Cleaning my room today, I stumbled upon my collection of letters I have received over this past year and a half. I was reminded what an amazing community of friends and family I have back home. Love and miss you all.

"you were just a sexy girl, nothing but a sexy girl."

Is this song out in the states? I HATE this song. Since November this song has been in regular rotation in Albania. I hear it more or less every time I go out to a club or bar. It’s indicative of gender relations in this country. Far too often women are just objects to be stared at and commented upon. At least once a day I’m whistled at or receive a catcall. It’s possible Wendi and I get more attention than the average female, as we usually stand out as foreigners, but no women seems able to avoid unwanted attention completely. Of course for some women the attention is desirable. During the summer xhiro, or promenade if you will, the younger women will dress to the nines and parade up and down the street, while the men park themselves at cafes along the xhiro route and ogle the ladies. The whole thing frustrates and disturbs me to no end.

Isn’t it great how all of my blog postings have turned into excuses for the long delay between postings? Oh well, I’m back now. I’d like to say my New Years resolution is to keep in better contact via this blog, but I’ve finally learned not to make that promise, as I seem unable to keep it.

The end of 2008 was eventful. There are too many highlights to cover in full, so below is a brief overview. If your dying for more in depth information on any particular topic let me know.

The beginning of November brought much opportunity for celebration. We witnessed the election of a president I actually voted for (or at least I hope I did, that absentee ballot process is tricky and could definitely use an upgrade). Also my sitemate Rob and I both celebrated our birthdays.

The middle of the month brought a mini Macalester reunion. After spending much of the summer searching for other Macalester alumni in the area, I finally gave up, only to be contacted in September by Brittany, class of ’06. Brittany is here temporarily, working with a few NGO’s in Tirana. Prior to her departure she was introduced to Warren, another alumni who graduated in the 70’s and would soon be teaching at an international school in Tirana. Once at the school Warren met the other American teachers including Christina, who attended Mac from 2002 – 2004. Small world, no? And so the four of us had a small get together in mid November to reminisce. Despite the various debates and conflicting views presented on campus, I find there is a set of values and beliefs shared by most members of the Macalester community. This connection and common understanding allows for the fast formation of friendship. Much as I love my fellow volunteers, it’s definitely refreshing to have some non-Peace Corps friends around.

Warren, Christina, Me, and Brittany

The latter half of the month was consumed by my first trip back to the states. It was great. I was a bridesmaid for the wedding of my dear friends, Catherine and Arlen. I took the GRE. I spoke to several classes at my high school. I celebrated Thanksgiving with all of my immediate family and some of my extended family. I even got to go to a Husker football game. My only frustration was that because it was necessarily busy, I constantly felt distracted by the next task at hand (the exam, prepping for my presentations, getting ready to come back to Albania). I felt like I was never able to be fully present with people. And sadly there are many people I was unable to see or call. But all in all a good trip, and thankfully my greatest concern was not realized. I had some trepidation that once I arrived back home I wouldn’t want to get on the plane to come back to Albania. This is a common concern for volunteers, and a sizable portion of volunteers in fact don’t return or decide shortly after their trip to terminate their service. Fortunately, though I loved being home and spending time with friends and family, I felt no trepidation the day my return flight came.

The Happy Couple and I

Go Big Red!

I arrived back in Shkodra December 1st, but in less than a week I was back on the road, traveling south for a mandatory training with all the other volunteers from my group. The first three days were focused on technical training in our respective sectors; the latter three days were devoted to language. It was great seeing everyone and nice to be at a comfortable hotel with ample heat, but we were all ready to head home by day four, so we were pretty irritable by the end of the training.

Super engaged...

After training I had a few days to recover, then the madness of the holiday season set in. We coaxed a number of volunteers to join us in Shkodra for Christmas and several of us convened in Tirana for New Years. I’ll save the details for another entry devoted solely to the holiday season.

The Christmas Gathering

And that brings us to the New Year. Winter was rumored to be a pretty depressing time of year in Albania. I figured December would be busy enough that it would pass fairly quickly, but January and February would probably suck. That conjecture thus far has been more or less true. December, though stressful, kept me too busy to be blue. January though has brought few highlights. The sun sets by five and until this past week, the rain has been nonstop, leaving buildings dark and dreary pretty much all day. I’ve had the sniffles since November, but January brought an illness that kept me in bed for nearly a week. The cold weather and lack of sufficient heating have forced me to wear four – five layers at all times. But that’s enough griping for one blog. The plan to travel in mid February suggests a shake up in the doldrums of winter and even if February proves equally bleak at least it’s a short month. Before you know it, it will be March, a new group of trainees will be arriving, and I will be celebrating my one-year anniversary in the Peace Corps.

Reader beware, the following post reflects the wilder side of Peace Corps. Nothing too scandalous, but there are references to alcohol, drag, and sexual innuendos. As promised, a report on Halloween, Peace Corps Albanian style:

Halloween is slowly gaining recognition in Albania. Parties have begun to spring up in the bigger cities, including several here in Shkodra on or around Halloween. But while Halloween is increasingly an international affair, I still think of it as a traditional American holiday, and for such occasions you simply want to be with other Americans. Historically Peace Corps Albania has held a conference the week of Halloween, allowing volunteers to be together on Peace Corps’ dime, while of course learning important new techniques for capacity building. Due to recent budget cuts the conference was bumped to December, so we had to make our own arrangements. Elbasan, being the most central location (i.e. relatively easy for everyone to get to) and the site with the most couches to crash on, won out as the party site. So on Halloween night we all descended upon our former training site. Finishing touches were placed on costumes, libations were purchased, and the party got underway. There was a costume contest, as well as a baking contest. Despite being a crowd favorite, my cookies could not contend with the chocolate chip banana bread. Upstairs there was lively conversation, downstairs a full-blown dance party. Many of the costumes had an Albanian theme. There were several Albanian Gyshes and Gyshas (grandpas and grandmas.) Maggie rocked an awesome Suflaqe costume. For those of you not hip to Albanian cuisine, suflaqe is a type of fast food very similar to a Greek gyro. It is one of the mainstays of a PCV diet. Before settling on my costume I contemplated going as an Albanian river, by dressing all in brown and taping plastic bags and bottles all over, as a type of commentary on the unfortunate state of the environment in Albania. Other volunteers drew inspiration from the pending election. We enjoyed the company of Sarah Palin and a “John McCain supporter.” And of course there were the old standards: a ghost, a zombie, and a kitty cat. I went a slightly different direction with my costume. I have long disliked Halloween and really any other theme party necessitating a costume. Rarely can I think of an interesting costume. On the occasions when I can think of something entertaining I am lacking the time or money to put together said costume. But as the invite for this party stated, “costume required,” it seemed I had no choice. Lacking inspiration and distressed by the amount of money I had just seen spent by Wendi on her costume, I was feeling unmotivated. I asked my sitemates for their suggestions. During the brainstorm, Rob stood up to tell a story, complete with his bizarre “Captain Morgan-esque” stance, his exaggerated gestures, and his colorful language. Then it hit me: I should go as Rob. It was perfect. It was a costume all of the volunteers could appreciate, it would cost me little or no money to produce, and perhaps most importantly it gave me unlimited opportunity to poke fun at our dear Robi. Rob of course was a sport about it. As he put it, “imitation is the highest form of flattery.” He loaned me several clothing items, his Guinness hat he wears EVERYWHERE, a favorite t-shirt, and the pair of boxer shorts and tie he notoriously wore on his head for the beer fest in Korce. He answered my numerous questions, “How do you stand when you’re talking to someone?” “What would be your beverage of choice at a Halloween party?” “What greeting do you most frequently use?” etc. I was committed to my character. There had been much shared disappointment amongst volunteers, that Rob would not be at the party (he was in Poland celebrating his anniversary with his girlfriend), so I felt it was my obligation to bring a little bit of Rob’s spirit to the party. By my assessment the costume was a hit. Nearly all of the volunteers from our group could identify me based on appearance alone. For those members of group 10 or the newly arrived Georgian volunteers, a little acting proved necessary. Big gestures or a few vulgar comments usually did the trick. Once people realized who I was, I like to think most were amused. Perhaps Wendi explains best, why the costume was particularly entertaining, “You could probably find two people more opposite than you and Rob, but it might take a couple years searching.” Rob is tall, skinny, and tan. I’m pale, and…well…not tall and skinny. Rob has a Masters in Business Management; I nearly flunked my only econ class in college. Rob thrives on spontaneity; I crave structure, rules, and a schedule. Finally Rob throws around terms such as “babe” and “chick” as signs of affection, I am an ardent feminist who spent most of her college career speaking out against the patriarchy and male chauvinism. And yet despite our differences I love Rob as if he were an older brother, and I like to think if he could have seen me at the Halloween party he would have been proud. And now a sampling of costumes:Rob, ready for the party

