The windows are the first thing you notice. They climb the hillside above the Osum River in rows, catching the light on the white façades of Mangalem, while the castle crowns the ridge. Across the water, Gorica answers with another old neighbourhood of stone and sloping streets. Berat’s famous view is a good reason to come to this Albanian city; the better reason to stay is to discover the lives and histories behind it.
Berat is not a single monument. Its castle is a lived-in quarter, its churches and mosques tell different parts of the city’s story, and the newer streets below still carry the business of an ordinary day. Give yourself time to cross the river, climb slowly and visit at least one museum. The most memorable route is often the one that lets you look back across the valley.
