Albania – Ohrid Lake & Pogradec (En)
Ohrid Lake is arguably the greatest and most famous lake in the Balkans. This is one of the absolute natural highlights of Albania, a massive body of water of huge cultural and natural significance. With its maximum depth of 288 meters, it’s the deepest lake in the Balkans. It’s also one of the oldest lakes in Europe, even globally, with its origins going back five million years.
Lake Ohrid is home to no fewer than 200 endemic species and considering its surface area, Lake Ohrid could be regarded as the world’s most biodiverse lake. Its ancient history combined with remarkable diversity in both plant and animal life is why Lake Ohrid is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Albania.
We stayed at Camping Fabio (40.900655, 20.698071 lat, long) right on the lake. The camping has a beach restaurant very cute where we had some drinks and the typical goat cheese from the area. The facilities are pretty old, the toilet without a seat and paper and it was impossible to wash the dishes because the water was going all over the place and it was not hot water. But the location and the price, 10 euros per day, make it worthwhile to spend a day or two to see the lake and the city of Pogradec.
We went on the motorbike to see Pogradec, which was settled in the Neolithic period and is the eleventh most populous city in Albania it is located on a narrow plain between two mountain chains along the southwestern banks of the Lake of Ohrid. It is one of the most notable cities in Albania for its tradition of hosting “family tourism” and for the pleasant, fresh climate during the summer season. Along the lakeside in the city, you will find an array of restaurants, clubs, and comfortable hotels.
You will arrive at a park with many sculptures, an amphitheatre and a beautiful fountain on the lake with a lookout to the lake and mountains.
Next, we saw the city square where you can find the tourist office and the city library, full of bars and restaurants, and from there you will arrive at the Ebu Bekr Mosque.
We went back to the park where we discovered that the benches have written histories on them and there is a fountain in the shape of a book really cool and artists selling pictures. We also took the chance to see better the amphitheatre and take some photos.
One of the specialities of the area is its traditional fish dishes, especially the baked speckled trout (Koran in Albanian) which you only can find in Ohrid Lake. So we went to have lunch where we shared a typical salad with goat cheese, the typical koran fish which is delicious, tastes like salmon but more delicate, I loved it! Really recommend it if you are coming to this area, with chips and toasted bread with olive oil, beer and white wine all for 22 euros!
Our next and last stop in Albania will be the city of Korce which is the cultural centre of Albania and which you can see in the next post.
