Port 56 Durres, Albania

by Ed · April 29, 2022

Pershendetje! Dobro utro also works!

We arrived in Durres on Easter Sunday,Apr 24th, 2022, under overcast and chilly skies.

There were many interesting items in town visible from the ship. Here’s one of them – it appears to be a space signal receiving dish! Or is it a roof over something? It doesn’t show up in Google Maps.

There is this an interesting set of restaurants on the waterfront.

We have excursions today. Joy is going on a short trip to Kruja (crew-yah). I have a longer excurion that takes me to the towns of Tiranja (Tih-rahn-yah) and then to Kruja. First I head south to Tiranja to take a walking tour.

This is the neatest graffiti I have seen in a long time!

And this is the saddest and most appreciated graffiti I have ever seen.

Tiranja has some really bizarre buildings! I love the flare and painting of this one!

This is a government building! Pretty cute, huh? The sun tries to break through the clouds a little bit, so the shadows become sharper!

In the government complex is a “pillbox” similar to bunkers all over Albania – remnants of World War II. In this case it is an entrance for a museum honoring the fallen from the war.

It is approaching Easter! There are signs all along the road wishing everyone Happy Easter!

I was fortunate to watch this sweet moment unfold in front of me!

We arrived at a very small mosque. This is the Et’hem Bej Mosque. This one is interesting because it has a glass exterior around the actual mosque!

We pull off our shoes and step inside. This one is beautifully painted! Unlike the Turkish mosques that revelled in beautiful tile, this one revels in beautiful, articulate paintings! This mosque did not appear to have a separate area for women or for distinguished visitors.

On our way to the next stop we pass a plza with this impressive statue! This is Gjergj Kastrioti, George Castrioti, better known as Skenderbeu to the locals, Skanderbeg to visitors. We’ll visit a museum highlighting him in Kruja.

This plaza was setting up for an open air opera performance! On a nearby building this panner was hanging. Our tour guide, Erjan, took a moment to explain why this banner repesents the history of Albanians. On the far left it shows the early wars with the Romans and Etruscans and Arabs, moving into a more refined times, leading to the World Wars in the middle, and the Freedom Fighters on the far right who worke so hard to get Albania out from under communist rule.

Leaving the plaza we see a beautiful carousel underneath a new building that appears to be as unique as the others we have seen!

Next we arrive at a very new, sleek Orthodox church. This is the Cultural Center of Orthodox Church. The bell tower soars beautifully! Scaffolding is being taken down after what was apparently an Easter Sunday street ceremony this morning. But we were still greeted with TV cameras on the steps as we entered the church!

Inside the church is somewhat crowded, half with people sitting and half with visitors milling around. Only about half of the people were masked, so I treaded carefully! But it is worth finding a path to the center for photographs! Stunning design, finishes, and paintings!

We depart for an hour’s drive to Kruja, built on the foot of the mountains!

The view from the city of Kruja is fabulous! Sweeping views out to the Adriatic Sea!

Our first top here is for lunch! We are at the Hotel Panorama. A music and dance troupe is here to entertain us! These are the musicians!

These are the dancers! Four beautiful young ladies! (You only see a foot of the fourth lady in back.)

And two gentleman singers! They all appeared to have fun, and engaged us to help sing a song by shouting “Opa!” and “Heidi!” at the right spots during the chorus! People were invited to dance! The food was excellent and everyone appeared to have a good time!

Then we headed uphill to the castle above! Our target is actually the tan structure inside the castle walls.

The entrance through the castle wall shows how thick the wall is! I estimate about 8 meters at this point!

We arrive at the Skanderbeg Museum! Remember that name?

We are greeted at the entrance by Skanderbeg and his army. Formidable!

Skanderbeg’s profile is strong, and his helmet is unique!

Here is the helmet!

The museum is filled with grand murals depicting his highlights! This is the crucial battle that united Albania! Skanderbeg is in the center on the white horse.

Back at the ship, we receive a gentle tug away from the pier.

As we clear the breakwaters and the pilot disembarks, the tugs break off and turn to go back.

The port of Durres falls away. This was our second visit to Albania, and I think I learned more about the people on this one than the previous trip. I really enjoyed this excursion!