Vlorë District
The circle Vlora (Albanian: Rrethi i Vlores ) is one of the 36 administrative districts of Albania. The circle with an area of 1.609 km ² belongs to the same Qark. He has 126 125 inhabitants ( 2011) with a population density of 78.4 inhabitants per km ². It was named after the main town of Vlora.
Geography
The circle Vlora is located in the southwest of the country, the northern part of the Adriatic coast, the southern part - known as the Albanian Riviera - on the coast of the Ionian Sea. The northern Adriatic coast is very flat Schwemmlandgebiet the river Vjosa, which forms the border with the county Fier and the transition to large central Albanian Myzeqe level. South of the Vjosa lies the great lagoon of Narta ( 4,180 ha), which is used for half the salt.
Just south of the lagoon, the bay of Vlora connects. Apart from the north end of the bay is surrounded by hills and mountains - on one is the castle Kanina. In the opening to the sea, the island of Sazan is. To the south is the 15 km long peninsula Karaburun whose western tip, the Kepi i Gjuhëzës that marks one end of the Strait of Otranto and thus the transition from the Adriatic Sea to the Ionian Sea. The Italian mainland is around 70 km from here.
The steep coast of the Ionian Sea is only accessible via the Llogara Pass (1050 müa ). Both the Karaburun Peninsula and the Riviera are dry, very water- poor areas. North of Himara, the main town of the Riviera, significant erosion damage can be seen. The municipality Himara includes various villages along the coast, including Palasa, Dhërmi, Vuno, Pilur and Qeparo that are mostly a few hundred feet above the beach. The Ceraunische Mountains on the Ionian coast rises steeply from the water and reach into the mountains cika a height of 2045 müa ( Maja e Čikeš - the highest point of the circle). A small area around the Llogara Pass is protected as a national park Llogara: On the north side of the pass there are vast coniferous forests and around the pass are numerous, shaped by the wind pine.
Behind this mountain range lies the long valley of the Shushica, which rises at the southeast end of the circle and ends at the northern border in the Vjosa. In the south the Shushica is surrounded on both sides by high mountains. In the middle reaches of these run out in the hill country, which determines the whole hinterland of Vlora. Only along the Vjosa and around Selenica is flat land. In Selenica bitumen is mined for millennia. The hills around Vlora were planted with many olive and citrus trees.
Population
The majority of the population lives in Vlora, one of the largest cities in the country. The remaining areas are still very rural. Not quite ten percent of the population belong to minorities. In the region of Himara live many Greeks - how large their share, but is controversial and will always be a political issue. In addition, there are Vlachs ( Aromanians ) and Roma. Around 40 percent of the population are sorted Orthodox and Muslim. Around 15 percent are to the Bektashi.
Economy
The economy of Vlora is quite diverse compared to many other districts of the country. Vlora is a service and commercial center, which also has a small port and attracts many bathers in summer. Tourism has meant that along the coast of the Bay of Vlora south of the city's numerous hotels were built.
How Vlora also experience Himara and some other villages on the Albanian Riviera a tourism boom. The remote region had previously suffered especially under churn.
During the 1990s, Vlora lived from the close proximity to Italy: About the Adriatic Sea were night after night, refugees and drugs smuggled into Western Europe. The speed boats were destroyed by the police, and the Albanians are supported by foreign authorities in the fight against organized crime. The Italian Guardia di Finanza operates from Vlora and Sazan, to detect illegal activities as early as possible. It is believed that the many new properties that were created in Vlora, were financed to a large extent by illegal activities.
The hinterland is still mostly dominated by agriculture and poorly developed. In Selenica bitumen is still promoted and used for asphalt production and outside of Albania. In Narta salt is obtained. In Vlora, there are also signs of a fishing industry, while fish is sold locally to other places. The military still maintains bases in Vlora, Orikum and Himara. But it is no longer a major employer.
There are plans to build a gas terminal and a thermal power station in the industrial area of Vlora.
Traffic
The transport infrastructure in Vlora are not particularly developed, since the city is no passage axis. The road from Fier a new transport corridor by southern Albania on the northern border along the Vjosa is currently in Central Albania Vlora off and built. The road to Himara over the Llogara Pass has been corrected gradually in recent years, but is still narrow and winding.
The port currently has no great significance. Ferries only to Brindisi and the flow of cargo is limited. This could change if a gas pipeline from Varna is ready built on the Black Sea. In the summer occasionally runs a hydrofoil to Himara, Saranda and Corfu.
A range of Albanian Railroad ends in Vlora. One of the oldest railway lines in the country since 1930, joined the bitumen plant in Selenica with the port of Vlora. The 12 km long narrow gauge railway is now destroyed.