EUROPEAN VACATION PART 3: THE IONIAN ISLANDS AND ALBANIA

Last week, we left off with our day on Mykonos and Delos, two of the three islands that form the famous Cyclades Island Group. On this cruise, there were no days at sea. Because of this, we got an Inside Cabin (Since we only sailed at night) and used our ship primarily for eating dinner, sleeping for the evening, taking a shower in the morning, and debarking for the next day’s adventure. The next morning, the cruise ship docked in Zakynthos on the western side of Greece in the Ionian Sea, the transition between the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas. The Ionian Sea’s length runs west to east from the tip of Sicily to the very bottom of continental Greece and ends to the north in the strait where the heel of Italy gets closest to the Greek landmass.

Zakynthos is part of the Ionian Islands Group, one of the seven island groups resting off the coast of Greece. Zakynthos is the island that most tourists think Santorini and Mykonos are. Unlike those brown, rocky, desolate islands with million-dollar views, Zakynthos is a green, mountainous island loaded with vegetation with a wonderfully scenic downtown located along the coast. Some of the most beautiful Greek island beaches are located here including one that is centered by a shipwreck. The coast of Greece can be seen to the east. We were looking forward to touring Zakynthos. Then, our cruise ship informed us that this stop would be a tender port. Operating on a first come/first serve basis, we reached the lounge to get our tender tickets to shore at the time designated and were given the number 16. Docking in Zakynthos occurred at 9 am Greek Time. We were not able to place our feet onto the Greek soil until 1215 pm leaving us only about three and a half hours to tour the island. The boat was anchored so far off the coast that each tender took fifteen minutes to reach shore and thirty minutes to complete the round trip. This unexpected issue led us to change our plans. So, we decided to stay in the main city. Zakynthos became our shopping hub as it was about 20% cheaper than Athens and the previous islands. I was finally able to tour a wonderful Greek Orthodox Church named after the patron saint of the island, Dionysios. The church had wonderful artistic decors throughout. Not only that, but there was an Ecclesiastical Museum in the back that had beautiful, hand-written manuals created in this Sacristy dating back to the 16th Century. After experiencing the Museum of Zakynthos and the Dionysios Square out front, back to the cruise ship we went.

On the fourth day, we woke up docked on another Ionian Island, Corfu. This island is the most beautiful one with immaculate blue water at the beaches, beautiful green vegetation and trees everywhere, and a few scenic mountains located on the north end of the island intermixed with little villages and a historic Old Town that is located a few miles from the port. Corfu has been the location for dozens of Hollywood films. But my wife and I decided to forsake all of this for a trip to Albania across the Ionian Sea to the north. One of the things that is ever present throughout Southern Europe is ferries. On Corfu, one of the ferry lines, Finikas, can take any customer to Saranda, Albania in thirty minutes via hydrofoil. As a person who always wanted to experience this form of travel, the journey on this boat was fantastic. A normal ferry trip to Saranda takes one hour and ten minutes. Once the hydrofoil leaves the harbor, it speeds up to 55 knots, the boat rises onto its masts, and it gives you the sensation that you are flying just above the ocean. The ferry also had more comfortable seating than most first-class airlines. Before you could say SUPERMAN, we had arrived in Saranda, Albania. Before planning this day, the only thing I knew about this area was that Saranda was called the Albanian Riviera, there are gorgeous historical ruins south of the city located about 20 kilometers away, and Albanians have a very deep attachment to the Clinton Family (US President #41). One of the things we walked past in Saranda was a statue of Hillary Clinton. To say that Saranda took our breath away would be an understatement. Only allowed five hours and ignoring the first traveler (Roma) we saw on this trip sitting on the side of the road and begging for money, we hired a Russian taxi cab driver for 20 Euros to take us to the beautiful Butrint Archaeological National Park. He gave us an in depth tour of the city, its history, showed us the beautiful olive trees and lakes scattered around, gave us a wonderful talk on the rapid growth of the city (Condos are popping up everywhere and can be bought for less than 100,000 Euros) and was incredibly fun to talk with. Another benefit of Albania which we were unaware is that the people were the nicest and friendliest on our trip BY FAR. Every person in Albania was talkative, knowledgeable, and willing to help. Once you arrive at Butrint, it is a gorgeous location located on a peninsula with a lake loaded with oyster farms to the north and a beautiful river to the south where Albanians are lined alongside the shore fishing for their dinners. The only way to cross this river is by flat wood boarded ferry pulled by ropes that can only hold one car at a time, something you would see in a King Arthur movie. The ruins in Butrint were my favorite on the trip which included a very well-preserved Medieval Castle. After taking the local transportation back to Saranda, we had one of the best meals on our trip involving more incredible coffee, calamari, grilled red fish, a beautiful olive salad, a glass of local wine, and a few sides for only 40 Euro alongside the funniest waitress that anyone would be blessed to have. After this, we walked along the Saranda Embankment to Saranda Beach where the ocean water was perfect. No person on this planet could have had a better five-hour day in a nation that most people probably could not find on a map. A few facts about my new favorite nation of Albania:

1. Going through customs was the easiest experience. The security scanned your passport, stamped it (The only nation that did), and let you pass through. No searches, no shoe removals, no antagonizing questions asking why you showed up in their nation this morning. Upon entering Albania, any visitor can stay up to one year before needing a residency permit. Getting back onto the hydrofoil to return to Corfu took us three minutes to pass through customs.​
2. Albania is a melting pot of culture. But not the way you think of the term as an American. They have different ethnicities that are local to the area like Greeks, Russians, Serbs, Turks, and Poles. The country is a Muslim nation and there are mosques in town. But the country also has religious freedom and there is no reason to be terrified in any way about walking around. It is safer than almost every inner city in the United States.

After the hydrofoil trip, we passed through Greek customs (A little more difficult) and back to our ship to contemplate this perfect day.

PART 4 NEXT WEEK ABOUT MY ANCESTRAL HOMELAND OF CROATIA. See you then.