From Out of Nowhere
We expected to simply pass through Albania during the Balkan leg of our trip. The neighbourhood known as Blloku in the capital, Tirana, surprised us with its modernity, bar and cafe culture, an d buzzing lifestyle. Nearby, public green space was available for the more active citizens. A mix of shaded forest with trails, farmland, and an immense artificial lake, Grand Park offered a place for thousands of locals to run, walk, cycle, exercise, and picnic.
It was surprising then, to learn that the country had only begun to emerge from an isolated Communist state in 1985. Communism finally collapsed in 1992, but the newly optimistic population was swept up by a pyramid scheme, and its inevitable failure led to riots and a civil war in 1997. Since then, the country has been finding its feet, obtaining NATO membership and more recently vying to be part of the EU. Our admiration and fondness for the country and its progress grew from out of nowhere.
On a cycling ride along Lake Shkodra, and during a hike in the mountains of Valbona, we spotted small concrete bunkers, overgrown and graffitied, never fulfilling their destiny of repelling the invaders that the propaganda warnings described. Over 173,000 bunkers were built during Hoxha's paranoid regime, but the most interesting of them are the two multi-storied anti-nuclear bunkers in Tirana, converted into war museums, Bunk'Art 1 and Bunk'Art 2.
The horrors of those days are still fresh for the people in Albania, but there is a sense that by removing the covers from the pro-Communist statues stored behind the museum, the future generations will be reminded of the stories they were told by their parents and grandparents.
It was surprising then, to learn that the country had only begun to emerge from an isolated Communist state in 1985. Communism finally collapsed in 1992, but the newly optimistic population was swept up by a pyramid scheme, and its inevitable failure led to riots and a civil war in 1997. Since then, the country has been finding its feet, obtaining NATO membership and more recently vying to be part of the EU. Our admiration and fondness for the country and its progress grew from out of nowhere.
Bunker by Lake Shkodra that we found during a bike ride.
On a cycling ride along Lake Shkodra, and during a hike in the mountains of Valbona, we spotted small concrete bunkers, overgrown and graffitied, never fulfilling their destiny of repelling the invaders that the propaganda warnings described. Over 173,000 bunkers were built during Hoxha's paranoid regime, but the most interesting of them are the two multi-storied anti-nuclear bunkers in Tirana, converted into war museums, Bunk'Art 1 and Bunk'Art 2.
The horrors of those days are still fresh for the people in Albania, but there is a sense that by removing the covers from the pro-Communist statues stored behind the museum, the future generations will be reminded of the stories they were told by their parents and grandparents.
Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
- George Santayana
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