The Blue Eye spring – Syri I Kalter in Albanian – is part of a protected nature area called the Blue Eye National Monument. During the Communist era, the Blue Eye spring and its surrounding scenery were out of bounds to ordinary people and reserved for only party politicians.

The park around the Blue Eye includes a lake, a bridge, a rocky path and mountain scenery. The beautiful spring lies at the top end of the park, and is the source of the lake and the clear blue river that flows from it.

Unfortunately the Blue Eye does get crowded. Unlike everywhere else I visited in Albania, at the Blue Eye we had to queue up to take photos and it was hard to find a spot where people weren’t crowding around. One of the reasons for this that the Blue Eye is very small – the pupil of the eye itself is only about 2 metres across, and it’s easy to access because the main car park is so close to the spring. Another factor is that the Blue Eye seems to be on coach tour itineraries. I saw several coaches visiting the Blue Eye – a sight I didn’t see anywhere else in Albania.

Despite the area being busy with tourists though, I was so happy to visit the Blue Eye. It is unique, and an amazing natural phenomenon.

The wonder of the swirling Blue Eye, where cold pure water bubbles up seemingly from the Earth’s core, is mystical and magical. When I looked at it, I found I could pretty much block out all the people around and the noise they were making, because the Eye itself is so intense, beautiful and wonderful.