Maarten Hornstra

Albania is a country within sight from Italy, which is less known than the interior of America.

- Edward Gibbon, as quoted by Faik Konitza (ca. 1960)

This quote is almost as true today as it was in 1960. I went to Albania without much preparation and was overwhelmed by the diversity of the country and its people.

Still isolated within Europe it has a very distinct culture which is nonetheless changing rapidly since the fall of the communist regime. The contrasts between the old and new ways of life are big.