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Sent from Ljubljana, Slovenia on Aug 30, 2005 

Tirane, Durres (Albania), via Adriatic to Ancona, Venice,
Trieste. Hi from Italy. + Train Platforms, Rivers crossed.

1. Albania.  As things are described in Lonely Planet, you
can see this and that.  Yes, if someone drops you in Tirana
or coastal Durres by a parachute, you might want to see one
or 2 places while there.  The problem is most of your time
will go to finding out ways of getting out of there.  In
Tirana, the only reasonably attractive place around the
American Embassy.  The rest is the Balkan version of a
Wild-West.  Dont expect to get a ferry ticket to anywhere
in Italy in August.  All Albanians who work, or have moved
to Italy are in town on a visit and now returning.  On Aug.
28, I was told there are no tickets to anywhere in Italy
until Sep. 4.  I got a ticket (85 plus 6 tax = 91 Euros) to
Ancona by paying 20 Euro bribe to an agent, not trusting
that the ticket would be good until I got into the ferry. 
Not many people speak English in Albania, though again
there is hope with the young generation.

a) Tirane.  Not having slept for 2 days, I fell asleep on
the bus from Greece to Tirane.  (By the way, the bus from
Athens takes some 16 hours to reach Tirane, which bus you
can also catch in Northern Greece in Ioannina, cutting the
trip by half.)  When we arrived at Albanian border, people
on the bus got out to get their exit stamps from Greece,
entry stamps for Albania, leaving me asleep.  I woke up to
find myself in Albania WITHOUT an entry stamp.  OK so I
stopped the bus when we reached the airport in Tirane, some
30km distant from the city.  They found a local who took me
to the airport in his car for $10.  There the passport
control people told me they could not stamp my passport,
for they were given a list of arrivals by plane, and they
were authorized to stamp only the passports of those
people, that I should go to the American Embassy.  So I
paid 20E for a taxi to take me there, thru a terrible
traffic jam.  This being a Friday, the consular section was
closed after 1pm.  So there was nothing I could do, and
somehow I had to find a way of getting out.

b) Durres, Albania.  The entry stamp was the main reason
why I did not take the bus to Kosovo, for then I could be
stuck at a remote border post in Albania, probably not
allowed to pass into Serbia anyway--more about this below. 
So since I had my city tour already by taxi, and since
there was not much to see in the city, I took a bus for
Durres on the Adriatic, the Albanian gateway for ferries to
Italy, only about a 45-min ride from Tirane.

The bus arrived right at the port, which looked like a zoo,
with dozens of agencies and eateries covering acres of
land.  The 1st 5 agents told me that no tickets were
available on any ship to Italy until Sep. 4, a week in this
dump.  I contemplated taking the 5am bus back to Athens
next morn, then the train to Patras, a ferry to Corfu, and
then reach Ancona by a ferry from Corfu, costing me 2 days
and repeat of an already-done path.  I came to BAR
BALKKONI, a nice small bar in a new building facing the
commotion at the waterfront.  I told the owner my dilemma. 
The 1st agent he took me REALLY did not have any tickets
left.  We came back and there appeared an agent named
EDUARD.  At 4pm he told me for 20E he would get me my
ticket to Ancona, that he would come back at 6pm--the ferry
sailing at 10pm.  Indeed he came with a ticket at 6:30pm, I
paid him 110E.  But until I was allowed to board the ship,
I kept wondering if the ticket was bogus.

As for getting out of Albania without an entry stamp, at
the pass control, the officer checked my passport
page-by-page looking for the entry stamp, including 3 sets
of 24 additional pages added by then.  I acted as if all
was OK.  He asked me where is the entry stamp?  I replied
soberly I dont know, I did not put the stamp myself.  He
asked me where I entered Albania.  I replied I have no
idea; I came by bus from Greece and showed him the bus
ticket.  He searched the passport again page-by-page,
shrugged his shoulders and put the exit stamp.  I got out,
and into the ship.

c) On the ship. It was OK, I found a seat with a broken
backrest leaning all the way back to the seat behind it,
giving me a bed-size place to sleep, using my small
backpack as a pillow.  A few people tried to take away the
seat from me, saying this was their numbered seat.  I told
the steward that since my seat 441 did not exist--true--I
was told by another steward to take any seat, period.  I
slept for 6 hours, then moved away to investigate the ship,
this being a 20-hour ride.  I should reemphasize that
August is the worst month to be in Albania, especially if
you want to continue by a ferry to Italy.  However, if you
insist, and you are stuck without a ticket, go find the
Balkkoni Bar I mentioned and ask for Eduard.


