Tirana is the capital of Albania and the largest city of this country. Its center is dominated by post-war buildings, between which you can see relics of the past, such as the Ethem Beja mosque or the clock tower.
The city was founded by the Turks in the 17th century and was for a long time one of the many towns on the trade route. It wasn't until the nineteenth century that Christians began to settle here, and in 1920, after Albania's independence, Tirana was elected the capital.
A government complex built in the Italian style and covering one of the parts of the central Skanderbeg Square has survived from the interwar period. In its center stands the equestrian statue of this Albanian hero who belongs to the city's showcases.
The square also has two socialist-realist buildings housing the Culture House and the National Historical Museum. On the facade of the latter you can see a huge mosaic with figures of Albanians from different states. The silhouette of the Ethem Beja mosque emerges from outside the buildings, which is covered with floral polychromes.
In the vicinity of the square there is a short pedestrian zone with houses from the interwar period adapted for restaurants and bars and boulevards on the river Lanë. On the other side of the river you can see the partially ruined Pyramid or the former mausoleum of the Albanian communist leader Enwer Hodży.
