Sunday, November 25, 2007

Selita e Vogel Hills

































Selita e Vogel Hills are situated in the southern part of the city of Tirana.
Roads to get there are muddy but it is worth to visit them.
They are small hills, clay and sandstone composed but covered with a lush vegetation of mostly chestnut, oak and olive.
If you get caught in the rain, don't worry; there are always bunkers and tunnels left by the army where you can take refuge :)

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Boza, a special Balkan drink


Boza, a traditional Turkish health drink especially consumed during the winter months, is currently attracting Europeans to Bulgaria, not for health reasons but esthetics: Boza is known to enlarge women's breasts. After Bulgaria's accession to the European Union, customs duties on the drink were abolished and according to the Ananova News Agency, European men are rushing to Bulgaria to buy boza as a gift for their partners because it is cheaper than before.

Boza is a new trend in EU bars and shops and Bulgaria has an efficient marketing strategy to promote the drink with a 900-year history. Boza is consumed a lot in Turkey, especially on cold days, because of its warming effect. Forth generation member of the Vefa family, Sadık Vefa and owner of Turkey's boza shop, Vefa Boza founded in 1876 did not confirm the breast boosting effect of boza but added that if boza did have that effect I would have noticed the changes to my mother. However, he explained to the TDN the various health benefits of boza, which is fermented wheat flour and yeast and a brother of beer.

Boza contains four types of vitamin A and B and vitamin E. During the fermentation process it produces lactic acid, which helps digestion. Vefa said that it is the first time he had heard about the breast growing effect but it is known that boza augments the milk production of pregnant women. Dr. Savaş Çömlek told the TDN that boza could raise the level of prolactin hormones that help milk production and that's why breasts can enlarge. He added that strawberries are also known to make breasts increase in size. There is good news especially for women. Uludağ University's Food Engineering department is working on a light boza, which will be on market shelves soon.Albania is another country where boza is a famous drink especially in the groceries.

Boza in Albania is produced mainly from maize and a small portion of wheat. You can find boza in many groceries of Albania's capital, Tirana, where the most famous boza mark is the Pacara one.
For more information on Albanian boza, check this webpage: www.pacaraboza.com