Religion in Albania

Religion

The 2011 Census had declared the following religious affiliations: 56.7% Islam, 10.03% Roman Catholic, 6.75% Albanian Orthodox, 5.49% Unaffiliated, 2.5% Atheist, 2.09% Bektashi, 0.14% Protestant/Evangelical. The CIA World Factbook gives a distribution of 70% Muslims, 20% Eastern Orthodox, and 10% Roman Catholics.A Pew Research Center demographic study from 2009 put the percentage of Muslims in Albania at 79.9%. In 2009 According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, 38.8% of Albanians are Muslim, 16.1% Orthodox, 16.8% Roman Catholics and Nonreligious 16.6%.According to the US State Department, estimates for active participation in religious services are between 25 and 40%.Gallup Global Reports 2010 shows that religion plays a role to 39% of Albanians, and puts Albania in the list of the 14 least religious countries in the world, with Albania the thirteenth least religious country in the world.

The Albanians first appear in the historical record in Byzantine sources of the late-11th century. At this point, they were already fully Christianised. Christianity was later overtaken by Islam during the centuries of Ottoman rule. After independence (1912) from the Ottoman Empire, the Albanian republican, monarchic and later Communist regimes followed a systematic policy of separating religion from official functions and cultural life. Albania never had an official state religion either as a republic or as a kingdom. In the 20th century, the clergy of all faiths was weakened under the monarchy, and ultimately eradicated during the 1940s and 1950s, under the state policy of obliterating all organized religion from Albanian territories.

The Communist regime that took control of Albania after World War II persecuted and suppressed religious observance and institutions and entirely banned religion to the point where Albania was officially declared to be the world's first atheist state. Religious freedom has returned to Albania since the regime's change in 1992. Albanian Muslim populations (mainly secular and of the Sunni branch) are found throughout the country whereas Orthodox Christians are concentrated in the south and Roman Catholics are found in the north of the country. No reliable data are available on active participation in formal religious services, but estimates range from 25% to 40%.

The first recorded Albanian Protestant was Said Toptani, who traveled around Europe, and in 1853 returned to Tirana and preached Protestantism. He was arrested and imprisoned by the Ottoman authorities in 1864. Mainline evangelical Protestants date back to the work of Congregational and later Methodist missionaries and the work of the British and Foreign Bible Society in the 19th century. The Evangelical Alliance, which is known as VUSh http://www.vush.org/ was founded in 1892. Today VUSh has about 160 member congregations from different Protestant denominations. VUSh organizes marches in Tirana including one against blood feuds in 2010. Bibles are provided by the Interconfessional Bible Society of Albania. The first full Albanian Bible to be printed was the Filipaj translation printed in 1990.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church sent its first missionaries into Albanian territory as early as 1909. Following decades of communist repression, The Albanian Mission of Seventh-day Adventists (http://adventist.al/) was re-established in Tirana in 1992 and has now over 10 churches and groups throughout the country. Its humanitarian wing, theAdventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is renown for being the first humanitarian organization to enter post-communist Albania.

There are about 4,000 active Jehovah's Witnesses in Albania.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or 'Mormons') involvement in Albania began with humanitarian aid during the 1990s. The first missionaries were sent in 1992 with the Albania Tirana Mission being opened in 1996. As of 2008, there were nearly 2,000 members of the LDS church in Albania, spread throughout ten branches with two purpose-built chapels and one Family History Center.

Shkodra Catle

Shkodra

Elbasan

Elbasan

Geography

Geography

Albania has a total area of 28,748 square kilometers. It lies between latitudes 39° and 43° N, and mostly between longitudes 19° and 21° E (a small area lies east of 21°). Albania's coastline length is 611 km (380 mi) and extends along the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. The lowlands of the west face the Adriatic Sea. The 70% of the country that is mountainous is rugged and often inaccessible from the outside. The highest mountain is Korab situated in the district of Dibër, reaching up to 2,753 metres (9,032 ft). The climate on the coast is typically Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and warm, sunny, and rather dry summers.

