Albania, Fier to Vlore to Himare

After leaving Fier, we headed south towards Vlore.

The former dictator Enver Hoxha had around 700,000 bunkers built all over the country for defence. They can be seen everywhere. Many are just for one soldier, but this one we visited, which is now lived in by a man, was meant for 7 soldiers.

Artillery bunkers -

North of Vlores is the Nartes (Narta) lagoon and a salt factory. The lagoon drains to the sea and is situated within the boundaries of the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape. It is an important site for birds and plants.

There are 2 islands in the lagoon, one is connected by a wooden walkway and is home to a 13th. c. monastery.

Looking  back towards the monastery -

Vlore is an old capital of Albania, before the capital was moved to Tirana to be more central. The modern part of town is undergoing new developments. Sadly the palm trees are dying from a disease

We went to Flag's Square, the main plaza in Vlorë, dedicated to the Albanian Declaration of Independence. Independence Monument -

Muradie Mosque, built between 11th and 13th century -

We then went up a hill to see the view and the Baktashi temple, and then back down to the Museum of Independence, where we were filmed for Albanian TV - see separate blog. After we went to the modern esplanade for a coffee.

From Vlore we followed the coast to Orikum, where the road turns inland and goes up and over the mountains to Llogara National Park. We stopped for lunch at one of the highest points and it was cold and cloudy. Coming down the other side, the clouds lifted at times

We went through some small villages that are being restored by the PM

We then spent a couple of nights in Himare (Himara). The town has an ethnic Greek community. The beach was deserted in October

The next day we went up into the mountains behind the town. We went by jeep. For most of the way to Pilur, there is a brand new road just a few weeks old.

 Himare town -

A roadside shrine

Pilur is 700 m above sea level and sits on a bare mountain face at the start of plateau level. There are lovely views over the Riviera. It is described as the balcony over the coast. The village is apparently busy in the tourist season. The people are Greek Orthodox and date back to the 15th c. They keep animals as there is little arable land. We stopped in the village square for a coffee and sat under the old tree

 Lunch -

That evening we were lucky enough to have a 'private' performance by one of Albania's leading polyphonic singers, Katina Beleri. See more on my blog Albania polyphony.

The next day we visited Himare Castle

 Church in the castle -

From Himare we headed back south to Sarande.

Albania - Saranda to Fier

I was on a tour of southern Albania in Oct 2018. We started in Saranda, which to my amazement is full of high rise buildings. Apparently in August it is absolutely packed with tourists. By Oct there were hardly any, thank goodness! Even more tourists go to the nearby Ksamil.

We went up a hill to Lekursi Castle and had great views over Saranda and the Ionian Sea and the mountains behind the town.

Albania has no official religion. In 2011 the census showed a majority of Muslims (58.79%), which include Sunni (56.70%) and Bektashi Muslims (2.09%); Christians 16.92% , including Roman Catholics (10.03%), Orthodox (6.75%) and evangelical Protestants (0.14%); Atheists accounted for 2.5% of the population and 5.49% were non-affiliated believers.  A mosque in Saranda -

Our next stop was a graveyard at Mesopotam. Many of the graves have photos of the deceased and I was surprised to see Muslim graves alongside Orthodox and Christian ones.

Adjacent is St. Nicholas Monastery Church, an abandoned Orthodox monastery of Saint George built around 1224. It is undergoing renovation. See Wikipedia entry.

Our next destination was Blue Eye and as our 52 seater coach couldn't get there on the rough track, we transferred to cars. Blue Eye is a deep spring, said to be 45 m deep. Apparently during Communist times only the elite were allowed to visit. Looking down on the spring -

Some crazy Canadians jumping in, despite the "no jumping, no swimming" signs!

We then headed for lunch. After passing a flock of goats, I ordered fried meat for lunch, which was kid

As with most Albanian meals, there was no veg, just a basket of bread.

That evening we stayed in the World Heritage town of  Girokaster.

The next day we drove alongside the Drino river which merged with the Vjosa. We stopped at the small town of Tepelena as Ali Pasha was born here. Ali Pasha of Tepelena was one of the most powerful autonomous Ottoman provincial rulers and we heard a lot about him on the trip! His statue -

We stopped at Fier for coffee. It is/was an important industrial city with oil, bitumen and chemical industries, but these were abandoned after the end of Communism, around 1991. Many people migrated. Today the town has colourful buildins but that's about all!

The river Seman in the town centre. There are plans to beautify it -

Our next visit was the Byzantine Ardenica monastery, near Kolonje. The monastery is thought to have been founded in the 13th or 14th c. Then there were additions, followed  by a major earthquake in the 17th c. There were more renovations. After the fall of Communism, in 1992 an Orthodox church took possession of the monastery and today there are just 3 monks. See more on Wikipedia.

 Frescoes in the church -

Entrance to the monastery -

After lunch we went to the archaeological site Apollonia, near Fier. Apollonia started as a Greek colony in the 6th c. BC and became one of the most important cities in the Adriatic Basin. It was first investigated by archaeologists in the 1920s, mostly by the Frenchman Leon Rey. It is now on the UNECSO tentative list. 

The city flourished and expanded during the 4th c. AD. Only a small part of it is thought to have been excavated.

The main centre has many important buildings. This is the Bouleuterion, the seat of the Boulea or City Council. Built in the 2nd c. AD and restored in 1976 -

Facing the Bouleuterion is the Odeon, where cultural and musical events were held, as well as official meetings. Only the important people were allowed here. It held 300 people in 16 rows, built in Greek style with Roman construction technique -

A restored storehouse, near the water tank area -

The medieval monastery was built in the 12th with materials taken from the ancient monuments of the city

The museum is also housed here. 

See UNESCO leaflet and park map.