"Hey! Where Did My Tree Go?!"

Durrës

In David's work, he collaborates with prosecutors, police officers, and judges in seven different regions throughout Albania.  While Albania is about the same size as Kentucky or Maryland, it could take well over 15 hours to get from the northern tip to the southern tip of the country due to challenging road conditions and mountainous terrain.  Our first trip within Albania was about 45 minutes west of Tirana to the port city of Durrës, which dates back to 627 BCE.

Map from:  http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/europe/albania/ 

While David was in meetings, I had espresso and gelato with a man who was a driver for government officials during communist times. He indicated that, as a driver during that era, he had much more freedom than other Albanian citizens. In the 1960s, individually-owned vehicles were outlawed by communist dictator Hoxha. By the end of communism in 1991, there were only about 3000 vehicles in a country of 3 million people. The driver I met advised that he was allowed the privilege of driving himself when off duty, as well as his family, including for vacation. 

Non-drivers in Albania had very different vacations. He said that, during communist times, the government gave everyone a 1-week paid vacation.  If you lived in Tirana, for example, you would get on the train -- standing room only with some people hanging onto the outside --  and go to Durrës for your week off.  What is now a 45-minute car ride took around 2 hours via a slow train. Many Albanians still head to the beach in Durrës for vacation.  Now, most people have their own cars; the boardwalk in  Durrës has children's rides; and, generally, people are free.

In addition to the beach and boardwalk, people are also drawn to to visit the ancient amphitheater (think: miniature version of the Coliseum in Rome) in Durrës.  For many centuries, the citizens of Durrës searched for a Roman amphitheater rumored to have been built in their city around the 1st or 2nd century A.D. Finally, according to the guide at the amphitheater, around 1966, a Durresi citizen dug a hole to plant a tree.  He placed the tree in the hole and quickly exclaimed, "Hey! Where did my tree go?!"  The tree fell straight through.  

Archaeologists gradually began to uncover the legendary amphitheater.  It originally held around 18,000 spectators for performances and gladiators' contests through the 5th century.  In the 6th century, a chapel with mosaics (see below) was added.  And, the floor of the amphitheater was eventually used as a cemetery (not yet excavated) -- a fitting alternative considering the blood baths on the site.  

The guide also advised that, while Durrës has been destroyed by earthquakes 3 times, the amphitheater has not been destroyed because, knowing  Durrës was an active seismic area, the forward-thinking Roman architects placed bricks and stones in alternating layers to maximize structural stability.  Centuries later, when the site of the amphitheater was unknown, homes were built over it.  Once discovered, the communist government moved the residents to new land and began uncovering the theater.  As you can see from the photos, houses still remain.  The City of Durrës continues to uncover the amphitheater, bit by bit, and will eventually buy the surrounding homes from the remaining residents.