Just Lot o' Pictures

The George W. Bush Cafe, named in honor of our former U.S. President who visited Albania, and met with some U.S. Aid people here in this very cafe in Fushë Krujë (Krujë on the Plain).
Ruins of Skandërbeg's fortress at Krujë. I think the sheep are allowed in to keep the grass low.
Elder and Sister Cutler, Area Church Public Relations specialists, came to visit the mission for a few days. We had a free day and took them to Krujë--probably our fifth visit there--and we had a good time. We don't tire of the place, because it has a nifty old Turkish bazaar with nice souvenir shops, and the site is high on a mountain with beautiful views. This photo is taken inside the Skandërbeg Museum there. Skandërbeg is the national hero because he fought off the Turks for 25 years in the 15th century. When he died of malaria, Albania finally fell to the Ottoman Empire.

U.S. Holidays have kind of slipped by while we've been in Albania. There are a few big holidays here: Mother's Day (celebrated on International Women's Day, March 8), Ditë e Verës (Day of Summer, March 14), New Year's Day, and a few big Muslim holidays.

Women here really look forward to Mother's Day because they get to spend the day with other women and they can relax from all their work and waiting on their husbands and children. It is always on March 8, regardless of the day of the week. We forgot it was Mother's Day and went to lunch at the Tajvani Italian restaurant, but found every table crowded with ladies, dressed in their finest and eating in large groups. We went upstairs to the other restaurant, and it was full, also. As we came back downstairs, the waiters at the Italian restaurant waved for us to come in as they had freed up a reserved table for us. We're big tippers (10%) and very nice to the waiters, so they treat us well. We love eating there because it overlooks a Rinia Park and in nice weather we can eat outdoors on the terrace and watch children playing and people enjoying the day. Children give their mothers flowers that day, and some lucky mother received a bouquet of daffodils--taken from my pots that were in front of our mission home building! Grrrr....

I'm standing by the gorgeous balloon display at CitiPark Mall celebrating Day of Summer, and the other photo was quickly snapped out of the car window as we drove by Rinia Park. When we arrived home, we changed into casual clothes and walked back down to the park to enjoy some of the fun. We purchased a large cornmeal cookie, called Ballokume, that is traditional for this holiday. There were many people selling cookies, and it didn't look like many of them came from bakeries. No FDA in this country. (You can see cookies being sold on the sidewalk.)
We took Sparti Kashari and Izaura Bardhe to CitiPark to get them bicycle helmets. This was the Shupe's idea and since they're back home in California, they asked us to implement it. They have been worried about safety as Sparti rides Izaura around town on his bicycle handlebars. Now, if they'll just wear the helmets and not worry about the taunts from friends.... I think they look cute.

First and Fourth Districts bowling and having lunch.

Marty has been doing training every month, and he surprised the missionaries with a little diversion this time. After a morning of training and practice with two districts at a time, we took them bowling and then to lunch at the Tajvani. Marty had invited the missionaries to come to training in their P-day clothing, but had not told them why. Tomorrow, we're headed to Vlorë where we'll play frisbee and have lunch on the beach after training there. Weather's supposed to be nice!
I designed a jingle bell door hanger for the Tirana Women's Internation Group's holiday bazaar table--even though I won't be here then. We're already making things for Christmas, and I had the bells and other supplies, and came up with this. I'll make a dozen or so to donate.
March 20 was District Conference--our last conference here. Marty and I spoke, and everyone assembled for a large group picture afterward. We counted about 350 people in attendance. We're kneeling in the middle--I'm in the royal blue suit jacket. It was held at the Arts Academy in Tirana and the branches came into Tirana by bus. It was a lovely day, and when the conference ended, everyone poured out onto the large plaza in front of the building, and milled around chatting and taking photos for a very long time.
The office elders found this candy bar, and thought it would be funny to give it to us. They think we're "trunky," see. Is that a Mormon word?

February Zone Conferences

Inside Zone, consisting of all the missionaries serving in Tirana, and Shkodra.

The "Outside" zone of missionaries serving in Durrës, Fier, Lushjnë, and Vlora. Missionaries on the front, Elder Swenson, and Sisters Peatross, Hall, and Yourstone will be returning home in April, so this will be their last zone conference with the mission.

Time seems to be flying by now that we have only four months of our mission left. The new mission president assignments have been announced, and our replacement will be Elder Andrew Ford and his wife Julie. They visited us a year ago, as Elder Ford is an Area Seventy from Leicester, England, and was assigned to our March 2010 District Conference. We had a delightful visit with them, and took them, along with Tony and Heidi Baird, to the Oda Restaurant, so they could experience some authentic Albanian food. The missionaries will love the Fords!

