Inside a cave on the peninsula of Karaburun in Vlore.

Veiw of Vlore Bay from the castle ruins above the city.

I'll start this off with a story an Albanian told me about Albanians.

A friend of mine (the Albanian) was in Turkey for New Years Eve at a very big celebration with people from countries around the area.

The DJ at the party began to give shout-outs to all the representatives from all of the countries. He announced, "To all the Greeks out there - HAPPY NEW YEAR! To all the Romanians out there - HAPPY NEW YEAR! To all Macedonians out there - HAPPY NEW YEAR! And to all the Albanians out there - Please DO NOT shoot off fireworks inside the building!"

Albanians LOVE their fireworks. And I had heard that on New Years fireworks would be everywhere and I was SCARED! Michelle and I were happy enough to be in America for Christmas but what were we thinking coming back to Albania on the 29th of December? For two days I knew was going to have to cross paths with teenage brats with firecrackers and bottles rockets and the brains of a cherry bomb.

We had invitations to visit friends in other cities, but I was resolved to buy bread and milk and hold up in our house until the explosions subsided, even if it didn't kill me. But on the morning of the 31st I decided to bite the bullet and travel to Elbasan and visit a friend.

I arrived early and we had lunch, I took a nap, and then around 8pm went next door to his host families house for dinner.To us in America, New Years is just a big party, but for Albanians, it is the Celebration of the Year. All the family gets together. A turkey gets the ax. And things get shot into the air.

11:50pm dinner was done and the show was beginning. World War III had started in Albania. Outside from the ground, you could see the explosions overhead, a little, but what scared the two hour into digestion turkey out of me was the noise. I had to yell to people right next to me. I won't tell you what I was yelling at them, but I was yelling.

We went next door to a relatives house and went to the third floor balcony to shoot off our own ordnance. From the baloney, I could see what the noise was all about. Think of the last 10 Fourth of July fireworks displays that you went to. Now take all the fireworks that were shot off and combine them into one, 30 minute frenzy of explosions. Then you realize that these are not trained professionals paid for your entertainment, but the locals! Two words "Awe Some".

I'll stop because this is too long already. New Years in any city in Albania should be on everyones top 10 list of things to do before your too old to have sense enough not to. So, if you understand Albanian than I wish you "Gezuar Viten I Ri!" If not, "Happy New Year!" See you soon.

Michelle and I are here visiting Vlore. The place that we will call home for 2 years. And if anyone had thought about coming to visit us in Albania, now you really have insentive.

Vlore is located on the Albanian cost and is right where the Adriatic Sea meets the Ionian Sea. So what that means is, in the north of the city are sand beaches, and then in the south of the city are rock beaches and sheer cliffs that fall into the sea. It is the vacation hotspot for Albanian.

So you might wonder why in the world a Peace Corps volunteer would end up in a vaction spot. Vlore is also one the few cities in Albania where it is KNOWN that people participate in many of the risk factors for HIV. It has an introvenous drug use community, commercial sex workers, and youth being returned from being trafficed to Italy for the sex trade, begging, organ transplant...

So, it is really nice here. You should come. Bring your bathing suit. We have a place for you to crash and you can experience a developing country with all of the luxuries of Miami Beach.

Our country medical officer told us that a great way to counter-act stress while here in Albania is to exercise. A great way to do that here is to run. I don't run though. I have never liked to run. When I would make a mistake on the football practice field in high school, what do you think was the number one choice of punishment? Running. So I associate running with punishment. My choice for exercise has usually been to lift weights or some sort of competition. Not so easy to find now.

Right now I live in an Albania village with no gym, know one would even know what a raquetball court is, and there is no way I could play soccer with the guys here. They are too good. So this is how I get my exercise.

Bicep curls, shoulder presses, and lateral rows for my back muscles using an axel from a train. I don't know where my family got the axel, but it works for me.The tennis ball game. One of my host brothers borrowed a tennis ball from his uncle and we spend hours throwing the ball to each other. Nothing unusual except we throw the ball to each other over our house. Tiku has to climb the roof sometimes when the ball gets stuck.Walking the cow. Quite relaxing.Hours and hours of walking. This isn't really exercise but when you don't have a car what can you do.I know this post isn't very exciting, but these are things I do in a typical day along with language classes, playing dominoes, drinking a ton of coffee (I didn't even drink coffee at home), and just a whole lot of talking in a language I don't understand.Having the time of my year. Wish you were here.Mike

I feel like I have let myself down. Not writing the blog lately, but I haven't had the time.