Inland conditions vary depending on altitude, but the higher areas above 1,500 m/5,000 ft are rather cold and frequently snowy in winter; here cold conditions with snow may linger into spring. Besides the capital city of Tirana, which has 800,000 inhabitants, the principal cities are Durrës, Korçë, Elbasan,Shkodër, Gjirokastër, Vlorë and Kukës. In Albanian grammar, a word can have indefinite and definite forms, and this also applies to city names: both Tiranë and Tirana, Shkodër and Shkodra are used.

The three largest and deepest tectonic lakes of the Balkan Peninsula are partly located in Albania. Lake Shkodër in the country's northwest has a surface which can vary between 370 km² (140 sq mi) and 530 km², out of which one third belongs to Albania and rest to Montenegro. The Albanian shoreline of the lake is 57 km (35 mi). Ohrid Lake is situated in the country's southeast and is shared between Albania and Republic of Macedonia. It has a maximal depth of 289 meters and a variety of unique flora and fauna can be found there, including "living fossils" and many endemic species. Because of its natural and historical value, Ohrid Lake is under the protection of UNESCO. There is also Butrinti Lake which is a small tectonic lake. It is located in the national park of Butrint.

History Of Albania

The history of Albania emerged from the prehistoric stage from the 4th century BC, with early records of Illyria in Greco-Roman historiography. The modern territory of Albania has no counterpart in antiquity, comprising parts of the Roman provinces of Dalmatia (southern Illyricum) andMacedonia(particularly Epirus Nova). The territory remained under Roman (Byzantine) control until the Slavic migrations of the 7th century, and was integrated into the Bulgarian Empire in the 9th century. The territorial nucleus of the Albanian state formed in the Middle Ages, as thePrincipality of Arbër and the Kingdom of Albania. The first records of the Albanian people as a distinct ethnicity also date to this period.

Theth National Park

Theth National Park (Albanian:Parku Kombëtar i Thethit) is a national park in extreme northern Albania declared by government decree in 1966.It covers an area of 2,630 hectares and is located along the Theth River. The main attractions in the park are the Grunas Waterfall and the Lock-in Tower.

Valbonë Valley National Park is adjacent to it and was declared a national park in 1996.It is proposed that the two parks, along with the areas in Montenegro andKosovo form a tri-border Bjeshket e Nemuna National Park.

Places Of Albania T

Places Of Albania

This video clip contains some pictures from all over Albania See the video ...

The Buna River

The Bojana or Buna ( Albanian: Bunë or Buna), is a 41 km long river in Albania and Montenegro which flows into the Adriatic Sea. An outflow of Lake Skadar, measured from the source of the lake's longest tributary, the Morača, the Morača-Lake Skadar- Bojana system is 183 km long.

COURSE

The river in Albania

The river used to be longer, but due to a rise in the level of Lake Skadar, the uppermost part of the river is now under the lake's surface. The river initially flows east, but after only few kilometers reaches the city of Shkodër and turns to the south. On the southern outskirts of the city, the river receives its most important tributary, the Great Drin, the greater part of which became its tributary after changing course during a flood in 1858 and now brings ten times more water than the Bojana itself (320 m³/s). After flowing around the Peak of Tarabosh, it passes through the villages of Zues, Bërdicë, Tarragjat, Oblikë, Obot, Shirq, Dajç and Goricë.

CHARACTERISTICS

Despite being short, the river has quite a large watershed, covering 5,187 km², because the whole drainage area of Lake Scutari, the largest lake in southeastern Europe, is also part of it. Also, thanks to the waters from the Great Drin, the Bojana / Buna ranks second place among all tributaries to the Adriatic, measured by the annual discharge, after the Po in Italy (with 352 m³/s).

The Bojana / Buna is navigable throughout its whole course, depending on the size of your boat.

