Ish-Blloku ( en, Ex-Block), commonly Blloku ( en, Block), is an upmarket area in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

. It widely known as an entertainment destination with its boutiques, shops,

restaurants A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearanc ...

, trendy bars, pubs, and

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

s. The area is part of the neighbourhood of

Tirana e Re Tirana 5 () is one of the 24 administrative units in Tirana.http://www.ssb.no/emner/02/90/doc_200402/doc_200402.pdf There are Petro Nini Luarasi and Besnik Sykja high schools. In this unit live 54,000 citizens. Neighborhoods *Blloku Ish-Bl ...

in southwestern Tirana. During the peak summer months, its trendy bars transfer along the

Albanian Riviera The Albanian Riviera ( sq, Riviera shqiptare, ), 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 impo ...

. It became very attractive after the fall of

Communism in Albania The People's Socialist Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika Popullore Socialiste e Shqipërisë, links=no) was the Marxist–Leninist one party state that existed in Albania from 1946 to 1992 (the official name of the country was the People's R ...

, because during the communist period it was a restricted residential area for the members of the Albanian politburo, ordinary Albanians would not be allowed in. On most maps it was unmarked. In Blloku you can still find the residence of Albania’s communist leader

Enver Hoxha Enver Halil Hoxha ( , ; 16 October 190811 April 1985) was an Albanian communist politician who was the authoritarian ruler of Albania from 1944 until his death in 1985. He was First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania from 1941 unt ...

. Since the

fall of communism in Albania The fall of Communism in Albania, the last such event in Europe outside the Soviet Union, started in December 1990 with student demonstrations in the capital, Tirana, although protests started in January that year in other cities like Shkodra ...

, a dramatic growth of new developments has taken place, with many new exclusive flats and apartments. Ish-Blloku has been called the "playground of the young Albanian elite". Blloku is quite a small, walking neighborhood, easily accessible from different parts of Tirana. The entrance of Blloku is only 10–15 minutes by foot from the city centre of Tirana. The first international fast food chain (

KFC KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is an American fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that specializes in fried chicken. It is the world's second-largest restaurant chain (as measured by sales) after McDonald's, with 2 ...

) in Albania, were also opened at Ish-Blloku and

Tirana East Gate Tirana East Gate is a shopping mall based in Tirana, Albania. It is located about from the city center of Tirana just off the National Road SH3 in Lundër. The mall was inaugurated on 26 November 2011 by former Prime Minister of Albania, Sali B ...

. *

Landmarks in Tirana There are many landmarks in Tirana, Albania some of which are of considerable historical or artistic interest. Many monuments and landmarks situated in Tirana, date back to the Illyrian, Roman, Greek and Ottoman periods. Tirana is home to diff ...

Neighborhoods of Tirana The first neighborhood in Tirana was Bam. The three oldest neighborhoods are Mujos, and Pazari located between the geographical centre and Elbasan Street on either side of the Lanë, and Brraka located east of Zog I Boulevard around modern Haxhi ...

Further information

*
Albania Fashion Street BlogTirana Club ZoneTill'late AlbaniaRadio Stations in Tirana

References

{{Authority control Neighbourhoods of Tirana Entertainment districts Tourist attractions in Tirana