Bremen stadt

send sms for free

Albanian Alps – Albania

The Albanian Alps are a range of mountains in northern Albania. They are called the Accursed Mountains, or also known by the Serbian nameProkletije.

Regions

The region stretches over Shkoder and Tropoja districts from Northern Albania. Also, the mountains extend to Kosovo and Montenegro.

Towns and villages

Bajram Curri is the main city, and Shkoder is situated in the coastal plain, west of the region. Also, the villages Thethi and Valbone are main tourist attractions.

Albanian Alps

Parks

Thethi and Valbona constitute two separate Albanian National Parks. The Balkan Peace Park may one day exist in the greater region along the border of Albania / Montenegro / Kosovo.

Mountains

The highest mountains from the Albanian Alps are in Albania.

Understand

Edith Durham visited this region extensively and wrote a book about its customs.

Get in

Access to the mountains can be done from the north, precisely west from Shkoder and through the village of Boge. Here public transportation stops, also the asphalted roads, but you should continue to Thethi. It’s no recommended to walk, but you can hitchhike in the summer when various vehicles are going to Thethi. The road to Thethi is 25km long, but with not enough water and because the road is narrow, you really shouldn’t walk.

An easier way is to head up the wonderful Valbone valley from Bajram Curri. From Bajram Curri to Valbone you can take minibuses that go even to the last village of the valley, Rrogami, and 4km after it. The road is currently being improved.

Albanian Alps

Get around

A bicycle or on foot is recommended to get around. You can’t rely on public transportation because there’s just one minibus early in the morning.

The pass from Thethi to Rrogami is only passable on foot, so it is a challenging hike on a poorly marked trail. The only map available is a Soviet one from the 50s, on a scale of 1:50,000. However, this map isn’t available any more at the University of California – Berkley, but you can find it through the Bunker Trails project. If you decide to do the hike, than you made the right call because it is one of the best in the world.

A local guide is recommended. The trail starts after the village of Rrogami, and sometimes it seems to disappear. Locals speak English and Italian, but it’s recommended to speak Albanian. Also, if you don’t want to walk on foot, you can rent a horse or a donkey from the villagers for 5,000 ALL.

Albanian Alps

See

Stunning scenery and grand vistas, traditional Albanian houses and villagers, and a unique and difficult way of life.

Lock-in tower (Thethi) is restored. This lock-in tower is a must-see because it’s one of the last remaining examples in Albania. This tower was used to protect the male members of a family while it was under blood feud. These blood feuds were extinguished during communist times, but in the 90s, killings were increased because there weren’t laws. New York Times wrote a series of articles about the Leke Dukagjini, Kanun and these blood feuds. You shouldn’t worry about them, because tourists are protected, but still, you should e careful.Grunas Waterfall in Valbone and spectacular Valbona River

Do

First, hike the mountains! The reduced traffic allows you to hike even on the roads. Also, you can go fishing in the Valbone river, or just talk to people and visit some of the hundreds of caves from Razem village. The rapids near Dragobia are a popular place.

Albanian Alps

Eat

It may be hard without speaking Albanian, but you should try to buy food from the locals. The can offer home-baked bread, cheese, pickles, fruits and vegetables, Mazë(a dish made from butter, corn flour and sheep cheese), roasted ram(Ferlik), wild bird based dishes and freshly baked trout.

Drink

Here you can taste home-made raki (plum alcohol), Turkish coffee and locally made wine.

Sleep

Besides hotels from the cities, you can sleep in traditional guesthouses that are becoming more popular. It’s actually very easy to find people that will allow you to sleep in their house, for a price around 20 Euros that includes breakfast and dinner. Locals tend to bargain the price when you leave, but this isn’t recommended so you should do it when you arrive.

Albanian Alps

There are also some hotels and guesthouses in the villages of the Albanian Alps:

Hotel Kelmendi (Dod Dragu (Gjerkaj) Guest house), 355 42 227 121, [1]. This traditional guest house is a ten minute walk outside the village of Lepushe, one of the northernmost villages of the Albanian Alps € 20.
Marash Pllumbaj Guesthouse, Vermosh. This is a family home and guesthouse typical of the northern Alps region. It’s also very close to the border of Montenegro € 20.
Hotel Rilindja, Valbone. It’s a recently built hotel by an American lady and local owner Alfred Selimaj.
There is a hostel / campsite in the Valbonë valley in between Dragobia and Valbonë.