Adriatic Sea

Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea,  (Albanian: Deti Adriatik, Bosnian, Croatian and Montenegrin: Jadransko more, Italian: mare Adriatico, Slovene: Jadransko morje) is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula and the Apennine Mountains from the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the northwest and the Po Valley. The countries with coasts on the Adriatic are Italy, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, and Slovenia. The Adriatic contains over 1,300 islands, mostly located along its eastern, Croatian, coast. It is divided into three basins, the northern being the shallowest and the southern being the deepest, with a maximum depth of 1,233 metres (4,045 ft). The Otranto Sill, an underwater ridge, is located at the border between the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. The prevailing currents flow counterclockwise from the Strait of Otranto, along the eastern coast and back to the strait along the western (Italian) coast. Tidal movements in the Adriatic are slight, although larger amplitudes are known to occur occasionally. The Adriatic's salinity is lower than the Mediterranean's because the Adriatic collects a third of the fresh water flowing into the Mediterranean, acting as a dilution basin. The surface water temperatures generally range from 24 °C (75 °F) in summer to12 °C (54 °F) in winter, significantly moderating the Adriatic Basin's climate.

The Adriatic Sea sits on the Apulian or Adriatic Microplate, which separated from the African Plate in the Mesozoic era. The plate's movement contributed to the formation of the surrounding mountain chains and Apennine tectonic uplift after its collision with the Eurasian plate. In the Late Oligocene, the Apennine Peninsula first formed, separating the Adriatic Basin from the rest of the Mediterranean. All types of sediment are found in the Adriatic, with the bulk of the material transported by the Po and other rivers on the western coast. The western coast is alluvial or terraced, while the eastern coast is highly indented with pronounced karstification. There are dozens of marine protected areas in the Adriatic, designed to protect the sea's karst habitats and biodiversity. The sea is abundant in flora and fauna—more than 7,000 species are identified as native to the Adriatic, many of them endemic, rare and threatened ones.

The Adriatic's shores are populated by more than 3.5 million people; the largest cities are Bari, Venice, Trieste and Split. The earliest settlements on the Adriatic shores were Etruscan, Illyrian, and Greek. By the 2nd century BC, the shores were under the Roman Republic's control. In the Middle Ages, the Adriatic shores and the sea itself were controlled, to a varying extent, by a series of states—most notably the Byzantine Empire, the Republic of Venice, the Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire. The Napoleonic Wars resulted in the First French Empire gaining coastal control and the British effort to counter the French in the area, ultimately securing most of the eastern Adriatic shore and the Po Valley for Austria. Following Italian unification, the Kingdom of Italy started an eastward expansion that lasted until the 20th century. Following World War I and the collapse of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, the eastern coast's control passed to Yugoslavia and Albania. The former disintegrated in the 1990s, resulting in four new states on the Adriatic coast. Italy and Yugoslavia agreed on their maritime boundaries by 1975 and this boundary is recognised by Yugoslavia's successor states, but the maritime boundaries between Slovenian, Croatian, Bosnian–Herzegovinian and Montenegrin waters are disputed. Italy and Albania agreed on their maritime boundary in 1992.

Fisheries and tourism are significant sources of income all along the Adriatic coast. Adriatic Croatia's tourism industry has grown faster economically than the rest of the Adriatic Basin's. Maritime transport is also a significant branch of the area's economy—there are 19 seaports in the Adriatic that each handle more than a million tonnes of cargo per year. The largest Adriatic seaport by annual cargo turnover is the Port of Trieste, while the Port of Split is the largest Adriatic seaport by passengers served per year.

