Arrival and the Mountains

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I am re-posting my first blog, so that I can include the pictures.
Well, I arrived in Kosova a week ago, although it hardly seems possible that it was only a week! The city of Prishtina is interesting. It is easy to tell that it is still a developing city, and the country as a whole as well, but at the same time, it seems a city ready to welcome the international population. There are a variety of restaurants that serve anything from local traditional meals to Thai to Mexican food. Much of the city, including the roads, is under construction, or it seems that someone started building something then decided not to finish it. Driving is something that I know I will never attempt in this country. There seem to be very few rules that are enforced for drivers; cars park wherever they can find a spot, traffic jams are sometimes an hourly occurrence on the narrower streets, and there are no such things as four way stops, although there are some traffic lights and roundabouts. Two things I know I will not get used to is the smoking and the garbage. There is garbage everywhere - not even kidding. As one of the other international teachers said, “Our 4-H club could do garbage pick up 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and never get done.” The smoking, though, is worse. It seems like everyone in the city smokes, and smoking is allowed in the restaurants and cafes, so there is really no escaping it. But otherwise, I like the city so far and am looking forward to this year.
The teachers that I have met so far, both international and national, are great, a really fun bunch. This past weekend, the staff took a trip up into the mountains, The Accursed Mountains, as they were called. We did team building activities, as well as took time to get to know each other and go hiking. On our first day there, Thursday, we went on what was supposed to be a two-hour hiking trip. We reached the top just fine, took pictures of the spectacular view and rested before heading back down. We took a different way down, a much longer way, and our hiking trip turned into a four-hour trek, but it was a lot of fun. Both nights that we were up there, five other international teachers (Joe, Mike, Jeremy, Scott, Maggie, and Krista) and I hiked up the ski slope by our hotel to watch stars, sing some songs, and get some much needed fresh air. It was pretty amazing.

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Comments

[Jody Johnson]

Greetings from Luther Crest
Hello Erin. Just wanted to send a quick note that I love the pictures and I completely understand about the driving, garbage and smoking. I lived and studied in Malta for awhile and I was having flashbacks as I read your comments about Kosovo. Malta also had interesting ideas about time and schedules and when stores would be open - we are so used to everything in the US being very controlled and on schedule. I learned to "expect the unexpected" --- I thought you might appreciate the camp theme connection. Anyways --- thinking of you and keeping you in our prayers. Keep the updates and fun pictures coming. Love ya! Jody