Notes from Albania

Panoramas. My first year, part 2.

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:30:36 -0400

Istanbul, Turkey from the ferry going to the Asia side

Istanbul, Turkey near the Galata tower

Shkoder, Albania for Lojra Popullore

Lezhe, Albania from my rooftop

Elbasan, Albania for Flash Freeze 2013

Lezhe, Albania

Lezhe, Albania

Panoramas. My first year, part 2.

Panoramas. My first year, part 1.

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:25:10 -0400

Shkoder, Albania from Rozafa Castle

In the National Museum of Art. Tirana, Albania.

Health Fair in Lezhe, November 2012.

Vienne, Austria

Korce, Albania

Korce, Albania wandering around the Lavdi Deshmoreve.

Berat, Albania looking out at Mt. Tomori.

Lezhe, Albania view from the Castle.

Vlore, Albania view from Rruge Kanine.

Panoramas. My first year, part 1.

It starts with sight. My eyes pick up that it’s getting a little...

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:13:33 -0400

It starts with sight. My eyes pick up that it’s getting a little darker; the clouds are rolling in. I walk home, and my nose picks up the pre-rain smell I so utterly enjoy; I better get inside quick. The humidity follows me inside, everything is sticky and thick, lastly comes that sound. My ears pick up the electricity running through the radio tower right by my house. Before I know it, one drop, two drops, twenty drops, close those windows, a line of lightening, three seconds, a crack of thunder, power’s out.

Elbasan, May 2013. Reconnecting with fellow Peace Corps...

Wed, 15 May 2013 02:58:06 -0400

Elbasan, May 2013. Reconnecting with fellow Peace Corps Volunteers is like meeting up with friends you’ve known forever; I may not always speak to you, but you know I’m going through it too.

The këmbël are back! These deliciously sour, unripe plum-like...

Wed, 08 May 2013 12:52:46 -0400

The këmbël are back! These deliciously sour, unripe plum-like things are back once more. Around this time last year, I went on a tour of Tirana with my training group and discovered these delicious pre-fruits; sold all over the place as a snack, they’re back again. I’ve also been making some new things, check out my recipes here.

Today I went to the duqan and bought cleaner, cinnamon, new...

Tue, 07 May 2013 06:15:00 -0400

Today I went to the duqan and bought cleaner, cinnamon, new soap, a new toothbrush, and a cactus. I know a cactus doesn’t really fit in there, but the lady selling them was so nice. I came home and did some much needed spring cleaning, patched up the holes in my screens with some tape and put a new layer of cinnamon across my doorway (see above photo for what the ants do. All sorts of bugs love my place in the summer, I’m okay with the daddy longlegs but everything else I’d prefer to be somewhere else). Bring it on, summer, I’m ready.

My office didn’t show up today. Instead, I took a hike up the...

Mon, 06 May 2013 15:23:03 -0400

My office didn’t show up today. Instead, I took a hike up the mountain near my house.

The Mid-May Playlist: I’ve been trying more to stick to entire albums, treating them more like...

Mon, 06 May 2013 15:17:14 -0400

The Mid-May Playlist: I’ve been trying more to stick to entire albums, treating them more like stories, but here I present a sample of some of the artists and songs I enjoy to play more that once. These songs are meant to balance, sustain, and motivate. Enjoy.

The Stranger - Lord Huron
Equestrian - US Royalty
Gone the Bells - Cotton Jones
Instead - Ola Podrida
Taro - Alt-J
This Isn’t Our Parade - Santigold
Lightshow - Plants and Animals
Feels Like We Only Go Backwards - Tame Impala
Next Year - Two Door Cinema Club (RAC Mix)

It’s almost 8pm on a Friday night and the sun is just now...

Fri, 03 May 2013 13:18:50 -0400

It’s almost 8pm on a Friday night and the sun is just now starting to set; I’m sitting in a t-shirt, listening to all the life outside in the garden, all the windows are open. Wasn’t it yesterday that it was dark at 3pm, with my scarf and gloves on? Time passes here in such an odd way, almost indescribable.

It’s as if days and weeks don’t actually exist. Time is marked by achievements, or lack there of. But not like checkmarks on a to-do list, more like escalator stairs. The only real days I find myself keeping track of are the days where I’m obligated to go somewhere other than Lezhë, once every couple of months. I’ve written before about the lifestyle, nothing is so important that it must be done right away, things are done when they can be and when the time is right.

Every once in a while, like today, I refocus and check in on the time. The group of PCVs before me has slowly phased out and the new trainees are getting ready to be sworn-in as official volunteers. With seemingly no transition, the cold weather has gone and the sun is as strong as ever.

One year living here, sitting on my rooftop, I look over the...

Wed, 01 May 2013 05:22:00 -0400

One year living here, sitting on my rooftop, I look over the wall of my commune only to discover that I live right next to an abandoned cemetery.

Return to Çorovodë, April 2013. Complete with cliff jumping and...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:37:00 -0400

Return to Çorovodë, April 2013. Complete with cliff jumping and late night frogleg snacks.

My running road is looking pretty good these days.

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 10:32:48 -0400

My running road is looking pretty good these days.