2. Way to Kosovo.  As I mentioned in my earlier report,
Macedonia is the gateway to Kosovo, as told to me by an
Austrian documentary movie maker who had just arrived from
Kosovo, whom I met at the train station in Chisinau. He
added that:  1) that there are signs all over saying things
like "Thank you America," or "Thank you Bill Clinton" for
saving their lives and giving them their piece of land.  2)
Kosovo and Montenegro, like Transdniestr and Moldova, are
derelict provinces of Serbia.  Both want
independence.  3) When you enter Kosovo, you cannot
continue to Serbia, for at the border you get an unofficial
stamped paper attached to the passport, as I did when I
entered Transdniestr, not an official entry stamp to
Serbia.  So when you want to continue into Serbia proper,
the border officials stop and ask you how and by which
means you entered Serbia, since Serbia views Kosovo as its
province and you dont have a proper entry stamp.  (The
border officials in Kosovo do take away the paper they
inserted into the passport upon exit.)  Therefore, he
suggested that if I did go to Kosovo, I should exit back to
Macedonia and enter Serbia from another entry point.  4) Of
the 2 major cities in Kosovo, the old capital PRISREN, I
was told, is nicer than the new capital PRISTINA.  Albeit,
since I did not have an entry stamp into Albania, and since
the trip from Albania to Kosovo is much more arduous, I
skipped Kosovo for now.  (More later as to how I entered
this part of Serbia.)

a) KOSOVO Addendum.  If you insist on going to Kosovo, do it
from Macedonia, NOT Albania.  It is a much shorter trip
from the former, about 8 hours of a grinding trip via
Albania, long also because the roads are bad, the bus
driver I asked told me.  (In fact, he asked me why I would
want to go to Kosovo, when there is nothing there, things
worse than in Albania, when they are bad enough in Albania.
 I did not have an answer for him.  As for CETINJE or
ULSINJ, Montenegro, he said the same, though that trip
would be ONLY 5 hours on bad roads.)  I am a world traveler
and so I travel the world, but even I must sometimes
contemplate the question, Is it Worth It?  I will try these
places again later, possibly from Serbia.


3.  Ancona, Italy I did NOT like.  Upon arrival, again
there is no sign to the train station.  With so many people
arriving--the ship was fully booked--no taxis available.  I
asked someone.  1km to the right, along the street on the
waterfront, with only a few people around.  Make that 2, if
you dont get lost. A sign after 1km says STACIONE to the
right.  So I went right into desolate parts of the city
with no-one in sight.  After 500m of this I turned around
and continued on the same main road and found the station. 
The other road may have been either a bad joke or for cars.
 I wanted to continue with the next train to RIMINI, the
gateway to SAN MARINO.  No ticket counters open, you must
get your ticket electronically from a machine.  While I
stood there bewildered, someone helped me to a ticket, for
7.90 Euros, departure at 10.30pm, in Rimini at midnight.


4. Rimini.  Exit the station, turn right and walk about 50
meters to the first hotel across the street.  It charges
40E.  I went to the next (better) one and paid 57E.  The
bus to San Marino is nearby, with return 6.80E.  Walk back
to the station on the hotel side, until you see parallel to
the road a large blue sign that says ROMA, San Marino, just
before you cross the street to the train station.  The bus
stops in front of the sign.  The times are posted on the
sign, or get them at the hotel.  I took the 10.45am bus.


5. San Marino.  Should be seen.  It is the oldest republic.
The town is situated on top of a 600m mountain, the highest
in the area, with fantastic views of the surrounding
landscape.  And there are nice steep narrow streets goind
to the castle, etc.  I spent there 2 hours and returned to
Rimini to catch a train to Venice, via Bologna.

NOTE.  Get your ticket to Venice to the Santa Lucia
station, NOT to MERCR that is 3km away.  Trains are not
expensive in Italy, BUT there is the cumbersome requirement
that after you get your ticket and board, you first
validate the ticket by inserting it into a yellow little
machine that is before the boarding gates.  Look for them,
or ask someone.


