Two weekends ago, I made my first visit to Berat, a city in south-central Albania. It is an ancient city (founded in 341 B.C. according to one Mr. Wikipedia) that was built in a river valley between two high mountains. Some of its older sections have been beautifully preserved- amazingly well preserved, in fact, by Albanian standards. For a variety of reasons- most of them probably tied directly to Enver Hoxha- very few Albanian cities have a well preserved historical component, despite the impressive age that many can boast.
That was a surprising and slightly disappointing discovery to make when I arrived in the country, but after enough time passed, I learned to set aside my expectations of historical European refinement and accept the slightly haphazard modern development that defines Albania. It isn't uncommon to hear visitors comment on the conditions (one well-traveled visitor remarked that the style of development here reminded him more of countries in Africa than any that he had seen in Europe), but I really hadn't given it much thought for the last few months.
Until I visited Berat. As I walked from the historical section of the city back to the modern side, I couldn't help but wonder how people were able to replace such beautiful places with development that, if not ugly, is simply forgettable. The care that was taken in the construction of older cities is often plainly evident even today- in Berat, it is seen in the careful terracing of the buildings, its lines of uniform windows, the white walls, and the tile roofs. It is a place to live, but it is also a place to love.
The new cities, on the other hand, were seemingly built with no purpose in mind beyond functionality. The components of these areas are no different than the old cities- homes, stores, businesses, restaurants, roads- but the fabric that holds them together is completely different.
This is just the city planner in me talking now, but I am more convinced now than ever that the importance of the design of a city cannot be discounted. A city should not be reduced to its component parts in the way that so many 20th century planners and architects seemed to think. It cannot be explained with tidy tables and numbers, but I believe that we as humans have an innate appreciation of beauty and design and we rob each other of something very important if we make ourselves live our day to day lives in places that give no regard to either.
If you were to visit Albania and never set foot inside a building, you could be excused of thinking that Albanians are a careless and messy group of people. I barely even flinch anymore when I see someone on the sidewalk in front of me throw their finished bag of snacks on the ground- even when a trash can awaits 20 feet down the road. Public structures- trash cans, benches, signs, etc- are often vandalized or outright destroyed. Buildings- which usually have a dirty or unfinished facade in the first place- are usually marked with graffiti. All in all, it doesn't set your expectations regarding what awaits you inside the buildings very high.
That is why it is surprising when you do go inside and find warm and inviting environs. Homes are usually kept spotless and are filled with comfortable furniture and, if they can be afforded, lavish decorations.
It is a very odd and distinct contrast. How can people that give so much value to order and cleanliness in one part of their life give so little regard to it in the other? There are surely many facets to that answer, but I can't help but wonder if people would start caring more about the public space if there was simply more to care about. Little consideration was given to the people that would be living there when they were being built and they, in turn, return little consideration in its care.
Not my picture, sadly. But it is from Pogradec and is a pretty good example of what you can expect to find as you walk through the city itself.
Hmm. Well, that was a much longer tangent than I thought that it was going to be. What I originally meant to say is that Berat was very beautiful and you should visit it if you're ever around these parts. Just make sure you find a trash can when you are finished with your candy wrapper, please.