Marty attended an "Interim Mission President's Seminar in Frankfurt Feb. 3-5 . Although wives were not invited, I went along this time so I could have some medical tests for some bad indigestion I have been experience since October. Dr. Steven Dahl is serving as a missionary Area Medical Adviser and he and his wife Paula kindly spent the day with me, driving me to Heidelberg where I met an LDS internest, Dr. Frank Heckman who administered some tests. He discovered I have a hiatal hernia, and some problems with bile backing up into my stomach, more common among people like me who have had their gall bladder removed, and prescribed some medications to relieve the symptoms. I was feeling better after only two days on the medications. I'm so grateful to the Dahls and Dr. Heckman for taking such good care of me while we were in Germany.

Incidentally, Elder Causse told me that from now on, mission presidents' wives are to be invited to the winter seminar. Sister Ford will enjoy going and meeting with the other wives.

Feb. 18-19, Marty attended a meeting in Athens with Elder Fingerle and President Charles of the Greece Athens mission.

Lots of cooking this month! We had two zone conferences on Feb. 24 & 25. We do not have zone conferences again until May, by which time my kitchen equipment and pots and pans will have been shipped home, so I wanted to bake cinnamon rolls for both zone's morning break, and the entire meal of chili, corn bread, fruit salad, and chocolate cake, for the inside zone. I made the cake for the outside zone as well, and a very generous sister in Fier cooked the meal for the missionaries there. There is no corn meal available in Albania, but I have found an instant polenta mix that makes a fine substitute.

To eat, we push aside our furniture and bring in three tables. Using our large table as well, we had 30 for lunch. When the mission was larger, I would often have 38 missionaries for lunch. It was crowded!

I usually speak at zone conferences, sometimes giving a spiritual talk, but more often give practical tips for better living as missionaries. Somebody's got to do it! It can be an eye-opener to see how these young elders live and eat, so I try my best to encourage them to eat well, clean their apartments, and take care of their clothing and appearance. I also have dealt with safety issues, making sure all apartments have working CO detectors, smoke detectors and fire extinguishers. I continually train on the emergency plan of the mission: what to do and where to go in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency. I teach about food safety and remind them to change the water filters in their apartments, as scheduled. The flu is going around the mission, and I reminded them to wash their hands frequently, keep their hands away from their eyes, nose, and mouth, and especially to stay indoors if they become ill. I frequently get the "I'm so sick" call from a missionary a few hour after they have attended district meeting, district lunch, or church. They hate staying in, and don't understand how easily a serious illness can be passed along to others.

We threw in a team building activity in this conference. We handed out a roll of masking tape, and 60 4x6 cards I had cut out of colored cardstock (we couldn't find index cards anywhere in Tirana). We gave the teams (organized by district) 10 minutes to decide how they were going to work together to build a tower in two minutes with a goal to be the team with the tallest standing structure. After the activity, Marty asked each team to share how well they worked together and how they came up with their plan.

The elders of Fier, including Elders Anderson, Castro-Guzman, Mugleston, and Dittmer,

built the tallest tower of either zone, and it used no tape at all. Brilliant!

Spring is in the air now, the grass is green and plum trees are blossoming. We've been able to get outside and walk a few days, and it feels good! If it's raining, we exercise on a treadmill and exercise bicycle.

Some additional tower designs from the Outside Zone:

Albanian Costumes

We asked Zef, a member of the church in Shkodra, to make us some Albanian costumes. These would be typical of the villages in the mountain region of the Shala Valley. Zef worked extra hard to make them very ornate, as "befitting noblemen" he said. Mine is made of heavy fabrics and has many layers so it makes me look 25 pounds heavier, but it is amazingly detailed. The double-headed eagle is the symbol of Albania and is on the red flag.

The Old Year Passes

Christmas in the mission is always a busy season. Here, in pictures, are some of the activities of the month.

Tirana Womens International Group (TWIG) holds a charity bazaar early in December, and as last year, I made 40 ginger boy and girl cookies (with candy canes hooked in their arm) and 30 Christmas tree sugar cookies. The price went up to $3 (300 Lek) from $2 last year, and still they sold out in a hurry.

Sister Lindita Grimci, our District's PR Representative, arranged to have Marty interviewed by a radio station reporter just before Christmas. He was joined by Marjeta Ljarja, a famous Albanian actress, and member of the Church. The reporter asked Marty why we felt our church was important to the Albanian people, what a typical missionary day was like, and many questions about what we believe. Elder Swenson, one of the Assistants, translated. Sister Ljarja bore her testimony and quoted President Howard W. Hunter about Christmas. She is a wonderful missionary for the Church. We never did find out what station it was, but their intent was to play Mormon Tabernacle Choir music all Christmas morning, along with the interview.

With the reporter and Sister Ljarja

A television station decided they wanted an interview, also, so Marty assigned the Assistants to go to the studio and they were taped live on Christmas Day.

The district held a Christmas Concert at the National Museum in Tirana. Every branch participated with singing, skits, or stories. This is Motra Kashari directing the Tirana choir. There are men in the choir, but they are off to the left, out of the picture. The concert was two and a half hours long, and ended with fireworks as sparklers were handed out to singers and children on the stage as everyone sang "Joy to the World!" I was afraid a toddler's hair or clothing would catch fire, but all ended splendidly, and everyone was well-satisfied with the performances.

