As a famous saying went: geography was the stage of history, and people were the actors upon it.
The map of twentieth-century Albania differed greatly from ancient times. For instance, during the era of Epirus in 168 BC, Albania still possessed territory on the "heel" of Italy, and Kotor Bay likewise lay within its borders.
Georgiana had her maid prepare bathwater for her and scatter rose petals across its surface. The bone-deep chill eased somewhat in the hot water, but that only made her realize how cold her heart was, as though even the water had turned cold because of it.
She rested her head against the edge of the tub. In Slavic fairy tales, there were wandering wizards believed to possess special abilities. Around the Carpathians, it was said that they could control storms and rain, even ride dragons through the clouds. As they wandered, they imparted knowledge and sought students.
Those "witches" were supposedly taltos, mediums from Hungarian legend who could communicate with the world of the living and the "other world." In truth, they had followed the words of a wandering wizard and performed a sacrifice to a "snake-dragon" beside ancient ruins.
As the name suggested, a snake-dragon was a dragon that looked very much like a snake. It was widely known in Hungary, but unlike evil dragons, it was not something dragon slayers sought to destroy.
Legend said it could bring good fortune and prosperity to an entire family. Conversely, if it was killed or disturbed, misfortune would descend.
Snake-dragons often helped learned midwives and doctors. Apollo represented medicine because of his son Asclepius, who had a snake coil around his staff. Thus, the "single-snake staff" came to represent medicine.
But in that region, learned was not a favorable word. Or rather, people believed that learned