We found out where we are going to be stationed for the next 2 years. The city is Vlore, and it won't be a hardship. When Michelle and I decided to join the Peace Corps I expected to be living in a mud hut in Africa for a couple of years, getting water from a well and having no electricity. Instead, we are going to be living in an apartment in a city of over 100,000 people, on the beach, television, ferries to Greece & Italy when we can finally use vacation time. Life is so tough.

It shows me how diverse Peace Corps is. The volunteers are obviously diverse, but so are the countries that they serve in. Some of our group really wanted that traditional Peace Corps experience and asked to serve in Northern (somewhat Northern) Albania. I honestly did not care where we served, I just didn't want to freeze for the next 2 years. I actually told our Peace Corps recruiter at the beginning of the whole application process that the only region that I did not want to serve in was Eastern Europe because I did not want to be cold. Well, we are here in Eastern Europe and we have been cold for 1 month. I think that may be over since Vlore is in Southern Albania and on the sea (of course all of Albania is cold in the winter).

The job that I am assigned to is pretty much a dream job for me here in Albania. I will be working with the Department of Public health in a joint program with UNICEF. The program works mostly with at-risk youth ages 16-24. Many of these youth have returned from other countries where they were taken as part of the human trafficking trade for prostitution, some are drug users. HIV/AIDS and STD prevention is a big part of the program. I am more excited about the program than the fact that I get to work in a beautiful vacation spot for 2 years.

Michelle is going to be working with an NGO called World Vision. This is a non-governmental organization that is involved in many humanitarian projects here in Albania. Currently there is a volunteer in the position that Michelle will fill. I hope this helps her, because she will have the opportunity to work with this current volunteer for 6 months before he leaves to go home to the states.

So, anyway. If anyone has thought about visiting us, let me tell you, “Don't expect to come here and stay with us in a mud hut, water from a well, and no electricity.” It ain't happening. I can arrange it though.Life is good, we are great, and the future is wide open.

This may seem like no big deal to anyone but me.

The famiy that we live with has three “kids” living at home. A 20 year old girl (Nevilla), a, 18 year old boy (Ticu), and a 15 year old boy (Klodi).

The family also has an unfinished bathroom that they don't use much. In fact, I was outside one day when the father was headed to the outhouse. He pointed to the unfinished bathroom and said, “You and Michelle”. Then pointed to the outhouse and listed the rest of the family. I have the language skills to ask, “Why?”, but I don't have the language skills to understand the answer.

It made me feel a little bad. I don't think that I am better than anyone else, and I definitely don't want to give the impression that I do think that way.

I noticed that the older brother always goes outside to brush his teeth after dinner. So one night I grabbed my toothbrush and headed out the door with him. He tried to tell me that I should use brush inside, but of course I won.

Well with the rainy season over, the night shy is perfectly clear. I don't know how may stars God made, but I can see them all from water faucet in the back yard. I can also see the lights of the city across the Shkumbien River. Hear the frogs. Smell the piled hay. Feel the cool night air.

Much better than the view of myself in the mirror in the bathroom.

Now, Ticu asks me if we are going to go outside to brush our teeth every night instead of try to convince me that I should take advantage of the convienences that they have reserved for their guests.

I think he understands now that I don't want to be thought of as company, but as family.

These things happened Sunday, April 2nd.

Michelle, Peter, Ray and I went to the big city, Elbasan about 11am. When we go to town we wanted to go to the internet cafe, grab some lunch, and do whatever else we could think of that we couldn't do in Shushice. We found the internet cafe that I like to go to just fine. We went in, logged on and about five minutes later the power went out in the city. S'ka problem (not a problem). We talked with a guy that had gone to college in the US for a while until it came back on.

After about an hour we decided to head out for lunch. As we were leaving the internet cafe, we noticed in front of the pet store a lot of men had gathered. Not unusual. What was unusual was that they were antagonizing a pitbull into attacking them. Not the smartest thing I've seen. They were hitting it on the nose, poking it, and pouring water in it. Finally the dog decided to play ball and attacked one of guys. I would like to tell you that the dog got a hold of the guy's crotch and performed major plastic surgery, but it was only his arm.

That is scenario 1.

We left the scene and found a place to eat. It was called “The Best”. It lied. While we were eating an orphan begger came in and the manager shooed him a way by chucking a lemon at him. It was a good toss actually.

