I left my hotel just after 6:15am & grabbed a coffee before catching the local bus to Butrint (100 lek) at 7am. It was a nice journey passing Lake Butrint & going through the village of Ksamil, (the construction of the road is obviously still in progress).
After arriving (approx 7:45am) I decided to cross the Vivari channel with the aid of the local cable ferry which only took a couple of minutes. Once on the other side I walked towards the fortress & took some photographs of the surrounding area. After about an hour I returned to cross back over the Vivari Channel & paid the 700 lek to enter Butrint National Park & spent a couple of hours walking around the ancient site.
Before the 10:30am bus back to Saranda I had time to grab something to eat at the Livia Hotel. Because it was still early they did not seem to have much on offer so I settled for a ham & cheese toasty & bottle of water (220 lek). The waiter was very friendly & spoke good English.
On the way back to Saranda I jumped off at Ksamil (50 lek) & decided to walk around for a while. There are some lovely little sandy beaches tucked away with clear blue seas, but unfortunately you still have to bypass all the building sites!
I caught the bus back to Saranda at 12:40pm, (80 lek). Whilst I waited for the bus I had a coffee at a nearby café just behind the 'bus stop/ice-cream hut' where a lovely old lady works.
When I arrived back at Saranda I decided to walk westwards out of town to explore a little more. I popped into an internet café for an hour; it was typically smokey & noisy! I later returned to my favourite restaurant - 'Taverna Leo' & ordered salad & feta cheese saganaki (which also came with fried bread with herbs), washed down with a local beer & a shot of raki (distilled from grape juice). Raki is the national drink of Albania, but unfortunately I could not drink it, it was far too strong for me! I will try mulberry raki in Gjirokastra (which is where I am heading in the morning), as it is supposed to be really good. Towards the end of my meal the waitress presented me with another beer & told me it was courtesy of the owner! I thanked him. That's two free beers in two nights, that's great Albanian hospitality for you!
In the evening I decided to check out the restaurant at my hotel & ordered a coffee. I discovered it had a very large projector screen to display all the European Cup matches! The lady owner was really friendly (& spoke very good English). She used to live in Athens for 10 years & so spoke Greek too. I asked her about catching the bus tomorrow for Gjirokastra. She informed me the first bus leaves at 5am & the second at 7:30am. 7:30am it is then!
I watched the first half of the Greek v Russia match before heading back to my room for an early night.
After arriving (approx 7:45am) I decided to cross the Vivari channel with the aid of the local cable ferry which only took a couple of minutes. Once on the other side I walked towards the fortress & took some photographs of the surrounding area. After about an hour I returned to cross back over the Vivari Channel & paid the 700 lek to enter Butrint National Park & spent a couple of hours walking around the ancient site.
The cable ferry to take me across the Vivari Channel in Butrint
The Vivari Channel which flows into Lake Butrint
Bee hives on the banks of the Vivari Channel
A fisherman on the banks of the Vivari Channel
Butrint
Before the 10:30am bus back to Saranda I had time to grab something to eat at the Livia Hotel. Because it was still early they did not seem to have much on offer so I settled for a ham & cheese toasty & bottle of water (220 lek). The waiter was very friendly & spoke good English.
On the way back to Saranda I jumped off at Ksamil (50 lek) & decided to walk around for a while. There are some lovely little sandy beaches tucked away with clear blue seas, but unfortunately you still have to bypass all the building sites!
The beach in Ksamil
I caught the bus back to Saranda at 12:40pm, (80 lek). Whilst I waited for the bus I had a coffee at a nearby café just behind the 'bus stop/ice-cream hut' where a lovely old lady works.
When I arrived back at Saranda I decided to walk westwards out of town to explore a little more. I popped into an internet café for an hour; it was typically smokey & noisy! I later returned to my favourite restaurant - 'Taverna Leo' & ordered salad & feta cheese saganaki (which also came with fried bread with herbs), washed down with a local beer & a shot of raki (distilled from grape juice). Raki is the national drink of Albania, but unfortunately I could not drink it, it was far too strong for me! I will try mulberry raki in Gjirokastra (which is where I am heading in the morning), as it is supposed to be really good. Towards the end of my meal the waitress presented me with another beer & told me it was courtesy of the owner! I thanked him. That's two free beers in two nights, that's great Albanian hospitality for you!
Great food at 'Taverna Leo'
The harbour in Saranda
In the evening I decided to check out the restaurant at my hotel & ordered a coffee. I discovered it had a very large projector screen to display all the European Cup matches! The lady owner was really friendly (& spoke very good English). She used to live in Athens for 10 years & so spoke Greek too. I asked her about catching the bus tomorrow for Gjirokastra. She informed me the first bus leaves at 5am & the second at 7:30am. 7:30am it is then!
I watched the first half of the Greek v Russia match before heading back to my room for an early night.
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