Guilty Until Proven Innocent

The international press can't seem to let go of the story of Serbian prisoners/mental patients who were allegedly transported from Kosova to Albania for organ harvesting. Since Carla Del Ponte published these allegations, there has been periodic pressure to continue investigating this dubious claim. The latest report is a print/video piece in the Guardian.

I included this not because I want to push a particular viewpoint relative to the claims, but because of the footage of a remote part of Albania. Burrel, the town in question, was the location of a labor camp/prison during the communist regime. Even today the phrase "sent to Burrel" is used to signify someone is completely cut off and isolated by society.

Check out the pictures and imagine how much more difficult life must have been there 10 years ago or in the 1960's when the prison was at it's worst.
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Still Here

Despite the lack of activity on this blog, I am still around. I finally got kicked in the backside by some recent reporting that caught my eye. A good read here. Winter may finally be coming to Albania, but articles like that one keep us warm and looking forward to next summer's tourist deluge. Come on down! If it's good enough for Jim Belushi, it's good enough for us.

To make your visit even easier, another el-cheapo connection is now available from Zagreb on Belle Air.

For those of you who speak German, here is an interesting travelogue by a charming, adventurous couple who travelled through Albania with their darling 1-year-old daughter. If you don't spreche any Deutsch, there's lots of cool pictures. Enjoy.
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