Home Sweet Home - AGAIN

I wrote "Again" because I once entitled a post "Home Sweet Home" back in November, only I was referencing Albania, not America. But alas, here I am at my home (well my parents' home anyway) in the States and for the past week I have:
1. Slept
2. Ate (and flushed it all down with Dr. Pepper)
3. Spent insane amounts of time with old friends
4. And I have allowed my suitcases to remain in the center of my floor without unpacking them, I guess just magically awaiting for someone else to do it!

While these four things have definitely been occupying my time, and while I love being here with family and friends and getting used to life again here in Mississippi, I must say that I really miss Albania, probably more than I had thought I would. I miss the people that I used to see everyday. I miss the mountains. I miss walking everywhere, and I would continue to do so if Jackson, MS believed in sidewalks and if suburbia America hadn't taken over and things weren't so spread out. I miss my friends. I miss byrek. I miss walking across the Lana River in Tirana and wanting to hold my nose for a few seconds. I miss my hair salon. Oddly enough I even kind of miss random people asking me questions in the street. But most of all (except for people of course) I miss speaking Albanian!!! English is just not fabulous enough!

Sadly I don't think I will be continuing my blogging, so this will be the last time to toast "Gezuar." I will be starting a Masters/Ph.D program at the University of Texas in Austin this fall, where I will continue my studies of anthropology and of course Albania. Technically this isn't goodbye because hopefully one day soon I'll live in Albania again and will have plenty to share of my experiences.

I must say that while this year has had it's moments, various challenges and difficulties, to say that I enjoyed it would be an understatement. I have learned and grown so much, more than I thought an individual could do in such a short period of time. And I have established bonds and connections that I pray will last a lifetime. So I guess what I really need to say is "Thanks Albania." Albania has truly been a gift for me - sometimes when we receive gifts we're so excited to see what's inside that we hurriedly unwrap the presents, anxiously awaiting to know the contents of the present. But I think in Albania's case, I had to allow the gift to open itself to me, and for this reason I feel that made the experience that much more valuable than me trying to open it for myself.

Thanks to all of you for reading - hope you found it interesting and enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing! If you know any Albanians in Austin, let me know! GEZUAR!

Tears in my eyes

*Before I begin this post I must apologize for forgetting Mexican food and oatmeal cookies off the previous list. I guess I'm just apologizing to myself ha ha!

OKay, but on a not so funny note, yesterday was a tearful goodbye. In fact not only did I cry at the train station when saying goodbye to people (Elvisa, Ms. B., Ikuko, Ikuko's new Albanian boyfriend, Austriana, Elvisa's sister and her best friend, as well as this girl who I just met yesterday but wanted to come and say goodbye) who came to escort me to the bus for Athens, but I cried as we drove all through Albania. And when I woke up at 7 this morning in the middle of Athens, I wanted to cry because it just didn't feel like home.
That's what I've come to believe - that though I'm going home, in fact flying out of Athens tomorrow afternoon, Albania was starting to feel like my home and so it felt like I was leaving home. I know it had only been a short time, but believe it or not I've developed some very close relationships, literally feeling right at home at friends' places like Elvisa's, Cindy's, or Ms. B's. I know that all of my family and friends are anxiously awaiting my return, and I'm ready to see them too, but still a part of me is very sad to leave.

I'm on my way to see the Acropolis now and that's pretty much the plan for the day because Athens is EXPENSIVE! I almost cried when I saw the 2 euro espresso - they are 50 cents in Albania! And they aren't even as good here!

One other thing - at the border between Albania and Greece we had to get off the bus and go through the station to talk to the police and have them search our bags (pretty intense border crossings here) and this one girl, who's Albanian but grew up in Greece, kept swearing that I spoke Albanian better than her, so she started introducing me as Albanian who had grew up in America - I thought that was pretty funny. I just hope now that after learning the language I don't forget it!

Okay, off to the Acropolis now though Shqiperia (Albania) is the only thing on my mind...

