one month down.

five to go?

Today marks the one month anniversary of my arrival in Kosovo, and this time seems to have gone very fast when I try to remember all that has happened in just four weeks. Or, more accurately, it's not that so much has happened per say, but that so much is now different from what it was only a month ago. We 'celebrated' today by doing more work on the UN missing persons project, visiting two highschools in the south-western towns of Gjakova and Suhareka. For three hours of workshops, we did three hours of driving, but the view was interesting enough to make the long car ride worthwhile... especially the mountains, which seemed particularly striking, perhaps because it was a typically Vancouver-ish day in terms of brooding weather with dark grey skies and rain?

The workshops, too, were interesting, and quite different from what we experienced in the elementary schools two weeks ago. In Gjakova, we met with only seven kids (and by kids I mean juniors and seniors), but all of them were greatly and directly affected by the war: they were all missing either fathers or uncles, or both. Some of their families had had the bodies returned to them, but some were still waiting to hear about the fate of their missing loved ones. It is most likely they are waiting for bodies to be found and/or identified, but who am I to challenge the hopes of a seventeen-year old who believes that his father might be alive, hidden in a secret jail in Serbia (one so secret that no one has found it for six years)? Really, though, it is easy to understand why such ideas, based on small threads of truth, are so common here and in the many other countries where people have similarly "disappeared" without a trace.

On a lighter note, potholes in Kosovo are psychotic! With perfectly coordinated timing, I just received a small article clipped out of the Vancouver Sun on the mystery of potholes. You see, Vancouver roads were overly unprepared for the full one week of winter temperatures that struck the city this year and that article was sent as a joke in response to my fascination with the city's plethora of newly formed potholes :) Well, instead of getting away from them, I have moved to Kosovo, where potholes are permanent fixtures on some roads. Of course, when I say potholes, I'm talking tank-sized things the likes of which are unimaginable in North America. Psycho, I'm telling you!

Otherwise, I'm just bracing myself for another quiet weekend in Pristina. I have high hopes for more sun so I can go for a walk, because, sadly, you end up somewhat starved not only for exercise but just for opportunities to be outside around here. I know that with warmer weather will come the immensely popular outdoor cafe phenomenon, but until then, I've got to get my kicks where I can. And on the exercise front, I might have to give up and join a gym, because walking up stairs back and forth from my apartment to the office just isn't enough. But, don't worry... I promise to keep you updated about such fabulously exciting aspects of my life here in Pristina.

what you waiting for?

So, there is something inexplicable that comes with leaving North America about my strange willingness to listen to music I would normally avoid with a vengeance. I mean, lord knows why, but I'm addicted to a Gwen Stefani song with such meaningful lyrics as: "Take a chance you stupid ho... You're still a super hot female." Now picture two cute Albanian boys singing and dancing, and you'll understand why I love it :) Actually, one of the things I enjoy most about Kosovo is it's love-affair with great music...Michael Jackson, Blondie, Prince, David Bowie... It's 80's night here every day, all day long, in every cafe and bar. It's awesome. Besides the wonderful soundtrack, today is beautiful and sunny, and it's days like these that make me appreciate being here most. Nearly all of the city's snow and ice has melted (which happily means my laundry no longer freezes on the line outside!), although there are still snow-covered mountains outside of the city that you can see when driving south towards Macedonia. Apparently, the Sharr mountain range is one of the highest in the Balkans, and I'm told that there is fabulous skiing somewhere around, too. Pristina, itself, has no mountains. Just hills. The hillside that you can see at the bottom of Garabaldit Street is a wealthy neighbourhood called Arberia, and the white in the picture is not only snow, but white houses... Work at the office is still slightly crazy and unpredictable, though. We finally got rid (she says jokingly) of the playwrights from around the Balkans, when a group of three Germans and two French came all the way to Kosovo for a three-day prep meeting for a youth exchange (planned for 2006). They flew out of Belgrade over the weekend, after a slight drama at the Serbian border was resolved (by driving them back through Macedonia). Anyway, they arrived safely at home, and lest we waste a single day, CCTD now has a guest from Scotland! He is here only for two days to lead acting and directing workshops, as well as to plan a visit by his Scottish Youth Theatre. He's great, and the accent is even better, but it has made CCTD very busy for the past week. And me, well, I'm just waiting to get back to the memory project... ...But, like Gwen says, with her good advice for all: "What you waiting for?"

