It is hard to believe we have been here almost 7 weeks. In some ways it feels like it has been much longer, with all the changes and adjustments. Yet, we have been so busy, it is hard to believe it has been that long.

We are enjoying living with our host family and have started to feel very comfortable with our new routines. The language is still frustrating in that is does not come as fast as we want and we realize we are missing out on a lot of conversations because we cannot communicate with all those we meet. We have been in Peqin long enough that the newness of our presence in town has worn off and it is becoming very comfortable. We continue to meet new people each day and enjoy the being able to have at least basic conversations with them, if they are patient.

We never thought we would say having coffee at a coffee bar would be hard work, but try talking to someone for an hour in a language where your vocabulary is limited to “I want to eat”, “I want to drink” and “Good morning”. In addition, you must manage your Turkish coffee cup – do you drink it all now or do you try to make it last at least 15 – 20 minutes. And since your language is so limited, you must act out every couple of words. We are usually very tired at the end of a coffee and not sure how you take a break from a break. And then try to explain to your mother why you haven’t called because you have been too busy having coffee.

We are in the practicum phase of training where we work with agencies in Elbasan similar to our permanent assignments. For Carol that means she is working with the Women’s Forum and for Criss that means visiting the Elbasan Museum of Ethnology. We have English-speaking students that accompany us to help with translations. Full days are really half-days as we must be back at the training office at 1:30 for language classes, and we must be on time or our teachers (and we) get in trouble! Imagine trying to herd this group of adults who are used to being independent and responsible for their own time to 6 or 7 different agencies and making sure that they are all back exactly on time – it doesn’t happen!

On Monday and Wednesday, Carol was one of those bad trainees who made it back just at the stroke of 1:35. She helped translate notes from a meeting that was recently held with women in local villages, and on Wednesday actually attended one such meeting in another village. She learned a lot about why women think they can’t participate in decision-making in both politics and family life. Even if extreme poverty weren’t an issue (unemployment, homelessness, lack of healthcare – sound familiar?), they would face issues of cultural traditions, lack of education, and a lack of cousins to enforce their political positions. And those in poverty must protect themselves and their daughters from unscrupulous traffickers that disguise themselves as foreign business owners offering promises of jobs, husbands, or other financial security that sorely tempts many families to let their girls seek a better life. For Carol, it was a good introduction to the many problems facing a lot of women here, and made her even more excited about serving in Durres with the women’s center there.

Criss has really been working at his assignment. On Monday, he went to the museum, met with the director to discuss how museums are organized and funded and then toured the museum. Tuesday was a tour of the castle and old city and Wednesday was a tour of 2 sites, the Station House on the Ignatius Road and then to see a restored church originally built in 1381. The Ignatius Road was the main route between Istanbul and Rome during the Roman times. The Station House was a rest stop along the way where the travelers could stop and water and feed their horses, sleep and get a massage and bath. This 2000 year-old plus ruin is just off the highway between Elbasan and Peqin. It is incredible that you can just walk up to it and look around, especially since it is the only site like it around Albania and one of the best preserved in the Balkans. The Church of St John Vladimir has been restored after being burned during WWII. So much of the original wood work and paintings were lost. However, the structure has been restored and it is now an active church with a lot of history.

Of course, you must have some time set aside from the busy schedule to have coffee. These breaks gave us a chance to talk to the translators. Our translators are volunteers from the Elbasan University and are 3rd and 4th year English majors. It is great fun to hear their views on Albania and of course they have many questions for us. On the whole they are very positive about the changes they see in their country and while frustrated with some of the current problems, they are hopeful for a better future. Albanians are rather direct and their questions for us usually start with how old are you, are you married and how many children do you have. Marriage and family seem to be a preoccupation of most Albanians, when they are not comparing things, people and countries. You are constantly asked which is better, who makes better coffee, which town is friendlier and so on.

But we seem to be giving the right answers since we continue to enjoy ourselves and look forward to the many challenges and rewards that are sure to come. We hope that you are all healthy and wish you could be here with us to share in the adventure. We hope this brings some of it home to you in a way that helps you understand why we chose to do this in the first place. As always, keep in touch – more pictures coming soon!