I was surprised to see a small cruise ship in the harbor in front of my apartment the other day. According to the cruise ship schedule, only one ship per month visits Vlorë and that’s between May and October. I got out my binoculars and the ship’s name was “The World”. The world’s largest privately owned cruise ship! 142 owners each paid $3-15 million and up to buy an apartment (price depending on size; they range from 335 sq ft to 3000 sq ft! Then they pay approximately $30,000 a month for maintenance fees. Most owners are permanent residents. Wow! It’s embarked on a three year round the world cruise.
Great news…of all the European and Balkan countries, in Albania you’re the least likely to get mugged! Only 3 robberies per 100,000 people! On the other hand, watch out in Belgium and Spain; 140 robberies per 100,000. Out of curiosity I looked up the robbery rate for Phoenix and it was 3278 per 100,000 in 2020! Belgium and Spain look pretty safe in comparison.
Mowing the grass in Albania. There were 3 goats and a fat brown sheep hard at work here for several days.
The men here, young and old, are extremely clean-cut. No droopy-drawers here! I’ve only seen a couple men who look like they could use a haircut, and they’ve all been older. I learned that many men get their hair trimmed every week or two! It costs around $2 for a trim.
Sadly, our trip to Gjirokaster fell through at the last minute and we had to cancel. I was really looking forward to going but didn’t feel like I could afford to go unless the costs were shared four ways, and we only had three people who wanted to go. Maybe another time.
This ship is often in port. I think it’s the ferry that goes to Brindisi, Italy. It’s 97 miles, takes between 6.5 and 8 hours and costs around €55 each way. I love ferries but the trip always operates at night….that’s no fun!
A friend is sending me a package with a new US cellphone (upgrade was required by my provider) and some supplements and keto sweeteners! Shipping and VAT is going to cost about $200 on $550 worth of stuff. Ouch! There are no addresses here and no mail delivery so mail goes to the main post office in Vlorë and supposedly they will call me when it arrives. I hope they speak English! It takes around three weeks. I’m pretty nervous about it. Twice I’ve tried to send mail from here to Hawaii and neither one ever got there. So fingers are crossed.
I got these beautiful strawberries last week, about two quarts for $3.85. They tasted so much better than US grocery store berries! I eat them with chia seeds every morning.
Little Bitty Living 