"saved by the stick"

I have just returned to Kosovo from a city in Macedonia called Skopje (pronounced skope-yeh), which is a 1.5 hours drive from Pristina. I went for the day along with people from the office, some of their friends, a few of the playwright guests from Kosovo and Croatia, and some theater people from Germany and France (is that enough?!), for the premier of a children's play written by a CCTD staff member. Although the performance was in Albanian, I read an English translation before hand and could follow along quite well. Called "Saved by the Stick," the play was about a teacher that consistently picks on a particular student and wrongly punishes him by beating his hands with a stick. Even though the topic was serious and the kids were meant to learn that such behaviour is unacceptable, the play was comedic and great fun to watch! I was surprised to discover that Skopje is actually a larger city than Pristina, which was obvious from three-storey mall complete with stores like United Colours of Benetton (however you spell it) and Nike. Macedonia also has McDonald's, which is really the only international landmark noticeably absent from Pristina (or all of Kosovo for that matter... I would guess that being a recognized state is one of the company's prerequisites for expansion?). They also sold Trident gum in Macedonia, which I can't seem to find anywhere in Pristina. Despite being a fairly big city, Skopje has maintained more of its older Turkish-era architecture, which is more pleasant to look at than the communist concrete fiesta found in Pristina. And, the city has both mountains (or, at least more mountainous mountains that Hamilton's "mountain") and a river with a name that is extremely difficult to pronounce in English... It's no Pacific, but it was nice all the same... The bus on the way home was brutal, though! As if the '70's style seats in lovely shades of puke green and puke yellow weren't enough, we were blessed with never ending turbo-folk concert videos, and some one (likely the driver) was smoking with no air circulation. Have I mentioned that everyone here smokes? And I mean everyone. It is just something that a visitor to the Balkans must get used to as a fact of life, but sometimes it's overwhelming to the point of it being nauseating... like yesterday... I went for lunch after the show with the cast and crew, and we were fourteen people, eight cigarettes at any given time, and one small room. Oy. What's harder to watch, however, are young children who seem nearly oblivious to the smoke because they have grown up with it surrounding them. It's like they have a death complex here. Speaking of which, I have been noticing that Kosovo is still far behind North America when it comes to safety standards. For example, while this isn't too much of a problem in the city, roads and even highways often have no sidewalks so that everyone is forced to walk basically on the edge of narrow streets. I feel like my friends here are safe drivers, but in general, people speed and pass like it's going out of style. Sadly, I have witnessed a dog being killed in the street because it ran towards oncoming traffic, and I am certain that people, too, must get hit more than I'd like to think about. It is also common to see young children riding on laps in cars. And I don't think they have fire or emergency exit laws here, because doors to stores and restaurants open inward, opposite of doors at home... Like a loser, I still automatically pull instead of push when going into places, and people stare at me like I'm another stupid international :) Anyway, these are all observations, and really, I am doing quite well. More than anything, I find these crazy (and sometimes irrational) parts of life in Kosovo amusing. Like my apartment...On an alley wall near the entrance to my building, someone has written lyrics to "the youth gone wild" and I just have to laugh every time because I live on Skid Row. I feel much more settled into the apartment, and even enjoy the quiet (when it's a choice). I bought myself a good pot and cooked my first real meal the other day, a thrilling rendition of pea soup. And I also bought a dvd player, not only because it seems to be the most popular pastime here, but because Pristina's a quiet town, especially on evenings and weekends. Work is still erratic and vague, but we have more internet now so I can start searching for grant money, and the missing person's project should start up again next week. Overall, I have few complaints, as life here is still a novelty for me.

what I see (in small installments)

This is Garabaldit Street. My office is on the fifth floor of a building half-way down the street, just past that red car. There are also a handful of cafes and restaurants on this little strip were we go for frequent cappuccinos.

