There was too much talking this morning – such a great place. I thought about staying another night but the lure of camping on a Croatian island was too much. It’s only three days to Dubrovnik. (Note from future self – you’re dreamin’)
I rode through the village of Oblikë, got some food but there was a power blackout that affected the village and the surrounding area. That meant no coffee for second breakfast. Disaster !
It wasn’t far to the border and as I arrived at the border post, a motorbike rider went up to the front of the long queue, so I followed him. He then told me to go in front of him, but as I did, I was asked to do an interview about my thoughts on Albania. How random ? It was a real interview. There were some interesting questions and I have no idea where the video will be published but it was fun.
After the border, I pulled over and had a chat to Justin, the motorbike rider from before. He’s from the UK and on his way home after doing a loop from the UK through Turkey and to Iran. He’s cycled in Africa and was fascinating to talk to. Another great traveller conversation.
The road to Bar was quite nice but for some reason, there were quite a few Dutch drivers towing caravans on the small road that I took. They caused an issue for every car coming in the opposite direction. There simply wasn’t enough room. At the top, there were some great coastal views, then the large city of Bar came into view and the downhill was great.
I rode down to port for lunch then soon joined a busy road for the rest of the day. It wasn’t fun, but around here, the drivers were pretty good. Apparently, the road to Dubrovnik is busy and ugly and I’ve got another two days of it after today. There was a tunnel and then some fairly long hills.
At the top of the last hill, there was an amazing view down to the beach I was going to. Standing there were three hilarious Italian cyclists on the last day of their bike trip. One guy saw my sandals and hugged me. He wears sandals too, but the other two give him a hard time about it. He’s also from Bari, so I thanked him for all of the Focaccia Barese that I ate while in Puglia. I got a million questions about my trip before they surveyed my bike and asked another million questions. They’ve spent two weeks in Montenegro and are going home tomorrow. We did the obligatory selfies and went our separate ways.
Down the hill, I was soon at Buljarica Beach and found the campsite. It was a nice day, so I set up the tent, the went to the beach for a swim. The water was warm and clear, but to beach area was pretty run down.
In the campground, there was a large area full of Dutch caravanners – they’d booked that part of the campsite. I assume they were the ones who drove past me earlier.
Dinner was at the only place open that I saw – salad, pasta and a beer for ten euros. It wasn’t fine dining but it was exactly what I felt like.