Snow Way Out

"Why would anyone want to take an 8 hour overnight bus journey to Albania to have a rest?" I thought to myself. Yet that was exactly what was I doing. As the bus wound up over the snow covered road, I let myself relax. I had been feeling tired since before Christmas, and had returned to Macedonia from England still feeling rather jaded. I had thought that getting back into things in Skopje would help me feel revived, but I needed to get away and get some fresh vision. So strong was the feeling that I should go away, I went almost immediately, making space in my commitments (the students were themselves on holiday), throwing some things in a back-pack, and making my way to the bus station, not even knowing if there was a bus to Albania that day.

So here I was, heading through the snowy border at midnight. Even one of the border guards was asleep and couldn't be woken! And at 3am I arrived in Elbasan, with a cold wind whistling down the deserted street, watching the bus bounce off over the bumpy roads. Nick and Sar welcomed me in (they were expecting me), and thus began my battery recharging!