Day 23: From Skhodra to Durres (136 km, 290 vm)

It is so nice to wake up in a hotel and go to a breakfast buffet. With coffee and real breakfast, not the cold toast that I usually buy the night before and to makeshift my improvised breakfast. I left the hotel at around 7:30 to start my ride for today. I had fixed a little Albanien flag to the side of my back luggage. I thought this would buy me some extra 5 centimetres when cars pass me and it might get me some extra Albanian bonus when people see it.

From Skhodra there is a road next to the me main road heading south which I took. Since it was all flat and there was no wind I made quite quick progress. The first 45 kilometres went quite quick. At some point I took a wrong turn and went on another side road. I don’t know if you can call it a road. It had more potholes than gravel or tarmac. Chicken and goats on the road. It was quite impressive to see how quickly the standard of infrastructure changes once you get of a bigger road.

When I got to Lezha I decided to go through the town rather than around. Traffic in this town and in fact all the other bigger towns I went through after felt a bit like in Africa. Cars were all over the place, I had bikers coming towards me on my side of the road and intersections were a real challenge. The towns themselves mostly were dominated by concrete buildings from the 50ies and 60ies. On the side walk women were hawking fruits or drapery. It really had a touch of Africa.

After Lehze I had to make some kilometres on the main road. The traffic was not too bad but I know that at Milot the road will turn into a Highway and I would have to take another side road. Once I got to Milot after a about 65 kilometres I took a break at a gas station. I ordered a coke and asked some local guys who were stitting at a table outside if I could join them. This was probably the highlight of my day today. They were interested in my trip and shortly after I sat down with them more and more came. The 4 people turned into 15. They bought me another coke and said that I cannot refuse and that it is part of Albanian hospitality. Michael, one of the guys who spoke English very well, told me about the struggles of people here. Many are unemployed and there is hardly and change to find a job. Nevertheless there were more giving and hospitable than most people you would find in central Europe. Thanks Michael and all the other guys for a great one hour break. I really enjoyed it.

Cycling on from Milot showed me once more the two faces of Albania. On the one hand I just saw very expensive cars on the main road. Here in the back land you find empty houses and ruins of old factories. Then again you get close to the high way and you find fancy and kitschy newly build hotels in the most artificial classicistic way.

When I arrived in Fushe, another bigger city I took a break there. I had another coke. I had done 95 kilometres now and was getting hungry. Since I snuck out a sandwich from the breakfast buffet this morning I cycled on a bit and enjoyed it somewhere outside the city. After this lunch I felt tired. Cycling was getting more exhausting as well. Even though most of the day was very flat terrain, cycling in the very different environment always kept me a bit nervous. And I guess when you are a bit more high strung you just cycle that bit faster than you usually would.

Since I was getting closer to Tirana and Durres the traffic picked up, too. When I got to Vora I took another short coffee break. I took the side road next to the high way to Durres. The road was so bad that often I was going fast than the cars that had more difficulties manoeuvring through the large wholes in the road. Having finally arrive in Durres I was mentally absolutely exhausted. I had already done 132 kilometres so I needed to find a place to stay. And yes, I knew this would be a hotel again. I am upscaling this trip by the day.

I found a hotel right by the beach, exactly what I needed now. The ride to the hotel was another 4 kilometres along quite some busy roads. Shortly before I arrived I met a girl from Austria who was travelling with her bike from Athens back home. We talked a bit, exchanged experiences, with roads, but especially with dogs. When you research biking in the Balkans you are often warned about the street dogs in Albania. Funnily we both had a different experience. I found the dogs in Bosnia quite aggressive. Here in Albania I saw so many street dogs but they never cared about me cycling by. Most of them were scared. She made the same experience. She told me about the dogs in Greece. Great. I thought I had that chapter checked once I left Albania, but I guess dogs stay a topic.

Arriving at the hotel and beach front felt like stepping out of a time machine. Along the long sand beach there are endless amounts of 70ies concrete buildings. They are not run down but also not maintained in a way that you would see them in the 21st century. Having a swim and looking at that beach front made me feel like I was in the 70ies or 80ies. Kinda cool.

So, tomorrow. Definitely a rest day. The last 3 days were physically quite exhausting but today took quite something out of me mentally. Also there are worse places to rest at than a sunny and sandy beach.