Tirana

It was my first and probably the last visit in Tirana. I don't mean that I'm disappointed, but my expectations were totally different. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that my trip to Tirana had a lot of benefits in terms of life experience, but in the same time it wasn't such a captivating place for me. In my opinion it's just an ordinary city, so I'd like to mention only two monuments I visited. 

The first one is a pyramid, nowadays used for example as an international cultural center. Its structure was designed by the daughter of  a former Albanian communist dictator. It was created as a museum in his honour, to keep his legacy alive (in other words for example: forced-labor camps, frequent political executions or secret police). 

I think that it's so ugly. The worst of it is that it's still standing and starting to crumble. It looks abandoned and its surface is covered with graffiti, but on the one hand it has its 'symbolic' meaning (no matter how dark its history is). Not to mention that it was a great expense in times of widespread poverty. The goverment doesn't know what to do about that fact, so the debate continues and the pyramid still stands.

I was also in a mosque. It was my second or third visit in such a place, but this time it was a strange experience. There were no separated areas for tourists. I had to have all skin and hair covered and take off my shoes. What's more, there were separate entrances to the mosque for men and women. Then, inside, as a woman, I wasn't allowed to stay in the main prayer hall, because it was dedicated only for men. There were an isolated prayer area for women and children (as the man said - for provides them some privacy). It was really, let's say, interesting to observe Muslim prayers.