So as you might guess from the title, traveling in Albania can be quite the adventure. This weekend I went on a volunteer visit to Lezhe. I was super excited because that meant no language classes and a chance to see another part of Albania. Well being in Lezhe was great but the trip there got a little complicated…….
So there were 14 volunteers going north for volunteer visits. To go north in Albania, you pretty much have to go to Tirana first. We all met at 7:45am on Sunday in Elbasan so we could go together to Tirana. Well our furgon from Cerrik to Elbasan first of all, almost didn’t make it. It took 20 minutes before the furgon was pulling out because no one was going to Elbasan so early on a Sunday morning. We left with one seat empty but picked up some guy on the side of the road on the way in. However, right after we entered Elbasan we were pulled over by the police. I had never seen this happen before so I was very shocked and didn’t know what to think of it. We sat there for about 5 minutes while the driver showed the officer all his papers and stuff. We then finished the drive in to town. Well after that happened I knew the rest of the day was going to go just as well. We met everyone at the PST office and walked over to the furgon stop. We had to split up and take 2 furgons.
The drive to Tirana was amazing. It was up and through mountains so if you get motion sickness you would hate it but the views were gorgeous and the mountains are so beautiful! When we got to Tirana about 2 hours later we were supposed to be dropped off at the European Trade Center. We texted the current volunteer meeting us in Tirana and told her we were at the café across the street. Well she got there and it turned out we were not close to the European Trade Center! Luckily after I described where we were she was able to find us. We ate lunch and walked around for awhile and then headed off for the other furgons where we would all split ways. The first 8 volunteers going to different sites got on furgons with no problems. Then there was 7 of us with only one person speaking decent Albanian. The furgon drivers were trying to get us to all get on their furgon for a set price. Unfortunately we were going 2 different places. Winifred, the volunteer who met us, was trying to explain that we were going two different places but they did not care. We were all American and therefore could only possible be going one place.
After about 30 minutes of walking around we all ended up getting on one furgon going to the city of Milot where both groups could transfer to other furgons going to their respective cities. Winifred told the furgon driver that 4 were going to Rreshin and 3 were going to Lezhe. He said he would take the 4 going to Rreshin directly there and the other 3 to Milot. Winifred and him agreed on a price and we were on our way. Well, about 45 minutes outside of Tirana, he told Winifred he was not going to Rreshin and that the price was more than the one originally quoted. Winifred gave up trying to talk to him so we all got off in Milot. Luckily there were furgons for both Lezhe and Rreshin waiting. However, it meant we all had to pay more than we should have. I went on to Lezhe with Winifred and the other Leslie.
Lezhe was great. We got to go to the city hall (bashkia) and met everyone, a center for mentally handicapped children, and a culture center where Winifred taught English. In Lezhe I was also able to find a doughnut, cheesecake and Winifred made lasagna. Even though the Lasagna was quite an ordeal, because she lost power for a day so we had to walk to another volunteers house to make it. Overall it was a great visit.
The trip back from Lezhe was not nearly as eventful but still long and tiring as I see most travel in Albania will be. But my advice is to anyone traveling in Albania, hang on tight because there are no seat belts!!
Friday, April 18, 2008
Monday, April 7, 2008
It's not better. It's not worse. It's just different.
This is how the Peace Corps staff introduced to what life would be like in Albania. After being here now just over two weeks, I would have to agree. It’s not better but I’m thankful for that because I did not sign up for Peace Corps to live in a different country with all the luxuries of the US. It’s not worse but then that’s how you look at it. If you’ve ever read the book "It Could Always be Worse", well that’s exactly life in Albania. It could always be worse. It is most definitely different but I like that about Albania.