Village Theth

Village Theth

Entertainment

Entertainment

Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) is the public radio and TV broadcaster of Albania, founded in 1938 in Tirana. RTSH runs three television stations named Televizioni Shqiptar (TVSH, TVSH 2, and TVSH Sat), and three radio stations, using the name Radio Tirana in addition to 4 regional radio stations. The international service broadcasts radio programmes in Albanian and seven other languages via medium wave (AM) and short wave (SW).The international service has used the theme from the song "Keputa një gjethe dafine" as its signature tune. The international television service via satellite was launched since 1993 and aims at Albanian communities in Kosovo, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro and northern Greece, plus the Albanian diaspora in the rest of Europe. RTSH has a past of being heavily influenced by the ruling party in its reporting, whether that party be left or right wing.

According the National Council of Radio and Television (KKRT), Albania has an estimated 257 media outlets, including 66 radio stations and 67 television stations, with three national, 62 local and more than 50 cable TV stations. Last years Albania has organized several shows as a part of worldwide series like Dancing with the Stars, Big Brother Albania, Albanians Got Talent, The Voice of Albania, and X-Factor Albania.

Jezerca Mountain

Jezerca Mountain

Tourism in Elbasan

Tourism in Elbasan

Winter in Berat

Winter in Berat

Gjirokaster Albania

Gjirokaster Albania

Mount Dajt

Mount Dajt

Mount Dajt (Albanian: Mali i Dajtit) is a mountain in central Albania, to the east of Tirana. Its highest peak is at 1,613 m (5,292 ft). In winter, the mountain is often covered with snow, and it is a popular retreat to the local population of Tirana that rarely sees snow falls. Its slopes have forests of pines, oak and beech.

Dajti Mountain declared “National Park” is today an area of about 3333 ha. It is under the jurisdiction and administration of Tirana Forest Service Department.

Flora And Fauna

The big similarity of this park vegetation to that of Central Europe highlands is the first thing that strikes the eye in the stretch characterized by oak forest. Vegetation types found in Dajti National Park are oak forest, pine forest, composed of Balkan pine, found in rocky slopes in the middle of oak forest. While broad-leaved forests appear in the northwest foothills. The plane forest lies along Tirana river. Whereas Mediterranean forest appears in lower heights. The Central Park has a great variety with about 44 species of forest trees and shrubs, which cover about 80% of the territory, herbaceous plants, animals and wild birds, two dominant peaks, the “balconies”, standing on steep rocks, winter snow and a relatively high altitude from sea level, ranging from 300 meters to the highest peak of 1613 meters, in the 4 phyto-climatic areas and a counter direction providing abundance of sunny days, and consequently, a fresher climate and cleaner air than the plateau on which Tirana lies.There are amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Some of these species appear only in limited areas, to be mentioned are several amphibious species that appear in several basins of eastern slope of Priske Mountain. Even Tirana Mountain gorge presents an importance from fauna viewpoint. Birds such as mountain eagle and sparrow hawk build their nest in this area. This habitat represents also a possible area for carnivores as the gray bear and the wolf, which are often found in the area. While rivers of Tirana, Terkuze and Erzeni, where they flow on flat surfaces, are favorable for the growth of many species of fish and vertebrates, and otter, which is threatened throughout Europe. This type is found rarer exemplars in this basin.

Mount Dajti National Park

Mount Dajti National Park (also Dajti/Dajt Mount/Mountain National Park) (Albanian:Parku Kombëtar i Malit të Dajtit or Parku Kombëtar i Dajtit) is situated 26 km east of the capital and 50 km east of Tirana International Airport Mother Teresa. The park has a surface area of 3,300 hectares, is highly frequented by day and considered the 'Natural Balcony of Tirana'.Dajti Mountain together with Priska Mountain (1353m) to the south and Brari Mountain to the North consists of the national park which has an exact coverage area of 29,216.9 hectares.[1] The 3,300 acres (13 km2) protection area was expanded on 21 June 2006 by many more times with the core zone now being 9,000 acres (36 km2). In addition to the forests and beautiful mountain landscapes with many wild flowers, numerous mammals are protected as well. In the park there exist wild boar, eurasian wolf, red fox, European hare, brown bears and wildcats. In the lower part of the mountains the vegetation is scrub determined with much heath, myrtle and fragaria. Oak dominates at around the 1,000 metres altitude zone following with beech forests with some conifers. Perched on the top there is almost no vegetation. Brari Mountain to the north is also part of the protected area located near Brar village and containg the panoramic Brari Canyon, Brari Ottoman Bridge and a cave. One of Tirana's main water sources, Bovilla Lake is located to the northeast of Brar village.

