National History Museum
You can't miss the gargantuan mosaic on the museum facade - it represents the development of Albania's history with everyone from Illirians to Partisans represented. Inside, each hall covers one of the stages in the development of the Albanian nation. Beautiful finds from the many archaeological sites across the country include the 4th-century mosaic of a woman from Durrës. One hall focuses on the Second World War and the resistance movements, while the museum ends with the 'Pavilion of Communist Terror', a harrowing exhibition about Albania's prison and labour camp system and the thousands of men and women who were swallowed by it. Unfortunately most texts are in Albanian, so bring a translator, or at least have a look at the photos of the show trials, the bloodied shirt of a man shot while trying to escape across the border in 1990, and a reconstructed prison cell. The museum shop has a good selection of books and traditional crafts.
Admission 200 lek.
Mount Dajti
Throughout your stay in Tirana, the glowering, dark-hued face of Mount Dajti will be tempting you with the promise of fresh air. It's easy to scale the mountain, either by taking the Dajti Ekspres cable car, or by drivingup to the national park. rewards include fantastic vistas, lovely forests and several good restaurants.
Going by road, take Rruga Dibrës, which eventually snakes around the contours of the mountain. 15km or so up the road is the gate to the park (small fee payable). There is little information available about the park and although it is a wonderful location for walking there are no organised trails or paths. The park extends to the summit from this point, consisting for the most part of deciduous and evergreen forest.
Approximately 3km from the park entrance is a small turning to the left. 500m down a rough dirt track is Fshati Turistik Paradise (17km from Tirana, tel. +355 223 63 93). Perched overlooking the valley, this is a collection of utilitarian wooden huts with two beds and a shower each. At the centre of the establishment is a good rustic restaurant hosted with hearty good humour by your host Sulejman.
About one kilometre further up the road is the Gurra e Perrisë fish restaurant, and 200 metres further lies the Panorama hotel and restaurant complex. The road continues to ascend past a couple more establishments until it comes to a large grassy plateau beside the top station of the Dajti Express cable car which is the traditional destination for school-parties and weekending locals. Note that the top of the mountain is a military area and is home to radio, TV and NATO masts.
Et'hem Bey Mosque
Perhaps the only real sight in Tirana, this pretty mosque is right on the city's main square, making it hard to miss. Construction of the 'Xhamia e Haxhi Ethem Beut' mosque started in 1794 and was finished in 1821 by Et'hem Bey (who evidently got all the credit). Closed under communist rule, the mosque reopened as a house of worship in 1991 without permission from the authorities. 10,000 courageous people dared to attend and remarkably the police did not interfere. The event was a milestone in the rebirth of religious freedom in Albania. Take a look at the frescoes outside and in the portico which depict trees, waterfalls and bridges - motifs rarely seen in Islamic art. Take your shoes off before entering.
Skanderbeg Square
Tirana’s main square, Sheshi Skënderbej, is a vast traffic circle where you‘ve got to dodge cars careening around the central lawn. The square was large even before World War II, but the Communists made it absolutely massive (and in the process, cleared away an old bazaar).
Started in 1958, the pompous Palace of Culture was built with Soviet assistance. But when Albanian-Soviet relations deteriorated, the chief Soviet engineer on the project gathered up all the blueprints and left the country. Chinese experts had to be called in to finish the job. Today this building contains the Opera and the National Library.
The mosaic on the facade of the National History Museum represents the flow of Albanian history. The Puppet Theater has a surprising past: before World War II, it housed King Zog‘s puppet parliament. Other sights here include the imposing red-brick National Bank, the Et‘hem Bey Mosque and Skanderbeg's statue.
As part of a complete makeover of Tirana’s city centre, the square was recently reconstructed, with the construction of some 80m-high buildings optimistically planned for the western edge to accentuate the core of the city.
