Finishing projects (will post photos), starting new ones (I hope someone will send me photos of these someday, ha!), and saying goodbye to the place that’s been my home for two years has all been overwhelming.  I’ve packed my entire house back down to a few bags, had more turkish coffees than I can count, and yesterday I even crowned Ms. Teen Pёrmet in the Nonda vs. Meleqi competition (middle school face-off).  What a way to go, right?

I can’t express how lucky I have been to live here.  It’s amazing in so many ways, not the least of which is the kindness of the people.  In the last few days I’ve received more blessings from friends, neighbors, shop owners, elected officials, furgon drivers, teenage boys, old gjyshas and even dogs that I can’t see how it would be possible to not have a rrugё tё mbarё.  My bags are full of mountain tea, table clothes, knit stockings and raki, and I am full of great memories – but only kind of ready to come home.

O qyteti im, do mё mungoni

Today’s my last full day in Pёrmet, and probably my last blog from Albania…  Faleminderit for following my adventure, and shihemi next Saturday in America!

Today -7 March- is Teachers’ Day, and tomorrow is Mothers Day (or just Women’s Day) here in Albania.  To celebrate, the bashkia put together a little ceremony complete with student songs; I thought you might want to have a look-see.  When I pan the crowd you can see some of the neighborhood hooligans, showing off their English for you (“HELLO!  HELLO!”).

I’m just proud they didn’t use profanities on camera…

(technical difficulties… video coming soon…)

Rather than deal with the unending construction along the most direct route, we decided to take the coastal road for a change.   On this rare sunny afternoon we went in search of an alleged monastery south of Dhёrmi, but instead came across a hard-to-access beach and (what else but) one of the many thousands and thousands of Enver Hoxha’s famous bunkers.

But I think if the communists assigned you to bunker duty, this wouldn’t be so bad – would it?

I’ve been a little (a lot) sick lately – so rather than whine about it here, or try to come up with new content in a feverish haze, I’ve been trolling facebook for things to share.  Here’s a couple of fun photos:

Except the Albanian villagers that “rally around me” look nothing like that (wink wink).  And I do have a shower head, it’s just that I have to wedge myself between the sink and toilet to use it…….  If you think the CIA part is a joke, think again – there are actually people who won’t talk to me because they believe I’m a spy.  Right.  The CIA is really interested in what you’re doing sitting in a make-shift shed in small-town Albania selling tomatoes, drinking turkish coffee and smoking cigarettes all day long.  Right.

Which reminds me…

Slightly less accurate, but still entertaining to those of us living here.  The movie reference is Taken (2008), with Liam Neeson.

***

Act Two: This Albanian Life meets This American Life (Rooster Facts)

If you’ve ever had those “I’m sick, I feel awful, I just need a good night of sleep…. and I can’t sleep!” nights, you’ll know what I’m taking about here.  I’ve been forced to choose between sleeping in my living room (warmer, slightly less comfortable couch, listen to dog that screech/barks from 12am-5am nonstop) or sleeping in my bedroom (colder, more comfortable bed, listen to rooster that crows indiscriminately 24 hours/day). Eventually I decided on the bedroom for many reasons, one of them being that I don’t mind the rooster so much.  Then I heard one of the funniest pieces This American Life has run in a long time: Ain’t Nobody Here but Us Chickens.

Listen!  It’s hilarious!  There’s just one factual inaccuracy – this comedian mistakenly believes that only his rooster has a malfunctioning inner clock.  I’m here to tell you, folks… Rooster Fact: no rooster knows what time it is.  Rooster Fact: No rooster knows when the sun is rising.  Rooster Fact: Roosters don’t care.  Rooster Fact: Roosters just crow when they feel like it.  Having said that, I still prefer it to the screeching dog; it’s sort of quaint and pastoral.

***

Act Three: It’s Aliiiiiiiiive!

They finally use the information board for it’s intended purpose.  I can go now.

***

Act Four: Thanks

Thanks to Barbetta for sending warm jammies, and Melissa for sending a sick girl’s best friend: zebra snuggie.   And of course, thanks to my mom for always listening to me whimper about mild sickness.   The sun came out today and the birds are chirping (no, not just the rooster), so spring might even be around the corner…..  !

Dinner and a movie? Nah... let's check out that legendary castle

So, enjoy:

It’s Valentine’s Day!  A day when we celebrate friendship, love, and romance. Through the years here at the National Peace Corps Association, we’ve heard countless stories of Peace Corps romance.  The couples that met at the airport on the way to training.  The couples that met while serving. The Peace Corps Volunteers that fell in love with a host country national.  And the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers that connected in the States, discovering that the shared bond of Peace Corps service was the spark that led to a relationship.

 Peace Corps is a life-changing experience that develops a unique set of skills and attributes.  So it goes without saying:  Returned Peace Corps Volunteers make GREAT dates.  And just to prove it, we’ve started a list.

 12 reasons to date a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer:

1.       We can woo you in multiple languages. Who else is going to whisper sweet nothings to you in everything from Albanian to Hausa to Quechua to Xhosa? That’s right. Only a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer.