6. Venice.  Is a phenomenon, not just a city.  It should be
 experienced at least once, something like the Hajj for
Muslims.  At the Info desk upon arrival, I asked for a
cheap hotel near SAN MARCO Square.  I arrived to the
boat-bus stop No.1--in front of you to the right at exit
from the train station--got my ticket for 5E, and 25
minutes later arrived at the bus stop near the hotel, which
I found via winding streets.  A simple room with no bath
cost me 40E per night.  I stayed 2 nights.


7. Trieste.  I came here mainly as my gateway to the
remaining 4 Balkan countries, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, and
Slovenia.  3 Italian backpackers I met told me there is a
bus from Trieste to Sarajevo.  So I was going to do Bosnia
first, move up to Serbia, do Belgrade and Novi Sad next,
move up to Zagreb then Ljubljana next and then head for
Austria for my Danube cruise from Linz.

However, there NO direct buses from Trieste to Sarajevo,
possibly NO direct connection between Sarajevo and
Belgrade.  So I changed plans as explained at the start and
came to Slovenia first.


ADDITIONAL TOPICS

a) Train Platforms.  I dont know who pays attention to such
detail, but here is one.  Platforms or tracks that are
parallel to the station are the most cumbersome, for if you
want to depart say from Platform 3, or arrive at 3, since
you cannot cross the tracks, you will have to pass via an
over or underpass, which means walking up or down 20 steps
first, then coming down or up 20 more steps.  (In
Sevastopol you climb and overpass by walking up 50 steps,
then down 50 steps on the other side.  Most people are
forced to do this while carrying lots of luggage.) In
contrast, platforms that are perpendicular to the station,
as in Bucharest and Venice, are convenient because no steps
are involved walking to your platform or arriving at one. 
You just walk towards the station.

b) Islands in the Sea.  All islands are beautiful in some
way, and there are almost infinite numbers of them.  Here
is my suggestion as to the best selection.  I would vote
CAPRI as the most beautiful in the Mediterranean, with
winding steep streets, heavenly views, sheer cliff sides, a
grotto too.  If you want a city within the walls of an
ancient castle, head for RHODES.  (The fort cities in
Rajhistan, India may be even more impressive.) You will
find an idyllic little cove at GIRNE in Northern Cyprus. 
For gorgeous rice terraces and all-around tropical views
head for BALI.  For mile-per-mile the most beautiful
landscape, varying from sounds to glaciers to jungles to
beaches to meadows, go to SOUTH Island of NEW ZEALAND.  The
most gorgeous island setting in a Polynesian setting in
South Pacific is TAHITI, while the HAWAIIAN islands do
match it--and some--in North Pacific.  Honorable mention
goes to the CANARY Islands in the Atlantic and TORTOLLA of
British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean.

c) Rivers crossed on this trip. DNIEPER, crossed twice,
once from Kiev to Crimea, 2nd from Crimea to Odessa.
DNIESTER, is the river that serves as the border between
Moldova and the self-declared Republic of Transdienstr,
whereas the MOUTH of the Danube is in North-eastern
Romania, very close to the border to Ukraine.

d) Bus Travel. Is much superior in Turkey (also Mexico) to
the ones including Greece and Italy.  The stations, the big
ones with 100+ gates, are oval in shape, enclosed with all
sorts of shops in the middle, agents for the various bus
lines are around the hub.  Regardless how you enter the
station, someone will grab you and ask where you want to go
and direct you to the correct counter, with almost no lines
to wait.  And the buses are the latest Volvo, Mercedes,
etc.  But travel in Turkey is expensive, about the same as
in Mexico.

e) Cities.  I did NOT find Minsk, Yalta, Chisinau,
Bucharest, Sofia, Skopje, Tirane, Ancona, Zagreb
particularly attractive.  If you are keen on churches, etc.
you can find one to admire, I suppose, but you can find
better ones elsewhere.  Actually Sarajevo and Belgrade are
also NOT attractive.  OK, the Turkish Quarter in the
former, called Ba(sh)(ch)ar(sh)ica, adds color and spunk,
and the citadel, the confluence of the Danube and Sava are
nice in Belgrade, as also some of the pedestrian streets,
but again, once seen I dont see a reason to go back to
them.  By the way, continuous cleaning and sweeping of
public places is the norm nowadays.. Belgrade train station
is not up to par however.

More later.

Sirman