Hindsight: Tirana, Albania

Well, I can honestly say that this place has grown on me. Even though I have a distinct dust cloud that encircles me everywhere I go, I have a new-found affection for this place. Don't get me wrong...everything I said the first time is still true, but it evidently takes some getting used to.

Classes here have been rather lax. The Foreign Language Faculty at the University of Tirana is not in the best of conditions, and isn't air conditioned. So, for the sake of having us die, our professor, Gjovalin Shkurtaj, is having us meet in his air-conditioned office every day. If you haven't been paying attention to the news, there is a massive heat wave going through Europe, and numerous people have died. I am fortunate enough to have air-conditioning in my apartment, but by the time I get home to turn in on, the power cuts out for three hours while I lay there on the couch not moving a muscle and sweating profusely.

I'm being positive about this whole experience. To be taken out of my comfortable confines in Arizona (where I sweat a lot less, ironically) has been a marvelous experience. I didn't come to Tirana with any expectations, which was a good thing. Had I come here thinking that I was going into a cushy resort country, I would be dead wrong. There are nice places, but in a country that is restructuring itself such as Albania, those nice places are far and few between.

A few days ago, we went to the seaside city of Durres. I had to laugh on the beach as I looked to one side seeing an industrial port stretching out into the Adriatic, and some sort of plant or factory on the other side. The Albanians were more that content to squeeze this little bit of beach (a lot of non sany dirt and craggy rocks) to the sea.

The Albanian people stare at me as if I'm a ghost...or if not that, some overweight American (which is obviously a more accurate representation :) ). If you talk to them, they respond, and are usually friendly. I've decided to take a taxi every morning to the university so I can have a little morning chat to brush up on what I learned the day before. I've gotten into a routine witht the same two "taksi" drivers, Ilir and Bledar, and they've even given me a small discount on the fares. Taxis in Tirana are cheap...I'm talking $1.50 to $3.00 per ride within the city. Considering they're all experienced drivers, it's probably the safest route to take.

I'm tired all the time. I sleep way to much, and I hope I get out of that habit when I get home, simply because I'll need to.

But the point of all this is, for some strange reason, I like Tirana.