My countdown begins.
I leave Peace Corps in exactly one month (although I will be in Albania still for about two weeks after that). As I approach this date, I am, of course, filled with a lot of mixed emotions. I will be sad to leave, I have come to love this beautiful country and especially my little mountain town. I started to make a list (I really like making lists) of some of the (sometimes very unexpected) things that I will miss and not miss about my two years here:
Things I won't miss:
1. Furgons
2. The weird noise my toilet makes when I flush it, dubbed by my dad "the climaxing buffalo"
3. Frozen pipes
4. Trying to light my wood stove with frozen hands
5. Parties in the bar next door to my house that go till 2am when I'm wanting to go to sleep
6. Furgons
7. Hand washing my clothes and waiting for days for them to dry
8. Having too much time to knit, read and watch movies (alone).
9. The small town of Peshkopi. It is hard every time you walk into the post office or store and everyone knows everything about you and is all up in your business.
10. Mentaliteti Shipatar (the Albanian Mentality) and "avash, avash" (slowly, slowly or step by step). The idea that things will never change is that everything here takes sooooooooooo long. You get beat down when people keep telling you that nothing will ever change and that nothing we do will make a difference. I swear, the next person to tell me, "Mos e merzit, avash avash" (Don't worry, step by step) will get slapped.
Things I'll miss:
1. Getting plenty of sleep- never in my life have I been this well rested. Part of the charm of living in a small boring place is the ability (nay, luxury) of going to bed early and waking up without an alarm. I probably sleep an average of 9 hours a night here, something that I don't think I'd done in America since middle school and something that I don't expect to be able to do in America ever again (being a teacher means getting up at 5!)
2. The view out my kitchen window- pictures say it better than words, but pictures can't capture the beauty of the fog rolling down the hill and engulfing the town or the smell of the apple blossoms . . .
3. The horrible translations on the bottom of the News 24 screen "The president felicitated the country on independence." It may be a real word in English, but no one talks like that. Seriously. Seriously funny.
4. My wood stove
5. The small town of Peshkopi- it's amazing how nice it feels to walk into the post office or grocery store and have everyone know you, ask about your family, your work, and how you've been.
6. Having the time to knit and read and listen to news and watch movies.
7. Cooking dinner with Dylan.
8. 50 lek pilaf.
9. Circle dancing.
10. My students in MUN and OA. They give me hope for the future of this country. When things are going just avash avash, they encourage me and make me believe that change is possible and Shqiperia po ndryshon (Albania is changing- this was the slogan of the Democratic Party in the election last year, but despite that connotation, it is something to believe in!).
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2 comments:
And the other list: what do I pack for the trip and what do I send home with Dad when he comes? Remember he can bring 2 free (50#) bags plus his carry-ons and can pay for another if needed.
I commented on facebook, but I guess I'll do it here too. "avash, avash" is everywhere, even in the US I think. I don't remember the equivalent Cebuano term, but there is one. When I heard it, i used to respond with "bahala na" (oh, well). What else could you do except to do what you could do?
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