I repeated gently to the policeman, “Our guest house is in the Castle.” He threw his hands in the air like a snake, waved his finger at me, and then smiled like a huge kid. That translates to “Move your goddamn car,” as we would discover.
“So you’ll only be in Berat for one night?” asked our guest house owner, whose warm smile was as inviting as the iced drink he had made almost immediately.
I turned back to my underground cave room with its charmingly dim lighting after taking a quick look at the well-kept flower beds and the courtyard’s arch entryway in the medieval manner. “Let’s double up.”
Old City of Berat
Five minutes. That was sufficient to determine that spending two nights in Berat would not only be restful but also very necessary. Why? It had that feeling that says, “You’ve come at last,” even if you had no idea what you were looking for.
Five minutes isn’t really accurate, to be honest. Almost an hour prior, we had truly made our loud, theatrical, and slightly absurd entry to this medieval whitewashed masterpiece.
“Would you all like to remain at the Castle?” Jones, in the front seat, had called out. I’m not sure if it was a legitimate question or if we really had to respond. Many would consider it a no-brainer.
The roads wound in and out of the quite peculiar Albanian landscape, going from decent to bad to downright dubious. Miles of dirt tracks and vegetation mingled with tiny communities and strange stuffed bears perched on roofs.
In many parts of the Balkans, short drives follow a different time scale than those in other parts of the world. You get a better picture if you substitute “kinda long, bumpy, and totally lost” for the term “short.” I knew it was worth every moment when, six hours later, we rounded a bend and saw the white houses of Berat with their wide windows.
Only in 2008 was Berat, which means “White City” in the old Southern Slavic language, included to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Since this city is deserving of its place on the list, I can only conclude that no one from the body had heard of it before to that.
On either side of the Osum river, the white buildings with their red dirt-specked rooftops and big windows gradually ascend the mountain. They rise to the castle walls, where we were to spend the night, on the left, and dissolve into verdant surroundings on the right.
I glanced at the steep white cobbled road leading upwards and knew our crappy car was about to fall out with us. Lili, our designated driver and all-around nut job, said, “Let’s get this baby up the road,” revving the heck out of it and miraculously skidding it up to the castle door before triumphantly parking it in a location that would be prohibited anywhere else in the world.
Therefore, it was a complete lie when I claimed that falling in love just took five minutes. Over the course of the following hour, one of the happiest police officers I have ever encountered, despite his increasing impatience with us, demonstrated excellent hand signals.
I was beginning to lose faith in our four-wheeled companion as he smiled and repeated the word up while making his arm look like a dancing dolphin for the 98th time. It slipped, it skidded and it wasn’t having any of it. Eventually, we pulled up to Guesthouse Kris Berat with enough Snapchat footage to create a mini-comedy between the occasional swear word being uttered too loudly and the command of up in an Albanian accent.
As he offered a second round of beers, our new acquaintance suggested that we use the new side route. “It is nearly impossible to get to the castle via the old road.”
For now, I’m getting Berat Rakia, but next time, I’ll get a four by four.
Investigating the Albanian city of Berat, which is classified by UNESCO…
The 13th-century castle itself is very unique to the region because it combines Byzantine churches and Ottoman mosques. Take a few hours to go about the walls and the tiny streets that people still live in, or find the woman selling fresh fruit and get some inexpensive, delicious plums.
I must admit that staying inside the castle walls was quite unique, and since it never closes, you are free to come and go whenever you like. The eateries up here, with their colorful vines and brick walls, are the perfect place to wind down after a long day. They serve Rakia, the native drink, and homemade wine.
Even more charming is the old town of Berat, which is remarkably empty of tourists despite being in the middle of August. You’ll probably spend the majority of your time here taking pictures of the white houses during the day and enjoying the magnificent river views from a restaurant at night. Really, if you’re planning a road trip across Albania, you must stop here!
You’ll be astounded by how bustling it gets by early evening if you follow the promenade down the river to the nearby new town. This place has a thriving coffee (or beer) culture, which makes my favorite sport, which I am not athletic, a treat for spectators. Despite having a population of over 70,000, this place has a pleasant atmosphere and never feels overly crowded. If you have a few minutes to spare, you should study up on Berat’s lengthy and remarkable history.
A visit to Bogove Waterfall during the day
Before we left Berat, he told us, “The road is so so, but the place is beautiful.” Nothing was going to surprise me since I had learned to accept that it might imply there was no path at all.
You can’t help but get addicted to Albania’s scenery as you drive by the river, into the mountains, and up and down the road. It would be hard for me to maintain my eyes on the road in situations like these, so I’m glad I never passed my driving test. I realized we had reached the “so-so” point when the road changed to a dirt track that led high up a mountain.
Lili yelled from the front seat, “It won’t MOVEEEEE!” She was obviously prepared to smash the car down a cliff since it was useless. We sat there feeling dejected and wishing we had spent a little more money on something that worked more like an automobile than a shopping cart.
Fortunately, we were simply foolish and blind. We observed a little turn as we slowly descended the red dirt road that we had attempted to climb so forcefully. “Waterfall.” Even though I don’t speak Dutch very well, I figured the grumbling I could hear wasn’t PG-rated.
Bogove was a humorous small neighborhood. In a café, we had paused to get directions. The standard rate for being sent in the proper way was two cigarettes. It was not surprising that we had taken a wrong path because we did not have a common language.
The trail that led to the waterfall contrasted large steel pipes that carried water away with unspoiled wilderness. The little waterfall and its lovely enclosed pool were visible after a twenty-minute climb. A solitary figure sat thoughtfully, gazing at the water drip. Traveling through this nation is both charming and challenging because tourism hasn’t hit it hard yet.
You simply need to immerse yourself in the unbroken sounds of nature and disconnect from the outside world after almost suffering a frostbite while attempting to take a picture of the object. I will never forget the few blissful moments I experienced in Bogove.
Must Know
Where should I stay? I highly recommend Guesthouse Kris since it’s compact and cozy, with a dorm room, a two-bedroom apartment, and my favorite, a three-person basement cave. I won’t even include an affiliate link to a booking website here; instead, make a direct reservation via their Facebook page to ensure they receive all the money and you may take advantage of their immaculate courtyard, excellent service, and the allure of staying at Berat Castle.
How can I get there? Since many of the hidden beauties in the Balkans are only accessible by automobile, I will always recommend getting one. As an alternative, major cities like Sarande offer day trips and tours to locations like Berat, though I doubt you’ll experience the same atmosphere if you rush to see it.
We attempted to pick folks up till our car broke down again 20 meters later—it doesn’t get any more embarrassing than that! Hitchhiking is not that uncommon in these parts. Albania’s public transportation system is unregulated and challenging. Over the years, there have been collisions and fatalities, and the government is working to tighten regulations. Finding a lot of information has been difficult, but maybe the official tourism transit portal will grow over time.
After realizing that “five hours” in the Balkans meant nothing, we abandoned our original plan to travel the five hours from Berat to the Macedonian capital, stopping at Lake Ohrid and spending two days in Skopje. Instead, we decided to continue towards the Albanian Riviera.
What is the price of traveling to Albania? Although it was August and peak season, I must say that I was taken aback by how much everything cost. However, a three-person accommodation at Guesthouse Kris cost about €35, which I felt was well worth it during the busiest time of year. A fantastic supper downtown Berat could be purchased for about €6.