Page 9 - Wish Stream Year of 2016

Thanks, in part, to the Taken movie franchise, Albania is a country that people associ- ate with sex traf cking and blood feuds. Therefore, you may ask, and many have, why we chose to go to such a place when our col- leagues were gallivanting around the Swiss Alps. If our reply, that we sought adventure in a country with a rich history, didn’t silence people, a quick Google search of Albania’s Valbona region soon did. The region, just like much of
Back in Tirana, we met with members of the Albanian Army to go on a trek to the location of a World War II Halifax Bomber crash site. To get there, we had to travel for a couple of hours in off road vehicles (very graciously pro- vided by our hosts and a lot of fun) and then we had to trek for a couple of hours to a very secluded mountain top. Here, on a slope down the side of the mountain, we saw the remark-
Albania, is a rich gem waiting to
be unearthed. As I’m sure other
expedition organisers would
agree, the adventurous training
planning process is byzantine and
unending. Yet the quirks of Alba-
nia and its lively and hospitable
people made the ordeal just about
bearable. In this short article, we hope to con- vey our experiences in Albania and, in doing so, reclaim the country’s reputation!
We were greeted upon our arrival at Tirana air- port by balmy weather and swaying palm trees. The people were all helpful and friendly, although they were surprised to hear we would be driving north to Valbona through the mountains rather than via Kosovo. We quickly learnt that traf c laws in Albania were treated more like guidelines as we made our way across the country from the southern capital. The roads (and our rental cars) made the six hour journey to Valbona a perilous one, with numerous memorials along the way marking locations where cars had plunged off the cliffs. Eventually we arrived at Valbona and our persistence was rewarded with magni cent views and a serene mountain village aesthetic.
Our host at the lodge, Skander, provided us with delicious home-made food as well as the loca- tions of the best hikes in the valley. We trekked up to gorgeous waterfalls and swam in pristine mountain lakes for a week. We also met numer- ous local personalities including Ardenis, a young local man who, along with his faithful pony, patrolled the Valbona mountains as a mountain rescue volunteer. On our last day in Valbona we were reminded of the dangers present in our adventure training when a woman died following a fall off one of the cliff faces in the valley. Luckily we were headed back south to liaise with mem- bers of the Albanian Army in the capital of Tirana.
ably well-preserved crash site and spent a solemn moment among the debris as our hosts explained the cir- cumstances of the crash. We then returned to Tirana and were wonder- fully hosted at dinner by the Albanian Army before we ew home early the next morning.
In summary, this expedition enabled a group of Of cer Cadets to travel to the mountainous heart of a country steeped in Ottoman, Communist and war-torn history. We learnt much, not only from physically trekking, but also from the harsh realities of the dictatorship faced by a struggling
The view from Valbona waterfall. The temperature on the ground was 28, yet we were surrounded by snow-capped peaks that fed the waterfall.
Up to 1,800m and there’s a noticeable drop in temperature. Still, it doesn’t seem to be affecting two of our party!
Exercise BEDOUIN CADET
The region, just like much of Albania, is a rich gem waiting to be unearthed.
SANDHURST 7