Almost all these images were shot through the bus window as we were travelling the narrow, sometimes winding and relatively rough Albanian roads into the Capital City of Tirana. The polarising filter in the bus windows as well as the one on my camera has impacted on the image quality apart from the movement of the bus. I have attempted basic clone editing to remove reflections in some images but I have not gone to too much trouble. I figured it was better to have these poor images rather than none. If anyone else has images worth adding here I would welcome them by email. Since Antonio our driver was under strict instructions not to stop there was no chance of obtaining images from the ground. We were later informed that our bus had a security escort from the entering to the exit border and that our onboard guide was essential to our entry and exit through the border customs police. Our English Guide had described our impending visit to Albania prior to our arrival with the phrase - "Albania da da da da - to be continued", a description that left us all wondering what was ahead. General impressions were of a country without pride in its environment as rubbish was everywhere. There appeared to be a definite disjunct between the wealth in the city to that of the countryside where basic service infra-structure appeared poor by western standards and compared with Tirana, the capital city.
NOTE : Thanks to Steve and Kerry Westwood and Mandy Maclellan for allowing me to post images in this gallery.