The only alpine resort in the area is located in Razem:

Natyral Razma Rezort, Razem. (+355) 68 60 45 457, (+355) 68 60 45 455. This alpine resort which is the only in the area, offers from sauna rooms, internet and indoor swimming pools, to local tours and ski courses.

In the Thethi area you’ll find cell coverage, but not in Valbone, here you must hang the phone into a tree to have signal.

Albanian Alps

Stay safe

Try to not get lost in the mountains, because this area is not inhabited by many people, and the trails are not market. If you can, you should have a GPS, or just a simple basemap from the Bunker Trails project.

It’s said that there are wolves and bears in the area, so you shouldn’t go for camping if you’re afraid, but if you do decide to camp, than cover your food or some bears may visit you.

Violent conflicts were created due to isolation and extreme poverty. Albania was sealed until 1991, but because the condition of the roads was bad, this area was isolated even longer.

The Albanian police managed to retake control of the country after the chaos of 1997, and this is known as one of the strongholds of resistance to law and order.

Although you’re safe as a tourist, you should ask the locals which areas are safe to visit and which of them should be avoided.

Norway

Norway’s economy is a thriving bastion of capitalism, which combines free market and government regulation. The government controls key areas of the economy: fuel sector [major state-owned enterprises], agriculture and fisheries. As the country is closely connected with the sea and depend on international trade, Norway mostly exports raw materials and semi processed goods.

Norway is richly provided with natural resources – hydropower, timber, fish, and minerals. One of the main roles played by the production of oil – the country is highly dependent on the production and world oil prices. Only Saudi Arabia exports more oil than Norway.

Apart from the above to Norwegian industries include food processing, shipbuilding, Cellulosic and paper industry, metal processing and chemicals, textiles, fishing.

As with the / x done: beef, fish, dairy products, potatoes, barley, grain impurities.

Foreign trade differs excess of exports over imports [$ 47.3 billion and $ 38.6 billion respectively].
Major export partners – Norway EU 77% [United Kingdom 17% Germany 12% Netherlands 10% Sweden 10% France 8%], U.S. 7% [1998]

Exported products: petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, ships, fish.

Main import partners: EU 69% (Sweden 15% Germany 14%, UK 10%, Denmark 7%), U.S. 7%, Japan 4% [1998]
Imports commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs.

In addition, Norway produces large amounts of electricity.

The main form of freight transport – the sea. Over 90% of the tonnage of merchant shipping engaged in international transportation by foreign freight. Norway is one of the first places in the world for domestic transport of passengers on the aircraft [per capita]. Railways [public, 50% - electrified] – 4.24 sq km., Roads – 79.8 thousand km.
The number of economically active population as of 1999 was 2.7 million. Of these, 74% are employed in services and trade, 22% – in industry, 4% – in agriculture, fisheries, forests. Rising inflation [the prices of consumer goods] – 2.8%. Unemployment rate – 2.9%.

