up nicely and we headed out in our cabs to Kalaja  Leukaresit aka the castle.  Timing was perfect at to arrive at this amazing modern castle on top of the hill above Saranda.  The sun was just starting to set and the light was inspiring. 

Dave adds the finishing touches to his essay.

We wandered around until our table was ready and took in the continuous breath taking view.  Our meal was delicious and enjoyed as the sun set behind us.  No diving tomorrow means wine was enjoyed by some.  Laughs and stories came easily and having everyone together for one last delicious meal together was fantastic. We stayed and chatted until it was dark, returning home tired and cheerful.  Tomorrow we finish our final tests and I retry my swim skills I didn’t pass initially.

Last official night as the group.

View from the castle of Saranda's main bay.

Day 16 Math at 90 feet

Today was, as always, incredibly informative and a really exciting learning environment.   After breakfast and coffee the morning meeting concentrated on deeper diving and considerations of diving to these depths.  We focused in on some of these challenges and put ourselves to the test. We were going to do some math problems that we hadn’t previously seen while multitasking with our time, PSI and depth recording at set intervals. After the dive briefing we analyzed our cylinders, adjusted computers as necessary, geared and partnered up.  We rotate partners and today Dave and I were buddies today.  We headed out to a new site that would hopefully provide some deeper shoreline diving.  We were not disappointed in fact it was one of the most exciting things we’ve seen yet!  We found some amphora! Albania and especially the coastline goes back to very early human history and has passed between multiple foreign countries rule for a lot of their more recent history.  The land is very rich historically. However many small things, such as amphora, have been removed and sold or lost to time.   It was exciting to go below free diving depth and find some still where they landed so very long ago.  I sketched their shape and what details I could on my slate so maybe a time frame could be established later. Sketching is challenging enough for me but underwater mine looks childish.  Even though we were excited we had to keep our minds on our tasks.  Our slates allow you to slide underwater paper in and out and our math problems were on the back of the paper placed in ours.  After we reached the appropriate depth we got neutrally buoyant and flipped over our papers and started working through the math problems.  I got a bit distracted and Dave at one point was kind enough to point out I was causing some siltation.  Oops.  Multitasking does get more challenging at depth, between math and recording depth, PSI, and time at the appropriate intervals I wasn’t paying enough attention to my positioning.  After we completed our problems Dave and I were free to explore and make an appropriate ascent to the float we left on the surface.  We had a good time looking around in a new environment while making a slow ascent.  Though sadly we left the amphora behind.  We did however see new life here, including new types of fish that we have not observed before.  After an appropriate ascent we surfaced at the float, the team eventually all reassembled and we headed back to base. After rising and hanging gear we headed home to eat and prepare the afternoons lesson.  Part of the training is oceanography and it was determined that we the students would prepare a fun lesson for the staff.  Upon their arrival Derek, Chris, and Lee learned that they would be competing in 'Oceanography Jeopardy'.  Good times and many laughs were shared by all.  After the game wrapped up, everyone smarter for it I’m sure, we got to relax for a while before dinner.  A leisurely evening was had from a relaxed dinner to boardwalk strolling and gelato in the warm evening air. It is hard to believe that tomorrow is our last day of diving.  The time has passed so quickly here.Today was also mostly picture free, my camera cannot go below 60 feet so it got left at home.

Effie enjoys gelato and an evening stroll.