Wendi as a “disco ball.” Side note: all aspects of the costume were found in Albania and Wendi was the only member of our group not to draw odd stares as we walked down the street in our costumes. Her outfit, though extremely gaudy by American standards, would be totally normal for an Albanian female, Wendi’s age. Kevin and Amy as an “American plug and European outlet.” Careful you two! Be sure to use your “adapter.” Tauschia as a “The-saurus” Bumble Bees The Gysh and the Gysha “Rob” later in the night, hanging with the “The-Saurus” and the “Suflaqe”

Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes. I'll write about how I celebrated later this week.

The official quote for the week: “He WON! Hewonhewonhewonhewon!” Often accompanied by a little dance performed by my sitemate Wendi and I. The man in question is of course our new President Elect, Barack Obama. The feelings felt this week were nothing short of euphoric. I don’t think I’ve ever felt more pride or hope for our country. I’m confident that when I come home in 19 months, America is going to be a better place than when I left.

I asked my parents to call me “the second” a victor was announced, no matter the hour. Unfortunately due to phone difficulties no call was received. So, when I woke up at 4 AM I couldn’t fall back asleep, anxious to hear the results. Little did I know my host father had yet to go to sleep, as he was up, perched in front of the television, eagerly awaiting an announcement. Finally at 7:30 AM I wandered downstairs. I found my host mother and asked if they had announced a winner. She said yes and turned on the television. There on the screen were the most beautiful words I’ve ever read in Albanian: Barack Obama President i SHBA (i SHBA is Albanian for of the USA). Albanian television in all its glory.

A little bit later I wandered over to the internet café to look up state races. All of the news websites had the map with red and blue states. I was floored to see all the states Obama had won. Florida? I would never have called that one. Even Nebraska contributed an electoral vote. The reddest of red states helped to elect a democratic president. I was literally crying tears of joy, as I skimmed reports of election day. Fortunately it was early and there were only a few Albanians to stare at me. Of course a full day of grinning like an idiot and dancing in the streets probably convinced at least half of Shkoder that Americans, or at least this one, are crazy. I then wondered over to Will and Wendi’s to enjoy a celebratory champagne breakfast. We agreed the night before we would either celebrate with Mimosas or do shots of hard liquor and call in sick to work. Luckily the latter proved unnecessary. This week was the first time in a long while that I wished I could be home. Absentee voting was nothing short of a pain and I still question if my ballot made it to Nebraska on time. On Tuesday I wanted to be plunked in front of a television, watching the returns via CNN. On Wednesday we watched footage of people dancing in the streets and chanting, “Yes we can!” and I longed to be part of it. But having three wonderful, like-minded sitemates to celebrate with was still a blessing, as we basked in our newfound pride for our country together.Wendi shows her pride for her home state of Indiana, which ultimately went blue.

We were congratulated by various Albanians throughout the day, many of which shared our feelings of joy and support for Obama, all of which were impressed by McCain’s concession speech. In Albania, a concession speech generally entails accusations of voter fraud or false reporting, and all too often those accusations are accurate. Furthermore it is unheard of for the member of one party to offer support to the member of another party. As my host mother said this morning, “Obama or McCain, both are good. Both are for the American people, not just themselves.” Of course she’s right. I believe either man would have strengthened our country and offered an improvement over the past eight years of leadership. But I truly believe the American electorate has made a wise decision this week that will go a long way to securing a bright future for our country.

Immediately following my parents visit, my presence was requested at a conference in Tirana. The conference was a part of a worldwide Peace Corps initiative to address HIV/AIDS in the developing world. I had my reservations: while HIV/AIDS is a serious problem in many developing nations, particularly those in Africa, the numbers are relatively low in Albania. Furthermore there are health issues I find to be of greater interest and concern here in Albania. But over time I was persuaded of the value of the conference. As one friend pointed out, if greater public awareness was raised during the onset of HIV in Africa, perhaps the extent of the current epidemic could have been prevented. The low incidence of HIV/AIDS in Albania is largely due to its isolation for 50 years. But now that the borders are open, emigrant workers are traveling to other parts of Europe, and sometimes bringing back drugs and STIs. While numbers are low now, if preventative practices are not embraced, Albania too could face an epidemic. Additionally discussing HIV/AIDS and prevention provides a nice foray into issues of greater interest to me such as, contraception and family planning, gender equality and female autonomy, and the destructive and counterproductive nature of discrimination.

So by the time the conference arrived, I was actually pretty excited. One of my counterparts, Marjeta attended along with me and also looked forward to learning new teaching methods. Unfortunately I think we were both disappointed by the conference, along with many of the other volunteers. By the end of day one, the volunteers agreed the information sessions were aimed at our Albanian counterparts as they contained info that all of us learned in school while in the U.S. Information such as “HIV is the virus that causes AIDS” or “HIV is not transmitted by holding hands.” Even the more advanced information was covered in our pre-service training. So the first day was more or less a waste for us volunteers. The way the information was presented was also unfortunate. The conference was intended to train us in new teaching methods, so that we could better engage our audiences, but nearly all of the conference was delivered in standard lecture format, making the conference incredibly un-engaging. At one point my counterpart spoke with the conference organizers. She told them the content of the conference was almost insulting. These were health professionals they were training, and their time should not be wasted with such basic information. It was a proud moment for me. I’m not sure that Marjeta spoke for all of the counterparts, but I’m glad she made it clear she was there to learn how to do her job better, and these sessions were not accomplishing that goal.

