After a couple of adventurous days in Përmet, Albania, we made our way to the beach to relax for a couple of days. We opted for Sarande as our Albanian beach destination. On our way we planned for a couple of stops in Gjirokastër and the Blue Eye. We were dependent upon Google maps to navigate us and although for the most part they did well, there were definitely some missteps, especially in towns. Our first route from the airport in Tirana to the hotel it directed us onto a one way road in the opposite direction - fortunately we figured this out before we entered the road. It then performed fairly well in directing us to Përmet so we started to trust it again. However, the navigation to Gjirokastër was less than stellar. I think it’s because the maps started factoring in traffic patterns and navigated us to lesser travelled streets - which are probably lesser traveled for a reason. In hind site, I probably should have looked up the best parking lots in the area and navigated there instead of navigating to the central bazaar area where I figured we’d get street parking somewhere along the way. The bazaar area is at the top of a hill in a small town and our route there was up a cobblestone street which started out wide, but eventually narrowed to a single car width and more like a driveway. We eventually got stuck and had to somewhat treacherously turn around and traverse the path backdown hill, with other cars coming up hill also seemingly following google. We eventually randomly parked along the side of a semi-wider area of the street and made our way to the bazaar area for a bit to grab lunch and hope nothing happened to the car (nothing did!). It was an adorable town with a castle in the background. The architecture reminded me of something I would see on a Disney movie, not sure which one though. The bazaar mainly sold the standard souvenirs - some of which I had recently seen on a trip to Turkey - a definitely sign of being mass produced! The near 100 degree heat was a bit much to handle for long and with no clear place to get an A/C break we departed fairly quickly Fortunately we didn’t have any issues getting the car back down the rest of the hill, although if I had followed Google, it would have taken me down a set of stairs!
Next we made our way to the Blue Eye which is a park with bright blue stream and pool of water. The road there was a bit windy and up and over mountains but they were mostly a full 2 lanes and with appropriate guardrails so a little nerve wracking but I didn’t fear for my life. We figured this would be a quick stop with a short hike to the blue eye. The roads on the way there had some cars on them but fairly sparse as we traveled the 30 minutes between town and the nature spot. We immediately knew we had found the park when we saw a massive traffic jam and a sea of cars and dreaded tour buses. We couldn’t easily get into the main parking lot so we parked across the street in a field that had a questionable sign up that said 1 euro. As we walked into the park area in the heat, we somewhat questioned if this would be worth it. The map had shown about a 1 km walk to the ‘blue eye’ - this was not quite accurate but probably because it was only to the main gate. There were food stands and scooter rental stands lining the path to the park. After we had walked for about a 1km, there was the park entrance which we had to pay 50 cents a person to enter. There was a tram which had quite a line and cost 3 euros a person to take the tram so we decided we would walk what I thought was less than 1 km to the actual watering hole area. We walked and walked, in the heat and in the sun, up and down the hills for about a mile. This would have been a lovely 1 mile walk had it not been for the heat, however, in the heat and sun we clearly couldn’t handle it, but I will say that many others were doing this same walk and seemed to handle it with no problem. I don’t think we are total wimps but I do think there is something to say about adapting to your climate and we are not adapted to this level of heat! With all of the headlines about tourists dying from the heat in Greece this summer, I think at least acknowledging that this can be dangerous is needed.
When we got to the water area, there was still a sea of humanity there. Many people in swim suits and jumping in the water - although there was clear signage everywhere about not swimming in the water to protect the environment. There was a balcony overlooking the ‘eye’ part of the water that must have been pretty deep as there were people climbing onto the railing and jumping over it into the ‘eye’. The water itself was some of the bluest water I have ever seen. It was gorgeous colors. We decided to dip our toes in the water - which was frigid. Our feet were numb after a few seconds! But it was nice to cool down our core body temperature! We then decided to all soak our shirts in the water and put them back on to try to lower our body temps. That felt fantastic and we did it a couple of times because they had mostly dried in less than 10 minutes. There was at least amenities around the (non) swimming area including restaurant, cafes with ice cream and restrooms. After a large dose of ice cream and more large water bottles we were about to embark on walking back to our car. A few steps back in the heat and we quickly changed our minds and went and waited in the line for the tram and paid the 3 euro a person. Overall, the blue eye park was nice but with the amount of people, I don’t know that it’s really worth a visit during high season. Maybe it would be nicer other times of year!
The remaining 30 minute drive to Sarande was uneventful. The town driving is probably on par with standard European driving which we are still getting used to. Hilly, lots of one way streets and cars randomly parked or stopped wherever they decide. We opted to stay in a seaside hotel, Oceanic Overview Suites. It had great reviews, parking, breakfast, multiple bedrooms, large balcony with a total sea-view and a private beach with sun beds and umbrellas for use. We thought it was an entire building but as it turns out it was only one floor of the building, so only like 6 suites for rent. We paid about $180/night which was a lot for the country (our other places were about $75-$100 night) but in comparison with the US or other European countries we realized we were getting a nice beach vacation location at a fraction of the price.
We spent most of our time in Sarande by the water. The beach at the hotel was pebbly which the kids didn’t mind at all and the adults got used to. The small waves were only due to the boats in the area. There were nearby options to rent kayaks, SUP and even jet skis and boats but the kids were happy with just playing in the water so did that for a evening and next entire day. There were various boat tours that could be taken - including a submarine and a pirate ship but we didin’t do either. We explored the nearby town streets a little bit to eat at a couple of restaurants and visit the grocery store but nothing too much to write about. A good day of just relaxation and catching up on a book.
Next up: A day trip to Corfu, Greece
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