Today’s focus is on photos captured in Albania and Kosovo. I took a day trip from Tirana to Kosovo (to its two largest cities of Prizren and Pristina), Europe’s youngest country, but one currently recognized by only about half of the United Nations members. Many nations such as Russia and Spain can’t stomach acknowledging a […]
Read More Two Lands, One LensThe most unique (and somewhat frightening) place I’ve explored in Albania so far was King Zog’s former villa in Durrës. It was worth visiting Durrës for this attraction alone, despite it not even being on my original list of places to see while there. The archaeological museum in Durrës was closed for renovations (as was […]
Read More King Zog’s Villa and Skanderbeg’s BustAlbanian Bunkers: Paranoid former Albanian leader Hoxha, whom you learned about in the previous post, ordered the construction of 750,000 defensive bunkers to be scattered across the country, particularly in the low-lying areas, of which over 170,000 were built by the time of his death. “Starting in 1967 and continuing until 1986, the Albanian government […]
Read More Albanian Bunkers and North Macedonian LakeI’m celebrating the conclusion of the Czech language course with a vacation to the southern Balkans, visiting three countries new to me: Albania, North Macedonia, and Kosovo. First up: the land of the eagles, as the Albanians themselves call it, Shqipëria! Albania is admittedly a country I formerly knew very little about, and I still […]
Read More Shqipëria (Albania) IntroI’m done with the 30 days of intensive and immersive Czech language learning!! Yay! Phew, what a relief. The photo above is of me smiling while overlooking the city. Pleased to have done it, happy to be finished. I’m still getting used to not having to go to class or do homework, though the sound […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 7 (Finished!)Because of multiple Czech holidays during my stay in Prague, the six-week course (30 days) actually takes seven weeks to complete. So my final four days are next week, finishing on Thursday, May 15. At this point, I’m very ready for it to end, but I can certainly see it through. At the same time, […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 6Above is a bonfire, not a dumpster fire, though sometimes my brain feels like a dumpster fire during the course. But I’m definitely on the home stretch now. I’ve been vacillating between considering signing up for the next course, and then wishing it could all please just be over with. My leaning often changes daily, […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 560% done now – 18 out of 30 sessions completed! It continues to amaze me how much we learn each day, and how the more I learn, the more complex Czech seems. In class on Friday I just had to chuckle aloud when the teacher showed us all the various word ending changes and rules […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 4Happy Easter! Or Hezké Velikonoce! I hope you have a great holiday weekend. I’m quite pleased to have both Friday and Monday off from class – I really feel like I need a break! On the other hand it means that I’m not yet halfway through the course, not until Tuesday afternoon. Another student and […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 3Whew, 33% done with the course! “Intensive” is an apt descriptor for this immersion course. Thinking about it, the course is 150 hours of instruction time, plus about 50 hours of study and homework time, so ~200 hours total of Czech language focus. And yet… Czech is so difficult that even that amount of dedication […]
Read More Intensive Czech Course, Week 2
Major Meander 