I too found myself offended by parts of the conference. One of the rules of the conferences was that we should not correct participants when they make a mistake. I understand the problems with being unnecessarily critical or argumentative, but when it’s your job to know the facts, it doesn’t help if you’re allowed to continue believing misconceptions. So despite the “rule” there were two points in the conference when I couldn’t bite my tongue. The first came during a session called “Gender and HIV/AIDS.” The session was literally a discussion of gender stereotypes presented as facts, i.e. Men are strong, women are weak. Men like to play sports, women like to shop. Men are lazy and sit around all day, it’s the women’s job to do all of the housework. The session even included a poster of men and women in their standard roles. If you know me even a little you can imagine my outrage. To add insult to injury, the discussion was never connected to HIV/AIDS or prevention methods. Just blatant sexism and heteronormativity for the sake of continued ignorance.

My second outburst came when the trainer attempted to facilitate an exercise where we were to rank the danger of various risky behaviors. For example, ”which is more dangerous: having intercourse without a condom or having oral sex without a condom?” Does anyone else see a problem with this question? As I tried to explain to the trainer, describing a behavior as “less dangerous” creates a false sense of security and a belief that the behavior is “safe.” Her response was to explain why oral sex was “safer” than intercourse (Which incidentally her logic was completely flawed. Even if the acids in your stomach can kill the HIV virus, if you have a cut in your mouth you can still become infected.) I then responded that I did not need a biology lesson. I understood that some behaviors were statistically more likely to result in an infection, but a risky behavior is a risky behavior, and preventative measures should ALWAYS be used. As a side note this entire disagreement was carried out through an interpreter. I believe we agreed to disagree. My fellow volunteers patted me on the back for attempting to point out the many problems with the exercise.

Despite the various frustrations, there were a few high points. At one point we were practicing putting condoms on a model, so that we could do the demonstration for future audiences. I asked if they ever demonstrate how to use dental dams. The trainer said they were not available in Albania, so I suggested they demonstrate how to turn a condom into a dental dam. This resulted in an argument about the necessity of dental dams, and several of the volunteers explaining how they serve a similar, but different purpose than a condom. Pretty flustered at this point, the trainer allowed one of the volunteers to come up and demo how to make a dental dam out of a condom. The chosen volunteer, Eric, did us proud. After the conference several of us agreed that if nothing else, we had built at least that capacity in our counterparts and the trainers.

So where does this leave me in my work? My counterpart and I returned to Shkoder with a commitment to work on the issue of HIV/AIDS prevention. Now we have to convince our coworkers to share this commitment, and get organized enough to actually do something. I believe my office is more motivated than the average health office, but organization is a whole other creature. One other positive from the conference was the introduction of a national project: An HIV/AIDS Film Festival. The idea is that we hold a competition where local high school students submit scripts discussing issues related to HIV/AIDS. The winning scripts will be performed and filmed by the local TV station. Later the short films will be screened at the cinema here in Shkodra. If enough cities successfully organize their own film festivals, a national screening will be held with the best films from each region. I’m really excited about the project but my counterparts are wary of its viability. So my job is to convince them it’s possible, and help them start down the path towards its completion. On my own time I’m working with two local schools. I’m teaching Life Skills lessons at the same school where I helped this summer. Last week I taught a lesson on values. Next week I’m teaching about goals. Also, Wendi and I just dropped off applications for a Girls Empowerment Club at the Foreign Languages High School. We hope to have our first meeting in early November.

Alright, enough rambling for now. Stay tuned for the next installment: Halloween, Albanian Style.

A few weeks ago I sent my friend Kysha the following message: “I’m on the hunt for autumn colors. What does Korce have to offer?” Sadly Kysha said she had only seen shades of muted green and yellow, similar to what we have here in Shkoder, but bid me come for a visit anyways. I decided to wait and instead made a second visit to Rubik and Rreshen, which sadly had a lot pine, but not a lot of the changing colors and falling leaves I was searching for. So this past week, the three-day weekend in honor of Mother Theresa Day, gave me the much-needed push to make the lengthy trip down to Korce.

The trip proved a terrific reminder of the many reasons I’m blessed to be where I am, with the people I’m with. Korce was beautiful. It’s been called the “Paris of Albania”, and while that may be a bit of a stretch, it certainly is interesting and culturally rich. Even with three days I feel that I barely saw the city, and will definitely visit again soon. Jonathan and Kysha were amazing hosts, cooking for me, giving me free reign of their kitchen when I wanted to cook, starting a fire in the wood stove each night, and making sure I was warm and cozy when it was time to retire. My trip was well timed as I caught the welcome party for Kelsey, one of the Georgian transfers. We had a tex-mex feast, in honor of her Santa Fe roots. It was low key but very fun. I got a chance to meet all the G10 volunteers from the region and enjoy some spice that is hard to find in Albanian cuisine. After the party we went out for a few beers from the local brewery (the best in Albania, though that’s not saying much). My trip was also well timed, as I arrived just in sync with the fall colors. The first morning I was there, we stepped out the front door to explore the city. Jonathan and Kysha, looked up towards one of the mountains surrounding Korce, and noted the changing colors. They claim it was the first time they had seen colors other than green and yellow and credited me with bringing the fall colors. Additionally the drive home, along Lake Ord was beautiful. Nothing can quite compare to autumn on the Mississippi River, but Korce certainly did have more color than we have here in the north. Though when I arrived home I was greeted by these lovely colors outside my balcony. Autumn is proving to be my favorite season here in Albania, just as it was at home. Tonight I will be in my element, cooking a fall feast with squash and apple pie, while listening to the most recent presidential debate downloaded from NPR. Not much different from what I probably would have been doing if I were in the states.

Peace Corps volunteers are not allowed to travel for the first three months of service, so that they have plenty of time to acclimate to their site and service. The first day I was able to travel was September 13th. Naturally, I was more than ready to get away, back to “civilization,” so a brief get away was planned for Germany and Austria.

My parents and I flew in and out of Munich, but three of our nights were spent in Austria. The trip was a bit rushed for my taste, four cities in four days, and unfortunately much of our time was spent in the car. But as one friend pointed out 7 hours driving on paved roads through the Austrian Alps is still a nice change of pace from 7 hours driving on dirt roads in the Albanian Alps. And I certainly didn’t mind the other signs of a more western and developed country such as wireless internet everywhere, ethnic food, and a distinct lack of power outages. Fustratingly, I seem to have completely lost my German. I would try to speak it and all that would come out was Albanian.

The trip was harried but there were several highlights: The breathtaking views in the Tyrolean region of the Alps, enjoying “real” Sacher Torte for the first time, visiting the Sisi museum (Sisi was the nickname of Princess Elisabeta of Austria, so my coworkers have nicknamed me Sisi), and eating Starbucks and McDonald’s for the first time in at least 6 months. I felt a little guilty about that last one, but it’s not like I’m some American tourist that can’t go a week without a white chocolate mocha. It’s been 6 months people. My parents teased me, “You’re in Austria. Don’t you want to eat Austrian food?” I explained to them, “It’s not that I don’t want Austrian food, rather I want everything I don’t have in Albania.” And not to worry, I ate plenty of bratwurst and wiener schnitzel.

