VLORA, June 6 /ATA- By Harilla Koçi/ The Historic Center, otherwise called the Old Vlora, revitalized through a joint project of the Albanian-American Development Fund (AADF) and the Albanian Government, has already become an attraction for visitors.
This space of multiple values, encapsulates watersheds in the history of the city and the nation as well as traditional architecture.
The constructions in this area, through the process of selective restoration and as a whole, represent real values in architecture, materialized in the XIX and XX centuries, in the follow-up to much earlier traditions.
From the viewpoint of the history of architecture, we cannot speak of a typical Vlora dwelling as an urban element, as are the Tirana, Shkodra, Elbasan,Berat, Gjirokastra and Korça dwellings. This is because the urban dwellings erected in Vlora in the last two centuries represent a mixture of styles and influences, conditioned by a number of factors including the mentality and economic status of individuals, as well as the multidimensional development of the city itself.
In old Vlora, every building or mansion, embodies all the stages of development of Albanian architecture, materialized at the local level. Visitors can encounter the civic tradition in construction, Ottoman architectural styles and further, the influence of Italian architecture, in its neoclassical and modern versions in the first four decades of the twentieth century, influence of Austrian style, etc., selected on special occasions, etc.
Thus, the Historic Center of Vlora, through this project funded by the Albanian American Development Fund (AADF) and the Albanian Government, reflects three dimensions of time, evoking the past with a view to the present and future.
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