8 ms·

I love Albania, for reasons related to my job I used to travel there multiple times a year until around 2010. Those bunkers are absolutely everywhere, even rig

I love Albania, for reasons related to my job I used to travel there multiple times a year until around 2010. Those bunkers are absolutely everywhere, even right in the middle of nowhere (I guess that's useful if you happen to get lost in the wilderness while hiking). In towns and cities they have been sometimes repurposed, e.g. I remember seeing that someone created a small cafe on the beach using one of the larger bunkers. The problem with reusing them is that the vast majority of the bunkers are of the smaller type (mostly below ground level, and on the inside there is barely enough room for a couple of people) and it's hard to find a new purpose for those.

euroderf 2y ago
Japan has the famous "love hotels". If the bunkers fit two...
- frereubu 2y ago
  "Love bunker" has a certain ring to it.
- walrus01 2y ago
  'albanian concrete fuck hovel' could be a punk band name
- dibujaron 2y ago
  Further down the wiki article, it mentions that the bunkers re indeed often used for this :)
HeatrayEnjoyer 2y ago
Public restroom Suicide booth
AdrianB1 2y ago
Same for me, I used to travel for work earlier (2002-2006) and I loved it. The only problem at that time was the language barrier, almost nobody was speaking English in the eastern part and just a few people in Tirana or Dures. In 2009 I tried to go there with a friend on a motorcycle trip, but we were unable to get in the country due to language barrier, I don't know what was wrong. So we went to Ohrid instead.
- mastazi 2y ago
  I'm Italian so I had an advantage in terms of language, since it seems almost everyone understands it. I've been told it's because people used to illegally watch Italian TV under the communist regime. I guess it might be also related to past colonialism.
leapingdog 2y ago
I witnessed some of those bunkers on a day trip to [0]Butrint. The tour guide told us they were constantly being told the country was on the cusp of foreign invasion during the dictatorship. The locals had painted the domes in bright colours as a sort of added tourist attraction. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butrint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butrint

euroderf 2y ago

Japan has the famous "love hotels". If the bunkers fit two...

frereubu 2y ago
"Love bunker" has a certain ring to it.
walrus01 2y ago
'albanian concrete fuck hovel' could be a punk band name
dibujaron 2y ago
Further down the wiki article, it mentions that the bunkers re indeed often used for this :)

HeatrayEnjoyer 2y ago

Public restroom Suicide booth

AdrianB1 2y ago

Same for me, I used to travel for work earlier (2002-2006) and I loved it. The only problem at that time was the language barrier, almost nobody was speaking English in the eastern part and just a few people in Tirana or Dures. In 2009 I tried to go there with a friend on a motorcycle trip, but we were unable to get in the country due to language barrier, I don't know what was wrong. So we went to Ohrid instead.

mastazi 2y ago
I'm Italian so I had an advantage in terms of language, since it seems almost everyone understands it. I've been told it's because people used to illegally watch Italian TV under the communist regime. I guess it might be also related to past colonialism.

leapingdog 2y ago

I witnessed some of those bunkers on a day trip to [0]Butrint. The tour guide told us they were constantly being told the country was on the cusp of foreign invasion during the dictatorship. The locals had painted the domes in bright colours as a sort of added tourist attraction. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butrint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butrint