18) TIRANE - TIRANA, ALBANIA

TIRANA is the capital of Albania, a country that saved all its Jews and welcomed and sheltered those from surrounding countries during the Holocaust.

ALBANIA is the second poorest European country after Moldavia. There is 17% unemployment.

It's lush and green and mountainous. However only 2% of the land is being cultivated.

Cattle, goats, apples, mineral resources mined, hydro-power created. Albanian Mafia abounds in Italy.

Health care is free, private medical practices are only starting now. Education is free.

Military service is compulsory for men; women can volunteer.

             On the way to Tirana.

Bunkers are strong concrete, domed structures that abound. Dictator, Enver Hoxha created them in case of attack. He also had all the borders closed.

"During the nearly forty-year leadership of Communist ruler Enver Hoxha of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania, over 700,000 bunkers were built in the country – one for every four inhabitants. The bunkers (Albanian: bunkerët) are still a ubiquitous sight in Albania, with an average of 24 bunkers for every square kilometre of the country.

Hoxha's programme of "bunkerisation" resulted in the construction of bunkers in every corner of Albania, from mountain passes to city streets. They had little military value and were never used for their intended purpose during the years of Communist rule (1945–1990). The cost of constructing them was a drain on Albania's resources, diverting them away from more pressing needs, such as dealing with the country's housing shortage and poor roads.

The bunkers were abandoned following the collapse of communism in 1990. Most are now derelict, though some have been reused for a variety of purposes including residential accommodation, cafés, storehouses and shelters for animals or the homeless. A few briefly saw use in the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s." (Wikipedia)

The twin-headed eagle features on the Albanian (and other nearby countries') flags. Headlights on cars are on all the time.

Roof gardens in sight are vineyards many on the flat roofs of homes. All the houses sport lush, productive gardens.

Tirana town centre. The mayor, Edi Rama, an artist, has the exteriors of houses painted in colours, spots and trees etc making for a colourful, crazy town. Can't wait to see this! Right up my alley.

Tirana has changed quickly in the last decade as tourism grows.

    Cone-shaped hay stacks.

Population Albania - 3 million; Tirane-1 million.

    An example of the mayor's artwork.

"Designed by Enver Hoxha's daughter and son-in-law and completed in 1988, this monstrously unattractive building was formerly the Enver Hoxha Museum, and more recently a convention centre and nightclub. Today, covered in graffiti and surrounded by the encampments of Tirana's homeless, its once white marble walls are now crumbling but no decision on whether to demolish or restore it appears to have yet been reached. Inside it's sometimes open for temporary exhibits, for which it's a surprisingly great venue." (lonely planet.com)

         THE UNKNOWN PARTISAN

        HOTEL ROGNER has a garden!

Our hotel called Rogner is central and has a large garden. View from my room.

On arrival in Tirana, our Shalom Balkans group shares an extraordinary dinner at a restaurant where all the food supplied comes from the owner's farm.

The hotel garden is a great oasis to relax in after the next day's exploring. (See blog post no 20.)