After we ate and heading up the main street, we came across a one-legged orphan that couldn't walk. He scooted himself across the ground.

Now we were told by the Peace Corps to give the orphans NOTHING. If we did, we would be bombarded. So Peter, Ray and I walked around the orphan as he slid toward us and game him the appropriate command, “Jo!”. This means, “No!”. For some reason Michelle had fallen behind and as I turned to see how my fellow volunteers has made out with their OAT (orphan-avoidance-techniques), I noticed Michelle was trouble. She tried to go around the orphan and he had trapped her. She either had to back up like a coward, walk into the road, or walk right next to the orphan. She should have chosen the cowards way out, because right as she tried to pass, the sneaky little orphan latched on to her leg.

Bless her heart. This little orphan must have seen this American woman coming a mile away, and Michelle has not fully developed her OAT. She tried repeated, Jo's!, but he was persistant. He kept saying something about money. About 15 people had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk to see if she was going to cave in to the demands of the one-legged orphan or if she was going to lose it and sling the bugger into the rode.

Neither happened. I eventually had to go over and post the little guy up. I proped my foot between them as she tried to slide away. She just ended up dragging him about a foot down the sidewalk, so I then gently pulled his little hands apart so Michelle could escape. In a last ditch effort he grabbed her pant leg, but did not get a good enough grip to hold on.

Now I have been saying orphan here, but more than likely his parents put him out to beg every day. It happens here.

I bet you are thinking that we are pretty bad people for not giving him anything, but the policy is there for a reason. One block up the road another kid came up to us with a coat hanger and was tapping us on our front pockets asking for money. Like I said, “It happens.”

I'm not going to talk about the other thing. Let's just say it involved a baby bird, a string, and me wanting to punch the little punk doing it in the gut. Self-restraint is a tough thing sometimes.

A furgon is a mini bus. It maybe seats 8 people. But it will hold 16 because the first set of people in use their laps as seats for the next 8.

The furgons serve as a shuttle between the larger towns and the smaller ones. The roads to the town, Shushice is very curvy, unpaved, and full of potholes. Some sections have about 3 feet of usable road. Most oncoming cars race to this spot to see who can use this bit of road first. Luckily, the fugons I have been in have won everytime. We usally pass the oncoming car by at least 2 inches. Plenty of room for the people, donkeys, chickens and horse carts that were already there to squeeze by. S'ka problem.

When there is a straight bit straight road the driver floors is to make up for the time he spent swearving earlier. Makes sense to me. The street dogs don't like it too much.

The people here a great. I feel completely safe everywhere I have gone. Even the dark back alleys with strangers coming out of nowhere. They just mind there own business (in Elbasan).

In Shushice, they are nice in a different way. They want to ask you a million questions that you can only answer with "Nuk kuptoj" (nuk koop-toy). Means "I don't understand" incase you were wondering.

I like it a lot here. It is really cold indoors. Moderate temp outdoors. Go figure. Everything looks like America but is really different.

More later.

This has been awesome.

Ok, so we made it to Albanian. We are in Elbasan. A pretty large town (about 130,000 people I think). This place is beautiful. There is an old Roman fort here that they have excavated into a cafe. It is huge, lush, nice.

The Albanian trainers have been great. Very helpful. Very nice.

We are staying at an old communist hotel. The accomodations are great. Tomorrow we are going to meet our host families for training. Michelle and I are going to be staying together with a doctor and his family in a close town called Shushice (shew-sheets). We will train there everyday with 2 other volunteers. Twice a week we will all meet back together in Elbasan.

There are 27 volunteers. We have all gotten along for the most part. We bonded pretty fast.

I am going to wrap this up, but things have gone so much better than I expected.

Man, this COULD be a huge post, but I won't torture you.

We finished our stagging about 2 hours ago. I actually enjoyed it. I expected to be in a room with a bunch of hippies and found out that I was probably the closest thing to a hippie in the stagging. About half of the stagging group is fresh out of college, about half have been working for a while. A couple of older guys. Our group has 27 people and only 7 are female. That through me back because generally the Peace Corps runs 40% male and 60% female.

We are getting on the plane tomorrow to head for Tirana. We won't get to Tirana until about 4:30pm local time, to our host city until after 7pm local time. Once we get there we are supposed to go straight to a dinner being held for us. I think that the thought is very nice, but how tired are 27 people going to be after 24 hours to travel? My guess is VERY!

