Jet Lag is a Beautiful Thing!

I made it home on Saturday at about 2:00 p.m. The 10 hour flight from Munich to Denver was fabulous because no one was sitting next to me so I could sprawl out on my little 2-seat row. When I realized no one was sitting there I almost cried. Thank goodness for the little things because I was exhausted.

When I got home all I wanted to do was sleep. So now it's 1:40 a.m. on Sunday morning and I am ready for the day! I feel very productive right now cleaning, organizing and blogging. Hopefully I can go back to bed in a little while and try to resume my normal sleeping schedule.

Here are some random thoughts and photos on Georgia. I found Georgia to be a lovely and pleasant country. After having spent time in Albania, Georgia seems much more progressive, calm and stable (well, aside from the ethnic conflicts going on in parts of the country we weren't allowed to see, but that's another story). The people are lovely and hospitable. Conditions are generally good and it surprisingly did not have that "post-Soviet" feel to it. I can tell that the country is eager to westernize.

Georgia has been a Christian nation since before Christ was born. It's a very religious country and there are churches and monasteries dating back hundreds and hundreds of years. What treasures! This is the Bagrati Monastery that was built in the 11th century. It is currently being unearthed and restored (minus the ceiling).

Here you can see the icons they are restoring in the Gelati Monastery after the inside was white washed by the Bolsheviks.




Georgia has great food! I feel like I have been on an organic diet for a week. Everything we ate was fresh from the local gardens. They made wonderful salads with beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, fresh parsley, eggplant, etc. And they use walnuts in a lot of dishes. The meat was also fresh. And the cheese...oh the cheese! My favorite dish is khachapuri which is the national dish of Georgia. It is bread cooked with hard, salty cheese and it is fabulous. I have to say, though that I did get overloaded with the stuff. The last day at breakfast at my hotel the owner said, "Do you want khachapuri?" I said, "No thank you" and he brought me khachapuri anyway.

Happy cows! The cows in Georgia do not eat the trash like they did in Albania. These cows have plenty of grass and leaves to eat and it shows. They look strong and hearty and they taste good too. (My apologies to you vegetarians out there!)

These missions are always fun to make good friends from all over the world and re-acquaint with old friends from other missions I've been on. I was so glad to meet Bridget from Washington DC. She was my room mate, fellow tourist, and now a friend. I was also happy to see Lola from Spain who was an LTO with me in Albania last year.

Even though it was a difficult and tiring mission, it was a great experience. I am glad to be home!

Election Day in Georgia

I accompanied my interpreter Nana to her polling station to vote. I love the clear ballot boxes. I have never seen them before. Overall the election in our area went very well. The STOs did a great job. I am so glad it's over because I have only slept about 2 hours in the last 48 hours. I was up all night with Monique taking phone calls and helping the STOs. Tonight we had a farewell dinner and I am quite anxious to be finished and to come home. This has been an exhausting mission, so much so that I actually started missing Albania. However, I have had electricity and hot showers here so I won't complain too much. I think I came here thinking I was going to be an STO and I ended up not being so I am just worn out. My next post will be from home sweet home!

More Churches

The top photo is me at another church built in honor of 2 brothers who refuse to convert to Islam in the 7th century. They were killed and their bodies thrown in a river. Their bodies were found and they are laying in a small casket on top of the red stair case. There is a legend that if you crawl under their bodies 3 times in a row that your wish will come true. So I crawled under here.

The other photo is near the Bagrat monastery that is currently being restored. A view of Kutaisi is behind me. What a great place!

Monasteries, Dinosaurs and Toilets

Well, so today I got to take the driver and interpreter and be a tourist. We went to the Gelati Monastery that was built in the 11th century by King David the Builder (one of the national heros). It was absolutely incredible. During the Bolshevik Revolution the Russians whitewashed all the icons inside and they have spent the last 15 years trying to restore it after it was abandoned for 70 years.

Then they took me to a park where they found dinosaur tracks in the mountains. The place is in disrepair and as you can see, you can walk right up to the tracks, touch them and even walk on them. I gasped in horror that such a treasure is not protected.

I thought you'd also like to see the toilets I had to use. We stopped on the way here and 50 foreigners had to pay 20 Tetri (about 12 cents) each to use these horrible toilets. These are not the worst toilets I have ever used but certainly the most exposed I've been! Oh well. It's one of those suck it up moments and then take a photo to laugh about it later.

