Geography of AlbaniaAlbania is a small country in Southern, Southeastern Europe and Western Balkans strategically positioned on the Adriatic and Ionian Sea inside the Mediterranean Sea, with a coastline of about . It is bounded by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, North Macedonia to the east and Greece to the southeast and south. Most of Albania rises into mountains and hills, tending to run the length of the country from north to south, as for instance the Albanian Alps in the north, the Sharr Mountains in the northeast, the Skanderbeg Mountains in the center, the Korab Mountains in the east, the Pindus Mountains in the southeast, and the Ceraunian Mountains in the southwest.
Albanian RivieraThe Albanian Riviera (Riviera shqiptare, ɾiviˈɛɾa ʃcipˈtaɾɛ), also popularly known as Bregu, is a coastline along the Northeastern Ionian Sea in the Mediterranean Sea encompassing the districts of Sarandë and Vlorë in Southwestern Albania. It forms an important section of the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast dotted with the villages of Palasë, Dhërmi, Vuno, Himara, Qeparo, Borsh, Piqeras, Lukovë and the city of Sarandë. The riviera should not be confused with the entire coastline of the country, which includes the Ionian Sea Coast, and the mostly flat Adriatic Sea Coast in the north.
PalasëPalasë (Palasë or Palasa; Παλάσα, Palasa) also Paljasa (Παλιάσα), is a village in Himarë municipality (13 kilometres from the town), Vlorë County, southern Albania. It is located near the Llogara National Park and next to the Ionian coast on the Albanian Riviera. In classical antiquity Roman writer Lucan recorded a town named Palaeste on the Ceraunian Mountains, which corresponds to the site area of modern day Palasë. In Palaeste, Julius Caesar landed from Brundusium, in order to carry on the war against Pompey.
VunoVuno is a village in Himara municipality, Vlorë County, Albania. It is located along the road between the municipal centre of Himarë and the village of Dhërmi in the Albanian Riviera. It is said that because of the village's situation on the hills, which ascend to about , the village's name derives from the Greek word Vouno (Βουνό), meaning "mountain". In 1628 a school was founded in Vuno by Catholic missionary Neophytos Rodinos. The latter was sent to Himara region in order to convert the local Greek Orthodox element to Catholicism.
HimarëHimarë (Himara; Χιμάρα, Chimara or Χειμάρρα, Cheimarra) is a municipality and region in Vlorë County, southern Albania. The municipality has a total area of and consists of the administrative units of Himarë, Horë-Vranisht and Lukovë. It lies between the Ceraunian Mountains and the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast and is part of the Albanian Riviera. The traditionally perceived borders of the Himarë region gradually shrank during the Ottoman period, being reduced to the town of Himarë and the villages of the coastline (Bregdet in Albanian), generally including only Palase, Dhermi, Pilur, Kudhes, Vuno, Ilias and Qeparo.
VlorëVlorë (ˈvlɔːrə , ˈvlɔɾə; Vlora) is the third most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surrounded by the foothills of the Ceraunian Mountains along the Albanian Adriatic and Ionian Sea Coasts. It experiences a Mediterranean climate, which is affected by the Ceraunian Mountains and the proximity to the Mediterranean Sea.