Mother Teresa

Mother Teresa - Gonxhe Agnes Bojaxhiu Mother Teresa's Biography Mother Teresa was born August 27, 1910, in Skopje, Macedonia, as Gonxhe Bojaxhiu from Albanian parents Nikolle and Drandafille Bojaxhiu. Her father was a successful and well known contractor, her mother was a housewife.She was the youngest of three children. Mother Teresa's family was a devoted catholic family, they prayed every evening and went to church almost everyday. It was her family's generosity, care for the poor and the less fortunate that made a great impact on young Mother Teresa's life. By age 12, she had made up her mind, she realized that her vocation was aiding the poor. She decides to become a nun, travels to Dublin, Ireland, to join the Sisters of Loretto. After about a year in Ireland, she leaves to join the Loretto convent in the northeast Indian city of Darjeeling, where she spent 17 years teaching and being principal of St.Mary's high school in Calcutta.  In 1946, her life changed forever. While riding a train to the mountain town of Darjeeling to recover from suspected tuberculosis, on the 10th of September she said she received a calling from God "to serve him among the poorest of the poor."  Less then a year later she gets permission from to leave her order and moves to Calcutta's slums to set up her first school. "Sister Agnes" who was a former student, becomes Mother Teresa's first follower. Others soon follow, and papal approval arrives to create a religious order of nuns called the Missionaries of Charity. The foundation is celebrated Oct. 7 1950, the feast of the Holy Rosary. To identify herself with the poor she chooses a plain white sari with a blue border and a simple cross pinned to her left shoulder. Their mission is as she would say hen she accepted the Nobel Peace prize: "to care for the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone." With the help of Calcutta officials she converts a portion of the abandoned temple to Kali, the Hindu goddess of death and destruction into Kalighat Home for the Dying, where even the poorest people would die with dignity.  Soon after she opens Nirmal Hriday ("Pure Heart"), also a home for the dying, Shanti Nagar (Town of Peace), a leper colony and later her first orphanage. Mother Teresa and the sisters continued opening houses all over India caring for the poor, washing their wounds, soothing their sores, making them feel wanted. But her order's work spread across the world after 1965, when Pope Paul VI granted Mother Teresa's request to globally expand her order. Whether it was in Ethiopia feeding the hungry, the ghettos of South Africa or it was her native country Albania when the communist regime collapsed, Calcutta's Mother Teresa "the living saint" was there. In 1982, at the height of the siege in Beirut she convinced the parties to stop the war so she could rescue 37 sick children trapped inside . Mother Teresa became a symbol of untiring commitment to the poor and suffering. She was probably the most admired women of all time, received many rewards and prices for her outstanding work and she used her reputation traveling all over the world raising money and support for her causes. 1962: She received the Pandma Shri prize for "extraordinary services" 1971: Pope Paul VI honors Mother Teresa by awarding her the first Pope John XXIII Peace Prize. 1972: Government of India presents her with the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding. 1979: Wins Nobel Peace Prize 1985: President Reagan presents her the Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award.  1996: She becomes only the fourth person in the world to receive an honorary U.S. citizenship. When she received the Nobel Prize she wore the same trademark 1$ sari and convinced the committee to cancel a dinner in her honor, using they money instead to " feed 400 poor children for a year in India" Today Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity now has 570 missions all over the world, comprising of 4000 nuns, a brotherhood of 300 members and over100,000 lay volunteers operating homes for AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis patients; soup kitchens, children's and family counseling programs, orphanages, and schools. Mother Teresa's health was deteriorating, part from her age, part from the conditions where she was living, part from her trips all over the world, opening new houses and raising money for the poor. 1985:She suffers a heart attack while in Rome visiting Pope John Paul II. 1989: Another almost fatal heart attack, a pacemaker is implanted. 1991: She suffers pneumonia in Tijuana, Mexico which leads to heart failure. 1996: Suffers malaria, chest infection and undergoes heart surgery. On march 13th 1997: Sister Nirmala is selected as Mother Teresa's successor. September 5th 1997 :The world learns that Mother Teresa "Angel Of Mercy" has died at age 87.
Oh Dear God May the soul of Mother Teresa Rest in Peace

George Kastrioti Skanderbeg, "Iskander"

George Kastrioti Skanderbeg (May 6, 1405 – January 17, 1467), is also known by his Muslim name of Iskander, (Lord Alexander)." He was also known as the Dragon of Albania, and is the national hero of that country. George was the son of an Albanian lord who had been forced to submit to Murad II, the sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He was still a young boy when he and his three brothers were turned over by his parents to the Muslim empire as part of the practice of devsirme. While his three older brothers were slowly poisoned when they staunchly refused to convert to Islam, George was allowed to live, as he was only a child.

Forced to conform to the practices of Islam, George was subjected to merciless training at which he excelled, proving himself to be both a physically powerful warrior and eventually also a brilliant field commander. Rising quickly through the ranks, he was made bey generalissimo, and entrusted to command a large Muslim cavalry unit. The Ottoman sultan himself honored him by bestowing upon him the name of Iskander, “Lord Alexander,” comparing him favorably to the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great.

The Hungarian commander Hunyadi was on campaign against the Ottoman Empire when he came face to face with Iskander at the city of Nish. Unknown to his commanders, Iskander had never truly accepted Islam or forgotten the murder of his heroic brothers. He had also been secretly communicating with Albanian noblemen from his own country, for the Muslim’s had failed to erase the memory of his homeland.

Upon learning of the death of his father, Iskander had decided that he would join the advancing Catholic army, and then fight the Turks to restore Albania. With three hundred Albanians who had been forced to serve the Turks, he defected and fought side by side with Hunyadi. Turning their swords against their Islamic oppressors, they easily defeated the Muslim army.

At this point in his career Iskander was an impressive figure, “tall and slender with a prominent chest, wide shoulders, long neck, and high forehead. He had black hair, fiery eyes, and a powerful voice. So warlike was his nature that he truly needed to wage battle from time to time. He killed more than two thousand Turks with his own hands. He was a master of all weapons, swift and ingenious, a general with a quick and certain gaze, audacious and resolute. Naturally possessed of a fiery temper, anger would go to his head quickly and set his eyes ablaze. But he would dominate his anger, biting his lips until they bled. His courage in battle stemmed from this struggle over his evil passions. All in all, his customs were pure, his manner noble and elevated. Mary was his strength and inspiration.”

