Albania to Montenegro—with riding Vlog (video)

It’s with regret and sadness that my time in Albania nears the end. From Sarande to Tirana the history, people, food, and wine excelled and beyond expectations. Only the thrill of discovery, something new helps to cure the sadness of long goodbyes. So it’s the open arms and welcome of Montenegro and the promises of connecting with my Albanian friends in the future that give me the energy and drive me to travel.

Even filling up “Doc” with petrol is a fun experience in Albania.

Before crossing the border into Montenegro, I stay one more night in Shkodra another ancient city built around a castle—the Rozafa Fortress. I tuck in at a little hotel that surrounds a cozy courtyard with a restaurant. It’s where I sort out my plans for Montenegro and beyond and enjoy my last Albanian meal, Mish Cereme me Kerpudha te Egra, a traditional dish of beef and wild mushrooms oven roasted in a clay pot and served bubbling over hot coals. It’s here at Hotel Tradita that I have my last glass of Albanian wine for some time, I’m sure.

The lovely Hotel Tradita has the right idea

Cheese plate at Hotel Tradita in Skoder.

You might think this little shack is “shit” and wonder why someone tagged it as such. The first time I saw this “SHITET” it was crudely spray-painted on an old beater car that did look like a piece of “sh•t” — but alas, this means “For Sale” and in some cases, like this shack and that car, probably have been for sale for years.

The ride to the border winds around Lake Shkodra which Albania shares with Montenegro. It’s hot, and the middle of the day when I arrive to a long line of cars, all heading the same way. I meet several motorcyclists, a couple from the Czech Republic, guys from Slovenia, Australia, and Italy. All of us shed our riding gear and push our bikes toward the border officials after each car ahead of us clears. It’s slow, humid, and the brutal sun bakes our bikes and faces.

A couple from the Czech Republic wait with me at the border of Montenegro from Albania

It’s hot and a long wait getting into Montenegro.

I now close this last post from Albania with a short video blog or VLOG including commentary as I rode Albania from border to border of Greece to Albania and now to Montenegro.