Friends

After teaching Discovery Workshop, then lunch and a rest, we went to see a family Ann and I have known and kept contact with ever since our first visit here to Elbasan. The father in the centre of the photo is Arti with his two daughters Elsa on the left and Era. Mum, Vali, was very sad as she had just had her eldest brother die, and she didn't want her photo taken. Visits such as this one, mean we have the obligatory Turkish coffee with a glass of raki.

Both daughters are at University in Tirana, Elsa studying drama and Era is doing a Masters in finance.

Ida has been taking a look at the local costumes that are available. To get a good one is very difficult it seems. Most towns and villages have their own design, and are often owned by a cultural or dance organisations that you hire them from for weddings etc. The very best are hand made at home.

Time again to eat. This is inside the walls of the Turkish fort where we often come. It is a popular place to have coffee, socialise, have weddings and school proms. Ann's meal tonight was veal steak and chips, with a healthy salad of course!

The visit to Arti and Vali's with Ida led to an invitation to visit Arti's mother. Ann and I had been once before several years ago. She is a sprightly 71 year old who has a one storey house with a cellar and large garden.

She has a garden full of lemon trees that she waters each day early in the morning. The lemons are sold to hotels and restaurants. Between the trees are rose bushes of many colours and herbs like dill, thyme and oregano growing wild giving the whole garden a wonderful scent.

Friendships are always important and non more so than in Albania. Arti has lived in Elbasan all his life and seems to know everybody. Keeping contact is more than just thoroughly enjoyable. Not to do so would be seen as a serious snub.
Tomorrow we are up early and off to Youth Camp with the group from Elbasan.

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Discovery Workshop Day2

We were up bright and early to take the next 4 sessions of the DW here in Elbasan. Another day, so another outfit for Ida!

When Ida had finished speaking there was spontaneous applause! The people here love her. Rudina said "I feel as though I have known her all my life". They loved the fact that Ida is speaking their language, is speaking in a simple but clear way and she understands their jokes and comments and where they are coming from.
Here is Ida with some of the ladies. Ida then Jeta, Rudina, Kela, Blerina and Arjana.

And now with some of the guys...Arjan, Gezim, (Arjana) and Ilir.

Here is one of Ann, me and Ida

Then it was time for lunch. The Albanian version of the English sandwich.

Here is Sara, Ilir and Rudina's eldest daughter tucking in, and here is here mother doing the same.

Because of the heat, the air conditioning was on, wonderful! But then it was time for farewells until tomorrow morning and time for us to go home and have a shower and rest before going out to see some friends at 6pm.
It has been just such a wonderful time being able to bring Ida here and seeing the impact she and the material we taught is having.
See you soon.

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Discovery Workshop

Last evening we got down to the business of teaching the first sessions of the Discovery Workshop. Here is Ida at the end of a session and below in the midst of her talk.

It is just such a delight to have Ida from our church go to her home country and teach in her own language. As you imagine amusing comments Albanian style and good questions and answers flowed back and forth during the teaching. One could see the people took her to their heart, and Ida spent quite a time talking to people afterwards and praying for one lady in particular.

Evening sessions here at church start at 6pm. People have had their lunch and then a siesta in the afternoon so are ready for action about 5.30pm onwards. So after the teaching it was time to eat. People are out in numbers, just sitting and having a drink or going for a stroll in the warm evening air. Here is a picture of just a few of the dozens sitting in one cafe area.

We go to eat in a restaurant set inside the walls of an old Turkish fort. It is a stunning and amazing setting, often used for wedding photo sessions and wedding and other receptions. The Turkish/Muslim influence that lasted 400 years is still felt here today. Banners in the street remind one that we are in the midst of Ramadam. Coloured light up the walls of the fort and are also wrapped round the palm tree trunks.

After the meal it is back to the apartment, review what we did and talk through what we do tomorrow and then fall into bed! Another good day over.

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Albania

Ann and Ida and I are now in Elbasan in Albania. We travelled on Wednesday with Liam Parker, Dave Betts, Josh Grimmett and Ben Weeks arriving at 11.30pm to our usual hotel in Tirana. Ida, who is from Tirana, was met by her mother and went home to stay with her family overnight.
Tani, a son of the church leader we know in Tirana was at the hotel when we got there to greet us. After a wonderful nights sleep and breakfast Liam went with Tani to pray for his mother who is seriously ill with cancer.
Liam, Dave, Josh and Ben then headed off to Korca to be with Edi and Artina and their church. Liam will be focusing on 3 days of evangelism on the streets. Do pray for them. Korca is strongly Orthodox. Edi has a growing church full of young people and we pray and look forward to hearing their stories when we meet up with them again at the Youth Camp next Tuesday.
Ann and Ida and I travelled separately to Elbasan along a new piece of road that includes a loooong tunnel! Where the journey was 90 minutes, full of twists and turns, it now takes 30 minutes on a smooth, flat new road. Bliss!
We are really excited about having Ida with us, as she is part of our church, knows our church ethos, but now for the first time is travelling with us in her home country meeting the churches and the people that we know.
After lunch we met Ilir and Rudina who lead the church and introduced Ida who with me will be teaching Discovery Workshop to some of the church today, Friday and Saturday morning. Ida is still busy typing away on her laptop as I write this, translating some material before we get it photocopied.

