In the middle of the night (2:30 am) there is a heavy thunderstorm at the campground. I put my clothes on so that I can react immediately if necessary.
I fear hail for which the tent isn't made. But it remains raining, no hail, and the tent keeps water-proof. After two hours I can continue sleeping.
The dutch owner of the campground serves an excellent breakfast. I can recommend this campground in any case.
He explains the way to Lezhe to me, but I must have missed an important turnoff. I come to Lezhe, but on an adventurous track.
Then: highway without alternative. A boy beside the road who sells cherries and speaks English tells me that it is possible to use the highway by bike. He points to his bicycle at the side and says that he has used the highway too.
I dare it. After a short time I see a cyclist coming towards me! After a while even a car drives on the right side against the regular direction. Obviously they understand the term highway in a different way. In any case I'm glad that I can use it. Otherwise I wouldn't have found the way via the villages.
While taking a short break the Italian group passes by. They also use the "highway".
I try to catch up to them, but without baggage and with racing bikes they are faster than me, and I don't see them any more.
In Durres I'm just studying the map when a young Albanian men talks to me. He comes from Germany and owns a call center. He invites me for a short talk in a cafe. But he is smoking, and after a short time I get going again.
I go on via another "highway" to Lushne. Here I take the route through the city to see something different than the autobahn. Every few meters there is a "Kafe Bar" which are all well visited. But everyone is smoking, and I don't like to join them.
All the time there are rain showers, and automatically I put on and off the rain cover. Some roads are completely flooded.
When a new shower begins, I suddenly can't change the gear any more. I stop at a roofed gasoline station and change the damaged gear cable which takes some time. After that the rain is over, and I can go on.
The tailwind helps to go foreward. There is no campground nearby, so I stop in Fier at a simple hotel. The room is good, has a hot shower, and the son of the owner speaks English and translates. His brother is studying medicine in Germany.
Now it is not far to the Greek border. Perhaps I'll be there tomorrow.