The Albanian countryside.Street in Berat (Gorica to be exact).The veranda at the Ethnographic Museum.View of Mangalem (the north side of Berat), from the Ethnographic Museum.Tiled-rooftop and chimney in Berat.The town seen from Berat Castle.Road, walls, and homes in Berat Castle.A stone building and stone road, blending together.A cannon left on the wall of Berat Castle.The main entrance to Berat Castle.Homes at the top of the castle’s grounds.The Onufri Museum, which was once the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.Street within the castle’s walls.Giant bust of Emperor Constantine, found in Berat Castle.Looking at the valley west of Berat, from the castle walls.The 13th-century AD Byzantine Church of the Holy Trinity, located inside Berat Castle.Looking northwest, from Berat Castle.Looking down on Gorica (on the south side of the Osum River in Berat).Looking east at Berat, toward Mount Tomorr.Flowers found in Berat.Street and an old house in Berat.The Bachelor’s Mosque (built in 1828 AD).The Church of St. Demetrius in Berat.The iconostasis inside the Church of St. Demetrius.The Osum River, Mount Tomorr, and Gorica seen from Gorica Bridge.A cat climbing on a grapevine.The bell tower of the Church of St. Spiridon, which is a church that was built in the early 19th-century AD.Closeup of the houses in Mangalem.The promenade in Berat.A bottle of Albanian dry red wine, made from “Shesh I zi” grapes (the “father” of Cabernet Sauvignon).Berat, seen from the mountain trail.Woods on the side of the mount.Illyrian ruins on top of the mountain south of Berat.Berat seen from the mountaintop with the Illyrian ruins.Olive groves, orchards, and farms.Looking at the valley southwest of Berat.Mangalem at night.The National Historic Museum in Tirana.Closeup of the mosaic on the National historic Museum.The National Theater of Opera and Ballet of Albania, located on Skanderbeg Square.The Clock Tower of Tirana.Et’hem Bey Mosque, which was built in 1823 AD by Haxhi Et’hem Bey.Side view of Et’hem Bey Mosque.George W. Bush Street in Tirana, named in the 43rd President’s honor for his visit to Tirana in 2007 AD.The Albanian Parliament building.Tanner’s Bridge, once part of the Saint George Road that linked Tirana with the eastern highlands.Poster for “Duda and DJ Aldo,” found on the streets in Tirana.Statue of Mother Teresa in front of St. Paul’s Cathedral.Stained-glass window inside St. Paul’s Cathedral.Canal (“Lumi i Lanes”) in Tirana.The “Pyramid of Tirana” – a modern pyramidal-shaped building that was opened in 1988 AD and originally served as a museum dedicated to the late communist leader Enver Hoxha and his legacy.View from the top of the “Pyramid of Tirana.”Looking through one of the slits inside one of the many bunkers found throughout Albania (courtesy of the past communist government).The former residence of Enver Hoxha.Skyscraper being built in Tirana.The Resurrection of Christ Orthodox Cathedral of Tirana.Inside the Resurrection of Christ Orthodox Cathedral of Tirana.Decoration with Skanderbeg’s horned goat helmet, found on one of the Italian Neo-Renaissance government buildings.The National Arts Gallery in Tirana.Italian Neo-Renaissance government buildings located south of Skanderbeg Square.Skanderbeg Square with the equestrian statue of Skanderbeg and Et’hem Bey Mosque and the Clock Tower in the background.Looking back at Tirana while riding the cable car (the “Dajti Ekspres”) up to Mount Dajt.Clearing in the woods on the trail up to Maja e Tujanit.The forest and rocks seen along the trail.Looking west at the sunset and the Adriatic Sea.Mount Dajt, seen from Maja e Tujanit.Looking east at the mountains from Maja e Tujanit Peak.Looking southeast from Maja e Tujanit.Two miniature bottles of Albanian wine (Chardonnay and Riesling).Bottle of Albanian white wine made from Shesh-i-Bardhe grapes (I had this while stuck in Shkodër for the night).
