It turns out that when you bike tour, it generally elicits curiosity, some degree of pity and almost always hospitality. Arriving in Cetinje last night, we got a strong dose of all three. Petar Martinovich is a charming Montenegrin who runs a small hotel in a small town in a small country. When we showed up and told him where we had come from, he seemed a bit incredulous but nevertheless pulled out a bottle of rakija, a strong (50% alcohol) grape brandy and insisted on a toast. 

Not a typical recovery drink, but it certainly numbed the tired legs! And this morning at 6:00 AM on our way out, he again insisted on buying us a strong espresso at a little cafe down the block and giving us detailed directions. 

Today’s ride was spectacular in its scenery and hilly terrain, and challenging with rough roads. Whomever it was that named this country certainly got the “Monte” part right. 

Can you spot Allegra above? After descending from Cetinje, we arrived at Lake Shkodra, which is a very remote  national park separating Montenegro and Albania and surrounded by a type of mountain called a karst, which as far as I can tell means steep and next to water. A small road winds along the lake, rising and falling with the terrain. We saw virtually no one the entire afternoon.

  
  
  
  By the time we reached the far end of the lake, we were feeling pretty cooked but still had to get across the border and into town. Fortunately, the last 15 km provided plenty of excitement and visual interest. The Albanian boarder guards held up a line of traffic for five minutes to ask us all about our journey, calculating distances, raising eyebrows, and then gave us high fives as we rolled out. A high five from a border guard?!? We are evidently not in Kaliningrad! Here is the main road connecting Shkodra to Tirana, the capital.  

  And then we found what can only be described as the perfect Albanian hotel room, a suite at the Red Bricks (yes, it is clad in bright red bricks, and odd miniature Greek looking columns) with a velour recliner and starry sky mood lighting on the ceiling. Nothing but class!