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Tirana

Capital of AlbaniaTirana lies on the Plain of Tirana in the centre of Albania, between Mount Dajti to the east and a valley to the north that looks out toward the Adriatic Sea.

Why it's the capital

The Ottoman Albanian nobleman Sylejman Pasha Bargjini founded Tirana in 1614, centred on the Old Mosque. On 8 February 1920 the Congress of Lushnjë named it the temporary capital of Albania, and it became the permanent capital on 31 December 1925.

Fun facts

  1. The Et'hem Bey Mosque, built by Molla Bey of Petrela, was completed in 1821.
  2. When Edi Rama was mayor, from 2000 to 2011, he started a project to paint the fronts of the city's buildings in bright colours.
  3. The Pyramid of Tirana opened in 1988 as a museum about Enver Hoxha, the long-time leader of Communist Albania, and was co-designed by his daughter.

Finding it on the globe

Find Albania on the Adriatic coast, just south-east of Montenegro, and tap the middle of the country a little inland from the sea.

Sources: Wikipedia: Tirana, Wikipedia: Pyramid of Tirana, Wikipedia: Geography of Albania