Iskander returned to his native land, taking back Kruje castle after tricking the Turkish governor into turning it over to him. He then declared war on his former masters, intending to avenge his country for the atrocities it had been subjected to under the Ottoman Empire. His banner displayed a two headed eagle, an image significant to his own family, but also one that had been used by the Roman Empire. It became a well-recognized emblem in the Balkans, symbolizing the refusal of the Albanian people to submit to Islam. Several of the Albanian princes revolted against their overlords and rallied under Iskander’s banner at Kruje castle, forming the League of Lezhe, and electing Iskander to lead the Albanian army. Iskander was an invincible opponent of Islam, and the reason for his success was no secret: he “loved the sanctuary of Mary with a devoted, enthusiastic love; and Mary in return, not only made him a model of Christian perfection, but also gave him an invincible power, which preserved not only Albania but also Christendom during his reign.”

There was at this time a miraculous painting in the town of Scutari, which was the capital of Albania. Our Lady of Scutari was an image of Our Lady holding her Divine Son which had been painted on a thin sheet of plaster by an unknown hand. This portrait was venerated and beloved by the faithful Albanian people, and as a child, George Castriota would doubtlessly have visited this shrine. It was Our Lady of Scutari who had consoled and preserved him through all his trials, and now, when he returned to Albania and dedicated his life to her, it was she who made him invincible in battle, the fearsome Dragon of Albania.

Altogether Iskander could field an army no larger than 18,000 men. They were few in number, though Iskander used them effectively, conducting lightning raids against the enemy while building new fortresses. The Ottoman forces in Albania were kept off balance, and induced to widely distribute their troops, stretching them thin over a broad area. This response suited Iskander well, for he could strike with good effect and then retreat to safety into the mountains.

Iskander’s first real test was the battle of Torvioll, which took place in June of 1444. The Ottoman sultan sent an army of 25,000 men into Albania under Ali Pasha, one of his most accomplished commanders.

Iskander, having recently been one of the sultan’s finest commanders, was obviously well acquainted with Ottoman military tactics. He took 15,000 men with him to the plain of Torvioll to meet Ali Pasha, awaiting him for battle at the base of a broad slope. The field was surrounded on both sides with hills and a dense forest, appearing to give the Muslim army a distinct advantage.

When Ali Pasha became aware of Iskander’s poor field position, and observed that his army appeared to number less than 10,000 men, he became overly confident of victory and immediately ordered his army to attack.

Seeing the advance of the awesome Muslim army, some of the Albanians began to give way. Iskander had held men in reserve out of view, and used them now to bolster his intimidated troops and return them to their formation. For Iskander’s plan to succeed, all they had to do was hold their position and fight.

As soon as the armies were fully engaged, 3,000 men Iskander had hidden in the forest suddenly appeared and struck the Ottoman troops in the rear, causing a panic among the Turkish soldiers. The wings of the Albanian army turned at the same time toward the center, attacking on the flanks and doing a great deal of damage. Seeing his army crumble before him, Ali Pasha and his personal guard fled the field. Nearly every Turkish soldier was put to the sword, with only 2,000 taken captive. Of the Albanians, only 120 men were lost. 

All of Christendom was encouraged by the stunning victory, and Iskander was asked to join a papal alliance in a new Crusade against the Turks. Iskander was prevented from joining the Christian army through a deceitful ruse perpetrated against him by the king of Serbia, so Hunyadi ended up fighting the Ottoman forces without his assistance and were sorely defeated. The Ottoman Empire was beset by domestic rebellions that diverted the sultan’s attention away from Christendom for a time. In 1449, however, the sultan led an army 200,000 strong into Albania. None of Albania’s strongholds could withstand him, until finally the sultan faced Iskander at Kruje castle. “With matchless strategy Iskander contrived to keep the myriads of his opponents from the walls. With energy almost superhuman, he swept unexpectedly, now here and now there, by night and by day, into the midst of the foe; every swordsman of his band hewed down scores, and his own blade flashed as the lightning and caused Muslim heads to fall like snowflakes where he passed.” When the siege was finally lifted, 20,000 of the enemy lay dead on the field, with the remnant of the Muslim army “pursued with terrific slaughter by the Christians.”

