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Sunday, December 16, 2012

Express: Up Mount Dajti by cable lift and down by bicycle


Express: Up Mount Dajti by cable lift and down by bicycle


Tirana is a city that is working on its image. Its current mayor, Edi Rama, is an artist-turned-politician who is eager to introduce Tirana as a vivid European capital. For the city, this means beautification projects like a fresh coats of colorful paint for formerly gray buildings and a total re-landscaping of the central Skanderbeg Square.

Tirana is indeed looking better, but perhaps the most beautiful part of the city is the nature around it. Majestic green mountains hover around the city. One of the highest points on the horizon is Mount Dajti. Just 26 km outside the city, it measures 1,613 meters of altitude. The mountain is known as the ‘balcony of Tirana’ and has been declared a national park.

Just a few years ago, a gondola cable lift called the Dajti Express was built to carry site-seers from the city to the mountaintop. For adventure seekers, the best part of the gondola lift is that there is room for bicycles on board. Outdoor Albania offers a guided excursion that takes visitors up by cable and down by bike through surrounding villages.

The highlight of the trip is a stop at the restaurant built around a panoramic view of the capital below. It is world class. The restaurant has outdoor seating in lush garden terraces. Stunning infinity pools swarm with the trout that also appear on the menu, and lamb roasts slowly on its traditional-style spit. Inside the restaurant, the presidential table is reserved for political personages who bring guests to this little-known lookout above the city.

The bicycle ride down kept me wide-eyed and white-knuckled. Good brakes and a fearless streak required. There is no better way to enjoy the paradoxes and contrasts of Albania: rural versus urban, cattle versus traffic, and fresh mountain air versus the noise and pollution of the city. This day trip is also evidence that Tirana is underrated. Travelers pass through to other parts of the country without realizing the exciting possibilities in and around the city. This is definitely my favorite OA day trip so far.



Restaurant “Balcony of Dajti” is operating since 2007. Restaurant offers a comfortable place, very nice and serene spaces with the pleasure of a wonderful view that offers Mountain of Dajti- where Tirana seems to be in the palm of the hand and sunset is amazing. Restaurant “Balcony of Dajti” is created to be one of the most known and best restaurants in Tirana that offers tradition food. If you want to feel more pleasure, fun, quality and a very good service. Come and visit restaurant “Balcony of Dajti”. This is where you will find space, service and a very good dinning based on tradition and a wonderful location all together. With a strategic location in a touristy place, with contemporary and classic décor, appropriate for winter and summer season, we are here to add quality to your festive occasions and simplify your busy life. Restaurant Balkony of Dajti has the most beautiful view of Tirana. It is located in the touristy area of Dajti mountain. Before you could come to us for 1 hour, now you can come to us using Dajti Ekspres cable-car, for only 15 minutes. Every one of you can dream of fresh air of the forest, flavor of the flowers, and murmur of water that flows through the stone. Don’t dream! …Come to “Balkony of Dajti” and you will find these emotions all together, come to our restaurant where it combines modern style with wood, the magnificent green of nature, and obviously a cultured and quality service.
   


Dajti Tower Belvedere Hotel is an investment of the company “Dajti Ekspres sha”. Dajti Ekspres is contributing in the development of the tourism in Tirana building this wonderful hotel, in one of the most known touristic area called mountain of Dajti. The construction of the hotel is fulfilled at the beginning of 2009. Dajti Belvedere Hotel has begun its full operations during the month of September 2009. The main area of focus is promoting the sustainable tourism and the protection of nature.
Dajti Tower  Belvedere Hotel is located in the touristy area of National Park of Dajti Mountain 1420 m above sea level. A piece of modern accommodation expects you at the top of Dajti Mountain. Come to enjoy the comfort and luxury, next to the amazing views that this subject offers that is related with the way you are coming up using Dajti Ekspres cable – car. Dajti Express cable car is the only one in Albania and the largest one in Balkan.
For more informations visit www.dajtitower.com
   

NATIONAL PARK OF DAJTI
Dajti Mountain declared "National Park" is today an area of about 3333 ha. It is under the jurisdiction and administration of Tirana Forest Service Department.
So far, it has fulfilled nearly four functions of a forest: the retroactive function, as a tourist of good climate, the function of soil protection, water resources, roads, conservation function for scientific studies, teaching practice for students of Faculty of Forestry, training courses for sustainable forests cultivation, and, to some extent, the production function.
Dajti National Park is one of six national parks of Albania, declared under protection in 1966.

Flora
The big similarity of this park vegetation to that of Central Europe big heights is the first thing that strikes the eye in the stretch characterized by oak forest. Vegetation types found in Dajti National Park are oak forest, pine forest, composed of Balkan pine, found in rocky slopes in the middle of oak forest. While broad-leaved forests appear in the northwest foothills. The plane forest lies along Tirana river.
Whereas Mediterranean forest appears in lower heights. The Central Park has a great variety with about 44 species of forest trees and shrubs, which cover about 80% of the territory, herbaceous plants, animals and wild birds, two dominant peaks, the "balconies", standing on steep rocks, winter snow and a relatively high altitude from sea level, ranging from 300 meters to the highest peak of 1613 meters, in the 4 phyto-climatic areas and a counter direction providing abundance of sunny days, and consequently, a fresher climate and cleaner air than the plateau on which Tirana lies.


Fauna 
From the fauna pint of view, we can distinguish among the species with natural and conservation values: amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Some of these species appear only in limited areas, to be mentioned are several amphibious species that appear in several basins of eastern slope of Priske Mountain. Even Tirana Mountain gorge presents an importance from fauna viewpoint. Birds such as mountains eagle and sparrow hawk build their nest in this area. This habitat represents also a possible area for carnivores as the gray bear and the wolf, which are often found in the area. While rivers of Tirana, Terkuze and Erzeni, where they flow on flat surfaces, are favorable for the growth of many species of fish and vertebrates. We can mention here the rare otter, which is threatened throughout Europe. This type is found rarer exemplars in this basin. Dajti National Park is considered a park with original well administered Flora and fauna of the. 

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