Top Ten Foods To Eat When I Get Home

Okay truth is, I've thought about this list for a LONG time - I think whenever people travel one of the first things they naturally miss is the good old home cookin', or even just stuff from home that's not available abroad. So without delay, I present to you the final product, in order with number 1 being the thing I've missed the most living in Albania this year:

10. Squash - weird I know, but for some reason I've really wanted some lately and I can't have it here

9. Real sausage for breakfast and not hot dog meat, I mean while I've grown accustomed now, I could really use some Jimmy Dean style meat for breakfast - in fact I just want a good breakfast, period

8. Lemonade - not really a food but I've missed it. Of course I could make it myself but I'd rather drink it freshly made by someone else (perhaps I'm revealing my laziness now)

7. Thick pizza, deep dish even, mmmm, sounds great

6. Red Beans and Rice, Gumbo, Jambalaya, ANYTHING Cajun, and also a trip to Popeyes - yes all of these things go together...Popeyes sounds wonderful right about now

5. Sweet potato pie, which my cousin Linda will hopefully have ready for me, ha ha ha hint hint

4. Greens - I've been trying to get by with spinach throughout this year but it's far time for some collard or turnip greens, far time

3. Fried Catfish

2. ANYTHING my Dad cooks, Daddy I hope you're ready to work in the kitchen!

1. of course there's a tie: Biscuits!!!! - I NEVER KNEW MY LIFE WOULD BE SO HORRIBLE WITHOUT THEM. And for this reason I plan to go to McDonald's for breakfast on the morning of Tuesday the 30th (because I get in on the night of the 29th)

And I'm sure many of you guessed it, DR. PEPPER...was there even a doubt that this was number one???

Okay, you can laugh all you want but talk to anyone abroad and after family and friends (maybe) the stuff they miss the most is food and Americans especially over here talk about foods they miss all the time! I'll probably be making updates to this list over the next couple of days...

Headaches

I've heard of some healing remedies before, trust me I can share a story or two. But I must say that what happened to me yesterday was truly an experience that I won't forget.
Bulli, my downstairs neighbor, is ALWAYS asking questions about me and in short, is pretty much all in my business. I mean she's the sweetest lady in the world, makes me food from time to time, and insists that I drink coffee with her every day. But she also listens at her door and comes out of her house whenever she hears me in the stairwell - and I'm almost convinced that at times she watches me from her peephole. While I enjoy having her as my neighbor, and have learned a lot from her and her old photo collection, sometimes I honestly try to avoid her because:
1. Sometimes she talks for hours (literally) and holds me up when I have places to be
2. She watches me like a hawk, questions everything that I do and who I'm with
3. At times acts like my grandmother (which she does call me her niece) and tries to tell me things like what time I should be in at night, or why I shouldn't go out to certain places alone (like the park, ha ha)

I also have to try and avoid Bulli at times because she and her son (who is a mute) can get started on a conversation and hold me hostage, forcing me to hear about things like hearing aids, different kinds of spinach available at the markets here in Tirana, or my favorite story (that I've heard several times) about how Eftimi, the son, fell off his bike when he was younger and since has never touched a bike.

But yesterday when I walked by them to go to my apartment, because I have to pass them, I wasn't trying to avoid them when I said I had a headache and was rushing to my house to lie down - I seriously had a headache. But when Bulli learned of this she got very worried, and though I assured her that I had my own medicine in my apartment that I was on my way to take, she made me sit down in one of the chairs outside her door, and sent her grandson inside to fetch the medicine that she thought was better. She kept saying that she had something that would help me more than advil, and so I sat there waiting and when her grandson came back, she made me bend my head over and before I could fully comprehend the next thing I know, she was pouring (literally) Raki in my head. That's right, Bulli poured Albanian alcohol, liquor, in my head and hair, and not just a teaspoon, I mean it was running down my neck. At this point, Bulli, the son, the daughter-in-law and the grandson were all staring around, smiling, and excited about their remedy. Bulli then says, "you see, I'm half doctor!"

Well I'm not sure what kind of doctor this makes her but not only did my headache not go away, but I was upset that I had to then go to my apartment and take a shower and also had to wash my hair - I mean what in the world, really, Raki in my hair? And I don't even wash my hair daily, something that most Albanians don't even understand, but I had to wash it because the smell was literally soaked into my hair and body. People would have definitely thought I was a drunk otherwise, and then who would believe this story if I told it while smelling like moonshine?

REally????

Okay while I will not voice my preference for political parties or candidates in Albania, I will say that I'm getting sick of the "Shqiperia po ndryshon/ Albania is changing" bus/van/truck that's driving all around the city, blasting the democratic party theme song from its speakers, especially since whoever is driving it likes to park it right outside my apartment and forces me to listen to it! But this is not why I'm so upset today. I'm so upset because today I was waiting to cross the main boulevard and when the green walker lit up, I gave the slight hesitation (as normal) and then proceeded to begin to cross the street, when I (along with two other people) was almost run over by this darn bus! That's right the democratic party bus almost hit me in the street because the driver more than blatantly ran a red light, all the while speaking into the microphone about why we should choose that party candidate! I don't know about you but I'm not sure this is the best way to win votes...

