The Tirana bus "station" was actually a mud-filled lot. This time it took about 45 minutes for the bus to fill up to an acceptable level to leave for Berat. The woman sitting next to me seemed very keen to talk to me even though I can't speak any Albanian and she can't speak any English. After I told her "I'm sorry, but I don't speak Albanian", ...

Buses leave at the crack of dawn in Albania. A nation of early-risers who like to get what needs to be done done as early as possible. Like old people, or parents of teenagers. A history of car-jacking and huge numbers of potholes means people don't like to venture too far after dark. So, we had to get up at 7am (how early!!!) to catch the morni...