Meanwhile, Ann and I have been to the pazaar, to get food for lunch, fresh lettuce, onions, tomatoes, cherries and figs. Yes it is that time of year! The fruit and vegetables are always wonderful here.
Do pray for us. Apart from a 10/10 at Kerith, (10 speakers each have 10 minutes), this will be the first time for Ida to speak in front of a church and speaking in Albanian. Already they have told her that she sounds like a foreigner who has learnt Albanian!! Not totally true but I will encourage them to encourage her!
Looking forward to a brilliant time,
Ken

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Goodbyes are important!

After our goodbyes to Edi and Arta we made our journey to Elbasan in the heat. Now a quicker journey than coming as we are travelling literally down hill most of the way. Korca, because of its altitude is known in Albania as an apple growing area, with mile after mile of apple trees in blossom. Through Pogradec, where we will hold the Youth Camp in July, Qafë Thane, Perrenjas, Librazhd and onto Elbasan. Then time to collapse and cool off from the heat, and then Ann gets the washing machine going!
Sunday morning found us saying our farewells to the people in the Elbasan church, but knowing we will be here again in July with Ida Sinakoli from our church before going to the Youth Camp. Liam and Dave Betts with Josh Grimmett and Ben Weeks will also come out with is and they will go to Korca to be with Edi and Arta before the Camp.
In the evening we had a meal at Ilir and Rudina's house, with their 3 daughters, again finalising conversations before.....the power went off! When I first came to Albania this was a regular occurrence. ( I remember being with Ann staying in the Grand Hotel in Korca and it had NO electricity and NO water! Not exactly Grand. ) The city of Elbasan was plunged into darkness, only cafes or restaurants with their own generator had power. And it started to pour, absolutely pour with rain as it can do in Mediterranean countries. Nothing else to do but wait for the rain to stop and power be restored which happened eventually. Final farewells and we walked home.

Monday morning Rudina and her daughter Amaris came to say Goodbye, and then we made our way to Tirana.

We had arranged to meet up with Mirjana who would like to come on our Academy year of training. She and Jorida, who also wants to come, are part of Shaban's church in Tirana. We have known them for several years through the Youth Camp and the worship training Colin Boyle and Dave Betts have done. So a bus ride, 30 Lek, 20p, however far you go, into the city centre and we had lunch together and talked through the possibility of her coming on the Academy.

A phone call to Tomorri and Miranda, who we had met at the Elbasan conference, and they repeated their invitation for an evening meal at their home. They lead Victory Church here in Tirana. So just before 7pm, Tomorri picked us up and brought us to their apartment that they share with Miranda's two younger sisters. Accommodation in Tirana, like any capital city, is expensive and so Miranda's sisters live with them until they can get a secure job and save for their own place.
This was the first time we had a real conversation with them and could hear their life story, where they met and how they come to lead the church. Miranda comes from a village near Elbasan and so knows all the people we know and a load more. Miranda prepared some superb food, with the help of her sisters and we had the joy of eating their hard work. Again, Miranda is keen that some young people she knows from their church in Tirana and from the village church her brother runs, could come to the Youth Camp. This we said is mainly a matter of para, para, money, money, but we promised to look at this and be in touch with them.
So late at night, gone 11pm, we made our Goodbyes, looking forward to when we may next see them. One more nights sleep, and then it is time to pack our suitcases, head for the airport and fly back home. Another time in Albania endeavouring to help the Church here to grow and build the Kingdom of God has come to an end.
Ken and Ann.

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Korca Part 2

The next day Edi took us to Bilisht, a town near the Border with Greece, to meet Arjan, below who has a church there.

Arjan showed us round his church building and their facilities and then we sat and talked. His wife comes from Librazhd, the town we had been to the previous Saturday and Ann and I knew her from there. Arjan was very interested at the possibility of their youth coming to our Youth Camp. There are so few opportunities of young people coming together in a Christian setting. Camps for small children are quite common. They will have activities in the morning and then go home for lunch and be home the rest of the day. But to take young people away to a purpose built centre, all meals included and be away 4 days, have really good worship and teaching is most unusual. I don't know another Camp like it in Albania and I have asked around a lot.

 

The late afternoon was spent with Edi and Artina talking about their church, the issues they have such as lack of space, buildings, money, potential leaders and so on.

 

The next morning we went to Lake Prespa. This is an area of Albania that is Macedonian speaking hence the road signs like this one. It is a quiet, peaceful, beautiful area. It is where the countries of Albania, Macedonia and Greece meet.

