Lost at Sea: Delight in Durres

Sometimes, the incongruities of cruising life brings a smile to my face. Here we are, in our self-contained life bubble of Pavlov, going about our daily business. We sleep, eat, watch TV, play guitar and so on... yet we are anchored in the middle of a vast commercial port. We are in Durres, Albania and there are no facilities for 'cruising yachts' and no suitable anchorages. So here we are, cleaning our teeth and cutting our hair, surrounded by monstrous cargo vessels and the bustle of a working port.

The view from our stern

Pavlov dwarfed by the height of the dock... getting off was quite a feat.

Dwarfed by the crane parked next to us.

All of a sudden, we are shaken by heavy wash. Whistles are blowing and there is a steady jabber of Albanian outside the thin walls of our hull. Pavlov has a new friend .... an enormous 150m bulk carrier has just docked in front of us, well almost. They can't quite fit in, and the captain is asking us to move back by a few metres, so they can fit. We are totally dwarfed by this vessel, and so hasten to comply.

Frojdi, Pavlov's new bow buddy.

Pavlov, feeling a little overshadowed by his new friend

We've found the Albanians to be exceptionally friendly and welcoming. Tourists are still a novelty here, so that blasé disregard we met in Greece has not yet had time to ferment. As we left the port gates for the first time, two sailors flagged us down, and forced us to have a drink with them. They were most disappointed that they couldn't buy us alcohol, but we did accept a coffee from them. Coffee in Albania is cheap (50 cents) and very good. This happened a second time, where a cafe owner was impressed by us sailing here, and bought us free coffee's.

Little Georgi, bought us coffee when we first arrived.

Georgie's captain, of a large bulk carrier, also entertained us.

We've enjoyed the sights in Durres, which is a dynamic and bustling cosmopolitan town. Its the largest port in Albania, and sees more visitors than other areas. We visited a few Roman ruins and amphitheatres, marvelled at the Albanian College entrance facade, and strolled the tourist promenades along the sea-side.

Roman ruins

Large elliptical amphitheatre

More Greek / Illyrian ruins

Amazing college facade,.... its huge

Old Venetian tower against a modern city backdrop.

Tourist attractions on the sea-side

However, as is usual with the Pavlov crew, its the everyday ordinary things that interest us. We found the market, where prices were a fraction of what the (unused) supermarkets charged. We admired the local street art and dallied in the local cafes. We visited the local library and observed the older gentlemen avidly reading the daily broadsheets.

Cafe life in Durres

Man selling his sailing ship models

Newspaper readers in the local library

Local street art ... who can afford canvas?

Vibrant markets

Local cafes and shop fronts

We noted one remaining signifier of previous Communist regimes. Albanians still have a penchant for monumental patriotic sculptures portraying the glories of partisan revolution and overthrowing of despots. I did enjoy the sculpture of the guitarist however. She's playing an Epiphone, by the way.