Happy Earth Day! Several PCVs have Outdoor Ambassadors groups,...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 08:22:00 -0400

Happy Earth Day! Several PCVs have Outdoor Ambassadors groups, something I have mentioned before, which are groups of students dedicated to learning, experiencing, and raising awareness about taking care of our environment. On Saturday, Peace Corps Albania along with Outdoor Ambassadors came together in Elbasan (one of Albania’s dirtiest cities) to participate in an Earth Day event. Students, volunteers and community members came together for a flash freeze in the center of town, followed by a citywide cleanup.

Cooking in Albania 101. When I was living with my host family, I came up with this grand plan of...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 12:22:00 -0400

Cooking in Albania 101. When I was living with my host family, I came up with this grand plan of cooking great meals every night once moving to Lezhë. But cooking is a lot harder than I thought it would be; it requires time, planning, and patience. For the past year, I’ve been stretching what basic knowledge I have in the culinary arts and have pretty much stayed to the same basic dishes. Not to mention, contrary to the States, homemade Albanian cuisine is more expensive than it is at a restaurant (byrek, fasule, pilaf and qofte, pace, pule zgare, spec mbushur…).

With the return of sunshine and warmth, I find myself spending extra time at the duqan market, going through a list in my head of dream dishes to make. After all, never before in my life have I been forced to use ingredients in a different language, or foods I’m not sure about until a quick taste test. Never before coming here had I looked at a recipe, specifically at ingredients, searching to make sure my city has everything it requires. I went to the biggest store in town yesterday, that has a spice rack, to see if they carried cumin and ended up with ground ginger – zenzero. I should have known. I suspect I’ll be making ginger snaps (sans molasses) soon.

My adventure into the unknown world of cooking has started off slow, with a new meal every week or so; homemade tortillas last night was a breeze with my fancy Teflon pan. But my shining moment this week was carrot cake with a cream cheese frosting. ‘Twas a beauty.

Lezha. April, 2013.

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 10:11:43 -0400

Lezha. April, 2013.

For two days last week, the office of Health Promotion and World...

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 10:08:07 -0400

For two days last week, the office of Health Promotion and World Vision together got nurses from villages surrounding Lezhë to get together and participate in training for prenatal care. The two-day training focused on various birth education topics, with the last day dedicated to preparing these nurses to develop their own prenatal course. As I’ve mentioned before, prenatal classes in Lezhë have finally begun, and we wanted to present the needed information to other nurses from Torovicë, Balldre, Manati and Zejmen so that they themselves can begin. It’s a project in process, the ultimate goal to bring more attention to the importance of pre and postnatal care.

Signs of Spring. April, 2013. Gëzuar Pashkët, Happy Easter, to...

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 14:03:57 -0400

Signs of Spring. April, 2013. Gëzuar Pashkët, Happy Easter, to all. Here in the North where Catholicism reigns, this holiday is traditionally celebrated by the exchange of red-dyed eggs. The egg shown above came from my neighbor, Angjelina. Apparently we keep the eggs until next Easter, when we all go down to the river and throw them in with a wish.

On Saturday I came home with a sunburnt nose; a sure sign that...

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 10:53:00 -0400

On Saturday I came home with a sunburnt nose; a sure sign that the sun is getting stronger. This weekend was the annual Lojra Popullore event in Shkoder. Every year, Shkoder hosts this festival to celebrate the Folk Games. Sponsored by The Door, a Norwegian-based NGO that helps with many PC projects, the festival started with Shkodra’s second organized walk/run (both 2.5 and 5k) that ended at the Rozafa Castle, where participants were greeted with friendly cheering supporters from all over. Groups from several regions around Albania came to show their local costumes, dance and music and the celebrations lasted through the afternoon.

Në Divjakë, with green Jell-O and streamers. Happy St. Patrick’s...

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 08:44:00 -0400

Në Divjakë, with green Jell-O and streamers. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Si sot para një viti erdha në Shqipëri. This time last year I had just arrived in Elbasan. I was a...

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 11:18:00 -0400

Si sot para një viti erdha në Shqipëri. This time last year I had just arrived in Elbasan. I was a nervous wreck, to say the least, as I met my new family and settled into the mentality that I would be living in Albania for the next two years.

Reflecting on my time in Albania since then, I cannot help but have such blissful memories. Memories of incredible awkwardness of Emily proportions, memories of new friends, new family, and new experiences, memories of accomplishment and memories of failure. Regardless of where I was, or any of us were, before coming to Albania, something magical happened upon our arrival; a bond was made between me, the people, and the place I now call home.

I’ve survived a stifling summer and a frigid winter in my new, modest cement home. I’ve survived fresh undercooked meat and milk way past it’s prime, both prepared by me and by others. I’ve come to realize how I handle myself in the strangest of situations; whether it be self-motivated escape of cabin fever, self-motivated escape of Albanian kidnapping (for parties, meals, stare-sessions), or just my ability to innovate, fix-things, and figure out what comes next. Above all, I’ve come to realize that there is nothing wrong with the way I live, I like sour milk and it does my body good.

Life over here is a continual integration process. One moment I think I have it all figured out and the next moment I’m completely dumbfounded. Some days I surprise myself by completely answering a question at lightening speed and the next I’m struggling to remember how to say “hi.” I learn things about myself and about my community every day and, with it all, I’m happy to be where I am. In the words of F. Scott Fitzgerald:

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again.”