And now for your viewing pleasure, some pictures from the trip.

The Golden Roof in Innsbruck

Albania has a strong relationship with Austria, perhaps due to their shared love for two headed eagles

Austrian llamas queue better than Albanians

Skydivers in the Tyrolean Region

So happy!

Mom in Kruje.

As previously mentioned, September was comprised of three main events: my parent’s visit, our family trip to Western Europe, and the HIV/AIDS conference. Unfortunately, despite the best of intentions, there simply wasn’t time to chronicle these events as they were occurring. So without further adieu, a recap of my parents’ visit. My parents were here for roughly two weeks, four days of which were spent in Austria and Germany. Most of our time was spent in the capital and here in Shkodra, though we did make a very short trip down to Shtermen to visit the family I stayed with during training. I wish I could say there trip was great and they both love Albania as much as I do, but I’m positive this would be lie. Rather their trip was a reminder that at times, what can go wrong, will go wrong. To start with their first flight was cancelled, causing them to be re-routed entirely and to arrive about 10 hours after their initial arrival time. Upon arrival, all four of their checked bags were missing. We had to pick them up two days later in Tirana. Both of my parents were sick during their visit, Dad for nearly the entirety. The credit cards companies, alarmed by increased usage in an odd country quickly shut down all but one of his cards. Factor in the typical family bickering that comes with close quarters and too much together time and you’ve got a family vacation that was pretty stressful from time to time. The kicker would have been if Al Italia shut down before my parents left the country, via Rome, as it was threatening to do the entire two weeks my parents were here. Al Italia did eventually succumb to the economic meltdown sweeping the globe, but fortunately not until after my parents returned safely home. I’ve asked my parents to write their own blog entries to more accurately reflect their views of Albania, but those are pending. I think that they have a better sense of my life here and the difficulties and joys I experience. They met several of the important people in my life here, my sitemates, co-workers, and the family I live with. I hope they enjoyed at least parts of their trip, but they sure seemed happy when we left for Germany, and even happier when they left to go home. Albania isn’t for everyone. I’m glad it agrees with me most of the time.

Mom with the host family, Agim and Zushi.

According to Peace Corps the safety and health of its volunteers is of utmost priority. So when something happens in a country, where volunteers serve, to jeopardize their health or safety, headquarters and the regional staff spring into action. Be it SAARS in China, political unrest in Kenya, or Russian aggression in Georgia there is an action plan in place to protect, consolidate, and if necessary evacuate all volunteers. In all of the above cases, evacuation proved necessary. Volunteers are generally moved to a neighboring country until the situation in their host country stabilizes or it becomes apparent stability is not soon to come. If volunteers cannot return to service in their host country, they are generally given a few options including ending service in good standing or transferring to another country where Peace Corps serves. When Peace Corps Georgia evacuated 60+ volunteers in August, eight were given and accepted the opportunity to serve here in Albania.

The eight new volunteers arrived about a month ago. They are currently undergoing what our staff is calling “A Bridge to Service” with a 5-week crash course in Albanian language and culture. They already received much of the same technical training as us while in Georgia. After they complete this leg of training, they will officially join my group, G11, but for now they’re affectionately referred to as G11.5.

Last week we threw a welcome party in Tirana, where they’re training. As a welcome gift several of us knitted scarves using the colors of the Georgian and Albanian flags (red, white, and black), to show how our groups and experiences are now woven together. Cheesy I know, but the party and gifts seemed to be appreciated. All eight volunteers seem friendly and well adjusted, considering they’ve just been through a war. Many seem to be under the impression that Peace Corps Albania is an easier assignment than Peace Corps Georgia would have been. It will be interesting to see how they do once they depart for their villages. While the capital city of Albania may be pretty cushy in comparison to Georgia, once they scatter across the country they are not likely to find the same easy access to Indian food, Internet, or, depending on the time of day, running water. I wish them well and look forward to seeing how they will enrich our group.

The new recruits from left to right are: Alan, Stephie, Kelsey, Aida, Megan, Becky, and Joe. Travis who is apparently camera shy is hiding behind Becky. As a side note, Alan was the lucky recipient of my oh-so-stylish scarf.

My apologies for the lack of postings these past few weeks. August came and went fast. But I wanted to post about the various things that have kept me so busy these past few weeks. On the work front, things have been slow around the office. I spent an average of two hours a day at the directory of public health during July and August. Much of that time was spent having coffee with whoever was around and getting to know my counterparts better when they were around. This past week has been the first that all three of my counterparts have been around the office. Despite the lack of work at the directory I kept myself busy helping out at a summer camp. The camp was run by a private grade school here in town called “Hope for the Future.” Every Friday during the month of August I taught a health related lesson complete with an interactive activity (we’re supposed to be teaching our Albanian counterparts how to make lessons more engaging and interactive.) The camp had participants as young as 4 and as old as 14, so the lessons had to be appropriate for a wide age range. Thankfully most of the students are learning English and we had an excellent translator, so I was able to teach the lessons in English. Several of the other health volunteers came up to Shkoder to help out as well. Thanks Courtney and Patricia! The topics included dental health, environmental awareness, and healthy eating. Now that school is starting up, I hope to try out some of the games and lessons with my counterparts from the directory. Below are some pictures from the different lessons.

Dental Health Lesson

Dental Hygiene Tag

The Web of Life

Three Legged Race

Deciphering the Food Pyramid

Outside of work, I kept myself busy on the weekends, by traveling and visiting other volunteers. There was the aforementioned trip to Rreshen. Later in the month a small group of us traveled to the beautiful mountain village of Puka, where we went hiking and camping. The scenic town felt slightly reminiscent of a mountain town in Colorado. Unfortunately I failed to get any decent pictures, but worry not friends I plan to go back. The end of the month was spent in central Albania, where I celebrated a friend’s birthday in Librazhd and met up with some other volunteers in Kucove for a pool party. Pools are a fairly new concept in Albania, so we were all a bit skeptical when our friends from the tiny town of Kucove said they had a swimming pool. Even at the nicest and most western hotel here in Shkoder, the polluted pool does not look fit for swimming. We were pleasantly surprised to find a clean, well-kept pool, with very friendly staff. It was just the thing on a hot August day.

Trash talking before the race.

And they're off!

Amber, Amanda, and Monica chilling by the pool side.

Addendum: So obviously the above entry was posted a bit late. I wrote the above entry exactly one month ago, but September proved to be even more chaotic than August. My parents visited for two weeks, during which time we made a quick getaway to Austria. Immediately following my parents departure for the states I had a training conference in Tirana, regarding methods for teaching about HIV/AIDS. After the conference there was a day of festivities to welcome our new volunteers (G11.5). I then returned to Shkoder with a visiting volunteer. After my visitor left, I came down with a head to toe sickness that kept me in bed for three days. So in short that was September. I’m back on my feet now, more or less caught up at work, and finally updating this blog again. I hope to cover the events of September in more detail, but I figured first comes first with the events of August.