 

Time for coffee in a very small cafe, no one else there apart from us and the owner, but beautiful views all round. What the photo cannot show you is how HOT it is! Cloudiness in England like this would mean cool, but not here. It is very close, very humid.

Back to Korca and in the late afternoon we met with the young people from Edi's church. I have shown a number of photos as several of our guys back in Bracknell will recognise people from Youth Camp.

 

 

 

 

 

 

They worshipped, then I spoke, they played some games and then more interactive stuff. We talked about the problems they face, mainly trying to find work and jobs. You may have noticed that several of them have a dark skin colour. Albanians refer to them as Egyptians, ( it is thought this comes from Alexander the Great bringing soldiers from Egypt who stayed) and so they are looked down on and even despised though not as much as Roma. Several of them have been refused jobs out right because they are "Egyptian". Potential employers ask outright "What is your ethnicity?"

Esmerelda, in the last photo, works in a clothes making factory, 7 days a week for €60 a month! Ann and her talked about her having her own sewing machine at home and making things to sell and provide an income. Flori and her plan to marry at the end of June. Esmerelda's father died in the troubles a few years ago, and her mother ran away, so she lives with an aunt. She posses nothing other than her clothes. As a couple they will look to his family and the goodness of God through the kindness of the church to provide for them.

Last Friday was Good Friday in the Orthodox calendar. They are 5 weeks behind our Easter. So on Friday as we left the Youth Meeting we met the parade coming from the Orthodox Church. The parade was led by the town band,

Followed by the young priests walking backwards holding the incense holders

 

And the main clergy with the Bishop

 

Followed by about 5 to 10,000 people.

 

 

And then our final coffee together with Edi and Artina, with Clinton on the left and Flori and Esmerelda. This where we try to tie up any loose ends, talk about the Youth Camp again and who will do what and say our farewells. We had spent 4 busy days with Edi, meeting all their leaders and people and cementing a relationship that we already had. It is not often I feel this but leaving Edi was almost heart breaking for me. I feel for him in the task he has on his hands in building the church.

Saturday morning saw us climb aboard our furgon back to Elbasan and the start of our journey home to Bracknell. But still some more people to meet, and conversations to have.

Ken and Ann

 

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Korca Part 1



When we arrived Edi, on the right above, who leads the church was there to greet us and we went to a cafe for a drink with Flori, in the photo, and other guys. Some of our guys will remember Flori as he came second in Albania's version of Who's got talent, and he sang with our band when we held the concerts in Elbasan and Librazhd.  We caught with everyone and then to our hotel.  There is no one in Edi's church who has the space to put us up.  The whole area where we had coffee is a market area, pazaar, and Edi and his father were market traders.  Ann bought a tave, a large flat pan for cooking meat, potatoes and vegetables in all at the same time.

Korca is considered to be Albania's cultural capital. It has many fine buildings. At the end of the first World War for a short time Korca was declared a Republic and protected by France.  Albania's first boys and then girls schools were built here and French taught in the schools, the only place in Albania to do this.



Having then booked ourselves into the hotel, had a wash and sorted ourselves, it was time to go to a Lifegroup run by Olsi, the guy in the photo below, on the left. Some of them we knew already such as Elvis, a drummer, in the back on the right, and Kostika in the centre at front who translated for us. Just in front of Elvis is the lady whose house we were in and on her right behind the boy is Xhenie, (Jenny) a nurse who is training to be a midwife, only she cannot afford the exam fee. The biggest issue for most people in the church and for the people of Korca is getting work.  People who do work often work 7 days a week, yes all 7 days, for very little money.  It is a problem with a mixed Muslim and Christian Orthodox society, people are always at work, there is no one accepted time off from work or holidays.  An evening meal with Edi and Artina and their son Michael, and that was the end of day one in Korca.

The next day was the 1st May, a holiday for some, and so we went with Edi and Artina, their son Michael, Clinton, a South African guy from the Newfrontiers Worthing church and us in their VW Golf to Dardhe. Dardhe is up in the mountains and is Albania's only ski resort. Snow is till on the mountain tops.  Dardhe started life as an escape place for Orthodox Christians who didn't want to accept Muslim rule. Now it is an area where people go to at weekends to escape to the countryside, have picnics and cook over an open fire. Some with money have built themselves expensive private retreats like this below.

Or this

Original houses look like this below.

This is us, just in case you have forgotten what we look like!

Edi and Artina tucking in!  We ate roast lamb, chips, Greek salad, grilled vegetables and lakror me sac.

This is the lakror me sac, which was new to us.  It is like thin pancakes with a tomato and onion filling or spinach filling. Very tasty.

On our way home we saw these ladies cooking lakror me sac in the field over an open fire for the family picnic.



Then back to Korca for two Childrens worker meetings.  The 5-11's and then the 11-14's.  At the meetings we are meeting their key workers, sitting in and hearing their plans and the learning the way they do things and the issues they have.  It is much the same as working with children any where; never enough helpers, our equipment gets used by other people and so on! A meal at Edi and Arta's home and the end of another day.