(For our travel recommendation, see below 👍🏼 And for a good summary on whom we like to host, see the My Home remarks.)

Bienvienito

We are Eric and André, two friends from university and globetrotters from Germany. We travel the world and love to discover new and interesting places and people.

While Eric is currently staying in Tirana with his daughter and might host people, André is out travelling. But sometimes, also Eric is on the road and André takes care of the lovely apartment. Or we just hang out together in Tirana and entertain couchsurfers ... whatever life throws our way.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

For us CS is about the idea that one often has more than enough space at home, which isn't really used however. Not to mention that from 9–6, when at work, it is used even less. So, why not offer all that space to someone that could need it and at the same time have some great interpersonal adventures.

In that sense, if you need a place to simply have a nap, that's fine. If you want to meet and checkout the surrounding, most welcome. If you want share something else: lovely!

Interests

Passionate about music, and interested in human relations.

• reading
• traveling
• guitar
• hiking
• skiing
• rock climbing
• physics

Music, Movies, and Books

Musik: Le Choristes, Boiz Noise, Radiohead, a perfect circle, The XX, Idem, Hellsongs ... singer songwriter, world, jazz, indie

Movies: Eternal sunshine of spotless mind, Lost in Translation, Hidalgo, Moonrise Kingdom, Fight Club, Cowspiracy, The Man from Earth, Interstellar

Bücher: Die Säulen der Erde, Die Tore der Welt, Max Frisch, Sex at Dawn, Utopia for Realists, To Have or to Be, The Emperor Wears No Clothes, Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Eric: Slept in a stone house in a Azerbaijani mountain village "Xhinaliq", where people speak a language only know to that village. Hiking in Altai mountain area in Mongolia.

André: Skydiving in Taupo, New Zealand

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach: some guitar skills, yoga asanas, salat recipes, some nice and mostly vegan/vegetarian meals, English or German

Learn: everything you deem worth passing on

Share: Thoughts

What I Can Share with Hosts

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𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦:

For a great 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗩𝗘𝗟 𝗚𝗨𝗜𝗗𝗘 see: https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Albania

A great 𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗣/𝗔𝗣𝗣 use: OsmAnd (full version free on fdroid: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/net.osmand.plus/ )

Recommendations for 𝗧𝗜𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗔:

The first 5 restaurants under the following link are recommended, authentic and local: https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Tirana#Budget

Bars with locals: My Way (GPS: 41.32107,19.81432), Old House Bar (GPS: 41.32196,19.81473) or Stoa (GPS: 41.33394,19.81608)

Interesting bar/café: Miqtë e Muzikës Live (GPS: 41.32867,19.81337), Agimi (GPS: 41.32264,19.81459), Destil (GPS: 41.33184,19.81769)

Great view: Pyramid (GPS: 41.32300,19.82159)

Largest local market (non-tourist, closes noon): GPS: 41.34125,19.82504

BunkArt 1 (GPS: 41.35156,19.86044): Interesting bunker museum on Albanian history and better than the Bunkart 2 in the centre.

From BunkArt 1 you can also take the cable car to Dajti mountain (~12€), or you can just hike up (~2 h, passing by here: 41.35940,19.90210)

Another good museum: House of Leaves - The Museum of Secret Surveillance (GPS: 41.326474,19.816321)

We personally like Mother Teresa Square (GPS: 41.31786,19.82129) ... but many others would probably send you to Skanderbeg Square.

For a great hike near the city, try reaching this point: 41.29556,19.80897 (GPS) ... It can be reached on foot from the Grand Park within 30-45 min.

Use GoogleMaps for bus navigation. Otherwise, just walk around and have a coffee like the locals do.

For trips 𝗔𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗜𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗔:

A hike to Micekut te Shemerise (GPS: 41.37223,20.03389) near the village Shengjergj. There is also a nice restaurant (though might be closed in winter) in the village and an interesting waterfall (GPS: 41.32915,20.03255).

Shpella e Pellumbasit: An intesting cave, but you need proper shoes and flashlight. GPS: 41.25746,19.96908

Cool and refreshing river pool in nature for a sunny day (with a small hike) — Syri i Ciklopit (GPS: 41.23393,19.98374). Also buses go to the village nearby.

Hot spring and very basic but authentic thermal baths: GPS: 41.12643,20.01653 ... But there is also Llixhat just south of Elbasan, which has many Hot Spring Spa Hotels — recommended: Hotel Boçi (20€/person/night incl. food).

Bovilla Lake: GPS: 41.44713,19.86548 ... Also some hiking and viewpoint at this point.

Cape of Rodon: GPS: 41.58717,19.44503 ... Awesome coast, castle and cape, but an exhausting ride with the car.

Kruja (GPS: 41.51125,19.79285): Mountain city, a little touristy but still great. The hike to the mosque on top of the nearby hill/mountain is definitely recommended.

Great nearby cities are Shkoder and Berat, about 2 h by car from Tirana.

The rest of 𝗔𝗟𝗕𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗔: https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Albania

𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆!

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Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Palestine, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Albania, Australia, Germany, India, Mongolia, Nigeria, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States

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