Here’s a little glimpse into what my life here in Albania is like. On a typical day, I wake up about 7am. Then I eat breakfast, which is always made for me by my host mom. Usually it is some type of bread, eggs, fruit or cheese. It’s always good though. My training starts at 8am. If I stay in Cerrik, it’s for language. Language class goes from 8am till about 1 pm. If I go to Elbasan it is for a hub day which is for the technical, safety, health or cultural training. That goes from about 9am until 4 pm. In Cerrik, at both my home, the school, and most places we go to drink coffee or eat we find Turkish toilets. Now I mentioned them a little bit in my last note but here’s a little more info on them. 1) They are not always very clean/fresh smelling. 2) There is not always toilet paper. In fact most times there’s not. Thank God for pocket packs of tissue! 3) When there is toilet paper, you’re not supposed to flush it but instead throw it away. Yeah, wouldn’t want to be the one emptying that trash bin! 4) There is not always a flush on Turkish toilets. Sometimes it is just a bucket of water that you throw down the basin to "flush" it. 5) When washing hands, the water is a) very cold and b) there’s not usually soap. Thank God for hand sanitizer!
Ok now that I’ve mentioned what I would consider to be the worst part about life in Albania there are many things I’m thankful for. There are walls, windows and doors. For those of you who though I was going to live in a mud hut, please educate yourself on what Albanian homes really are like. Now indoor heating is not really existent in Albania, so even though it is April I am sleeping in long pajama pants, a t-shirt, sweatshirt and curled underneath three blankets. I definitely am going to love long underwear and my sleeping bag come winter! For some reason that I don’t understand though, they will complain that it’s cold, start a fire in an old stove in the living room, close the doors to that room, but the door and window in the next room will be left open. I am not sure if I’ll ever figure that one out. I am fortunate enough to currently live in a city where there are sidewalks. If I end of being placed in a small town or village, this probably will not be the case. In large cities though there are sidewalks. There are also numerous places for me to go to to drink coffee or eat food. I am overall very pleased with my current living situation.
Life in Albania is very different. For starters, there are cars but many people don’t have them, or the ones that do do not use them frequently. The main mode of transportation is by your own two feet or bike. To get farther distances there are buses (which I have not experienced yet but heard stories about) or furgons. Every time I go to Elbasan I take a furgon (which is like a mini-bus) and it is a good time. The roads in Albania are very narrow and not in the best condition. Whenever you want to pass you just put on your blinker and honk once to let the car in front know. I would be terrified to drive here because there is a complete lack of rules. I have no idea how drivers know what is going on but somehow they manage to not crash everyday so I guess the system works.
Another difference is that meal times are all over the place. For example, I eat breakfast around 7 am. We have a coffee break during our lesson usually around 10:30. We eat lunch when we get done around 1 pm. My host parents get home and eat a small meal around 3:30 – 4 pm. I’ll drink a coffee or eat some fruit with them usually. Dinner is not served until 9 – 9:30 ish. I’m being served this big meal and usually I would rather go to bed than eat but you know it’s their way. None of us volunteers understand why they eat so late. I see my host parents take food with them too so I don’t know if they are just on this 4 meals a day routine or what.
Anyway, there’s a million other things that are different here but I’ll save those for another time. I’m going to visit the trainees at another site today and next weekend I get to visit a current volunteer so I see what life is really like. I’m sure I’ll have some stories after that. Keep your eyes open for more updates!
Leslie :)
Here’s a little glimpse into what my life here in Albania is like. On a typical day, I wake up about 7am. Then I eat breakfast, which is always made for me by my host mom. Usually it is some type of bread, eggs, fruit or cheese. It’s always good though. My training starts at 8am. If I stay in Cerrik, it’s for language. Language class goes from 8am till about 1 pm. If I go to Elbasan it is for a hub day which is for the technical, safety, health or cultural training. That goes from about 9am until 4 pm. In Cerrik, at both my home, the school, and most places we go to drink coffee or eat we find Turkish toilets. Now I mentioned them a little bit in my last note but here’s a little more info on them. 1) They are not always very clean/fresh smelling. 2) There is not always toilet paper. In fact most times there’s not. Thank God for pocket packs of tissue! 3) When there is toilet paper, you’re not supposed to flush it but instead throw it away. Yeah, wouldn’t want to be the one emptying that trash bin! 4) There is not always a flush on Turkish toilets. Sometimes it is just a bucket of water that you throw down the basin to "flush" it. 5) When washing hands, the water is a) very cold and b) there’s not usually soap. Thank God for hand sanitizer!