I recognize this post is a bit of a cop out, but wanting to keep this blog fresh and exciting, with plenty of new material, I figured I’d pull out one of my reserve New York Times articles regarding Albania. Not an original piece by yours truly, but nevertheless very interesting and worth a read. The article here, discusses the tradition of Sworn Virgins in Albania. When all the men of a family have been killed, a woman may take on the role of a man to protect the family and provide for them. As part of the terms allowing them the privilege to live as a man they must swear to remain virgins for the rest of their lives. As a former Women’s and Gender Studies student I of course find the tradition fascinating. Perhaps you will too.

This may be the “Posh Corps” but it’s not without it’s challenges. The power has been out for 5+ hours. I woke up this balmy morning around 7 AM to the sound of hammering and drilling. This is a fairly common occurrence, as their building an apartment building about 30 feet from my bedroom. (I don’t understand zoning laws in this country. I’m not entirely sure they even exist.) Usually I just stick in my earplugs, roll over, and drift off back to sleep. At the moment though it is incredibly hot and humid in Shkodra. The only thing that makes it bearable is having a fan blowing at full blast directly in your face. So when the power went out around 7:30 AM and my fan shut off, I quickly found myself rolling around fitfully, drenched in sweat, and unable to sleep. After an hour of that I gave up and got up. I scrounged around for the only breakfast I had on hand that doesn’t require electricity, a muffin and some fruit, and sat around waiting for the electricity to come back on. But by 11:30 I was still waiting. I decided I’d had enough waiting and headed out to meet some friends. Unfortunately for them no electricity effectively means no water. I keep an extra bottle of water on hand to brush my teeth, but needless to say I’m not the freshest today. Around 2:30 I headed home, thinking surely by then the power would be back, but no such luck. My battery on my laptop was partially recharged, suggesting at least briefly the power was back on, but not during the 5 hours I’ve been around the house. Thankfully, this sort of outage is rare. The power does go out everyday, but it’s rare that it’s ever out for more than 2 hours at a time. I hear this may get worse in the winter. Some people say, the power goes out at 5 PM and doesn’t come back until morning, but my landlord, Agim, assures me even in the winter it’s only 2-3 hours a day. His explanation was that we are on the same electrical grid as the government offices, the university, and the emergency hospital. Given the importance of these buildings, in theory, powering them is a city priority. Time will tell if this theory holds true. No doubt I’ll report back in the winter, that is if the electricity holds up long enough for me to get a post up.

Sharing your last Mint Oreo from the United States. I had a very lovely visit to the town of Rreshen this past weekend. I stayed with Sarah, another volunteer from Group 11. Not only was she kind enough to host myself and several others, providing us couches to crash on, a kitchen to cook in, etc., she shared with me one of her last two Mint Oreo’s from the U.S. Now that’s friendship. The Oreo was of course amazing, and naturally Oreo’s have been added to my most recent care package wish list. The trip itself was also great. A much needed break from the hustle and bustle of the city. Since I moved to my permanent site, this was the first time I’ve been somewhere smaller than Shkodra. It’s odd how my perception of city size has changed over the past five months. Lincoln, the smallest city I’ve lived in the US, is more than twice the size of Shkodra. It may take a while, but you can walk virtually anywhere in Shkodra. And yet, at times, even tiny Shkodra can feel like a big, noisy, chaotic, overwhelming city. And so while I do truly love my new home, it was nice to visit a smaller city, even if just for a day. We didn’t do or see too much. There isn’t much to see or do really. We visited two café’s, where Dan, a group 10 volunteer, told tales of his trip to Texas, and Courtney, Sarah, and I had a nice heart to heart. We made eggplant parmigiana, played boggle, and watched the Olympics. I hear I missed the billiards parlor, but that’s something to look forward to on a future trip I suppose. All in all a very relaxing and fulfilling trip.

Eric, Sarah, and Courtney winding down after an exciting night of boggle and scattegories. Check out the classy Albanian artwork in the background.

I’ve decided to take the GRE when I come home for a visit in November. I was advised to take the exam prior to entering service, but given the rushed nature of my departure I was not able to do so. The next best thing then was to take the exam as soon as possible after starting service. The reason being, the longer you operate in another language, the worse your English becomes. Already I feel my vocabulary slipping. My sitemates can attest to the fact that on a more-or-less daily basis I pause in conversation having forgotten a word, wave my hands in a frenzy, and shout, “Where are my words?” The other day, I lost “perpetuate” for about 5 minutes. It seems much of the convoluted jargon I learned in college, that at times I suspect is good for little more than taking entrance exams, is now being replaced by simple Shqip (Albanian) words, such as “flas” – to speak. As in “Une flas pak Shqip” – I speak a little Shqip, soon to be replaced it seems with “Une flas pak Anglez” – I speak a little English.

In any event, the point of this post was to solicit any suggestions you, my dear readers, have for study guides. For those of you that have taken the GRE or are preparing for it now, what resources and methods have most helped you? The plan now is for my parents to bring one or two study guides when they come in September. I will then have roughly two months to cram, before coming home November 19th. I don’t have regular internet access, but should have time in the evenings to work on my laptop or work out of a textbook. So...any suggestions?

The New York Times recently published this article on the blood feuds of Albania. The article gives a good overview of the issue, it’s history, and it’s current status in Albanian society. It’s definitely worth a read if you have time.

In summary, blood feuds are a 500 year-old custom based on the Kanun of Lek, Albania’s former code of laws. It is essentially the principle of “an eye for an eye.” If a member of your family is killed, your family has the right, and some say obligation, to kill a male family member of the killer. Women and children are exempt from the blood feuds, but once males of the targeted family reach a certain age, they must go into hiding to protect their lives. The tradition remains strongest in northern parts of Albania. In some communities, you may seen only women on the streets, as all of the families are involved in a blood feud, leaving all of the men in hiding. Ironically the rule was created to reduce unnecessary killings, by establishing when a death was merited. For example if your goat is stolen, you don’t have the right to kill the thief, but if your son is killed, well… Similar laws existed in other societies, but overtime were replace by more civil proceedings. Unfortunately in a country where there is no respect for the government or its laws, the antiquated Kanun carries far more weight.

Shkodra has not had a volunteer in several years for a number of reasons. One being that a volunteer in 2003 failed to handle the stress of volunteer life in a culturally appropriate manner. It was agreed that after the mistakes of said volunteer, some time was needed before the community could welcome a new volunteer. Another issue though is the blood feuds. The city itself has now been deemed safe, though we know of blood feuds still occurring in Shkodra. With the exception of the city of Shkodra, the entire district is considered restricted. We can only make day trips for work. Other parts of the north are completely off limits. As foreigners we are exempt from the blood feuds. The concern is that we will be caught in the stray gunfire of the violence associated with the feuds.

I generally feel very safe here in Shkodra, but given some of the stories, its not surprising those in the south and central Albania, refer to the north as something akin to the “Wild West.”