This is the view I have standing on Garabaldit St., where my office is located, looking at Mother Teresa St., which is one of Pristina's main roads. The Grand Hotel (isn't it grand?) is one of the city's major landmarks, and it rarely leaves my sight... I work across one street from it, and I live across from the other street! My apartment is hidden in the photo by another building, but it is perpendicularly adjacent to the building in the middle that says "export".

and speaking of tensions...

All morning I had been aware of the constant humming of helicopters, which have been circling the city nonstop since I woke up at 6:30am (don't ask.... lord knows why that early!). I could watch them from my apartment, which has a decent view of Pristina, and now, from the office, I can see one hovering above UN headquarters. After checking the BBC (of course), it is all clear. The Serbian president is in town, for the first official state visit by a Serbian leader since Milosovic.

But the situation is totally bizarre. Without reading international news, I would never have known that Tadic was here... the streets are as quiet as always on Sundays, and the few people walking around don't seem to be paying any attention to the UN and police hubris. Only the birds seem to mind the disruption.

This is an interesting time to be in Kosovo.

work

Sorry to be teasing you all, if that's what I'm doing, but I do try to write when I can :) With an erratic work schedule coupled with random power outages, it's difficult to use the computer on any constant basis. There is also only one computer in the office with internet at the moment, though they are in the process of overhauling the office and hooking more computers up the internet is part of the master plan. But since we're on the subject, I know it has taken me quite a long time to give any description of the organization that I'm working for, and what I am doing here. Hopefully, for anyone interested, this is a good enough start...

I work at the Center for Children's Theater Development, or CCTD, in Pristina. In Albanian, it's called Qendra për Zhvillimin e Teatrit për Fëmijë, though, in all honestly, my pronunciation of Albanian is still fairly pitiful! The organization is small and young, with only four staff (two playwrights and two actors, one of whom teaches acting in the university here), and operates as a non-profit. Before the war, there was a children's theatre in Pristina, but it has since been shut down. CCTD was created to fill that gap.

They are involved in several projects. They promote the development of theatre aimed at children and young people, for example, by hosting playwrights workshops or seminars. Next week, actually, CCTD is hosting young playwrights from around the Balkans (Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Albania, and Kosovo) for the first phase of a several month long workshop on children's theatre.

CCTD also has a project called the Mobile Children's Theatre, and they travel around to schools in Kosovo, performing free of charge in schools and community centers... and don't forget that many children outside of major cities will have never seen a theatre production before in their lives... So far, three shows have been produced, "Beni," "Forbidden Lesson," and "Gogoli," all with professional actors. These plays also have some educational component, and try to address topics that, until now, have been neglected. So, for instance, "Beni" is about children who beg on the streets, something that has become a common problem since the war, while "Forbidden Lesson" addresses the many taboos associated with sex and sexuality (as, I'm told, there is no sex ed. in schools). And after each show, the actors involve the audience in discussion about theatre in general, and on the topics presented through the plays. I have yet to see any performances, but I'm really looking forward to attending the next one!

Lastly, CCTD has just recently become involved in what, for me, is the most interesting project... This is the Memory Project, which I mentioned earlier, in conjunction with the UN office of Forensics and Missing People. For the past three days, I went with the Canadian in charge of this project from that office and the director of CCTD to two schools outside of Pristina (one in morning and the other in the afternoon). The first was in a small village called Marinë and the other in the famous divided city of Kosovo, Mitrovicë. Both of these areas were chosen for this initial trial run because they have been greatly affected by the missing people issue, something I have learned much about since starting the project. Over these three days, we played camp-style games, got the kids (aged 12-14) to tell stories, and then, collected letters... all about their experiences with the war and with missing people, specifically. Eventually, we hope to attend a few more schools (including Serb schools when the logistics of that get figured out) to collect similar material. Following that information-collecting stage, professional playwrights will be hired to create a performance aimed at young people on the subject, and that will be performed in schools throughout Kosovo.