Ok now that I’ve mentioned what I would consider to be the worst part about life in Albania there are many things I’m thankful for. There are walls, windows and doors. For those of you who though I was going to live in a mud hut, please educate yourself on what Albanian homes really are like. Now indoor heating is not really existent in Albania, so even though it is April I am sleeping in long pajama pants, a t-shirt, sweatshirt and curled underneath three blankets. I definitely am going to love long underwear and my sleeping bag come winter! For some reason that I don’t understand though, they will complain that it’s cold, start a fire in an old stove in the living room, close the doors to that room, but the door and window in the next room will be left open. I am not sure if I’ll ever figure that one out. I am fortunate enough to currently live in a city where there are sidewalks. If I end of being placed in a small town or village, this probably will not be the case. In large cities though there are sidewalks. There are also numerous places for me to go to to drink coffee or eat food. I am overall very pleased with my current living situation.
Life in Albania is very different. For starters, there are cars but many people don’t have them, or the ones that do do not use them frequently. The main mode of transportation is by your own two feet or bike. To get farther distances there are buses (which I have not experienced yet but heard stories about) or furgons. Every time I go to Elbasan I take a furgon (which is like a mini-bus) and it is a good time. The roads in Albania are very narrow and not in the best condition. Whenever you want to pass you just put on your blinker and honk once to let the car in front know. I would be terrified to drive here because there is a complete lack of rules. I have no idea how drivers know what is going on but somehow they manage to not crash everyday so I guess the system works.
Another difference is that meal times are all over the place. For example, I eat breakfast around 7 am. We have a coffee break during our lesson usually around 10:30. We eat lunch when we get done around 1 pm. My host parents get home and eat a small meal around 3:30 – 4 pm. I’ll drink a coffee or eat some fruit with them usually. Dinner is not served until 9 – 9:30 ish. I’m being served this big meal and usually I would rather go to bed than eat but you know it’s their way. None of us volunteers understand why they eat so late. I see my host parents take food with them too so I don’t know if they are just on this 4 meals a day routine or what.
Anyway, there’s a million other things that are different here but I’ll save those for another time. I’m going to visit the trainees at another site today and next weekend I get to visit a current volunteer so I see what life is really like. I’m sure I’ll have some stories after that. Keep your eyes open for more updates!
Leslie :)
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Finally in Albania!
OMG!!! So I have finally found an internet cafe! It has only taken 4 days! Well I have been Albania for 4 days and it has been interesting! We arrived at Tirana International Airport (which by the way has one landing strip) and I knew I was in Albania when I saw a donkey on the side of the strip. The country is absolutely gorgeous! There are mountains everywhere! It's true that Albania has a little bit of a trash problem but I'm sure I'll learn to overlook it.
So I was in Elbasan for the first 2 1/2 days. Now I am in Cerrik which is about 25 minutes away. I am living in an apartment with a host father and mother. They have a son who is 23 that is studying in Italy (his name is Aldo) and a son who is 21 who studies in Tirana (his name is Besmir). I live in the living room which I have been told is my room. We're on the first floor so luckily I don't have to do stairs everyday. Now the bathroom... They have a turkish toilet. Which if you're not familiar with, google it. YOu'll feel my pain. The shower is not really a shower as much as it is a shower head over the toilet with a tiled floor. It is going to be interesting to do that.
Today I have walked around town with Besmir and he has shown me things to know. This has been interesting since he doesn't speak English. There are 4 other volunteers living in Cerrik. Courtney and Chris ( they are married), Karen and Rebecca. I know, another BECCA!!!! hahaha :) Well I'm about out of time on this thing so I'll wrap up with my new cell number. Dial it exactly as you see it here (0355 69 34 75 492). Calling is extremely expensive for me but I'll be able to send text messages. Oh and I don't have all your addresses so if you want mail send me a message with your address!!!I miss you guys!
