first sight

We arrived in Tirana early in October 2005. 'Don't go near the dogs', we were told. Some were diseased, others aggressive. We had never lived in a place where dogs roamed the streets so we kept our distance, just in case. But they were all over our street, little packs, sleeping by day, running wild by night. It was hard not to be charmed by them, especially these two, who hung around at the end of our street.

This is the first picture I ever took of the dog who would in time become our Bella. The date was 23 October 2005. To the right is Bella's near constant companion who we would name Dougal.