Around 2300 Albanians and 900 Serbs are still considered officially missing. After the war, some (Albanians) were found alive in jails in Serbia, but now it's mainly a matter of finding and identifying bodies, a process that can be quite lengthy, especially when it involves DNA testing. While most of the Albanians involved were killed or taken during the war, the missing Serbs are considered to be one of the country's best kept secrets... They were killed out of revenge immediately following the war, but since many of the Kosovo Liberation Army leaders currently hold political power, it is unlikely that they will leak any information about such events. As for missing Albanians, most have been found in mass graves in Serbia, and while I understand that Belgrade has honoured existing agreements relating to their recovery, the UN still has had major problems convincing Serbia to accept any further agreements.

And because the issue of missing people is definitely one that highlights the existing tensions here, I am very hopeful about this project. I really feel like I'm living inquiry (for those of you who know what I mean)... It's very inspiring, and hopefully, too, will make a small difference in terms of addressing the issue in a public context and opening up dialogue about the war experience of both Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo.

my new home

Well, I moved into my new apartment last night, the one I told you about earlier. It still doesn't feel like my home, but I think that might just take some time... and maybe some cleaning, and reorganizing, and hopefully some cooking, too. I think it might be a little while before I get to the cooking stage, though, mainly because the office schedule is kind of wonky, and the work days seem to fluctuate in length quite frequently... But more about the work side of life soon enough...

My first night in the apartment was a minor comedy of errors. I walked in the door after a late dinner at a local indian restaurant (with the first Canadian I met here), and managed to blow half of the flat's power. My landlords are friendly couple with three kids, and live just down the hall. I'm not sure about him, but she works as a translator at the police headquarters, so communication is not a problem. In fact, the opposite is true! Although they worked out the power situation quite quickly (thank goodness it wasn't anything major because heat is dependent on power!), it was a while before we stopped talking and said good night. After that, I guess I spent a while unpacking, because it was maybe 11pm before I was ready to get washed and ready for bed.

Now, I don't think I've mentioned the fact that Pristina's water supply is turned off at night. It is. Entirely. Not a drop until morning. Apparently, though, as I found out yesterday, what time you lose water depends on your location. Where I was staying up until now, the water stopped around midnight -- maybe 11:30pm on the odd day. So when they told me the water was turned off at 10:30, I figured (wrongly, of course!) that it was a rough estimate for midnight. So my first night in the apartment was spent water-less. It's definitely not the most tragic thing to happen, but rather humourous in an annoying kind of way. Especially because I had only bothered to buy tea (and milk and sugar) before coming home... No water. No tea.

As a side note, I have since been shopping at the local Arti, which seems to be the biggest shopping store around. Unfortunately, that's not saying a whole lot! I noticed that it has a very small selection of fresh fruits and veggies, so that you must go to the local neighbourhood shops for a decent variety. Many of these smaller stores are called: "Dragstor." I tried explaining why that was funny to the people I worked with, but I'm not sure they quite understood :)

Anyway, the last part of the apartment drama, was that the power went out (for real) while I was in the shower this morning. That is something else, like the water, that I have just forgotten to mention (I think). While the power outages never seem to last more than an hour, and they aren't overly frequent -- maybe one every day or two -- but they definitely manage to interrupt daily life much more that the water... no power means no heat, and no computers. So, the office tends to relocate to the coffee shop downstairs (which has a generator) until the power comes back on. On the bright side, it's always exciting to get power back... it's like there is always something to look forward to.