Leslie
So I was in Elbasan for the first 2 1/2 days. Now I am in Cerrik which is about 25 minutes away. I am living in an apartment with a host father and mother. They have a son who is 23 that is studying in Italy (his name is Aldo) and a son who is 21 who studies in Tirana (his name is Besmir). I live in the living room which I have been told is my room. We're on the first floor so luckily I don't have to do stairs everyday. Now the bathroom... They have a turkish toilet. Which if you're not familiar with, google it. YOu'll feel my pain. The shower is not really a shower as much as it is a shower head over the toilet with a tiled floor. It is going to be interesting to do that.
Today I have walked around town with Besmir and he has shown me things to know. This has been interesting since he doesn't speak English. There are 4 other volunteers living in Cerrik. Courtney and Chris ( they are married), Karen and Rebecca. I know, another BECCA!!!! hahaha :) Well I'm about out of time on this thing so I'll wrap up with my new cell number. Dial it exactly as you see it here (0355 69 34 75 492). Calling is extremely expensive for me but I'll be able to send text messages. Oh and I don't have all your addresses so if you want mail send me a message with your address!!!I miss you guys!
Leslie
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Time to Hit the Road
Ok, so after what seems like forever I am leaving tomorrow for STAGING!!!! I can't believe I really am. I've hit a few minor problems (my suitcases didn't fit the specified dimensions, they were over the weight limit......) I think I am ready to go. Tomorrow morning at 4 am I will be waking up, walking out my front door for the last time for awhile and saying good-bye to my parents.
I'm not going to lie, it hasn't really sunk in yet that I really am leaving. Like this is the REAL THING! Saying good-bye to everyone hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be (I thought there would be a lot more tears...) but you guys have helped me to have a blast the past few weeks and I have so many new pictures and memories that it has made it a little bit easier to actually get on that plane and go.
I guess what I want to say is thank you. You guys are the most amazing friends ever and I don't think I would actually have the courage to go if I didn't know that you guys are supporting me all the way. With that said, I expect mail!!!! My address for the first three months is:
Leslie Surrett
Peace Corps Albania
Rruga "Ali Visha" Nr. 15
Tirana, ALBANIA
Good-bye everyone!! I will miss you all! I wish the best for all of you!
All my love,
Leslie :)
I'm not going to lie, it hasn't really sunk in yet that I really am leaving. Like this is the REAL THING! Saying good-bye to everyone hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be (I thought there would be a lot more tears...) but you guys have helped me to have a blast the past few weeks and I have so many new pictures and memories that it has made it a little bit easier to actually get on that plane and go.
I guess what I want to say is thank you. You guys are the most amazing friends ever and I don't think I would actually have the courage to go if I didn't know that you guys are supporting me all the way. With that said, I expect mail!!!! My address for the first three months is:
Leslie Surrett
Peace Corps Albania
Rruga "Ali Visha" Nr. 15
Tirana, ALBANIA
Good-bye everyone!! I will miss you all! I wish the best for all of you!
All my love,
Leslie :)
Monday, March 10, 2008
Good-byes
So this weekend was a blast! Here's a recap......
Friday March 7th we were at Magoo's. My friend Paula bought me a doodle bear which all my friends wrote on for me. Some of the comments got very inappropriate very fast. Anyways, the bartender knew it was my going away party but he decided to tell everyone it was my birthday instead because it would be "more fun". Thanks James. So everyone was buying me shots all night. We played a lot of pool and joked around and took lots of pictures. I didn't get home until about 4 am and I had to baby-sit at 7:30. Surprisingly I was able to get up and I felt fine all day so overall a good night.