I’ve received a number of requests to describe the work I’m doing over here in Albania. I feel I must first begin with the caveat that there are certain things that are only truly understood by another volunteer. For example it’s nearly impossible to fully understand the application process until you’ve gone through it yourself. On more than one occasion I had to explain I hadn’t really been “accepted” by Peace Corps. Rather I was “nominated,” “cleared,” and “invited.” Likewise it is difficult to explain the work of a volunteer. To an outsider looking in, my days seem more defined by a lack of work. For example it is rare that I spend more than two hours at my assigned office on any given day, and as of yet I have been given no official job duties by my coworkers. As health education volunteers we all share the vague tasks of increasing access to health information, while building the capacity of health promotion service providers. With those basic responsibilities in mind, it is our job to work with our counterparts to identify how these goals can best be achieved. What needs to happen in our community and what role we should play in those changes? So the real work now comes in getting to know my community and the people in it. How does health education function currently? What are its strengths and its weaknesses? What projects are conceivable for me to undertake in the next two years? What people and resources will I need to draw upon to complete those projects? Additionally I spend a lot of time figuring out how to be comfortable and happy in Shkodra. I’m studying the language and exploring the city, figuring out which supermarket has the best cereal selection, and which internet café has the fastest internet. Because I’m still in this stage of assessment I can’t really give a clear job description or concrete job duties like what you’d find in a typical job in the U.S., but I’ll tell you the few concrete facts I do have. I’ve been assigned to work at the Directory of Public Health here in Shkodra. The Directory oversees the districts of Shkoder, Malesi i Madhe, and Puke, and takes orders from the national Ministry of Health. I have four wonderful counterparts assigned to me, giving me something like 8 bosses, if you count all of the Peace Corps staff I report to. One counterpart is a former director for the Directory of Public Health and is now the coordinator for USAID’s health program in Shkodra. I also work with three women from the Directory: a doctor, nurse, and social worker. Together the three women make up the Health Education Unit. Health Education in Albania is grossly underfunded, understaffed, and underappreciated. As it stands currently in most of the country, students in only 2 or 3 grades receive health education, and only once a month in these grades. I don’t know what the standard is for the U.S. education system, but in the Lincoln Public Schools, I received some form of health education in every grade level prior to high school. During grades 7 and 8, I attended health class every other day. Additionally in the U.S. we are bombarded with health facts and tips everywhere we go, with public service announcements on television, nutrition tips on cereal boxes, billboards telling us to “move.” etc. Given the huge difference in the availability of up to date health information, it’s not surprising I encounter students that have never heard of dental floss, mothers who don’t understand the correlation between fat, sugar, and childhood obesity, or farmers that worked for years outdoors and can not understand why they now suffer skin cancer. Additionally, when health education is delivered, it is often in outdated modes, much like the rest of education in Albania. Few teachers use games or interactive activities in their classroom. Rather lecturing and note taking is the preferred form of transferring knowledge. But as many studies have demonstrated, this is far from effective. So our task is to improve health education, by building the capacity of our coworkers. This could mean teaching them how to research on the internet, how to prepare powerpoint presentations on their computers, new games to play with kindergartners, or just simply motivating them to get out into the community and give more lessons. All of our coworkers have different talents and weaknesses, and each community faces different health problems, so the work of each health education volunteer will differ greatly in each site. At this point most of my work at the Directory has consisted of chats over coffee and reading through reports prepared by my coworkers on current and past projects. I’ve also had several get to know you meetings with local non-profits I hope the Directory can collaborate with. I’m excited for school to start, so I can see my coworkers in action, and in the mean time I’ve got lots of ideas for potential projects. Time will tell what will actually come to fruition. Rest assured though that all projects will be well documented here.

The Directory of Public Health. The tree is covering up my office window.

I received my first care package this week. Thanks so much Mom and Dad! It arrived promptly, in eight days or less. It may have arrived sooner, but Friday was when I first received notice my package was at the post office. Sometimes it takes a few days (or weeks) for them to notify you. It appeared unopened, with all the contents safe and intact.

I’ve been told by other volunteers, that care packages are worth their weight in gold. Sure enough the arrival of this box was enough to make me giddy all day long. There was nothing I really needed, but a lot of stuff that is difficult or impossible to find here, and sure nice to have. My very excellent care package included among other things:

Jiffy Peanut ButterTea from the Tea SourceDried Fruit from Trader JoesVarious toiletriesBrown SugarAnd a good old-fashioned girly magazine

The only item that might be classified as essential would be the French Press and coffee seen below. Coffee drinks are widely available here, and frequently drunk. The coffee culture prominent in Albania is worth it’s own post, but in short a coffee date is an almost daily necessity here. Unfortunately in 90% of the cafes, the coffee drinks are limited to espresso, Turkish coffee, and Nescafe. Filter coffee is virtually non-existent. I know of one café here, and a handful of cafés in the capital city that serve it, and it is expensive. But now, I can have a big mug of coffee whenever I like. Future care packages with Cultiva or Peace Coffee are strongly encouraged.

Now that I’m starting to get the hang of this blog thing, I’d like to solicit ideas for future blog entries. I know what’s interesting to me about Albania, but perhaps you have different ideas. If at any time you think of a topic you’d like to know more about, send me an e-mail or post a comment here on the blog. I’ll do my best to respond speedily. Thanks to those already faithful readers.

View of Shkodra, taken from Rozafa Castle.

Sorry for the cliché. Any thoughts on what a “wizzbang” might be? Bonus points if you can give a believable definition for “invadation.”

There are three names you can expect to hear on a fairly consistent basis for the next two years: Will, Wendi, and Rob. These are my sitemates, other volunteers in the sectors of Community Development and Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). As is the trend for Peace Corps sitemates, they are my colleagues, fast friends, and an indispensable support system. Will and Wendi are one of three married couples in our cohort. They hail most recently from Boulder, Colorado, though Wendi is originally from Indiana (a fact that has often inspired debates as to which of us are truly from the Midwest.) Will is a TEFL volunteer, who will be helping with teacher development, as well as teaching his own course at the University for Foreign Languages here in Shkoder. He is thoughtful, caring, and willing to lend a hand wherever possible. Wendi is a Community Development volunteer, working at World Vision. World Vision is a Christian organization, working throughout the world in developing countries. They’re philosophy is similar to Peace Corps in that they focus on capacity building, so that communities can solve their own problems and sustain themselves once World Vision has left the community. If you’re not familiar with them it’s worth checking out their website. With a background in grant writing and a lengthy career in non-profit work, Wendi will assist in preparing reports in English for the British office and will help wherever she’s needed. Wendi has been a huge support and good sounding board for any frustrations I might have. All of my sitemate are supportive of one another, but a female volunteer experiences frustrations in this country only another female can understand. Rob grew up in Michigan, but has lived for the last 6 or 7 years in Florida. He is our second Community Development volunteer, working at the Bashkia. There’s really no good translation for Bashkia. We say municipality, town hall, or city government, but none really seem to fit exactly. Usually we just say Bashkia, even in English conversations. In any event, the Bashkia is where you’ll find the mayor and vice mayors, as well as individuals in charge of city planning, taxes, etc. Rob’s counterpart is in charge of international relations for the city, a position not commonly found in a Bashkia, but indicative of the cosmopolitan nature of Shkodra. Rob is still defining his projects for the next two years, but it’s looking like part of his work will revolve around tourism development in Shkoder. At the moment Shkoder is a popular destination for our neighbors from the north in Montenegro, but we see great potential for Shkoder and Albania as a whole to be a desirable vacation spot for western Europeans as well. I’m sure you’ll hear much more about these people over the next two years. I just wanted to put the names out there, so that when I mention Will, Wendi, or Rob you know exactly whom I’m talking about.A picture of the four of us with our Country Director the day we found out we would all be living in Shkoder. From left to right: me, Rob, our Director Hill, Wendi, and Will.

