In and Around Berat
Drive to Berat
We are packed and in a taxi on the way to the airport by 8:15am. Traffic is slow. The airport is quite attractive with uniquely designed metal walls. Once at the airport we pick up our rental car and creatively load our luggage. It takes a while to figure out how to get the car into Park from Drive but we sort it out. Getting out of the parking garage is a little tricky as it’s packed with parked rental cars blocking routes so it’s like driving a maze to the exit. Finally we are on our way to Berat. Driving is a bit chaotic, everyone is out for themselves and it is rare for someone to let you in.
I sleep through most of the drive and wake in time for the steep, narrow winding road up the mountain. The views are gorgeous.
It takes a bit of hit and miss to find our Airbnb in the narrow labyrinth of streets. When we finally do, getting through the narrow gate into the driveway is a challenge that John, with the help of Louise and Lance, skillfully accomplishes.
Our Airbnb is a two bedroom, spacious apartment.
Berat
Berat is nicknamed “The City of a Thousand Windows” because it’s hillside houses have many windows. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it has a rich heritage of many civilizations starting from the 4th Century BC including ancient Greek settlements, Roman and Byzantine Empires.
There are three major parts of the city including the hilltop fortress (Kalaja), and Mangalem (ancient Muslim) area and Gorica (ancient Christian quarter) which are separated by the Osum River.
Traditional Food in Gorica
It is a short walk into the older area. We pass into Gorica over the old bridge.
I am starving so we immediately head to Eni Traditional Restaurant which has 5 star ratings from a few thousand people.
The restaurant is built into the side of the cliff. The sinks in the bathroom are backed by cliff face. Very cool.
We order the Albanian national dish of lamb and yogurt. The yogurt is infused with lamb flavour. I love it but the others are just so so with it.
From across the river we have a good view of St Michael’s Church (13th century) which is perched on the cliff just below the castle.
Leaving the restaurant we walk around the ancient streets of Gorica before crossing the newer suspension bridge to the Mangalem Quarter.
The Castle Area
It is about 34 degrees, sunny and a twenty minute, very steep walk up to the castle area. I ask a taxi driver how much to the top and he quotes double the going rate. Not wanting to be ripped off, we start walking up hill thinking that we will find another cab…but we don’t. At least we burn off the calories from lunch.
In the castle area we find a bar with a view of the mountainous countryside. We spend an enjoyable hour.
We walk around the whole castle area, checking out abandoned ruins of mosques and churches. The views from the edges are fabulous but the stones on the streets can be very slippery. We really have to watch our steps.
We take a shortcut, which I am not sure if it really is a shortcut, on a slippery and steep stone walkway through dried brush speckled with mauve hollyhocks. Bees buzz lazily in the late afternoon sun.
We reach bottom without incident but my legs feel shaky from the effort.
Mangalem and Xhiro at the Boulevard Republika
We stop to check out the Orthodox Cathedral of Saint Demetrius.
By this time it is almost 7pm so we head to the Boulevard Republica and find a restaurant with a front row table to the evening Xhiro. Xhiro is the evening stroll. As soon as the sun begins to set and temperatures drop, local families, grandparents, teenagers, friends and kids go out for an evening stroll enjoying a drink, ice cream or having a bite to eat. We enjoy watching the people walking back and forth, checking out their outfits, commenting on characters and pondering relationships all to the background music of cicadas. The people watching is as enjoyable as our meal.
Soon it’s time to head back. We pass a park filled with locals of all ages sitting at tables and chatting in the warm air. Some people are watching Fifa games on a large screen tv in the park.
We stop at a grocery store for water and breakfast food before calling it a night.