Shqiperia po ndryshon/ Albania is changing

This is actually one of the tag lines (and actually the title of a new song) for one of the political groups and is EVERYWHERE around Albania - elections are coming up! The big day is June 28th though from what I can tell, it doesn't seem that it is such a big day for everyone. Pretty much everyone I talk to says they aren't terribly excited about the election, they just want to keep their jobs and have food, which of course is what everyone wants when you get to the bottom line.
However, truthfully, Albania really is changing and one of the biggest things that has happened lately is the construction of a new highway that extends throughout a large portion of the country and goes into Kosovo - a highway that now makes the trip between the two countries only 4 or 5 hours, a trip that used to be 11hrs, I took it! Though the highway is not officially finished, large parts of it are and the tunnel (which many people just call it "the tunnel" referring to the whole thing) is nice, it really is. Today, I actually set out on an adventure to see the highway with my own eyes.
Klaudi, my amazing hair dresser, has been telling me for weeks that he wanted me to go out on a roadtrip with him and his sister to see parts of Albania that I hadn't yet seen before, so today we did just that. Because elections are coming up we had to travel to Klaudi's birthplace so that he could fill out the necessary paperwork for the mandatory national ID cards. I woke up at 5 a.m. this morning and by 6 we were on the road. We stopped first at his mom's house in a small village outside of Tirana and had breakfast, byrek of course. Then after that we ventured through the windy hills of northern Albania and headed to Miredita. All along the way we got all kinds of views of the new highway, from below, from above, from the side, you name it. Klaudi took about 200 photos and pointed out almost every single detail to me. As an anthropologist this was a very interesting experience to see how people reacted to something like a highway, something that doesn't get too many second glances in America, but here, for many people, means so much. Particularly for Klaudi and his sister, the construction of this highway is unbelievable to some extent because it goes right through the village where they grew up. Places that used to have houses or small stores; plus Klaudi kept pointing out to me all the small bridges in the area that were made by hand and used to stand out as important landmarks, but now are somewhat insignificant compared to this highway.
In addition to seeing the highway though, I realized again today that the Albanian countryside really is beautiful, I mean I feel like I could just drive (well technically ride) through the country all day, the landscape never ceases to amaze me. But what I learned today is that this is the same even for Albanians, people who've spent their entire lives here. Klaudi, his sister, and Marku (the friend of the family who was driving) seemed to be just as in much awe as I was as we rode through the hills and mountains, admiring the views and colors - and it was such a refreshing trip (though at times a bit rough on the roads, but then again, perhaps this is why they are building the highway in the first place!).
We didn't stay in Mirdita too long because everybody had some things to do. We stopped in Lezha on the way home and had a coffee (my third or fourth of the day), and then on the way back, I met three English speaking travellers, two from New Zealand and one from the States, who wanted info about what to do in Albania for a couple of days. One of the guys referred to me as a local since I'd been here a while and could speak Albanian - it felt good to hear that!
So as time winds down I'm realizing that I'm actually already kind of missing this place and I have yet to leave - in short, I really enjoyed today.

Apologies apologies

It's been a while again, I know! Sorry about that, been trying to get in some last minute travel before I'm out of here. Just got back from the beach at Vlora today, fantastic water!
That's right though, in 13 days I'm leaving Albania and in 15 days I'll be landing back in the States. Here are some thoughts that have been on my mind:

1. I'm a little scared about driving again. I do not know why because driving is one of my most favorite things to do and I really enjoy it - but what will it be like the first time in such a long time?

2. Everyone keeps asking me what's Obama really like but I always have to say that I honestly don't know because I've been here...I guess I'll find out now huh, ha ha

3. I have no idea how I'm going to pack everything. I may just end up having a huge give-away everything party from my apartment because there's no way all of that junk will fit into two bags (how did I accumulate so much???)

4. Any tips for shipping things from Albania to the States (books for instance?)

5. I CANNOT WAIT TO GO TO MY HAIRDRESSER! Though I will say that the one I've befriended here lately, Klaudi, is Fab-u-lous!

6. Actually, though I've made this list it hasn't exactly quite hit me that I'm coming home so soon, and I think I must stop writing now before reality hits in...but really, when will it "hit" me, the night before I leave, or the day I actually see the States again

7. Oh ok wait, one more - who's going to speak Albanian with me once I leave???