06.26.25
I have written it in prior blogs, as have many others, but there is a greater selection of coffee shops and restaurants in Tirana than you could ever visit. I think you could eat out three times a day for a year, and not even make a dent, and by the time you rolled into a new year, some of them would be gone, and others would replace them. Double that for coffee shops! The energy in this town is palatable, and by 0700 the streets are alive–especially the coffee shops! The Albanian coffee culture makes Croatia look like a ghost town. It’s a live, in-person, chat room; old guys chatting and playing cards; business people meeting, younger friends of all ages– they all connect at the coffee shops. I wrote an article for the Croatian newspaper about the coffee culture in Croatia, but Albania is much more prolific.
We’ve had our share of Albanian food, but also found a kick ass Mexican place, Jalapenos, started by an Puerto Rican- American. He and I had a great talk about the food scene in Albania, and he concluded that food in Albania is divided amongst six categories: pizza, Italian, Greek food (souvlakis), hamburgers, traditional Albanian, and fish/ seafood. And that’s true. I’ve seen a few Asian places, but otherwise, pizza, Greek, and traditional Albanian rule.
What I HAVE had a hard time with, has been finding an affordable gym. There are no chain clubs here, so they are all independently owned. The cheapest one I found was around $40 a month, and the most expensive just under $130 a month. Crickey! A gym is a must have, not an option, so I’m biting the bullet on one of them… And I found two motorcycle shops where I can rent a bike for a (relatively) reasonable price, so I’ll be checking out about eight other towns shortly. Albania has SO much to offer!
The night scene is significant, and people are out everywhere. Parents push their baby strollers along the streets, along with old folks, young ones, and everyone in between. People are everywhere, but few places are crowded. The other night I walked home at 10:00 and didn’t give it a moments concern. I would not feel as comfortable in Orange County, California, my old home.
And we got a jolt a few days ago: a 4.2 earthquake! After living in California for 40 years, I knew exactly what it was, but it was unexpected. Upon more research, I found out that the Balkan region is quite heavy with earthquake faults! Who knew? Just one more fun aspect of being a nomad
