Uphill

After a nice and warm day cycling to Bar we went up a hill towards a church where we planned to ask for a place to put our tents. There was no one there but we asked a nice man living beside the church and he let us camp in his yard. That night it rained but I had a great night sleep and before we left we were invited for coffee and some cake. And for the first time I had rakija before breakfast. After that we cycled a short bit into Bar and had breakfast before starting our climb up into the mountains. The plan was to get to the lake Skadarsko Jezero. And to get there we cycled on a road that took us 805 meters above sea-level. The road was good and the view was amazing cycling up. But around lunchtime it started raining more and more and luckily we found a little place where we could by some coffee and have our lunch away from the rain. After that the rain had stopped and we cycled on upwards and saw the sun and a rainbow for a brief moment.

 When we finally were at the top we were happy to be cycling down to the lake. But the rain had picked up and it was freezing cold going down with the cold wind and the rain. Me and Julius went down a little faster and stopped to wait for Millou. And when we stood by the road the lightning struck down in a power line right beside us. It was really scary and we moved on quickly. Millou caught up with us but took it easy because his breaks was bad and the road was wet and slippery. After cycling down in heavy rain it started raining even more and it ever hailed. By then we were so cold that we stopped at the first house with people and luckily they took us in and we could warm up by the stove. And after some warming rakija we continued on down to the lake and asked for a place for our tents in the village Virpazar. But after a while we decided to get a room to dry up properly and to get a well-deserved warm shower.

And yesterday we cycled along the lake and up hills where the view of Skadarsko Jezero was amazing. There was almost no cars on a small winding road that went higher and higher. We stopped to have our lunch at a place where the view was just amazing. After that the road went down through a valley and the landscape changed from rocky hills to more forest and where the leaves had turned yellow and you could feel that it really is fall. And as soon as we were away from the sun it got cold, especially when going downhill with the wind in our faces. We stopped at a small village and asked a man if we could camp there. He was very kind and offered us a room in his house where we could stay for the night. Musa was an Albanian living in Montenegro, so we got some lessons in Albanese and he roasted some very tasty chest nuts.

Today we arrived in Albania and the first impression is that the people are very friendly. People are waving and smiling as we cycle past. So I think people who have been telling us to be very careful in this country most likely haven’t been here.