Saturday March 8th we went to La Cage. I met up with Scott, Ryan, and Paul at Scott's house so we could pre-game. Apparently my straight guy friends did not want to go to the gay bar sober. Hahaha. Well we did a power hour (which is when you take one shot every minute for an hour) and then headed off to La Cage. It was pretty packed. Lots of dancing followed. I got the guys to take off their shirts and they liked it!! Hahahaha. Seriously I don't know what their big fuss was. I asked them if they had fun and they were all like, "Let's come here again!" What a good time.
Sunday March 9th we went bowling. Katie and Maria made me a very sparkly card which Andrew went ahead and signed his name on later. Thank you Andrew. Toni, Becca and me were the only ones bowling until Jessica showed up. Toni was rocking it and me and Becca were just doing our thing. You know, the not such good bowlers thing :) hahaha. Everyone else who came was just sitting around and talking but it was pretty amazing. Scott, Paul, Toni, Becca and I went on to have dinner at Steak & Shake. Oh I will miss their shakes! We were causing so much trouble I'm sure the waiter was very happy when we left. Oh well, we bought stuff and paid so too bad for you mister! Oh we are such trouble makers!
Anyways, I got a lot to do this week. For instance PACK!!! I'm starting that today. I need to go make some prints of some of the pictures from this weekend. I have a few miscellaneous things to buy. I need to go over the language courses that the Peace Corps sent me so I can know a few words when we get there. I have to finish all the paperwork they sent me to bring to staging. I have to spend some time with my parents but I know I have a lot of things planned for with friends too. This week may get kinda hectic but I can't believe I leave in 6 days for Philly!!! AHHH!!!! I'm so excited! My next post will probably be from Philly so until then, keep on smiling!
Leslie :)
Friday March 7th we were at Magoo's. My friend Paula bought me a doodle bear which all my friends wrote on for me. Some of the comments got very inappropriate very fast. Anyways, the bartender knew it was my going away party but he decided to tell everyone it was my birthday instead because it would be "more fun". Thanks James. So everyone was buying me shots all night. We played a lot of pool and joked around and took lots of pictures. I didn't get home until about 4 am and I had to baby-sit at 7:30. Surprisingly I was able to get up and I felt fine all day so overall a good night.
Saturday March 8th we went to La Cage. I met up with Scott, Ryan, and Paul at Scott's house so we could pre-game. Apparently my straight guy friends did not want to go to the gay bar sober. Hahaha. Well we did a power hour (which is when you take one shot every minute for an hour) and then headed off to La Cage. It was pretty packed. Lots of dancing followed. I got the guys to take off their shirts and they liked it!! Hahahaha. Seriously I don't know what their big fuss was. I asked them if they had fun and they were all like, "Let's come here again!" What a good time.
Sunday March 9th we went bowling. Katie and Maria made me a very sparkly card which Andrew went ahead and signed his name on later. Thank you Andrew. Toni, Becca and me were the only ones bowling until Jessica showed up. Toni was rocking it and me and Becca were just doing our thing. You know, the not such good bowlers thing :) hahaha. Everyone else who came was just sitting around and talking but it was pretty amazing. Scott, Paul, Toni, Becca and I went on to have dinner at Steak & Shake. Oh I will miss their shakes! We were causing so much trouble I'm sure the waiter was very happy when we left. Oh well, we bought stuff and paid so too bad for you mister! Oh we are such trouble makers!
Anyways, I got a lot to do this week. For instance PACK!!! I'm starting that today. I need to go make some prints of some of the pictures from this weekend. I have a few miscellaneous things to buy. I need to go over the language courses that the Peace Corps sent me so I can know a few words when we get there. I have to finish all the paperwork they sent me to bring to staging. I have to spend some time with my parents but I know I have a lot of things planned for with friends too. This week may get kinda hectic but I can't believe I leave in 6 days for Philly!!! AHHH!!!! I'm so excited! My next post will probably be from Philly so until then, keep on smiling!
Leslie :)
Monday, February 25, 2008
Travel Plans!
Hey everyone!
Ok so here are the travel plans as they stand so far......
