Land of Eagles

Albania is the least-known and least developed country in Europe. It has a long, rich and troubled past, characterised by unrest and isolationism. Today, very little is known of its people - beyond those who have emigrated to other countries in Europe - and its landscapes have remained virtually untravelled for centuries. Determined to discover the country behind the stereotypes and preconceptions, Robin Hanbury-Tenison and his wife Louella rode across Albania, from Thethi in the north to the border with Greece in the south.
Following in the footsteps of Byron, Edward Lear and Edith Durham they crossed some of the wildest and arrestingly beautiful landscape in Europe. Through soaring mountain ranges and hidden valleys dotted with Illyrian, Roman and Byzantine ruins, they lived simply, staying in the homes of communities untouched by the 21st century and in towns bursting with artistic creativity. They discovered an ancient land, proud and fiercely independent, struggling to emerge from the darkness of repression and poverty and from the shadows of its more popular neighbours.
Land of Eagles is the story of a lyrical and dramatic journey, peppered with adventure, mishap, discovery and unexpected encounters. Adorned with the history, legends and literature of Albania and with the tales of past travellers, it is a luminous portrait of this mysterious and eccentric country, which has for too long been forgotten by Europe.

Robin Hanbury-Tenison, OBE, DL, is the doyen of British explorers. A Founder and President of Survival International, the world's leading organisation supporting tribal peoples, he was one of the first people to bring the plight of the rainforests to the world's attention. He has been a Gold Medalist of the Royal Geographical Society, winner of the Pio Manzu Award, an International Fellow of the Explorers Club, Winston Churchill Memorial Fellow, Trustee of the Ecological Foundation and Fellow of the Linnean Society. Among his many publications are: A Question of Survival, A Pattern of Peoples, The Yanomami, Fragile Eden, The Oxford Book of Exploration, Mulu: The Rain Forest; his two autobiographies: Worlds Apart and Worlds Within and a successful quartet of books about the other long distance rides he and Louella have made across France, China, New Zealand and Spain.

Map
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgements
Albanian Proverbs
From Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by Lord Byron
Author's Note on Albania/Shqiperia
Introduction
1. Durham County
2. Guerilla Country
3. Lear Country
4. Byron Country
Epilogue
Select Bibliography
Index