I am making my final arrangements before I fly to Albania this afternoon to join my new colleagues from the Via Egnatia Foundation in Durres. On 30th April we will start the walk. There will be over twenty five of us starting which will make for an excellent time. All the nations of the road itself are represented – Albania, Macedonia, Greece, and Turkey – as well as those from close to the route from Bulgaria, Slovenia and Croatia. We have a good representation of Dutch, British and Americans.
We are all entering into the unknown. We have to build the group and make sure that our mules and donkeys behave! The route of the road is not so well known so I guess we will be doing some work to try to clarify it and map it a little better. Such a diverse group of people are bound to come up with ideas for the future: archeological work; cultural endeavours; long distance footpath development etc.
As and when we find internet access I hope to keep you posted on news as we make our steady way towards Byzantium!