[Apr. 2024] On the way back to the capital, Tirana, during a tour of Albania, we stopped off in Durres, a large coastal town.
This wasn’t on the itinerary.
Our guide was very service-minded.
It’s famous for its 10km beach and ruins, but to be honest, it’s not a beautiful town at all.
What particularly caught my eye was the tangled electric wires.
It’s as amazing as in Vietnam.
The houses are built in a chaotic fashion, there’s a lot of traffic, and it’s not a town I’d want to walk around in, but it was good to see the main points on the tour.
The highlight of the town is the Roman amphitheatre.
It’s said to be the largest in the Balkans, but our guide, Giorgio, said, “The only other one is in Croatia.”
It was built in the first half of the 2nd century AD and was originally able to accommodate 15,000 to 18,000 people.
It is located in the middle of the town and was previously buried underground, but one day in 1966, one of the arches collapsed, creating a hole.
Apparently, the ruins were discovered when a local resident’s dog got into the hole.
That’s why the surrounding area is full of houses.
Perhaps the houses on top of the ruins were evicted.
I heard somewhere that the construction of the underground railways doesn’t progress at all because ruins come out wherever you dig (I remember thinking back, it was in Sofia, Bulgaria), and I guess it’s the same around here.
After walking around the ruins, we came out onto the main street.
The central square of this town was designed by an Italian.
And, following the example of Italy, where there is always a church in one corner of the square, the mosque was also designed.
You can tell it’s a mosque because of the minaret, but otherwise it would look like a theatre.
There is also a real theatre on another side of the square.
Apparently, ballet performances are also held here, and the performance sign said Sleeping Beauty.
I’ve never heard of ballet in Albania, I wonder what it’s like.
Beyond the square, we could see the remains of a Roman Forum.
We didn’t go, but according to our guidebook, the town also has a worthwhile archaeological museum.
So if the townscape could be tidied up a bit more, it would surely become a good tourist destination in the future.
