A Tour of Ksamil

Happy Sunday everyone! I went to mass again today and was walked in to find a priest in the sanctuary! We were able to have a full mass today (minus the homily) from a priest from Corfu. He can read Albanian, he speaks Italian and he did a fairly nice mass. After a couple weeks away from the Eucharistic, it was a blessing to be able to celebrate it again. Makes me appreciate having being able to celebrate communion at mass every Sunday, something often taken for granted. God is good!

The party went really well last night. As could be expected, I was the life of the party. The two groups started pretty divided, and it felt like high school all over again, with one clique in one corner and the other in the another. We were like that for the first half an hour, and then a song finally came up that I could dance to. As some of you may know, I love to dance. It wasn't long before the two groups had merged to dance the chicken dance, Gangam style, and eventually my personal favorite and specialty, Twist and Shout done in the vein of Ferris Bueller. For those of you on facebook, brace yourselves because videos and photos are probably on their way to the world wide web as soon as everyone gets internet. A good time was had by all, and I had several people come up and tell me how much fun they had because of me. People keep predicting I'll change when I go places, but as I've said, I've found who I am and people love me for being me. I am who I am and that's all that I am.

It's too windy for the beach today, so I've got some time on my hands and some photos on my computer, so I thought I would give a mini tour of Ksamil, the town where I'm staying, as well as several photos of Sarande, the adjacent 'city' where the Catholic church and ferry are found. Without further ado, the pictures. First Sarande

The first photo is from a truck in Sarande. There are no regulations in Albania for many things, including auto care. This car is street legal and probably driven, presenting a danger to both its driver and other people in the area. As much as inspection costs time and money, this is the alternative. The second is the soccer stadium in Sarande, the national sport. The third is one of the streets, where they sell mussels on one side of the street and fruit on the other, all while trying to maintain a two lane road and pedestrian walkway. The fourth is Caesars palace, or at least the version found in Albania.

These two are photos on the bus ride back to Ksamil. Albania is still big into farming and agriculture, with many people dependent on grazing sheep and goats and growing crops to survive. The other 'big' industry is mussel farming, which can be seen in the second photo. As a result, the seafood is always cheap and plentiful, which suits me just fine.

Lots to talk about with these photos. The first is a soccer field near where we stay. It's a private field, as a wealthy Albanian rents it out for leagues and games, but we'll probably play against the locals sometime before we leave. The second is the local high school, where our friend from the peace corps teaches English. The third is a view from the beach. According to the locals, there used to be a restaurant on the island, but they didn't have the correct paperwork, so the government sent some people over and blew the place to bits, leaving it in it's current state. The government doesn't get involved in much, but when they do they rule with a relatively iron fist. The fourth is the 'coliseum' a hotel built by a foreign businessman. Albania has the natural setting to attract tourists, especially our area, but the infastructure doesn't support that kind of lifestyle yet. This businessman built the hotel to make money off the tourists, but it stands empty for most of the year, with a couple of the rooms occasionally rented out during the summer. Thus is the condition of many buildings here. The fifth is the mosque in town. They have the call to prayer five times a day, but I haven't seen too many muslims, and the locals don't know how many go. The sixth is another failed construction project, or perhaps a work in progress. People start projects here, and then add some whenever they get the money. This process could take a year, or five years, and until they're done they dot the city with half finished buildings. The next three are three corners of the view from the roof of the house. The final is the Albanian method of heating: solar panels! Everyone uses them, and they work really well provided you have sun. If you don't you are guaranteed a cold shower. Therefore, we always shower during the day and hope for sunshine. I'm going to go grab dinner then skype the family, so be well and talk to you all later.