We land this day in Saranda, Albania. This is a red letter day as this is a new country destination (finally) for Deb, our intrepid leader. As this is a smaller port, the ship is anchored off shore and we are to tender into the dock on smaller boats from the ship. Consequently, we gather at 8:00 on the dot for our tender tickets and into Saranda. Our guide this morning is a gentleman by the name of Demir, who is both a tour guide and a teacher of English. There is not much to see in the town of Saranda, approximately 20,000 people gathered on the coast of Albania, but we coach on to the UNESCO site of Butrint, ruins slowly being uncovered, near the border with Greece. Just off the coast a few miles, and within our view, the island of Corfu.
This city of Butrint had been settled since at least the 8th century B.C., and perhaps earlier. The site provides a unique testimony of Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman cultures and civilizations.
As the ruins are slowly uncovered, new foundations continue to emerge. We view Roman Coliseums, a chapel of the god Aesclepius and even Dionysius. The Romans took control of the site in 228 B.C., and in the 1st century A.D., it became part of the Roman province of Macedonia. At one point, control was ceded to Venice and the Venetian said. By the 5th century A.D., became a Christian area and there followed a period of church and basilica building, reaching as many as 8 churches in the city and area of the canal.
During the 19th century the area had become a fishing village under the rule of Ali Pasha and the Byzantines out of Constantinople (Istanbul.) This continued until the Albanian Declaration of Independence.
Following the Butrint tour, we motored back to Saranda, ending at a small restaurant near the dock area. We lunched on seafood, mussels, Greek salads and beer. Tasty and inexpensive. We boarded again our ship by 4:00 and repaired to our suites for a nap, or into a lounge for a cocktail.
This evening, a group ate at the Canaletto (Italian) restaurant and shared multiple dishes, family style. Others dined in the main dining room. Another interesting and stimulating day of coach and walking travel plus education.
