Skip to main content

Poppy, Lizard, Garbage

We had another visitor with us at the weekend, so it was off to Kruja once more. I came across this poppy growing in the garden of the Ethnographic Museum.

While we were walking down the cobbled lane towards the Bektashi teqe this lizard ran across the path in front of us then headed vertically up the wall, stopping long enough for a photograph before scuttling off again.

There were plenty of other visitors there, including a few parties of school kids on end of year trips. Unfortunately, nobody seems to have taught them to clean up after themselves and their teachers didn't care so both students and teachers dropped their litter everywhere. As a result, this is how the area round the castle walls and the tower looks:

I felt sorry for the guy at the Skanderbeg museum who always tries to keep the area around the museum clean, picking up litter and emptying the bins. It must be frustrating to see such a lack of respect from so many people.

Comments

ITS said…
I love the lizard pic... reminds me of my childhood... when we used to go chasing them around trying to smash them with rocks...

I had never stopped to think about how beautiful and harmless these creatures are...
Anonymous said…
sa sad
Anonymous said…
i never understood boys. They were always so violent and a bit evil. Why would you want to crush a lizard? My brother used to do the same thing!
Anonymous said…
out of all people the teachers shouldn't ahve done this!
ITS said…
Anon,

I agree with you that it was sad... I guess we did it because nobody told us that it was wrong. It took another 20 years to figure it out on my own... Animal cruelty was not (still isn't) a big deal in Albania, where crimes against humanity reigned for 50 years.

When I have my own kids I will make sure to teach them that it's our duty to protect lesser beings...
belle_fleur said…
Its a shame to see so much litter and trash in such a historical place like Kruja. I guess Albanians will never understand the importance of a clean environment otherwise they would not do it.
Anonymous said…
The poppy looks like the Albanian flag

Popular posts from this blog

Dy Rame Per Tirane

I was watching Top Channel last night, first the news, then Fiks Fare. According to them Tirana's citizens now have a choice not only between Rama and Olldashi, but also between Rama and Rama. A minor right-wing faction, Parti 'Balli Kombetar' , submitted papers to the election authorities registering their candidate, Akile Rama. The people on Fiks Fare got hold of the papers and sent a reporter and camera team to the address listed for Mr A Rama. After much ringing of the bell the gate was reluctantly opened by a middle-aged woman who refused to speak to the reporter and tried to close the gate on her. Back in the studio Saimiri and Doctori - the two presenters of Fiks Fare - revealed that Mr Akile Rama was 73 years old, in hospital, and did not know he was now a candidate for mayor. They also compared two documents - the papers submitted on his behalf, and a genuine document he had signed. The signatures were not even remotely similar. There was an interview with the lea

Albania and the Perils of the 21st Century

Another article on religion in Albania appeared yesterday. Patrick Poole, writing in the American Thinker , argues that Saudi funding for the construction of mosques and the training of imams is a threat to Albania, since these mosques and imams reflect the fundamentalist interpretation of Islam dominant in Saudi Arabia.

DIY Traffic Calming

We had yet another accident on our wide straight road in bright daylight a couple of days ago. I heard the crunch but I'm not sure how they managed a head on collision in these circumstances. Obviously someone in the neighbourhood has had enough and has put in place a creative traffic calming system. It consists of two thick lengths of rope spread across the road. Surprisingly, traffic approaching these almost always slow to a crawl while crossing them. I'm not sure who is responsible for this very welcome development but there is a newly opened cafe at the bottom of the street with open air seating beside the road. I suspect they are responsible since having cars tearing past at high speed is not only unpleasant for their customers but also dangerous. It's too much to hope that the the responsible authorities will get the message and construct some speed bumps. Perhaps we need to find a lot more rope.