The Albanian government says it has sold the landmark Dajti Hotel in Tirana, the country's oldest, to Albania's central bank for ¤30 million ($38 million), according to AP. Designed by an Italian architect during fascist Italy's occupation of Albania in 1939-1943, the 98-room Dajti was Tirana's only luxury hotel during the post-WWII decades of Communist rule. It fell into disuse after the Communist regime collapsed in 1990. The Bank of Albania will use the Dajti while its headquarters are being refurbished, a government statement said Thursday. The government repeatedly failed to sell the hotel to private investors. Plans to turn it into Foreign Ministry offices have been shelved. After the war, the Dajti briefly served as the Communist government's headquarters.