We had a missionary choir that sang "Peace, Peace," a lovely two-part song that partners at the end with "Silent Night." Four elders sang a rousing rendition of "Child of God." A couple of children joined us on stage.

We hosted the first and third districts of missionaries for Christmas Brunch, and invited the Wilsons, our humanitarian aid couple who lived upstairs from us. We had freshly-squeezed orange juice, cinnamon rolls, yogurt, muffins, etc., and then we had a White Elephant Gift exchange. We had to rush in order to attend the baptisms of two sisters--making the day into what the missionaries call a White Christmas!

Five wonderful missionaries went home to the United States and into the arms of their parents. L. to R., Elders Atkin Smedley, Nick Hagen, Jason Fisher, Nathan Hixson, and Sister Chelsea Hiland. We take returning missionaries to the Monument, where we took them at the beginning of their missions. This is the spot where Elder Oaks dedicated Albania for the preaching of the Gospel in 1993.

The turkey market at the Stephan Center circle. Turkey is the main dish of the big New Year's Day feast, and only the men come to haggle over the live turkeys. We see thousands of turkeys being fattened and herded throughout the countryside in the months leading up to the New Year holiday. Men grab the turkeys by the legs and throw them in the trunks of cars, or ride them home on bicycles, to a certain grisly fate. I prefer to purchase mine already packaged in cellophane.

The missionaries look forward for weeks to seeing the fireworks on New Year's Eve. Fireworks are legal for everyone, and all join in, shooting off their stash from rooftops and balconies throughout Albania. Young boys set off firecrackers for days before, finding the alleys between tall apartment buildings where the noise will be greatest. The Big Show begins warming up at 11:30, hitting a peak a few minutes after midnight, and tapering off at 12:30. I don't imagine I'll ever see anything like it again. Then for several nights afterwards, you'll see and hear fireworks. This country is crazy for them.

We welcomed two new missionaries on Wednesday, January 5: Elder Trason Carver, and Sister Kaitlin Hoxsie.
You may remember this picture I posted months ago, of Elder Dane Abley with pizza boxes (from lunches he had eaten), stacked high to the ceiling. Not to be outdone, Sister Hall, who spent 9 months in Vlora, sent me this picture taken before her transfer to Tirana. She and her companions have obviously been "nuts" about Nutella!

Sunday in Elbasan

We had a wonderful day in Elbasan this Sunday...Liz and I were the featured speakers, but it was really Liz that everyone came to hear (we had attendance of 70, which is the highest this year!). Liz did a talk on the inspiring music of Christmas, and passed out short Christmas song sheets that she had made (and had stitched together using her sewing machine...couldn't find a long reach stapler!!). So she'd talk a little about the song, and then we'd sing a few verses. There aren't many Christmas carols translated into Albanian, and even those can be very difficult to sing (something about "prosody"). Then for the finale, she talked about Silent Night (the carol that all the members know well), and then she led the congregation in singing it, and she sang the first verse in English, and accompanied herself on guitar. It was wonderful. After Sacrament meeting, many members came up and said that it was something they'd never forget. And one young woman came up to me and said in English--"You have a beautiful woman!" (I said, "I know".)

After Sacrament, the primary was practicing a song for their branch Christmas program...you'll see about 20 kids in this picture, but only 3 of them are members. The rest are neighborhood kids, and they've been attending primary for many months, ever since the building opened. They can sometimes be a handful, but they love the primary!! -Marty

Brrrrr!

After a month of drenching rains and terrible flooding in the north around Shkodra, the weather has turned freezing cold and we've had snow twice this week. Not enough to stay on the ground for long, but as I write at 9:30AM, the snowflakes are large and coming down steadily. We may get enough to build a snowman today! Well, someone else can build the snowman and I'll watch from my window.
Down the street there are some rooftop squatters, who surround their small room with plastic. It's a difficult life for many Albanians. Unemployment is very high and salaries, for those fortunate enough to work, are very low. Apartment leases are beyond the reach of many.

Across the street from the mission home, our friend Hassan stands from 7AM to 9PM in his small, unheated shop, dressed in only a parka with a hood, but no gloves. Perhaps they impede his work. I took him some of my disposable hand warmers this morning and he was happy to get them! He gets a few hours of break at lunch when someone else comes to run the shop.

10 in White

This is only one of several baptisms we've had recently, but it was especially notable because it was a mother and her four children.--the Lami family in the 4th Branch. The missionaries who had taught the family and were asked to help with the baptisms were Elders Johnson, Seevers, Frederickson, Miller, and Moyes.

In other news: Albania has had a long month of heavy rains, with only a few dry days. The hydropower dams became overloaded and water had to be released, causing the already full rivers to overflow. Low-lying agricultural areas and villages are flooded, and parts of many cities are also covered with water. When a quarter of the northern city of Shkodra became covered in water, we decided to evacuate the four elders to Tirana. They were able to take a furgon (private van) to Tirana, which took a long and bumpy alternate route that was still navigable. The national highway is flooded. The weather report shows four days of sunshine before the rains begin again.