One of the brothers recounts to the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) his observations in Albania regarding its civilization and buildings.

The student : And the airport is very old.

The Shaykh : Old.
The student : Very old, and the runway was very difficult; no planes other than helicopters could land on it because the runway was only for military use or the previous large Soviet Antonov planes. After that, they received us at the airport, and you can get your visa at the airport if you are directed to do so, meaning people abroad go and get the visa for you at the airport. The airport is very modest, so we took our luggage and belongings and then went to Tirana. The first thing we encountered was... what is its name... the military presence is clear, and the Italian presence. I found senior Italian officers at the airport, yes. After that, we moved to Tirana by car. What distinguishes the road is that Albania is green.

The Shaykh : Excuse me, the airport is not in Tirana.
The student : It is far from Tirana, about half an hour away.

The Shaykh: Yes.
The student : And the road to the airport is a beautiful agricultural road.

The Shaykh : I mean, it is green.
The student : Absolutely green. The brothers told me, and I do not know about this percentage, that 70 percent of Albania is mountains and that it lives in a valley. I saw this valley from north to south; it is a very fertile valley. It was also developed by the Russians. This is one of the benefits they did in Albania?

The Shaykh : How?
The student : They developed these valleys.

The Shaykh : I saw, I mean.
The student : Yes, yes, and in cooperation with the former Soviet Union, yes. Then we moved to Tirana. The information we had previously was that Tirana is a very old area with no services. We were surprised by the level of services. This was told to us two months ago, and now, two or three days ago, if you come, the country changes every two days, at a rate of about every two days.

The Shaykh : Okay, is the change for the better or for the worse?
The student : The change is first of all toward civilization. For example, you find an increase in the number of cars. It was mentioned that before, there were about two hundred cars in Tirana generally, two months ago.

The Shaykh: All right.
The student : And now, you cannot cross the road.

The Shaykh : God is Great, because of their number.
The student : Because of the number of cars, you have to wait. Then some signs were placed, and these did not exist before.

The Shaykh : They did not exist before.
The student : Not at all. Then, there are signs of civilization, such as the abundance of services.

The Shaykh : Excuse me, where do these services come from? From abroad?
The student : Of course, mostly from abroad. Many Albanians have also started thinking about investment. You do not find anyone on the street now who does not talk to you about investment. It is expected that the country is heading toward investment or a rise in the level of prices. There is a kind of admiration for Western civilization in Tirana; they want to catch up with the Western civilization because they lost out.

The Shaykh : This is the affair of the communists who launched the suppression after that.
The student : Yes, yes. The city of Tirana has the public square and the opera house. The public square also has a mosque belonging to the Albanian Sheikhate. You also find in the middle all the ministries, internal and external, and the Prime Minister's office as well.

The Shaykh : I mean, they are gathered in one place.
The student : Gathered, yes. If I describe the road to you, it is like a cross, approximately four streets meeting in this square. A road comes out of the square full of markets, another road full of hotels, another road full of services, and another road full of ministries.

The Shaykh : Yes.
The student : And in the public square, people gather after seven in the evening. Most people leave their houses after seven. Shuqara: The square is spacious.
The student : Yes, the square is spacious and very large. Car movement is stopped, why? Because of the large number of people. There is a very high rate of unemployment and also humidity, so people go out to stroll and walk.

The Shaykh : I mean, this square is cared for...
The student : Beautiful, yes. The road is also wide, and the road is also paved with small red bricks, yes. It is closed and also closed.

The Shaykh : Do you mean... bricks?
The student: Yes.

The Shaykh : Bricks.
The student: Yes, yes.

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah.
The student : Yes. We stayed in a hotel, the best hotel they have. They have two hotels; one is called Dait, where we stayed, and the other is approximately first-class. In the era of Enver Hoxha, the ministers stayed there, the senior state officials, state men, and guests stayed there. The hotel is very modest, very modest, but it is clean, yes.