Albania

When looking for ways to travel to Albania while staying at home, don't believe the reviews that say Chronicle in Stone by Ismail Kadare is funny. There is some dark humor maybe, but just because the story is reported by a child narrator doesn't make it less horrifying. It might even be more horrifying than when reported by an adult - wow! Just wow! If you want to feel the experience of World War II in Albania, it is available in book form as well as on Audible or Kindle.

Movies I watched to experience Albania included Sworn Virgin and Seven Lucky Gods (I got them from the library, both are available through Amazon, but I also see the second on YouTube). I worried from the description that Seven Lucky Gods was going to be another film with an Albanian bad guy, but it was more complex and nuanced than that and I appreciated the twists in the plot.

I wouldn't consider any of the above appropriate for children. If you want something appropriate for both children and adults, I really enjoyed Wild Albania on Amazon for its good wildlife photography including eagle nest footage. I learned that Albania dedicates 7% of its territory to National Parks.

Albania is also famous for being the homeland of Mother Teresa. A search on Google books for either Albania or Mother Teresa brings up plenty of reading material from all sorts of perspectives.

Search thecrazytourist.com for Albania. They have ten different sections dedicated to different parts of Albania, so you can plan future trips! By the way, as is true for most pictures on this blog, photo credit to thecrazytourist.com for the picture attached.

Finally, when this pandemic is over, you can find food from Albania and its northern neighbors at Aroma Café in Cheviot Hills, California. Or even better, plan a trip to Albania using your local travel advisor. Shout out to my favorite travel advisor, Kaitlin Darnell at Laura's Travel in Redlands. May the travel industry survive and thrive - may we all survive, thrive, recognize our mutual humanity, learn to deal with our conflicts, and allow peace and health to flourish in Albania and throughout the world.