Swearing In and Moving to Fier!

More pictures of swearing in and some circle dancing are uploaded to the folder in Picasa titled “ Last Weeks in Bishqem.”
http://picasaweb.google.com/SusanManikowski/LastWeeksInBishqem#



I am now a Peace Corps Volunteer (instead of just a trainee). We had a ceremony with the ambassador present. Momi, Babi, and Xhuli came to the ceremony, and Xhuli was excited because she had an invitation with just her name on it. I said good-bye to them right after the ceremony, and about 2 hours later after lunch, I said good-bye to the friends I have made during PST. I didn’t cry, surprisingly, but by that point it didn’t feel real I was leaving AND I was slightly stressed out about taking the bus by myself. (Now, taking the bus by myself was not my original plan, but I won’t get into all of that!) It was hardest to say good-bye to the original 4 other Bishqem-ers. I already miss our morning debriefs and the inside jokes we have.

The bus to Fier became an adventure. For all of you wondering, there actually is NOT a 2:30 bus to Fier from Elbasan. I found this out at 2pm standing in the bus station wondering where in the heck I should go! Well, a man pointed me in the direction of the Lushnje bus, and the Lushnje bus driver said he would somehow get me to Fier. Now, this experience is my motivation to learn Albanian geography because I had no idea where Lushnje was or how far it is from Fier! I texted Jeff, my Albanian dictionary, and asked him what the word for “through” was (neper, in case you were wondering). I could then ask if the bus went through towns that I knew the name of. Luckily it did, and the turn-off to Lushnje is right before the turn-off to Fier. I became a bit nervous as I started to recognize where I was and where I could transfer, but the driver told me to stay on. I decided to trust him, and at the next stop, he had his son get off the bus and wait with me and my bags until the Fier bus came. That is one thing about this country…intense generosity and hospitality. I tried to pay the boy for his help, but he wouldn’t accept.

I finally made it to Fier, and l was so relieved to see Chris, my site mate, standing there when I got off the bus. He helped me take my bags to MY APARTMENT after I got my keys from my counterpart and other co-worker. After moving bags upstairs, we went for a coffee, and then checked out my apartment. We started without hot water, but that is now fixed. My apartment has a double bed, a couch, a loveseat, and two comfy chairs, as well as an empty room. I think that is by far enough space for you all to come and visit!

Other parts of this weekend have included going into work for a bit, meeting Kristen’s host family as they dropped her off in Fier, having a slightly adventurous grocery shopping trip, cleaning my apartment, meeting the volunteer who stayed with my host family last year, getting hand-me-down stuff from the current volunteer who is leaving and the Fulbright scholar living here (everything from a speaker set to a poker set to tortilla chips), and trying to get to know my new city for the next two years. I want to be a productive member of this community, and let us hope that I will be!

Things coming up soon:
-Details on my first days of work
-New address where I can receive packages
-Internet: breaking down and buying it for my apartment. That should be set up next week, and hopefully we can Skype soon. However, if you think I’m spending too much time on the internet, let me know that, too.
-Video of my new apartment; let me put some stuff away first!