Departing Milwaukee, WI March 16th 7:00am
Arriving Detroit, MI March 16th 9:14 am
Departing Detroit, MI March 16th 10:14 am
Arriving Philadelphia, PA March 16th at 11:45am
Staging is at the Sheraton University Center March 16th - 18th.
Leaving Philly March 18th at 11:00 am to head to JFK.
Departing JFK at 6:45 pm
Arriving Munich, Germany 8:00 am March 19th
Departing Munich, Germany 10am March 19th
Arriving Tirana, Albania 12:00pm March 19th.
I can't believe staging is in 3 weeks! I still have a week and a half of work to do. Then there's all the packing to do, good-byes to say and last minute details to take care of. I can't believe it's almost here! I'm so ready to get going I just wish work was over. I'm sick of working overnights and I'm tired of the naughty kids I teach swim to. Only a few more days then its time to hit the road!
Leslie :)
Ok so here are the travel plans as they stand so far......
Departing Milwaukee, WI March 16th 7:00am
Arriving Detroit, MI March 16th 9:14 am
Departing Detroit, MI March 16th 10:14 am
Arriving Philadelphia, PA March 16th at 11:45am
Staging is at the Sheraton University Center March 16th - 18th.
Leaving Philly March 18th at 11:00 am to head to JFK.
Departing JFK at 6:45 pm
Arriving Munich, Germany 8:00 am March 19th
Departing Munich, Germany 10am March 19th
Arriving Tirana, Albania 12:00pm March 19th.
I can't believe staging is in 3 weeks! I still have a week and a half of work to do. Then there's all the packing to do, good-byes to say and last minute details to take care of. I can't believe it's almost here! I'm so ready to get going I just wish work was over. I'm sick of working overnights and I'm tired of the naughty kids I teach swim to. Only a few more days then its time to hit the road!
Leslie :)
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Lost in the Snow
This winter has been so terrible! Yesterday we got 14 inches of snow. That's on top of the 5 we already had on the ground. And they are saying we're probably getting more today! I shoveled 5 times yesterday. I had to shovel out the coffee shop and the house. My dad has been gone since Sunday on his little Washington D.C. vacation that my mom and I got for him for his birthday. How convienent. My hands hurt and my back hurt like no other.
Before I could come to the coffee shop today to shovel I had to shovel out the end of our driveway which was blocked by ridiculously heavy snow. Then I got to the coffee shop to see that the stupid plows pushed almost all the snow from the road up onto the sidewalk. The side is now completely impassable unless you're ready to be shoulder deep in snow. I have a little path in front and three openings to the road so people can get in without having to walk the half a block that's still covered in snow.
I keep asking people what the weather is like in Albania and they say that its really hot in the summer but gets really cold in the winter. I asked how much snow and they said not really any at all. I am so ready to be there instead of here! I found out from my placement officer that the staging is going to be in Philly. That made my day. I'm so excited that the day I leave here is getting closer. I keep thinking about packing and stuff that I still need to get. One month left of work and then a week after that I leave! Let's hope I don't drown in the snow before that day gets here!
Hope everyone else is staying warm/dry/safe!
Leslie :)
Before I could come to the coffee shop today to shovel I had to shovel out the end of our driveway which was blocked by ridiculously heavy snow. Then I got to the coffee shop to see that the stupid plows pushed almost all the snow from the road up onto the sidewalk. The side is now completely impassable unless you're ready to be shoulder deep in snow. I have a little path in front and three openings to the road so people can get in without having to walk the half a block that's still covered in snow.
I keep asking people what the weather is like in Albania and they say that its really hot in the summer but gets really cold in the winter. I asked how much snow and they said not really any at all. I am so ready to be there instead of here! I found out from my placement officer that the staging is going to be in Philly. That made my day. I'm so excited that the day I leave here is getting closer. I keep thinking about packing and stuff that I still need to get. One month left of work and then a week after that I leave! Let's hope I don't drown in the snow before that day gets here!
Hope everyone else is staying warm/dry/safe!
Leslie :)
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