Vivari Channel
Encyclopedia
The Vivari Channel links Lake Butrint
Lake Butrint
Lake Butrinti , formerly known as Lake Vivari or Lake Vatzindro , lies in the south of Albania in Saranda. It is in fact a lagoon. It overlooks the Ionian Sea and it is quite large in size. Beside it is the Butrinti site which is full of ancient history and is one of Albania's most popular tourist...

 in Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

 with the Straits of Corfu
Straits of Corfu
The Straits of Corfu or Corfu Channel is the narrow body of water along the coasts of Albania and Greece to the east separating these two countries from the Greek island of Corfu on the west...

, and forms a border of the peninsula of Butrint
Butrint
Butrint was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in Epirus. In modern times it is an archeological site in Sarandë District, Albania, some 14 kilometres south of Sarandë and close to the Greek border. It was known in antiquity as Βουθρωτόν Bouthroton or Βουθρώτιος Bouthrotios in Ancient Greek...

.

The channel flows in both directions, from the lake to the sea and vice-versa during the rising tide. A pontoon
Pontoon
Pontoon may refer to:* Float , an air-filled structure providing buoyancy* Pontoon , the Australian/Malaysian casino game* Pontoon , a chiefly British version of the card game blackjack...

 is situated near the gate of the Butrint National Park
Butrint National Park
Butrint National Park is a national park created in November 2005 and located in the southwestern extreme of Albania. It protects 85.91 square kilometres of historic landscape, archaeology and environment...

. Two small forts are situated in the southern part of the channel, and both were built during the rule of Ali Pasha
Ali Pasha
Ali Pasha of Tepelena or of Yannina, surnamed Aslan, "the Lion", or the "Lion of Yannina", Ali Pashë Tepelena was an Ottoman Albanian ruler of the western part of Rumelia, the Ottoman Empire's European territory which was also called Pashalik of Yanina. His court was in Ioannina...

 of Ioánnina (in Albanian Janina).

According to international organizatiions, the channel serves as the demarcation line where the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

 ends and the Ionian Sea
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...

 begins.

The channel creates a unique situation in Lake Butrint, which is partly fed with fresh water and partly with salt water, thereby creating ideal conditions for mollusks farming. During the communist regime, many students used to volunteer in the summer time to search for ancient ruins in the Butrint National Park.
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