2.       We’re pretty good dancers. Yeah, we don’t like to brag, but after 27 months in Latin America or Africa we know how to move it.

3.       We’ll eat anything. Seriously. No matter how bad your cooking, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers have had worse and will eat it with nary a blink. Sheep’s eyeball? Water buffalo gall bladder? Grasshoppers? Bush rat? Bring it.

4.       We know all about safe sex, thanks to our very thorough Peace Corps health training. In fact, there’s a chance that we’ve stood unblushingly in front of hundreds of villagers and demonstrated good condom technique with a large wooden phallus.

5.       We’ll kill spiders for you. Well, actually, we’ll nonchalantly scoop them up and put them out of sight. Same goes for mice, geckos, frogs, snakes. Critters don’t faze Returned Volunteers.

6.       We have great date ideas: wandering a street market, checking out a foreign film, taking in a world music concert, volunteering…. Romantic getaway? Our passport is updated and our suitcase is packed. With us, life is always an adventure.

7.       We like you for “you”… not your paycheck. Especially if we are freshly back from service, a local joint with “character” will win out over a pretentious eatery. Living in a group house? No problem. Does it have running hot water? What luxury!

8.       You won’t get lost when you’re with a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. Navigating local markets on four continents, we’ve honed an uncanny sense of direction. Or else we’ll ask for directions. We’re not afraid to talk to “strangers.”

9.       Waiting for a late train or bus with us? Don’t worry. Been there, done that. We can share lots of funny stories about “the bus ride from hell” that will make the time go quickly and put it all into perspective.

10.   Our low-maintenance fashion style. Returned Peace Corps Volunteer guys are secure in their manhood and don’t mind rocking a sarong. Women often prefer flip flops to high heels. We don’t spend hours in front of a mirror getting ready to go out.

11.   Marry us, and you won’t just get one family — you’ll get two! When we refer to our “brother” or “mom,” you’ll want to be certain we’re talking about our American one or our Peace Corps one. You might even get two wedding ceremonies, one in the U.S. and one back in our Peace Corps country.

12.   And last but not least, we aren’t afraid to get dirty.

Mud bath at the local thermal waters

“…The “old crones” were consulted.  These were aged women who could never be surprised or frightened by anything any more.  They had long since stopped going out of their houses, for they found the world boring.  To them even major events like epidemics, floods and wars were only repetitions of what they had seen before. 

…Granny Shano spent thirty-one years inside until one day she went out into the street a few yards in front of her house to assault an Italian officer who was making eyes at her great-granddaughter.  These crones were very robust, all nerve and bone, even though they ate very little and smoked and drank coffee all day long.  When Granny Shano grabbed the Italian officer by the ear, he let out a great yelp, drew his pistol, and rapped the old woman’s hand with the butt.  Not only did she refuse to let go, she punched him with her bony hands.  The crones had very little flesh on their bones, and few vulnerable spots.  Their bodies were like corpses ready for embalming, from which all innards likely to rot had already been removed.  Superfluous emotions like curiosity, fear and lust for gossip or excitement had been shed along with the useless flesh and excess fat.” 

“She has a motorcycle in her bathroom!”

To explain: as volunteers, we rent houses/apartments/rooms – and every volunteer’s living situation is different.   Cities differ, availability differs, landlords differ. In fact, Albania is plagued by the post-communist difficulties of sorting out property ownership – so renting is a really far-fetched concept for many folks.  Landlords who live in Tirana come to town and ask to share the house for a  few days while they’re on vacation (I’ll just stay in the spare bedroom, okay?), or ask to sub-let the space for a few weeks at a higher rental rate (can’t you just stay with some friends for a little while?), or leave personal possessions in the homes we rent (clothing – photos - motorcycles).  It’s just different.

Back in May, Aimee and I met in a nearby town to help a new volunteer move into her house; while I was still 15 minutes away by furgon, she sent this text message.  She does, in fact, have a motorcycle in her bathroom.

To be fair, it's a huge bathroom. Photo cred to Aimee D

My meal

My date

My hosts

My entertainment

And of course… MY VIEW:

Qoftё njё vit i mbarё -

shёndet dhe lumturi pёr ju dhe familjen tuaj!

Who goes there?

I would hate to lull you into thinking that all I do is work over here….

Besides, all work and no play makes for some really dull volunteers.  So this past autumn Allan and I did a Balkan Blitz  – between furgons, buses, taxis, trains, hitchhikes, ride-shares, streetcars, bicycles, our feet, and an airplane (whew!) we managed to cover a lot of territory, including:

• 5 countries (Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia)
• 15 cities (Lezhё, Shkodёr, Ulcinj, Žabljak, Goražde, Sarajevo, Jajce, Banja Luka, Rovinj, Pula, Rijeka, Ljubljana, Bled, Maribor, Ptuj)
• 8 castles
• 2.5 National Parks (we were sooooooo close to the 3rd)
• live music, Roman ruins, ancient maps, seaside picnics, milk machines, city strolls, mountain hikes, massive gorges, glacial lakes, endless postcards, new friends, giant supermarkets, churches, mosques, synagogues,
• and ONE REALLY AMAZING LEAF PILE! 