Ahh... such is life in Pristina.

the city

I know how easy it is to think of Kosovo as a poor, dejected, desolate, middle-of-nowhere, kind of place. Perhaps that is because we (as in North Americans) only receive sensationalist current news about the region? Or maybe it's because the images of a war-torn society are still fresh? Either way, it seems quite impossible to picture Kosovo as a part of modern-day Europe. Although it is always difficult to have a fully accurate impression of a place if you have never seen it with your own eyes, it seems that this is much more the case with Kosovo... So, what follows is my effort to explain what I see when I look around the city.

Many of the buildings here are concrete communist-inspired masterpieces built in the 1960s (I would guess), and new buildings seem to be built in a similar style. Except with newer construction, there is no central heating and water is heated in tanks above the shower and/or the kitchen sink. While apartments -- which remain the most common form of housing -- can be surprisingly nice, the exteriors and hallways of the vast majority of buildings are quite dilapidated. The effect is that apartment complexes here look like tenements. That said, some newer buildings under construction are quite nice, with a more mediterranean feel.

I have definitely learned, though, in typical moral fashion, not to judge anything here by its appearance. For example, yesterday evening I went with some friends from the office to one of the theatres for drinks. The theatre is built under a large, old (and concrete, of course!) shopping mall/sports stadium, but you walked downstairs and right into a lovely remodeled bar. And don't forget that, as in the rest of Europe, bars and coffee shops are central to the social culture here.

As for food, beyond the many local eateries (which double as coffee houses), I have found one thai restaurant, two chinese, and I'm told there is even an indian place. I can't wait to go! But once I move into a place of my own, I plan to eat at home at least half of the time. I have been to several little shops selling basic fruits and vegetables, household items, dairy products, and meats, which are common on the street. But yesterday I explored the largest supermarket in the neighbourhood, which I believe caters to the international crowd as well as to locals. Much of what they carried reminded me of being in Israel, from the dairy and the nutella, to treats like cookies and halva... oh, and they have chocolate cereals, too! While it didn't have the same selection that I am accustomed to at home, I definitely will not go hungry! Moreover, they carry many of the brands that we get at home, something that is true both for foods and for other products like cosmetics (shampoos, toothpastes, etc).

In terms of clothing, Kosovo follows more European fashions. Hopefully without sounding like a complete loser, I would say, for example, that many of the fads that you could see on the streets of Vancouver which are worn by only a certain, in-style, segment of the population are quite the norm here. So, my Canadian winter look -- the fleece and mec rain jacket combo -- is a little out of the question here, although the black fleece alone is slightly more acceptable :) Of course, I haven't had any comments or even funny looks, but it's just that I don't enjoy sticking out so much in a crowd! Anyway, there are no driers for when you wash clothes, which means that it takes several days for everything to dry (some things actually freeze outside before they dry, but to leave them inside seems to take just as long!)... Since I didn't bring a lot with me, and since half of my clothes will likely be drying at all times, a girl from the office is going to take me shopping on Monday :)

Overall, life here is rather like life at home. There are cars, and pollution (oy! no recycling!), and the city is expanding into suburbs at an accellerated rate. There are computers, and digital cameras, satellite tv, and internet, too (although few people I know have internet access at home). There are buses, and hotels, and a gym. They have what we have at home. It's just not quite as nice... yet.

Please, though, if you have any specific questions about the city or life here, just ask.

skype?

I've just hooked up skype to the office computer and would love to talk... You can call me at melissainkosovo.

dear denis...

