Our view from the hotel in Elbasan.
Clock tower in Elbasan.
41 PCV’s for Albania finally made it to Mother Teresa airport on Wednesday! Out of those 41 volunteers 17 of us had lost luggage... yeah I said us, me included. Apparently it happens a lot so we’re not too worried about getting our suitcases delivered to us shortly. From the airport in Tirana we took a 2 ½ hour bus ride to Elbasan through the North Eastern part of Albania. We were able to observe the agriculture, building structures and people of Albania for the first time. Well, considered I slept most of the trip I didn’t get to do that much observing but there will be plenty of time for that. We were served a bag lunch that included a sandwich with ham, turkey and French fries on it, a banana and a really good candy wafer bar.
We unloaded what bags we did have into our rooms and then went on a tour of the city. Just like we were told only men were out having tea/beer/coffee with each other while there were few women on the streets at all. The city was beautiful and the people were curious and friendly. We were familiarized with where the Peace Corps offices were as well as visiting a castle and just over all getting a feel for the city.
Street scene in Elbasan.
Our first dinner we enjoyed some traditional Albanian food that reminded a lot of Greek food and we were also issued our cell phones. Apparently texting will be our most popular form of communication between other PCV’s while we are in different sites because it is cheaper than calling. We also received our host family placements. I was placed with a family that has two teenage daughters, a 9 year old son, a mother and a “house keeper” which is the father or “head of the family.” I will be located in the town of Bishqem and was given allowance for my travel to Elbasan 4 times a week. There are 4 other PCV’s in Bishqem with me who all also in the Community and Organization Development program. Other programs that are in Albania besides C.O.D. are T.E.F.L. or Teaching English as a Foreign Language and Health Education.
This picture is from our first dinner in Albania.
We had training this morning that included a basic overview of the program in Albania and what's to be expected of us as Volunteers. We just finished our lunch break in between training. We got to meet all the staff members today. We're going through medical shots and an initial interview either today or tomorrow.
We recieved our cellphones, anyone can call/text me but I cannot return the text or call you. I suggest if you want to call to get skype minutes because they're cheap!
+355 69 457 0134
The 355 is the country code. Either use the + or 00 before the country code.