How does one celebrate the Fourth of July abroad? In my case I ate hot dogs and talked politics with a group of Mormons. About a week into our stay here, my sitemates and I met a man who had lived for a few years in San Francisco. He recently moved back to his hometown of Shkoder, where he opened his own supermarket, but he remains fond of several U.S. customs, including the Fourth of July. For this reason he invited us and all the other Americans living in Shkoder to join him for a Fourth of July party. It’s worth noting that aside from the four Peace Corps Volunteers and the occasional tourist, the only Americans currently residing in Shkoder are missionaries. Only the Mormon missionaries could make the party, so there Will and I sat, listening to theories on how to make Albania stronger. The missionaries all seem like genuinely nice guys, but perhaps unsurprisingly their opinions tended to differ from mine. When I was preparing to come to Albania, Peace Corps warned we would have to bite our tongue on occasion. I think I did so more on Friday than I have with any Albanian. The real celebration came on Saturday. All Americans living in Albania were invited to celebrate the Fifth of July with the U.S. Embassy. The important people got to celebrate on the fourth, so we had to settle for the next day. The party was held at the “Ridge,” or as one of the volunteers referred to it “the cheapest trip to America you’ll have during your two years.” The “Ridge” is home to many of the U.S. Embassy employees, including the U.S. ambassador. In order to ease homesickness I suppose, the “Ridge” has been designed to more or less simulate an American suburb. Picture cookie cutter homes and condos, with neatly maintained lawns, and minivans in the driveway. Down the street are the swimming pool, the playground, and the gazebo. At the top of the hill is a big house with a wide veranda, ideal for fests such as ours. All this and more in the confines of a big gate, just outside the dusty, noisy, congested city that is Tirana. I know that having never seen Albania as I have seen it, you can’t quite understand the stark contrast, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. The scene was truly surreal. I had hoped to post some pictures, but we were scolded when we took pictures of the houses, for security reasons I’m sure. Given that, I’m guessing they wouldn’t be to keen on us posting the pictures we do have. It took us an hour or more to find our way to the entrance gates, so by the time we arrived we were all hot, tired, and a bit cranky, but with a little food and a little water, our spirits were quickly lifted. There was a full spread of traditional American food with hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, and apple pie. There were games and face painting for the kids and live music with a band playing popular music from American and British artists such as Van Morrison, the Beatles, and Rolling Stones. There was even an Elvis impersonator at one point. I think we were most appreciative though of the opportunity to see other volunteers. It’s the first opportunity several of us have had to see one another since swearing in. There were 4 volunteers from group 10 and about 20 from my group, G11. During the party the Ambassador was notably absent. As I understood it, he was on his way to give a deposition for a possible arms cover up. If you haven’t seen it, the NY Times story can be found here.

After the party we headed out to the “Block,” the trendy bar area for Tirana. We hit up the Irish Pub, and several volunteers went out dancing. A few others and myself opted for a quiet night at a nearby wine bar. The next morning I went in search of some of the more hard-to-find products in Albania. I picked up some soy sauce and balsamic vinegar, but remain in search of the ever-illusive peanut butter. All in all a good trip and a good Fourth of July weekend. Despite the fact that this party is celebrating the U.S. Will is demonstrating his newfound Albanian patriotism with an Albanian flag on his cheek.

Some of the volunteers hanging out at the party.

Note that Rob also found his way to the children’s face painting stand.

I am pleased to report that live music can be found in Albania. While perhaps not as plentiful as in the Twin Cities, or even Nebraska, an occasional show can be caught, with both local and international artists playing for appreciative crowds. Just this past week, White Snake and Def Leppard performed in the capital city of Tirana. But the real highlight of the past week for me was the Shkodra Jazz Festival. Now in it’s fourth year, the festival lasted four days and featured musicians primarily from Albania and Italy. After suffering homesickness for Lincoln’s “Jazz in June” and the many outdoor musical series of Minnesota, such as “Mill City Music”, the jazz festival was a welcome surprise. We had heard rumors of the festival, but when we first visited the city in May, no one seemed to know when or where the festival would occur. Then in late June, we finally received confirmation of the festival. Most Albanians seemed unaware of the concert series until the day of, but this is not a culture big on scheduling or planning. The festival left a little something to be desired, but was still a nice change of pace from the local folk music and europop we are generally inundated with. During the days, master classes were offered. I didn’t attend any, so I can’t elaborate on their content. In the early evenings, jazz was played via large speakers over the town center. My sitemates and I met for coffee, so that we could sit, chat, and enjoy the music. In the late evenings, bands played free concerts in several of the local cafes. I was able to attend two of these concerts. The first of which was a traditional jazz quartet and the second a jazz guitar duo. Below I’ve posted a clip of the former playing their version of the “Flinstones” theme song. Sorry for the view. We arrived a bit late and the only seat available was behind the camera man.The Shkodra Sounds Corner. We kept thinking musicians were going to come out and sit in those chairs but no such luck.

