#119 Leaving the European abroad

April 30 - May 1, 2022: Korça, Pëmet

When leaving a foreign country within the EU, crossing the border is always something exciting for me. Depending on the country, border officials can come up with very interesting things to either take money or time from you, based on my own experience (Southeast Asia). However, this was not the case at the eastern border crossing between Greece and Albania. On the Greek side, our passports were quickly scanned and on the Albanian side, we only had to wait briefly for the border officer to enter our passport and car insurance data into her computer. In both cases, we were allowed to sit in the car and overall, it wasn't busy. There was only one car ahead of us at the border counter. It only got exciting again at the last station. The colleagues from Frontex asked us, with the help of the Albanian border police, to open our trunk. I had opened the two wing doors and moved the curtains aside just enough so that there was a good view inside our van, when they said again: Everything is fine, you can close it again. All in all, a very relaxed border crossing.

In Albania, we first headed to a paid parking space in Korça. They offered an all-inclusive package. Pay once and everything is included. Even washing and good wifi were included. After putting the laundry in the machine, we went to the ATM and withdrew some lekë. Besides the foreign currency, we also needed an Albanian SIM card. We found one in Korça, and so we were well-equipped for traveling in European abroad the next day.

Research in advance had shown that the main roads in Albania are now all well-developed. However, as soon as you leave these roads, it can get very bumpy. The road from the border to Korça was in perfect condition. The road out of Korça was also a sealed road. But after about 20km, the sealed surface disappeared. The sides of the two-lane road were full of potholes and frequently collapsed. After that, the remaining asphalt also disappeared and we found ourselves on a very bumpy gravel road that went through the Albanian mountains with very narrow curves and a lot of uphill and downhill. From now on, the maximum speed with our 3.5-ton and non-off-road suitable vehicle was 30km/h. After 2 hours, both us and our car were completely shaken. But we had overcome SH75 and were back on the paved SH80, which took us to Pëmet and the hot springs.

When we arrived at the hot springs, it started raining, which had been happening more frequently in the last two days, so we initially only went on a small exploration tour. However, the rain did not prevent the many locals from bathing in the large pool of the hot spring. However, it didn't stop raining until it got dark, so we decided to enter the 22°-28° Celsius warm water the next morning. The next morning, not only had the rain disappeared, but so had the many locals. We had the pool all to ourselves and enjoyed the warm water.

In light drizzle, we explored the very small but beautiful town of Pëmet in the afternoon. In Albania, if public holidays fall on a Sunday, they are moved to the following Monday. So when we strolled through the streets on May 2, the cafes and restaurants in Pëmet were packed. But apparently, the holiday does not apply to all professional groups, as road workers were fully present at the construction sites.

Day 198 - Overall tour 15,348 km

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