Our Man in Tirana

Just a few pictures of Saranda, which was a disappointment having heard so much about it. We arrived on 1 September and everyone appeared to have gone home with very few people about and a lot of places nearly empty or closed. Like much of Albania there seemed to be a lot of uncontrolled building going on. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before the whole of the hillside around the bay is covered. The beach wasn't nearly as nice as those we visited last year south of Vlora, though the beach at Ksamili to the south was very pleasant and we saw plenty of other more secluded beaches to the north of Saranda along the coast road that looked good too. Didn't have time to stop though.

It took us nearly two years, but we finally made it to Saranda and the south this weekend. More photos - mostly of Butrint - to follow once I have sorted them out.

Two stories from BIRN: Andi Beli, the previous director of KESH who was sacked in March of this year (I think) is under attack by the Office of State Control, a financial watchdog. According to BIRN the OSC is calling on the State Prosecutor to start proceedings against Beli. BIRN also reports that Lulzim Basha, the Foreign Minister, has invited Crown Prince Leka II to become an advisor on foreign affairs. I have to confess that I did not know that there was a Crown Prince. A brief search uncovered an entry on wikipedia , and a video from Vision Plus. The Jewish Advocate carries a story about Bujar Veselaj, whose father, Refik, rescued Albanian Jews during the war and later founded the Albania-Israel Friendship Association. The son has been granted asylum in the US after expert testimony backed his claim that Muslim fundamentalists had threatened his life. I'm not sure what to make of this story. On the one hand I think many Albanians - and outside observers - are complacent abo...