Berat

From Tirana, I headed to Berat, which interestingly, was the place in Albania most people online had been talking about. And I will be honest, it will not disappoint you! Its a charming, picturesque town with such a chilled vibe, the place was almost horizontal. Its surrounded by snow topped mountains, with a river that lazily snakes its way through the lowlands. Berat's main focus, is it's castle, but feel free to wander through the old town and over the bridge on the riverbank, its a really attractive place.

This was the stunning view that greeted me as I walked from the bus station. There is a bus that runs from the main bus station through the town, but after being stuck in a slightly cramped Furgon I was happy for the walk, and I was rewarded with a beautiful wander across the bridge and into the old town. It's mainly dated from the Ottoman era, and you will understand where it gets it's nickname "Town of a thousand windows". It also has this beautifully clean and crisp air, a world away from the air in Tirana.

I dropped my bags off, and started to explore, starting with the castle.

The views from the top of the castle were incredible, snow capped mountains, green fields, forested valley's, the land around Berat has it all.

A view of the old town from the castle, note how Berat got its name of "Town of a thousand windows"

The cistern of the castle 

The beautiful little church perched on the side of the hill, with its Byzantine style with the terracotta and white stone, is a real highlight, although sadly you can't go in.

What I loved the most, was the fact that there was so few people there, it felt like I had the entire castle and its ruins to myself most of the time.

WARNING - Ok, so I like to think I'm someone that doesn't get scammed easily, and I always try to keep my wits about me. I paid for entry to the castle (100lek, but research has shown me its now gone up to 300 Lek and is still cash only. I should probably note, when I was in Albania in 2019, it was still very much a cash society) The lady at the ticket booth said there was a free tour on in the day, but I didnt get the time, and thought if I see it I'll join in, if not, I wasn't too fussed. Anyway, I had almost finished exploring the castle, when this older man came up to me (In a leather jacket with worn shoulders I might add) saying in broken English he was the free tour guide, and that since nobody else had turned up he could show me around. I should have checked for a lanyard or something, because before I had a chance to say anything, he was already pointing things out, and guiding me around the site. It was a very brief, not very descriptive tour, before he guided me to the exit and asked for a load of Euro's, for the fact that nobody else had turned up. That was when I realised I had been had. I explained I had no Euro's only Lek, to which point he became angry, and said he didnt want Lek, only Euros. We went back and forth for a bit, before saying he would take 2,000 Lek, I only had about 800 left, and I told him it was that or nothing, especially considering he had said free tour at the start. He argued a bit more, telling me he had told me it was 2,000 Lek at the start, and I decided to walk away and exit the castle. He then caught up with me, said yes to the 800 Lek, then once I'd given it to him, he disappeared away. It left a bitter taste in my mouth, but proved that careful as I was, I needed to be more careful as it was. It left a cloud over the rest of my day, and I would thoroughly advise you all to say no to a free tour if you didnt pre-book or research it before hand. What stung more was he was sat in a café in the high street later on, enjoying a cup of coffee, that no doubt, I had paid for! Now what I will just say is, you should always tip tour guides when they do a good job, especially if its a free tour. Often tour guides go the extra mile to help you enjoy your visit places, and deserve to be rewarded for it. But I will just say one more time, if it doesn't feel right, don't go along with it!

And the to make matters worse, as I was walking down the hill from the castle towards the town centre, I was followed by two young boy's (I say boys, they were probably about 14) who followed me a little way. I'd noticed them in the reflection of a window I was looking in, and after they had followed me for a while, one of them shouted out very loudly asking me if I was gay. I ignored it, and continued to walk, picking up the pace a little. They shouted it a few more times, before I ducked into a side street, and went a different way, and they didnt follow. Thank god. 

Except, when I was having dinner a little bit later on, they came inside the restaurant, and spoke with the owner and it turned out they were somehow related, so then I had to eat my dinner while they stared at me across the restaurant. It was very awkward, but I ate quickly (It was delicious food) and headed out.

I guess this is the point where I talk about being a Gay traveller. I'm tall, the colour of boiled milk, with long hair, and as everyone tells me, a very camp disposition. It often makes me a target for things like that. What I would like to say, is while I've been abroad, only twice have I ever experienced any direct homophobic remarks like that, here in Berat, and once in Odessa, Ukraine. Both were loud comments like that, and I just moved away quickly. But lets just make it very clear. These were isolated incidences. I had spent 5 weeks in Ukraine and had one incident of it, the majority of people were very friendly and welcoming. Same for my time in Albania, I was made to feel so incredibly welcome (Particularly in Sarandë, that post is coming a bit later on). I know that as a tourist, its different for if I lived there, but I can only speak as my experience as a traveller. 

Now I do take precautions while I'm travelling, I try to make myself blend in, clothing not too bright, not having conversations that could cause problems, being a bit more self aware, particularly when visiting places (churches, mosques etc) that could cause issue. And for the vast majority of the time I spent visiting places, I feel safe and don't have to worry. So don't think that two small incidents like that, when I've been to 30 countries and spent two years travelling would ever put me off! 

Even in a country like the United Kingdom, which according to all the stats is a very LGBT friendly nation, there is problems. I often feel uncomfortable in public, particularly in places in my own city, where there are areas that you feel very uncomfortable walking through. I've had several homophobic incidents over the years, from someone screaming at me on the London Underground, to being bullied for years through school for what I am, even thought at the time, I didnt know it myself. I've had comments made by customers and staff through my years of working, to even occasional comments by friends and family. And do you know what? You just have to get on with it. Whats the point in letting it upset you? Just think about it for a moment, then file it away. Life is hard enough and you don't need someone else's negativity affect you. I wish I had been stronger when I was younger, particularly at school, where it felt the entire school, and even the teachers were against me, and it felt like there was no one looking after me. And even as an adult, I do a cost/benefit analysis each time something like that happens, and I decide what to do next. As I've gotten older, I've gotten better at tackling things like that head on. Having that discussion with the person, escalating it where needed. But it takes time, and I implore all of you who suffer from any kind of prejudice, speak up when it is safe to, someone will listen. And even if I don't fully understand, I will always try to help, whether that is being an ear to listen to, whether thats helping you report it, or anything else I can do to help. Because if we all supported each other a little more, we could really reduce the amount of times these things happen.

Anyway, sorry for the digression, lets head back to Berat. This is the beautiful town hall building

And here's my dinner! Albanian Sausages, and a steaming bowl of Fergesë. Its one of Albania's national dishes, and its like a thick stew, made of onions, pepper and feta cheese. And it is so, so good. Its like heaven in a bowel, and I would love to eat more, despite it being very rich. Goes so well with some crusty bread!

This was the beautifully lit bridge on the way home, I was staying in the old town of Berat. I stayed in the Maya Hostel Berat. (You can find them here at www.mayahostel.com), it was clean, comfortable and all the staff there were super friendly and helpful. The hostel even arranges tours as well. I stayed for two nights and was very happy there.