Just for you, since you asked, I have yet to experience cookies in Kosovo, but rest assured that when I do, you will hear all about them. However, I did try "burek" yesterday, which is a cheese-filled rolled pastry that is long and narrow. It wasn't fabulous, but okay. And there is a new hoppin' cake shop around the corner from the office, with fancy european pastries and lovely looking white cakes with white icing. Instead of another smoke-filled bar, that it where I can take everyone for my birthday :)

Yesterday, too, I met with the Canadian I mentioned who works for the Department of Justice and is involved in the penal management division. Oy. In general, he seems like a good guy, and especially a good guy to know here in the "in case of emergency" sense. Perhaps it is only because he is so involved in security here, but he seemed overly paranoid about what will happen when the elected Prime Minister of Kosovo gets indicted with war crimes and sent to the Hague, a move that expected within the month. I took all his advice, but only with a grain of salt. In general, I found him to be quite jaded about the local population, and disappointed. He thinks they are greedy, hateful, dirty, etc... And these were all words that came out of his mouth! I think from my reaction, he know that it was offensive, and managed to moderate his comments slightly. He believes that the UN and the OSCE have actually been poor role models, getting people so accustomed to handouts that they continually expect a lot without taking initiative themselves. I'm certain that his opinions are based on the particular people he works with (all police officers), and likely, there are many more people like him to an extreme in the UN. Who knows? But it made me very glad to be working with a local organization rather than an international one.

Anyway, I thought he might be helpful on the subject of housing, but I have yet to hear back about any leads. I did go to the UN accommodations office yesterday -- think real estate office for short term only -- and was told there are no openings for roommates. Moreover, the lady who heads the office was a very insistent Albanian mother who thought it was preposerous to want to live with anyone else! In the end, I went to look at a flat that happens to be less than two blocks away from the office, but is only for one person. We're not talking anything fancy, but the heating works well, it is fully furnished, has a tv (with satellite) and is convenient. At the moment it is overpriced because everything here works on a false economy, based on the international money flowing into Kosovo. But if I can get them to agree to a lower price, maybe I should just take it? I don't want to live alone, but it has been a full week already and it would be good to feel settled.

What do you kids think? What should I do?

halleluiah!

I don't know what they put in Kosovar wine and beer, but it did the trick!! Last night we went out to celebrate the birthday of some one here in the office, and afterwards, for the first time since I left Vancouver, I actually fell asleep when I got into bed. Though I'm still exhausted, it was marvelous...

Today was the day of the Canadians for me. You see, I am still trying to find a place to live, or, more importantly, for people to live with. I could easily find a place to live alone, but after Arnold St. and the constant (wonderful) company in Hamilton, I would find it too lonely to go home and find no one -- especially since I am still new in town. Unfortunately, no one I am working with has space for another body. Instead, I am trying to hook up with people in the massive international (ie. UN and OSCE) community. So today, I pulled all the strings I could find and got in contact with three different Canadians...

The first is a young guy from Montreal who I met with for lunch today. He works in the forensics office here which deals with the still 2000 (or 3000?) missing people. He was actually in contact with the children's theatre about something called the Memory Project; they hope to create an educational performance involving Serbs, Albanians, and Roma to be performed in the different communities (and in the different languages) about reconciliation and the issue of missing people. .. You know, something right up my alley! In general, it was great to know more about the UN/OSCE side of life here, which really functions quite independently from the local population. At times, it feels like two separate worlds exist in Pristina, both isolated from each other except for the remarkably strong presence of official vehicles on the road. And, he is a vegan and can prove useful on the veggie food front. Unfortunately, though, he does not know anyone who is looking for a roommate...

The other two are contacts that I made through people at home. One who works for the Democratization Office, and he going to try and post a note about my housing quest on the internal OSCE website. Cross your fingers for me. The other is somehow involved with prisons through the Department of Justice, and we will meet for coffee tomorrow. He said he would ask around his office, but wanted to know if I minded living with police officers. Of course I said no, but I can't help but laugh at the possibility.

Overall, though, excepting the stress of not having my own place to live, which for the moment also means not having company at night, I am generally enjoying myself, getting to know the kids in the office, and getting along well.

address

not that I expect anything, but since I've had some requests:

Centre for Children's Theatre Development
Rd. Garibaldit, Hyrja 5, Kati III, Nr. 12
Pristina, Kosova
UNMIK

(I'm told that you might want to add "via switzerland" to the address… this avoids having mail travel through Serbia where it is likely to be returned to sender)