I tell you though. If the worst thing to complain about after all the preparing and traveling, selling all we own, saying good bye to everyone, and getting through all the paperwork is that some people want to hold a dinner for me, well I would say that is the pure work of God.

You make up your mind, but my mind is a very thankful one.

Until I can post again,

Peace

We're in Jacksonville Florida now. One last family visit before we head to Philly for our staging and then off to Albania on the 23rd.

Here is where we have been since March 9th, starting in Nashville, TN

March 9th - Left for Bainbridge Ga

March 11th - Headed to Oxford, Al

March 12th - Back to Nashville via Huntsville, Al

March 14th - Off to Winston-Salem, NC

March 17th - To where we are now, Jacksonville, Fl

Now all we have to do is

March 20th - To Greensboro, NC

March 21st - Arrive in Philidelphia, Pa for staging

March 23rd - Drive from Philly to catch our flight in New York to Rome and then finally Albania.

Not too bad.

I have to admit, God has really taken care of us. No mater how much we have worried. I'll give some examples.

Michelle and I have been packing and repacking our big bags for the past 3 days to get them within the 50lb weight limit. We pack them and then we get on the scales. We just knew we were over our limit. We got to the luggage counter at the airport and all four bags were withing weight. Some a couple pounds under.

Last night our flight to Atlanta got in 45 minutes AFTER our connection wast supposed to DEPART. Well, our connection ended up being delayed also and we made it. (I found out in the car that my brothers had plans to get me here even if we had missed the plane.)

I'm going to log off, but I could write a lot more.

Finished my last day of work yesterday and I am sitting down here in Southern Georgia. We are dropping our 5 year old baby (Corky our yellow lab) off. She has a playmate, mom has a 3 year old boxer.

We are going to be getting on the road early tomorrow to head up to Oxford, Alabama to see my older brother and his family. Then we will be on the road early Saturday morning with my Pop and Gail to pick up the rest of Michelle's stuff in storage in Huntsville, Al. A couple more days in Springfield, TN and we are off to Winston-Salem, NC.

There is a lot more travel after that. Flying to Albania is going to be a breeze once all the local travel is behind us.

We had our "everything must go" yard sale Saturday, and everything WENT! We got rid of all our furniture, washing machine, dishes, clothes, dog bowls, everything. People just went nuts. We started to set up at 4:30am for the yard sale that was advertised as starting at 7am.

We got our first customer at 5:45am and she spent about $50. Then it was a mad house. We also sold Michelle's car Saturday.

So all we really have left are the few things we were going to store, 200 lbs of things we are taking to Albania, and some trash. The big man took car of us in a big way.

We also had a lot of good-byes this weekend. Even though we will see most people next weekend, we will be pressed for time and won't really get a good good-bye in.

Our friends at church have been great to us. It has really been awesome.

I knew everything we owned was junk, but I guess I didn't know how much junk we owned. I figure, if we can sell every little piece of trash for 10 cents, we can retire to the Caribbean as millionaires.

I just hope people come and buy some of this at the yard sale. I don't really care about the money, but I don't want to have to deal with all of the "stuff" for another week.

If you are leaving for the Peace Corps, sell your stuff early. That way you can enjoy the process and not have to stress over one more thing to do.

I am going to post our "To-Do" list soon.

We went and moved half of Michelle's stuff out of her storage area in Huntsville today. Talk about last minute preparations. We should have cleared that stuff out of there 5 years ago. We like to be reactive, not proactive.

We have our itenerary. Fly into Philly from Greensboro on the 21st of March, two days in Philly for staging, and then off to Albania.

There is a lot to do before then. We just now put an ad in the paper to sell Michelle's car.

Oh well. We'll get it done.

I set up a pretty simple webpage yesterday. It only lets me post one picture at a time and won't let me really add too much information, but it is FREE. Also I was able to add links to this blog and some other links to Albania.

Exactly one month from today, Michelle and I will touch down in the country that will be our new home for over two years. We both have mixed emotions, but because we are so busy trying to tie up loose ends, we don't really have time to express them.

It is odd that we are going to undergo such a major life event and so much of how everything is going to go down is unknown. We don't even know what we will be doing the next few weeks, much less the next few years.

But the Peace Corps wants flexiblitlity, so that is what they are going to get from us. I think this next month will be a testament to exactly how flexible we can be.

By the way, this is my first blog, so we will see how it goes.