I’d like to take a moment to introduce you to the lovely city I now call home. Shkodra can be found in the far north of Albania, a 30-minute drive from the border of Montenegro. With a population of roughly 110,000, Shkodra is a large city, by Albanian standards. It is considered the cultural capital of the country, and the hub for most everything in the north. As the capital of the district, the district offices for education, health, and the police can all be found here. Additionally the only university north of the capital is found in Shkodra, making it a younger and more progressive city. Shkodra has a long and rich history. The city was founded in 4th century BC by the Illyrians, and for a time served as their capital. Shkodra, much like the rest of the Balkans, has seen many wars, and has fallen under the control of many different empires, including the Romans, Serbs, Venetians, and Ottomans. Given its location, Shkodra has served as an important trade center over the years, at one time the site of the largest bazaar in the Balkans. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Shkodra developed strong partnerships with the governments of Austria and Italy. Both countries set up consulates in the city, the influence of which can still be seen today in architecture, dress, and language. Shkodra is the proud origin of many Albanian firsts, including the first known published book, the first football club, and the beginnings of the democratic resistance to the communists in the 90’s. Shkodra is also rich with natural beauty. The city sits on the largest lake in the Balkans, Lake Shkodra. Two different rivers run into the city and the Adriatic Sea is only 30 km away giving us our choice of bodies of water to swim in. The beautiful Albanian Alps lie just east of the city and are easily within view. The city itself however is extremely flat, making biking an ideal means of transportation. Indeed Shkodra is known for its bikes, as it’s not uncommon to see more bikes on the road than cars. I’m anxiously awaiting news of how and when I can get a bike, hopefully from Peace Corps. As far as entertainment, there is much to keep me occupied. There are of course the many tourist attractions: Rozafa Castle, the Marubi Photo Collection, the Historical Museum, dozens of statues and monuments, beautiful churches and mosques, several art galleries, and of course a number of beaches. For more everyday entertainment, there are countless cafes, good for your daily espresso fix and people watching, and several good restaurants, serving a mix of traditional Albanian and Italian. Shkodra is also home to one of 4, maybe 5, movie theaters in the country. Granted, it only shows one movie, 2-3 times per day. You might be better advised to check one of the many bootleg retailers. During the soccer season, you can visit the largest stadium in the country and checkout our home team, Vllaznia. And last, but certainly not least, there is the nightly “xhiro,” loosely translated as “promenade.” Around 7 PM, Shkodrans fill the streets, walking up and down “Rruga 13 Dhjetori” (13th of December Street, named for a historic night of rioting in the early 20th century). Here they greet their neighbors and catch up on the latest news and gossip. I’m now making a shameless ploy and encouraging all of you to come visit me. Shkodra is truly worth a visit, and I would be delighted to show any would-be visitors around. If my rambling has not sufficiently enticed you, I’ll direct you to my favorite city guide, found here. It gave me a good sense of the city before I arrived and continues to serve as a reference now that I’m here. Hopefully this quick overview has been interesting and informative. With that out of the way, I can start posting more detailed explanations of the various sites and scenes I’m experiencing. For now though I’ll leave you with a few pictures that capture everyday sights for me.

The century old tree known as the "Cinar." A common meeting point in Shkodra.

The "Five Heroes" Statue. An ode to communist heroism.

A lovely park in the middle of the city.

The view from Villa Bekteshi, one of our favorite restaurants in town.

Kids at the camp I'm helping with this summer.

For better or worse someone taught them dodge ball.

In an ideal world I would have been blogging the entire time I was in training and a few weeks prior, but time simply didn’t allow for that. As some of you may know, I was given roughly 40 days notice that I would be serving in Albania. It’s Peace Corps policy to give no less than 6 weeks notice, but I was invited on the last possible date, and with a change in our departure date, my preparation time was further shortened. For those of you who have moved overseas for study abroad, work, etc. you know the preparations are no small feat. Consequently, some details, such as this blog, were left to be dealt with here in Albania. But upon my arrival I quickly learned free time would be no more available here in Albania than it was in the states. So in lieu of a detailed record of the past three months you’ll have to settle for a quick and dirty recap.

I left Nebraska March 16th, for staging in Philadelphia. I spent two days getting to know the other trainees, filling out final paperwork, and repacking. At this point staging is a bit of a haze. I was chatting with my sitemates last night, and we all agreed we couldn’t really remember one another from staging. On March 18th, we traveled to NYC where we flew out. After a brief layover in Munich, we took a small plane the rest of the way to Tirana. We arrived safely early in the morning of the 19th, though most of our luggage trailed us by a few days.

We spent the first three days in the central city of Elbasan, at the Univers Hotel, where we received a crash course in Shqip. We learned how to count to 10 and simple phrases such as “I’m hungry” “I’m tired” and the ever essential “Where is the bathroom?” We also had countless sessions on Peace Corps policies and Albanian culture. Vaccinations were administered, interviews were conducted, and jet leg was warded off.

After four days in the security of our big group, we were all shipped off to our Albanian host families. We were divided up into groups of four – six, and each group was placed in training village. My group of four, stayed with four different families in the small village of Shtërmen. For most of us, the arrival at our host families’ homes was our first real experience of culture shock. Albania is definitely an adjustment no matter where you stay, but it’s still a western country. In the safety of the hotel, we still had many of our creature comforts: electricity, hot showers, a variety of food, English speakers. But at our homestays few, if any, people spoke English. The food was foreign and made many in our cohort ill during the first few weeks. Showers were infrequent and in my case non-existent (I bathed from a bucket). After living more or less as an only child my entire life (my brother is 12 years older and I have virtually no memory of living in the same house with him) I inherited three and later four younger host sisters. Life in Shtërmen was definitely different than anything I had experienced previously.

A view of the village of Shtërmen.

We had training 4 – 5 days a week in the villages with our small groups, and then 1 -2 days a week we traveled to Elbasan for large group trainings. On training days we usually worked from 8 AM – 4 PM, with our weekends and evenings generally free. Our trainings consisted of the following: Language; Technical Training; Health, Safety, and Security; and Culture. The language training was outstanding. I learned more Shqip in three months than I learned German in three years. The technical training was challenging. As part of our training we gave three health education lessons in our community, in partnership with the village nurses and teachers. The health, safety, and security; and cultural trainings, were interesting, but increasingly redundant. I think it is safe to say all of the trainees were happy when training finally came to an end.My sitemate Maggie teaching the Kindergartners how to wash their hands properly.

On June 10th all 37 trainees were issued an invitation to swear in as volunteers. Our group started out as 38, but one young man decided to leave the first morning of staging. The rest of us are still going strong. On June 13th, or Friday the 13th (don’t worry the date has no significance here in Albania) we swore in, in front of a crowded auditorium filled with our host families, community counterparts, instructors, and Peace Corps staff. The U.S. Ambassador to Albania was our keynote speaker. After swearing in we had a small reception with our host families where most of us said our good byes. Many of us opted to stay in Elbasan for the night with the volunteers newly placed in the city, before departing for our own permanent sites. Proudly holding my invitation to swear in.

On Saturday morning I departed with three other volunteers for our permanent site of Shkodra. We learned of our placements about a month into training and I was personally delighted. Thus far Shkodra has not disappointed. I will give a more in depth report of the city and my work in a later posting, but for now will say the first three weeks settling into the city have been delightful.

I miss the other volunteers I have spent the last three months bonding with, but I’m so happy to be done with training. It’s good to finally start the work and to be forming the relationships that will fill the next two years of my life.Most of our group celebrating Cinco de Mayo in Hajdaran.

Dear family and friends,

Here in this blog you will find documentation of my time in Shkodra, Albania, where I’m serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer. I am a health education volunteer and have just started working with the Directory of Public Health. This blog will serve as a space for me to provide updates on my current activities, reflections on the culture, and pictures of the interesting and often beautiful sites I’m witnessing.

Peace Corps has three objectives:To help the people of interested countries in meeting their needs for trained men and womenTo help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples servedTo help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of all Americans

Hopefully this blog will help to fulfill the last of these three objectives. Many of you have requested updates, but I know you’re all busy and don’t always have time to read my long-winded reports. Bookmark this page and check back when you have time. I hope to post 2 – 3 times per week.

One last note, or rather request: Please keep sending e-mails and letters. I’ve been overwhelmed by the hospitality and warmth of Albanians, but that doesn’t mean I don’t get homesick for the U.S. Keep me updated on what’s going on in all of your lives back home and I promise to do the same via this blog. Thanks for taking a peek and please keep checking back.

Miss you all,Alissa