After the battle, Iskander went at once to kneel before the image of Our Lady of Scutari, thanking and publicly praising her for his success. “He was a hero formed in the same school as all those who derive their strength from their devotion to the Blessed Virgin. Like a new Saint Fernando, King of Castile, Scanderbeg was, under the guidance of Mary, as gentle in peace, as he was terrible in war. The good Christian prince was often seen at her feet to beg the protection of his Lady in his greatest afflictions.”

Pope Nicholas V called Iskander “the champion and shield of Christendom,” which was true, although it was the Blessed Virgin Mary who protected her champion and granted him his victories.

Neither treachery nor surprise attacks could defeat Iskander, until finally it seemed to Sultan Mehmet that he might never defeat Iskander on the field of battle. Taking a different approach, he feigned affection for the Albanian prince, offering him his friendship if only Iskander would deliver his son to him as a hostage. Iskander snubbed the Ottoman sultan in writing, signing his refusal, “Skanderbeg, Prince of the Epirotes and Albanians and soldier of Jesus Christ.”

After the death of Hunyadi, in the year 1459, Pope Pius II attempted to gather the Christian princes for a new Crusade under the command of Iskander. His efforts met with utter failure, and his words at the realization echo through the centuries to speak to us now in our own time: “We came full of hope; but we are forced to consider it in vain. We are ashamed that the lukewarmness of Christendom is so great. Some run after their pleasures, others are enchained by avarice. The Turks are ready to face death for their doctrine, but we tolerate neither the least expense nor the most insignificant discomforts for the Cause of the Holy Gospel.”

There were many more battles that Iskander fought against the Turk, alone and unaided by a thankless Christendom. With the aid of Our Lady of Scutarihe remained invincible, fighting to preserve a Christendom that neglected him.

In 1466 Iskander learned that the Ottoman sultan was advancing toward his homeland once again with an army of 200,000 men. He and his fellow Albanians had borne the brunt of Christendom’s battles, and it had nearly ruined his kingdom. The Dragon of Albania went to Rome seeking assistance from the pope.

These were his very words: “After twenty-three years of unceasing war, I present myself here together with the warriors that remain. Ours is a state exhausted by so many battles; Albania is a body of which no member remains unwounded; only a few drops of its blood remain to be shed for the Christian world. Alas, come to our aid, otherwise the last champion of Jesus Christ will soon disappear from the other side of the Adriatic!”

The pope gave what he could, but the assistance was merely financial, and not enough to meet Iskander's need. It is almost as if the world is not worthy of such men. All the members of Albania had been scourged. It remained now only for the heart to be pierced.

Iskander went back to the castle of Kruje, which was then surrounded by Mehmet’s army. The siege lasted for months, with great toll on both sides. Iskander, along with his best warriors, remained outside the walls so that they could arrive at any location unexpected to antagonize and harry the Turkish besiegers.

After several months Mehmet returned to Constantinople, leaving an army of 80,000 to continue the siege. With only 13,000 men remaining, Iskander attacked the Turks so violently that their leader was killed and the rest driven to a panicked retreat.

“The prince and unvanquished warrior, whose strength of soul gave his compatriots fortitude to throw off their lethargy, courage to rise up against the oppressive infidels, daring to despise death and thus expel them from their country, moved his subjects not only by example but also by his unbreakable faith, his ardent charity, and his unshakable hope...Scanderbeg was God’s sword against the enemies of the holy Catholic Faith, the impregnable defensive wall protecting his realm.”

Physically exhausted from his labors, and sensing that his death was near, Iskander went one last time to visit Our Lady of Scutari at her shrine, and then retired to the city of Lesh to die. There, on his deathbed, he made his last confession, and received Holy Viaticum.

Mehmet had his spies in Albania, and was thus fully aware that Iskander was dying. He sent another large army into Albania to attack Lesh, expecting to conquer all of Albania once Iskander had died.

The sounds of battle, and the cries of despair coming from the startled populace reached Iskander. “Hearing the shouts, the dying man’s eyes opened. Color returned to his cheeks. The perspiration of agony disappeared. Iskander ordered his horse and weapons brought to him. Then, a great battle ensued at the gates of Lesh. The Dragon of Albania had pushed death aside and carried it instead to the enemies of Christendom.”

The Muslims were routed and completely defeated after a bloody battle. Iskander gave thanks to the Blessed Virgin, and returned in triumph to his palace. Once there, he set aside his weapons and went back to his bed where he laid down and soon gave up his soul to God. He had ended his life as a powerful defender of the Catholic faith and of Christendom, and his battle-standard became the flag of his native Albania.

Viva Forever - Spice Girls (ReinXeed Metal Cover)