Hike to the Cave of Pellumbas, 24 June 2012

The drove from Tirana to the village of Pellumbas takes about 45 minutes. We walked 2 km up the trail that leads to “Shpella e Zeze” or “The Black Cave of Pellumbas”. They had some very impressive haystacks in the village. The view from the trail is spectacular, with the mountainside dropping down into the canyon of Erzen River. The trail was repaired by the Outdoor Albania Association in 2010 and in a very good condition. The cave stands at an elevation of 350 meters and is said to be one of the earliest prehistoric settlements of the area. Tools and artifacts dating back to the neolith, bronze and iron eras have been found there, as well as fossils attributed to the cave bears (ursus spelae) that lived in the cave more than 10,000 years ago. We observed the stalactites and stalagmites, and heard bat sounds and also saw a few bats in the cave. It was extremely muddy and slippery, and some places our feet just disappeared under us. Because of the obvious similarity this stalactite (or stalagmite?) is named after Albania’s hero, George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. Skanderbeg was an Albanian who had served as an Ottoman military officer, renounced Ottoman service, allied with some Albanian chiefs and fought off Turkish rule from 1443-1478. One of the visitors to the restaurant, where we had our lunch, was not impressed by the menu of the day, and decided to change it

Tirana, 10 June 2012

It was a very hot Sunday in Tirana, and everybody, who could afford it had gone to the Sea. It only takes a little more than half an hour to drive to the port of Durres, where it seems that half of the Albanian population has a flat at the sea. View to the apartment block where my apart is on the 9th floor. In the centre of the picture my apartment with the small balcony with two boxes (for aircondition) Some of the people without possibility (or interest) to go to the seaside are playing chess (or?) at a small park. Two scavengers, getting their income from what is of value in the garbage bins, are taking a rest. Another scavenger and his son are searching the bins for plastic bottles. It takes a lot of training to become a good scavenger. Impressive wiring It seems that for every 50 inhabitants in Tirana there is a café. Although this café looks very cosy, there were no customers when I passed. The dentist and the layer had their businesses next to each other When you can’t afford to go to the seaside you can have a nice Sunday afternoon in the Tirana Great Park. And the park even has an artificial lake where you can do some bathing

Strynø, 28 May 2012

On the last day of Sannes’s visit we took the ferry to Strynø, a very small island just west of Langeland.

View from the Ferry from Rudkøbing to Strynø

The harbour on Strynø

A small pond in Strynø Village.

Common Moorhen, Grønbenet Rørhøne (Gallinula chloropus) with its offspring - from a small pond in Strynø Village.

Many of the old houses in Strynø Village is restored.

Edible Frog, Grøn Frø (Pelophylax kl. esculentus) - from a small pond in Strynø Village.

Edible Frog, Grøn Frø is used for food, particularly in France for the delicacy frog legs.

The old windmill at Strynø.

Another view of the old windmill at Strynø.

View from Strynø to an even smaller island - Strynø Kalv

Kindergarten of Common Eider, Ederfugl (Somateria mollissima)

Back at the harbour on Strynø

Langeland 27 May 2012.

Tryggelev Nor. The nature reserve at Tryggelev Nor (Nor means a cove in Danish) is a part of the EU Natura 2000 network, designated to protect the best nature sites in Europe. The area has neen purchased by The Danish Bird Sanctuary Fund in 1976. Sheep and cattle are hired to graze the area to avoid that the meadow turns into scrub. In the background the sea and Ristinge Klint.

Female Great Crested Grebe, toppet lappedykker (Podiceps cristatus) at the nest in Tryggelev Nor

The male Great Crested Grebe, toppet lappedykker.

Pair of Red-necked Grebe , gråstrubedet lappedykker (Podiceps grisegena) at Tryggelev Nor.

Red-necked Grebe , gråstrubedet lappedykker (Podiceps grisegena)

Common Eider, Ederfugl (Somateria mollissima) with its ducklings in the sea outside Tryggelev Nor

The females of the Common Eider, Ederfugl gather their duckling in kindergartens where several females can protect the duckling from doves and other predator birds.

Strandskade, Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus) at Nørreballe Nor. Our next visit was to Nørreballe Nor Over a hundred years ago, Nørreballe Nor was an brackish fjord, connected with the Baltic Sea through Tryggelev Nor. (Nor means a cove in Danish). In 1883, the two Nors were separated with a dam, and Nørreballe Nor was dried off with the help of a windmill, and later an electric pump. It was then cultivated for agricultural purposes for the next 120 years, but in 2004 the whole area was purchased by The Danish Bird Sanctuary Fund who stopped the pump and reconstructed Nørreballe Nor. The fields are now covered by up to 2 meters of water, and many wild birds visit this area.

The Pied Avocet, Klyde (Recurvirostra avosetta). at Nørreballe Nor

The last stop of the day was at Ristinge Klint, where we had dinner. In the background Bagenkop