Planning + Preparation =

PERFECTION!

All in 19 days, plus 1 vacation-ish day in Tirana when we returned (Japanese dinner, and drinks at the Sky Tower!).

We had falafel, horse burger, fresh-squeezed orange juice, chinese food, truffles, and gibanica.  We taught Colombians and Slovenians to make American-style pancakes, and took a trip to the fish market in Croatia for our own gourmet seafood dinner.  By the end we had consumed more cups of coffee than I know how to count.

We got the very best of autumn, everywhere we went: trees blazing with color, crisp weather without rain, mulled wine and roasted chestnuts.

(Between the two of us, I am -admittedly- not the photographer, so I apologize for the lackluster quality; a couple of the really good photos in here belong to Allan.)  We started the trip in Shkodёr & Lezhё, in Norther Albania.  We had the great pleasure of visiting PCV friends and touring their sites.  We had the castle in Lezhё all to ourselves – probably the only time I’ll ever be able to say that I had a castle all to myself, haha.  It was a beautiful view over the city and out to the Adriatic Sea.

Lezhё is also home to a memorial for the national hero Gjergj Skenderbeg…. which was closed.

But we did make friends with a visitor in the park next door.

The castle in Shkodёr was also great, and has really good legend to go with it – not mention lots of cool secret passageways and ruins.  From the top you can see out across the Lake toward Montenegro or back toward the Albanian Alps.

Before leaving Shkodёr we stopped by the Venetian mask factory, to check out the handicraft and make some purchases.  Pressed for time to catch our bus to Montenegro, we only got to see the showroom, but it was WOW COOL.

Rather than tour the increasingly popular Montenegrin coast, we headed inland to the town of Žabljak.  We had the great fortune (foresight?) to arrive in between the summer and winter tourist seasons, so we pretty much had this paradise to ourselves.  The town is set on the edge of Durmitor National Park and the Tara River Canyon, both of which are stunning.  Durmitor is famous for its glacial lakes:

While the Tara River Canyon is the deepest in Europe:

We made a slight travel snafu on our way into Bosnia, and had to walk 7 km from the border checkpoint on the Montenegrin side to the checkpoint on the Bosnian side.  Thankfully, this was entirely downhill and entirely gorgeous, so we survived – all smiles:

I somehow managed to take ZERO pictures of Goražde or Sarajevo (???), but got back on the horse in Jajce.  The town is known for being built practically on top of giant waterfalls.  Sadly, the waterfalls were diverted and underwhelming as they were doing some construction on the infrastructure there.  I did get a few from the castle, though

From there we made a looooooong overnight trek with stops in Banja Luka (where we went out with an old friend of Allan’s) and Zagreb (where we didn’t even bother to leave the bus station because we were so tired).  Finally we got out to the coast on the Istrian Peninsula of Croatia, where we stayed for a few days.  We used Rovinj as our base (obviously not my photo):

They have some of the best preserved Roman ruins in the area, with a massive colosseum in Pula:

On our way up to the castle in Pula, we stopped to see an exhibit of historic maps of the Macedonian region (no shame, we’re map junkies).  We easily spent more time in there than on anything else in Pula, and found some great maps of our respective PCV sites in Albania.  Korça:

At this point I think we had successfully eased our way out of Albanian life and were ready for the sweet taste of the EU: SLOVENIA.  We started and finished in Ljubljana, which was gorgeous, fun, interesting, clean, and everything you might appreciate about a European capital city.  We hiked up to a mountain just outside town one morning for this amazing view of the city and valley:

We also toured the castle (getting sort of old at that point), wandered Tivoli Park (see world’s greatest leaf pile, above), did a little shopping, and generally enjoyed the city.  We also spent a few nights cooking dinner together with our new Slovenian friends.  Pancakes one night, and quesadillas another; Mexican is always a hit.

In Bled we spent one day biking up to Vintgar Gorge and around Lake Bled:

We also indulged in some of the local delicacies… mainly Gibanica.  Cake, with walnuts, poppy seeds, apples, raisins, and ricotta-ish cheese.  When I first heard about it I thought “wow, I have to try that!”  Upon tasting it I thought “wow, I have to learn how to make this!”  About half way through I thought “wow, this cake might best me!”  Cupcake eating contest runner-up that I am, I finished it; I concluded, however, that “wow, it’s probably better if I don’t know how to make that.”

When we were fully sated (I’ll admit, this is where we had the Chinese food), we traveled back east to Ljubljana for a night before heading further east to Ptuj and Maribor.  Ptuj, as you may or may not know, is the home of the Kurentovanje festival.  While the festival is timed with Mardi Gras, we did get to see some of the amazing costumes in the museum there.

More than enough adventure to satisfy my wanderlust for the time being… but just enough to pique my interest for more.  I’m always taking suggestions for another travel destination : )

“Story of the week!  When the custodian came to school this morning, he found that a donkey had been locked in the 11th grade class (on the 2nd floor!) all night.  It took two hours to clean and air out the stink, lol!”

It could be worse, you could be stuck in homeroom