located_on_terrain_feature lakmos
Albania (; ), officially the Republic of Albania , is a sovereign state in Southeastern ___MASK89___ . It has a population of 3 . 03 million as of 2016 . Tirana is the nation ' s capital and largest city , followed by Durrës and Vlorë . Albania is located in the south - western part of the Balkan peninsula , bordered by Montenegro to the northwest , Kosovo to the northeast , the Republic of Macedonia to the east , and ___MASK33___ to the south and southeast . The country has a coastline on the northern shore of the Mediterranean Sea , the Adriatic Sea to the west and the Ionian Sea to the southwest where the Albanian Riviera begins . Albania is less than from Italy , across the Strait of Otranto which connects the Adriatic Sea to the Ionian Sea . Tymfi or Mt Tymphe , Timfi , also Tymphi ( Greek :  ) is a mountain in the northern Pindus mountain range , northwestern ___MASK33___ . It is part of the regional unit of Ioannina and lies in the region of Zagori , just a few metres south of the 40 ° parallel . Tymfi forms a massif with its highest peak , Gamila , at , being the sixth highest in ___MASK33___ . Lakmos ( Greek :  ) is a mountain in eastern Ioannina and western Trikala regional units . The mountain is a part of the Pindus mountain range . Its highest peak is the Peristeri , at 2 , 295 m elevation . It stretches from the village Krapsi in the west to near Metsovo in the east , over a length of about 20 km ( 12 mi ) . The nearest mountains are the Athamanika to the south , the Lygkos to the north and the Mitsikeli to the west . It is drained by the river Arachthos and its tributaries to the north , west and south , and by the Acheloos to the east . The nearest town is Metsovo , at its northeastern end . Other places in the mountains are Anthousa in the southeast , Anthochori in the north , Megali Gotista in the west and Vathypedo in the southwest . The Egnatia Odos motorway ( Igoumenitsa - Ioannina - Kozani - Thessaloniki - Alexandroupoli ) passes north of the mountains . Lygkos , also transliterated as " Lyngos " or " Lygos ", is a remote mountain range in the eastern Ioannina and the western Grevena regional unit in northwestern ___MASK33___ . It is a part of the Pindus mountain range . Its highest point is the Avgo , at 2 , 177 m elevation . The Lygkos mountains lie in a horseshoe shape around the Valia Kalda (   ) valley , which exits towards the Aoos valley to the west . The Valia Kalda is part of the Pindus - Valia Kalda National Park , founded in 1966 . It is one of the coldest and wettest regions of ___MASK33___ . The mountains are densely forested , with alpine meadows in the highest elevations . Metsovo is a town in ___MASK39___ on the mountains of Pindus in northern Greece , between Ioannina to the north and Meteora to the south . Thessaloniki is the second - largest city in ___MASK33___ and the capital of Greek Macedonia , the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace . Its nickname is   (" Symprotévousa "), literally " the co - capital ", a reference to its historical status as the  (" Symvasilévousa ") or " co - reigning " city of the Eastern Roman ( Byzantine ) Empire , alongside Constantinople . Mitsikeli is a mountain range in the central part of the Pindus mountains , in ___MASK39___ , Greece . The mountain is located northeast of Ioannina and Lake Ioannina . Its highest elevation is 1 , 810 m . It stretches from near Kalpaki in the northwest to the eastern end of Lake Ioannina , a total length of 35 km . The northeastern slopes and the lower northwestern part of Mitsikeli are forested . The nearest mountains are the Tymfi to the north , the Lygkos to the northeast and the Lakmos to the east . It is drained by tributaries of the Thyamis to the northwest , towards Lake Ioannina to the southwest , by the Voidomatis ( tributary of the Aoos ) to the northeast and by the Arachthos to the southeast . ___MASK39___ is a geographical and historical region in southeastern Europe , now shared between Greece and Albania . It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea , stretching from the Bay of Vlorë and the Acroceraunian mountains in the north to the Ambracian Gulf and the ruined Roman city of Nicopolis in the south . It is currently divided between the region of ___MASK39___ in northwestern Greece and the counties of Gjirokastër , Vlorë , and Berat in southern Albania . The largest city in ___MASK39___ is Ioannina , seat of the region of ___MASK39___ , with Gjirokastër the largest city in the Albanian part of ___MASK39___ . Kalpaki is a former municipality in the Ioannina regional unit , ___MASK39___ , Greece . Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pogoni , of which it is a municipal unit . It is situated about northwest of Ioannina , and southwest of Konitsa . The municipal unit has an area of 116 . 756 km , the community 13 . 189 km . Population 1 , 719 ( 2011 ). The Greek National Road 20 connects Kalpaki with Ioannina and Konitsa . The GR - 22 connects Kalpaki with Kakavia , the border crossing into southern Albania . The Pindus ( also Pindos or Pindhos ) mountain range is located in northern ___MASK33___ and southern Albania . It is roughly 160 km long , with a maximum elevation of 2 , 637 m ( Mount Smolikas ). Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and ___MASK39___ , the Pindus range is often called the " spine of ___MASK33___ ". The mountain range stretches from near the Greek - Albanian borders in Northern ___MASK39___ , entering the ___MASK39___ region and Macedonia region in northern ___MASK33___ down to the north of the Peloponnese . Geologically it constitutes an extension of the Dinaric Alps , which dominate the western region of the Balkan Peninsula . This vast complex of mountains , peaks , plateaus , valleys and gorges traverses the Greek mainland from the Northwest to the Southeast . Its length reaches almost 230 kilometers and its largest width is 70 kilometers . ___MASK33___ (' ), officially the Hellenic Republic ( Greek : ' ), historically also known as Hellas ("" ), is a country in southeastern Europe . ___MASK33___ ' s population is approximately 10 . 955 million as of 2015 . ___MASK58___ is the nation ' s capital and largest city , followed by Thessaloniki . Athamanika or Tzoumerka ( Greek :  or  ) is a mountain range in northwestern ___MASK33___ , part of the wider Pindus mountain range . Its highest point is the mountain Kakarditsa , at 2 , 429 m . Its length is approximately 40 km from north to south and its width is approximately 15 to 20 km from east to west . The only major road crossing the Athamanika is the Greek National Road 30 ( Arta - Trikala - Karditsa - Volos ). Ioannina , often called Yannena within ___MASK33___ , is the capital and largest city of ___MASK39___ , an administrative region in north - western ___MASK33___ . Its populations is 112 , 486 , according to 2011 census . It lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level , on the western shore of lake Pamvotis . It is the capital of Ioannina regional unit and the region of ___MASK39___ . Ioannina is located northwest of Athens , southwest of Thessaloniki and east of the port of Igoumenitsa in the Ionian Sea . Igoumenitsa , is a coastal city in northwestern ___MASK33___ . It is the capital of the regional unit of Thesprotia . The Thyamis , also known as Glykys (  ) or Kalamas (  ), is a river in the ___MASK39___ region of Greece . It flows into the Ionian Sea . The names of the Chameria region (" Tsamouria " in Greek ), as well as the former Cham minority , derive from the river ' s name . Thyamis in ancient Greece was mentioned by Pausanias as forming the boundary between Thesprotis and Kestrine . Greek National Road 30 ( abbreviated as EO30 ) is a single carriageway road in central ___MASK33___ . It connects the cities of Arta and Volos , via Trikala and Karditsa . ___MASK22___ (" Thessalía "; ancient Thessalian : , " Petthalía ") is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of ___MASK33___ , comprising most of the ancient region of the same name . Before the Greek Dark Ages , ___MASK22___ was known as Aeolia , and appears thus in Homer ' s " Odyssey ". ___MASK58___ (" Athína " ) is the capital and largest city of Greece . ___MASK58___ dominates the Attica region and is one of the world ' s oldest cities , with its recorded history spanning over 3 , 400 years , and its earliest human presence starting somewhere between the 11th and 7th millennia BC . Classical ___MASK58___ was a powerful city - state that emerged in conjunction with the seagoing development of the port of Piraeus , which had been a distinct city prior to its 5th century BC incorporation with ___MASK58___ . A centre for the arts , learning and philosophy , home of Plato ' s Academy and Aristotle ' s Lyceum , it is widely referred to as the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy , largely because of its cultural and political impact on the European continent , and in particular the Romans . In modern times , ___MASK58___ is a large cosmopolitan metropolis and central to economic , financial , industrial , maritime , political and cultural life in Greece . In 2015 , ___MASK58___ was ranked the world ' s 29th richest city by purchasing power and the 67th most expensive in a UBS study . The ___MASK28___ or Peloponnesus (" Pelopónnsos "), is a peninsula and geographic region in southern ___MASK33___ . It is separated from the central part of the country by the Gulf of Corinth . During the late Middle Ages and the Ottoman era , the peninsula was known as the Morea , a name still in colloquial use in its demotic form (  ). The ___MASK14___ (, , ) is an elongated embayment of the ___MASK83___ , south of the Adriatic Sea . It is bounded by ___MASK48___ including Calabria , ___MASK27___ , and the Salento peninsula to the west , southern Albania to the north , and the west coast of Greece . Northern ___MASK39___ (" Vorios Ipiros ") is a term used to refer to those parts of the historical region of ___MASK39___ , in the western Balkans , which today are part of Albania . The term is used mostly by Greeks and is associated with the existence of a substantial ethnic Greek population in the region . It also has connotations with political claims on the territory on the grounds that it was held by Greece and in 1914 was declared an independent state by the local Greeks against annexation to the newly founded Albanian principality . The term is typically rejected by most Albanians for its irredentist associations .