El Fin

The trip was an eye-opening experience that taught me a lot about myself and about a country I am ashamed to admit I had no prior knowledge. The funny thing is, I now know 3 Albanians that I see on a regular basis. The study-abroad program has made my life richer by leaps and bounds.

Thanks to all for their support during this trip and for reading. Hope you enjoyed it. Comments are forwarded to my email address, so if you have anything to add, please do.

UPDATE:May 2009
If you liked this blog, you'll LOVE my new one, now with more popcorn:
http://snippetsofclarity.blogspot.com/

-L

It's the little differences

When traveling you expect things to be different. If you don't, please stay home or keep your complaints to yourself!

Of course it seems that the bathroom facilities are the most notable. They had two buttons for flushing; big flush and little flush, makes perfect sense. Some even had a foot petal to flush, a germaphobe's dream come true.

In Albania, the bathrooms are completely open with a drain in the middle. The shower was a small square with no shower curtain. The toilet lid covered the seat and there was a cover over the toilet paper. The only thing missing was a squeegee to push all the water down the drain. I didn't have a problem with this set-up, however it seemed to be highly distressing to some of my fellow travelers.

Locks also operate differently. You put the key in with the flat part on the top and turn it two times. In the hotel rooms you had to leave the key in the door and lock yourself in if you wanted to have the door locked. If your room mate was out, you had to leave the door unlocked until they returned.

I have mentioned driving. One of the TIS administrators Ron mentioned that in Albania driving is new to everyone, which is an excellent point. This explains why traffic rules are merely a suggestion. What would be a four lane road is made into six or eight depending on how much traffic. But the funniest part was the honking. Yes, the honk in Italy like crazy, but it's more a move-it jerk, kinda honk. Not so in Albania. You honk because you're driving, you honk because the sun is shining, you honk because you are starting to move, you honk because you are stopping, you honk because you are driving past a pedestrian. We dubbed it the "Courtesy Toot". If it weren't for the fact that everyone has guns here in Texas, I would employ the courtesy toot. But alas, I would get involved in a road rage incident and possibly cease to exist. I do however love the phrase Courtesy Toot and will try to incorporate it into my speech at every possible opportunity. I get a giggle every time I try to say it. Say it with me...courtesy toot...bwahahaha!

A roundabout in the main drag in Tirane

Tirane road on the way to Mother Teresa International Airport

Wolves

Onufri Enthnographic Museum where there was a small upstairs room for the wimminz while the men had a nice big comfy room with cushy lambs wool rugs. Mind your place WOMAN!

This is one American woman's impression, YMMV (your mileage may vary).

In Albania there is a common behavior that the men hang out on the street corners and outdoor cafes. Rarely do you see women out, and if they are they are with other women and children going to the market or on an obvious mission. They are not chillin’ wif da homies. It took me about a week before I got used to “walking the gauntlet” and was able to feel comfortable. I dubbed these men wolves as it could be brutal getting past them.

Many of these shots of the men I got holding the camera behind my back and just clicking. I couldn't handle the attention asking permission to take their picture would have brought.

Wolves, Tirane

Wolves in Phone Alley, Tirane

More Phone Alley Wolves, Tirane

Our first weekend was spent in Berat (Berati, City of a Thousand Windows) which is just a lovely town, but not a big city. We were obvious tourists, of which there are very few in Albania. To make things worse, we were a group of seven American women walking the city, visiting the churches and mosques. We drew honks, stares and at one point we had a guy following us for several blocks. It was a rainy weekend and we got caught in a storm. A young girl came and found us amongst the cobble-stone streets up on the hill and offered us shelter in her parent’s home. We stood in the foyer and really tried to refuse going up into the rest of the house as we were dripping wet. They insisted we come inside. They fed us candies and cherry jam, watched Fashion TV, exchanged emails and took pictures. As usual, I didn’t have my camera.

View from Mountain in Berat

Blame it on the Rain (photo courtesy of Barbara Smith-Jones)

Oh yes, and I flipped off a young boy as I was walking away from him. He was trying to speak to me and I could almost understand him, but as I sat there trying to interpret what he said, he broke out with his stellar English and called me a stuck-up bitch. Guess I was a little slow on the draw. I never claimed to be a diplomat. He too took a few blocks to shake.

Future Wolves, Tirane