Dajti Mountain can be reached through a narrow asphalted mountain road onto an area known as Fusha e Dajtit. This was the location of a summer camp but now is the site of many restaurants and radio/TV transmitters. From this small area there is an excellent view of Tirana and its plain. This is the reason this place has been named as the Balcony of Tirana. From June 2005, hikers and visitors of the mountain can use an Austrian built gondola lift from the eastern outskirts of Tirana to Fusha e Dajtit (Plain of Dajti) at 1050 meters altitude. On the summit of Mount Dajti there exist several transmitters of radio and television.

Lately, traces of prehistoric settlements and fortifications from later periods have been discovered in the area.

Buthrotum

Buthrotum

Buthrotum (Albanian: Butrint; Latin: Buthrōtum) was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in Epirus.In modern times it is an archeological site in Sarandë District, Albania, some 14 kilometres south of Sarandë and close to the Greek border. It was known in antiquity as Βουθρωτόν (Bouthrōton) or (Βουθρώτιος) Bouthrōtios in Ancient Greek and Buthrotum in Latin. It is located on a hill overlooking the Vivari Channel and part of the Butrint National Park. Inhabited since prehistoric times, Buthrotum was a city of the Greek tribe of the Chaonians, later a Roman colony and a bishopric. It entered into decline in Late Antiquity, before being abandoned during the Middle Ages after a major earthquake flooded most of the city.

HISTORY

Ancient

Bouthroton was originally a town within the region of Epirus. It was one of the major centres of the Greek tribe of the Chaonians, with close contacts to the Corinthiancolony on Corfu. According to the Roman writer Virgil its legendary founder was the seer Helenus, a son of the king Priam of Troy, who had married Andromache and moved West after the fall of Troy. The Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus, as does the Latin poet Virgil, wrote that Aeneas visited Bouthroton after his own escape from the destruction of Troy.

The earliest archaeological evidence of settled occupation dates to between 10th and 8th centuries BC, although some claim that there is earlier evidence of habitation in the 12th century BC.Excavation at Bouthroton has yielded Proto-Corinthian pottery of the 7th century and then Corinthian and Attic pottery of the 6th century, however there are no indications of a prehistoric settlement.The original settlement probably sold food to Corfu and had a fort and sanctuary. Bouthroton was in a strategically important position due its access to the Straits of Corfu. By the 4th century BC it had grown in importance and included a theatre, a sanctuary to Asclepius and an agora. Around 380 BC, the settlement was fortified with a new 870 metres long wall, with five gates, enclosing an area of four hectares.

In 228 BC Buthrotum became a Roman protectorate alongside Corfu and Romans increasingly dominated Buthrotum after 167 BC. In the next century, it became a part of a province of Macedonia. In 44 BC, Caesar designated Buthrotum as a colony to reward soldiers that had fought on his side against Pompey. The local landholder Titus Pomponius Atticus objected to his correspondent Cicero who lobbied against the plan in the Senate. As a result, Buthrotum received only small numbers of colonists.

In 31 BC, Emperor Augustus fresh from his victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the battle of Actium renewed the plan to makeButhrotum a veterans' colony. New residents expanded the city and the construction included an aqueduct, a Roman bath, houses, a forum complex, and a nymphaeum. During that era the size of the town was doubled.

