Issue #73
Last Update May 10, 2013
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Travel West Balkans by Peter H. Salus October 15, 2010 When Rebecca West and her husband arrived in Zagreb by train in 1936, they were greeted in the pouring rain by three friends. When I arrived in Tirana airport in bright sunshine, I was greeted by a young woman in a yellow t-shirt reading “University of Vlora,” who asked my name, examined her notes and informed me that I wasn't in her group. Where to go and what to do were were open – negativity ruled and as I wasn't her responsibility I didn't exist.
She deigned to point at a grizzled man smoking directly beneath a large “No Smoking” sign and told me that he was my driver. He gloomily informed me in fragmentary English that we were awaiting “more.” I purchased a bottle of mineral water, sat down, and watched others. About an hour later two large Europeans arrived. They were also rejected by the young woman in yellow so I assumed they were part of “my” conference. I introduced myself. They were Dutch. We sat together to drink more bottled water. The driver was still smoking. An Alitalia flight arrived. No one who looked like one of the usual suspects went past. One of the Dutch guys had enough. He went to the driver, pointed at his wristwatch and said “Let's go.” The driver indicated that we should follow him, located the small van and we embarked. I have no notion of who the non-arrivals were.
It was my first lesson in Albanian time. “In ten minutes” means in an hour; “soon” means today. “Immediately” doesn't exist.
I was on my way to Vlora on the Ionian Sea, in the south of Albania.
Welcome to the third world.
HISTORY
I spent the next 16 days in Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo – most of “Greater Albania,” an ethno/linguistic fantasy conceived by the League of Prizren in 1868. [Bismarck later proclaimed that an Albanian nation did not exist.] After the first Balkan War (1912-13), the north of Greater Albania became a part of Montenegro. The south-west was swallowed by Greece and Kosovo by Serbia. After World War I the Ottoman Turks were expelled. Most of the area is still Moslem. Thanks to Mussolini, Hitler, and Tito's successors, the area has seen little peace for nearly a century. In general, the countries remain backward and impoverished.
ROADS and GETTING ABOUT
By and large, roads are poorly marked and more-poorly maintained. In Albania most “highways” are unpaved and ungraded. Where there is pavement, it is for five to ten kilometers at a time, terminating in and abrupt drop from the edge of the concrete to the dirt. Compensating for this is the fact that there are few signs. As some are misleading, this may not be a loss. Even in Tirana (Albania's capital) there are few street signs. Luckily most people under 25 have at least some English. They are very friendly and happy to tell you which route to follow – even if they do not know it.
Macedonia is different: it has road signs. Most roads are paved. In Ohrid, a beautiful tourist town on the eastern shore of Lake Ohrid, there are informative signs in both Roman and Cyrillic directing you to points of interest. In Skopje, Macedonia's capital, street signs are sparse. My tourist map was both unhelpful and (I found) inaccurate. People are friendly and attempt to be helpful.
Prishtina, Kosovo's capital, is different, too. The main streets are “Bill Clinton” and “Mother Teresa.” Bill waves at you frequently from billboards. The Hotel Victory is topped by a gigantic statue of Liberty. The UN rolled in a decade ago to make peace and bring prosperous democracy to a beleaguered territory. The UN/NATO presence is visible; peace, perhaps; prosperity, unlikely. Unemployment sticks at 53%. Many farms in the countryside lie fallow – for the most part, I was told, because the courts (after 10 years!) haven't determined ownership of properties – There are 30,000 cases pending in Kosovo's courts. Traffic runs the gamut from chaotic to horrendous. Happily taxis are cheap.
I spoke (inter alia) at the University of Business and Information Technology in Prishtina. When I asked where it was, I was told: “Near the bus terminal.” I then learned that no municipal bus goes to the long-distance terminal. Happily (I repeat) taxis are cheap.
FOOD
If you are a vegetarian, you will not be happy in the Balkans; if you are a vegan, stay away. Along the Albanian coast, fish and seafood are the thing. Unfortunately, after the sixth meal (three lunches and three dinners) comprised of octopus, squid, shrimp, and fish grilled or fried in olive oil plus mussels in their shells, I was “fished out.” The alternatives were pizza, pasta and risotto. I tried the pizza in Tirana. It was boring and spice-less. When I asked about pepper, I was presented with a shaker of ground black pepper. Fish also dominates on both the Albanian and the Macedonian sides of Lake Ohrid. Inland, the Balkan diet is largely grilled meat and olives. In Elbasan, Albania, a town of just under 100,000 occupied in turn by Serbs, Bulgarians, Austrians, and Italians between 1915 and 1918, we had a wonderful meal of grilled lamb, grilled goat and fried potatoes … with a plate of olives. Fruit consists of small tart apples, grapes and sliced melons (watermelon and honeydew-like).
As near as I could tell, the typical Balkan breakfast is a half glass of raki (a non-anise flavored drink like grappa or tsipouro) and a macchiato (a latte). An expresso cost a euro or less. A bottle of mineral water runs about 50 cents. Dinner for two in the “best” restaurant in Prishtina will come to 30 euros for two. It consisted of finger food, olives, an enormous veal chop, a chicken breast a grilled sausage, a tablespoon of braised cabbage, and four kinds of bread. Melon for dessert.
PEOPLE
50% of the population in Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia is under 25. If they're not in school or university, they're unemployed. But they are friendly. And many of the young women are quite lovely. In Skopje and in Prishtina, t-shirts are the fashion. Preferably with glitz and/or a legend (in English) blazoned across the front. My friend Rob referred to this as the “Paris Hilton effect.” Rob and I were in a cafe when a buxom teenager proclaiming: “Sex Kitten. Try me” strolled past. In Prishtina we spotted a young mother of three wearing: “Take me as a gift.” “Sexy Baby” was common everywhere. But the legends are not meaningful.
While there appears to be little violent crime, smuggling and bribery are a way of life. “Extra” or “supplementary” fees are ubiquitous. Driving into Macedonia a group of us were confronted by a 10 euro “fee.” In a part of the world where the Gross National Income is $4140 (Macedonia), $3840 (Albania) and $3240 (Kosovo) there's little surprise here. (The 2009 GNI in the US was about $45000.)
DEPARTURE
What does one learn from an airport? In Tirana the signs are uninformative, the floor is littered. The airport in Prishtina is tiny. Signs are, at best, semi-visible. The (prominent) digital clock displays the wrong time. The toilets (M and F) lurk in a fetid cave. There is no toilet paper. (A Macedonian told me that only “upper-class” facilities have toilet seats.)
I got on line with my ticket, my seat reservation and my passport. A young woman told me that I had to speak to her colleague and gestured towards another counter. I towed my wheelie over and presented my documents to him. He entered my ID number and informed me that my reservation and seat were in order, but I hadn't paid the departure fee. “How much?” “20 euro. But you must pay in cash.” I did. He marked my ticket and directed me back to the young woman. “Don't get back in line,” he said. “She will take care of you.” She did, wishing me a pleasant flight. I wondered what her cut was.
A few hours later I was in Vienna.
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