In the 3rd century AD, an earthquakeIn the 3rd century AD, an earthquake destroyed a large part of the town, levelling buildings in the suburbs on the Vrina Plain and in the forum of the city centre. Excavations have revealed that city had already been in decline. However, the settlement survived into the late antique era, becoming a major port in the province of Old Epirus. The town of late antiquity included the grand Triconch Palace, the house of a major local notable that was built around 425. destroyed a large part of the town, levelling buildings in the suburbs on the Vrina Plain and in the forum of the city centre. Excavations have revealed that city had already been in decline. However, the settlement survived into the late antique era, becoming a major port in the province of Old Epirus. The town of late antiquity included the grand Triconch Palace, the house of a major local notable that was built around 425.

In the early 6th century, Buthrotum became the seat of a bishop and new construction included a large baptistry, one of the largest such Paleochristian buildings of its type, and abasilica. The walls of the city were extensively rebuilt, most probably at the end of the 5th century, perhaps by Emperor Anastasius. The Ostrogoths under Indulf raided the Ionian coast in 550 and may have attacked Buthrotum. Evidence from the excavations shows that importation of commodities, wine and oil from the Eastern Mediterranean continued into the early years of the 7th century when the early Byzantine Empire lost these provinces. In this, it follows the historical pattern seen in other Balkan cities, with the 6th to 7th century being a watershed for the transformation of the Roman world into the Early Middle Ages.

By the 7th century, following the model of classical cities throughout the Mediterranean, Buthrotum had shrunk to a much smaller fortified post and with the collapse of Roman power was briefly controlled by First Bulgarian Empire before being regained by the Byzantine Empire in the 9th century.

DIRECTIONS

Butrint is accessible from Saranda, along a road first built in 1959 for a visit by the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. This road is being upgraded during summer 2010. The construction project is something of an environmental catastrophe and may yet threaten Butrint's World Heritage Site status. The ancient city is increasingly becoming a popular tourist destination, attracting day-trippers from the nearby Greek holiday island of Corfu. Hydrofoils (30 minutes) and ferries (90 minutes) run daily between the New Port in Corfu (city) and Saranda. Many visitors from Corfu use chartered coach services to visit Butrint from Saranda, which are often included in tickets to Albania from Corfu, and additionally, a regular public bus service runs between Saranda port and Butrint.

Lezhë Castle

Lezhë Castle

Lezhë Castle (Albanian:Kalaja e Lezhës) is a castle dominating the city of Lezhë, northern Albania. Its highest point is 186 metres high.

The castle originates from Illyrian times. In 1440 it was reconstructed by the Venetians, and in 1522, after the Ottoman conquest, it was also rebuilt by the latter. The castle bears traces of Illyrian, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman architecture. Interesting places to visit are the ruins of the Ottoman buildings inside the castle, the mosque, the tower of the south-eastern wall with a Roman arch, and the Illyrian tower on the southern wall. The Lezha castle is a cultural monument. The castle offers a beautiful view of the Lezha fields and the Adriatic Sea.

Sazani Island

Sazani Island

Mountain Korab

Mountain Korab

Mount Korab (Albanian: Maja e Korabit or Mali i Korabit) is the highest mountain of Albania and the Republic of Macedonia, its peak forming a frontier between the two countries. The peak lies adjacent to the Šar Mountains.

Mount Korab is also pictured in the coat of arms of the Republic of Macedonia.

Geography
The Korab mountain range stretches over 40 kilometers in a north-south direction between the lower section of the Black Drin and its tributary Radika. It is located around the border triangle of Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo, southwest of the mountain Šar Mountains. The Korab is a very rugged mountain massif and consists mainly of shale and limestone of the Paleozoic with block structures, as well as severely damaged gypsum rocks of Permo Triassic . On the west side, the mountain falls steeply over rock walls. The north side consists of craggy rocks. A kind of double peak, that of Korab II 2,756m, which almost reaches the same height, is about 150 meters northwest of the Korab peak within Albanian territory. On the same ridge are two other peaks rising over 2700m, Shulani i Radomires and Korab III. The southeast, stretching from a few rock bands broken meadows to the summit is accessed by very simpley, and occasionally by shepherds with their flocks of sheep.

In addition to the Korab peak there are several other, almost equally high elevations. North of the twin peaks are numerous other nameless, almost equally high rock towers. The peak located about two kilometers southwest, Korab-gate (Maja e Portat Korabit / Korapska Mala vrata) reaches 2727m. A few hundred yards south is another peak Maja e Moravës, which is 2718 meters, with only a little lower.

The peaks are occasionally ruptured by radial tectonics in the shape of blocks that end in the Radika Valley on the Republic of Macedonian side. These blocks occasionally have steep slopes that reach up to 500 m (1,640 ft). In its highest part, above 2,000 m (6,562 ft), the climate is alpine and includes some alpine flora elements. The mountain is home to spectacular Korab Falls in the upper valley of the Dlaboka River. During spring time, the waterfall reaches a height of over 130 meters, which makes it the highest in Macedonia. The state border intersects the higher peak, Great Korab.

Ascent from the Republic of Macedonian side involves entering the Republic of Macedonian-Albanian boundary area, for which a special permit is required from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Macedonia,although people regularly track on Korab without it.

Elbasan Castle

Elbasan castle is a 15th century fortress located in the city of Elbasan, Albania.The castle was initially composed of 26 equidistant 9 m (30 ft) high towers. Part of Via Egnatia passes through the castle.

The castle and its surrounding walls speak of the military significance of Elbasan in the early Ottoman period. The southern wall, more or less intact, is proof of the dimensions and the strength of fortifications. Some of the materials from Roman and Byzantine periods were reused during the reconstruction of the castle by Sultan Mehmet II, as seen especially in the foundations of the south-western tower. The castle used to have 26 towers, equidistant from each other, along the whole length of the 9 metre high wall. The fortress includes part of Via Egnatia, which runs through it, and traditional buildings with the characteristic architecture of urban dwellings, as well as other monuments.

Sinan Pasha's Turkish bath is situated within the walls of the castle. It is a well preserved attraction built in the early 19th century.

Apollonia (Illyria)

Apollonia was an ancient Greek city in Illyria, located on the right bank of the Aous river (modern-day Vjosë). Its ruins are situated in the Fier region, near the village of Pojani, in modern-day Albania. Apollonia was founded in 588 BCE by Greekcolonists from Corfu and Corinth,on a site initially occupied by Illyrian tribes and was perhaps the most important of the several classical towns known as Apollonia. Apollonia flourished in the Roman period and was home to a renowned school of philosophy, but began to decline in the 3rd century AD when its harbor started silting up as a result of an earthquake. It was abandoned by the end of Late Antiquity.

HISTORY

The site of Apollonia lay on the territory of the Taulantii, a cluster of Illyrian tribes that remained closely involved with the settlement for centuries and lived alongside the Greek colonists.The city was said to have originally been named Gylakeia after its founder, Gylax, but the name was later changed to honor the god Apollo.

It is mentioned by Strabo in his Geographica as "an exceedingly well-governed city". Aristotleconsidered Apollonia an important example of an oligarchic system, as the descendants of the Greek colonists controlled the city and prevailed over a large serf population of mostly Illyrian origin. The city grew rich on the slave trade and local agriculture, as well as its large harbour, said to have been able to hold a hundred ships at a time. The city also benefited from the local supply of asphalt which was a valuable commodity in ancient times, for example for caulking ships. The remains of a late sixth-century temple, located just outside the city, were reported in 2006; it is only the fifth known stone temple found in present-day Albania.

Apollonia, like Dyrrachium further north, was an important port on the Illyrian coast as the most convenient link between Brundusium and northern Greece, and as one of the western starting points of the Via Egnatia leading east to Thessaloniki and Byzantium in Thrace. It had its own mint, stamping coins that have been found as far away as the basin of the Danube.

The city was for a time included among the dominions of Pyrrhus of Epirus. In 229 BC, it came under the control of the Roman Republic, to which it was firmly loyal; it was rewarded in 168 BC with booty seized from Gentius, the defeated king of Illyria. In 148 BC, Apollonia became part of the Roman province of Macedonia, specifically of Epirus Nova.In the Roman Civil War between Pompey and Julius Caesar, it supported the latter, but fell to Marcus Iunius Brutus in 48 BC. The later Roman emperor Augustus studied in Apollonia in 44 BC under the tutelage of Athenodorus of Tarsus; it was there that he received news of Caesar's murder.

Apollonia flourished under Roman rule and was noted by Cicero in his Philippics as magna urbs et gravis, a great and important city.Christianity was established in the city at an early stage, and bishops from Apollonia were present during the First Council of Ephesus(431) and the Council of Chalcedon (451). Its decline, however, began in the 3rd century AD, when an earthquake changed the path of the Aoos, causing the harbour to silt up and the inland area to become a malaria-ridden swamp. The city became increasingly uninhabitable as the inland swamp expanded, and the nearby settlement of Avlona (modern-day Vlore) became dominant. By the end of antiquity, the city was largely depopulated, hosting only a small Christian community. This community (which probably is part of the site of the old city) built on a nearby hill the church of Saint Mary, (Albanian: Shën Mëri), part of the Ardenica Monastery.

DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION RESULTS

The city seems to have sunk with the rise of Vlora. It was "rediscovered" by European classicists in the 18th century, though it was not until the Austrian occupation of 1916–1918 that the site was investigated by archaeologists. Their work was continued by a French team between 1924–1938. Parts of the site were damaged during the Second World War. After the war, an Albanian team undertook further work from 1948 onwards, although much of the site remains unexcavated to this day. Some of the team's archeological discoveries are on display within the monastery, known as the Museum of Apollonia (opened in 1958) and other artifacts from Apollonia are in the capital Tirana. Unfortunately, during the anarchy that followed the collapse of the communist regime in 1990, the archeological collection was plundered and the museum was temporarily closed. The ruins were also frequently dug up by plunderers for relics to be sold to collectors abroad.

In December 2011, a new museum opened, under the directorship of Marin Haxhimihali. It replaced an older museum dating from 1985, and was funded by UNESCO's MDG-F Joint Programme ”Culture and Heritage for Social and Economic Development”.

In August 2010, a French-Albanian team of archaeologists unearthed a bust of a Roman soldier, 50 years after the discoveries of other full body statues in the 1958-1960 period expeditions, led by Albanian scholar Selim Islami and Russian Professor Blavatski.

A German-Albanian team has been working on the Hellenistic theatre at Albania, throwing light on the development of Greek theatres and also local variants.

Rodoni Castle

The Rodoni Castle (Albanian:Kalaja e Rodonit) is a castle in Albania.Rodoni Castle is located on Cape of Rodon. After the victorious First Siege of Krujë the League of Lezhë decided to increase the fortifications for use against the Ottoman Empire. Skanderbeg chose the cape of Rodon as the location of the castle and construction began in 1450. The walls of the castle that was completed in c. 1452 had a length of 400m at that time.According to Marin Barleti this castle was destroyed by Ottoman forces in 1467.

In 1500 the castle was rebuilt by the Republic of Venice. As a result of the corrosive action of the sea waves, some of the walls are now under the waters of the Adriatic. Today the visitors can see the outer walls on the right side and the tower at the place they intersect.

Hadrianopolis

Dropull (Albanian: Dropulli; ) is a predominantly Greek-inhabited region in Gjirokastër District, in southern Albania. The region stretches from south of the city of Gjirokastër to the Greek–Albanian border, along the Drinos river. The region's villages are part of the Greek "minority zone" recognized by the Albanian government, in which live majorities of ethnic Greeks. Dropull is divided into two municipalities: Dropull i Sipërm(Upper Dropull) and Dropull i Poshtëm (Lower Dropull).