Turtle Lake in Tbilisi

This is me at Turtle Lake in Tbilisi. It is near the ethnographical museum we went to yesterday. Today we took a 4 hour bus ride to our area--Kutaisi, Georgia. It is a mid-sized city and it's very green. My partner is from the Nethlerlands and guess what? She salsa dances! She spends quite a bit of time in Cuba learning. I told her we'd need to practice because my dance teacher (shout out to Renee') gave me some things to practice while I am gone.

I met all our STOs today and they keep asking me questions as if I have any idea what is going on. The best thing about Georgia is the food. My favorite thing is khachpuri which is cheese bread. The cheese here is fantastic and salty and I can't get enough of it!

All is going well. I am still using my Russian out of absolute necessity. I can't believe how much I have to use it. It's still hard to speak as I am so out of practice but the understanding has very much returned.

Greetings from Georgia

We made it! After some serious jet lag (2 days of travel) I think I'm okay. I am having trouble finding Internet and can't hook up my camera to post picutres but I will keep trying.

We have basically had a day and a half free before starting our briefings today. I have paired up with Bridget from Washington DC and we have been quite the little tourists. Today we went to a history museum and I managed to negotiate a taxi in Russian and translate a tour of the museum from Russian to English for Bridget. I got to use words like "hunting lodge" that I had no idea I even remembered. I can understand pretty well still but I can't respond. I have lost the ability to conjugate verbs and decline nouns but I can get myself around well. Should have brushed up before coming but oh well.

Tbilisi is beautiful and mountainous. It is an old city and we visited many Orthodox churches. The food is fantastic and I can't wait to be deployed to my area. I am going to Svaneti in the mountains (imagine that--the mountains again!) up by the Russian border. Maybe the language will come back to me by the end of this trip. Russian is still very widely used although the signs and everything official are in Georgian which I can neither read nor understand.

And not to be outdone...

My nephews wanted to make sure that their Star Wars picture was posted too. Love these kids!

My Star Wars-Obsessed Family

This is a picture I received via email today from my 6 year old niece. Imagine my delight when I found out a few months ago that my niece and 4 nephews were all obsessed with Star Wars. My brother and I have always been big fans and we did several Star Wars movie marathons when we were younger. Now my brother and sister are passing on the love of The Force to the next generation. (Well, it's not all their doing. There is the wii, their friends, and a Lucasfilms marketing machine that just won't quit.) Needless to say, "Will someone get this big walking carpet out of my way" has practically become the family motto. Not that they need it, but I will work very hard to fuel this obsession. I am also working to convince them that Jar Jar is a useless, distracting and downright dumb charter. It is my moral obligation as their Aunt.

Ode to My Mommy

My mom is the reason I am a rocker chick today. This is us at a Moody Blues concert in Denver a few years ago.

I have the best mom in the world. Since it's Mother's Day I wanted to say a few things about my mom. My mom is an example to me in so many ways. As a single mom she went back to college to get her teaching degree so we were actually in college at the same time. She always stressed how important it was for me and my sister to get educated or have a skill because you just never know what life is going to throw at you. She has always encouraged me to make myself better and to try new things.

My mom serves diligently in her church callings. Even when she was putting herself through school and working she went to the temple each week, mainly because she felt that her children needed the blessings. She also taught us about tithing during one of the times that our family struggled financially. Those are lessons I have not forgotten. It wasn't what she said but what she did that sticks with me.

When I was in elementary school, my mom was on a bowling league and there was about an hour that I'd come home and be alone on Fridays before she would get home. She would always leave a note on the kitchen table with an activity for me to do and a treat. I felt so grown up being home alone but I also knew that my mom was thinking about me.

As an adult my mom and I have traveled together a lot. Once in Sea World we went on a water ride and got soaking wet. I don't know why it was so funny but the sight of each other drenched made us both laugh hysterically. My favorite memory was being with her in Baltimore and after dinner one night we were out by the water listening to a band play and we just started dancing with the rest of the crowd. It was a simple thing but it was so fun. Then, of course, there were the times when we were lost somewhere and screaming at each other in the car, but we won't go there...

Now that I live far from my mom I have come to appreciate her so much more. I look forward to the twice weekly phone calls. I always look forward to staying with her when I go home and I am always glad when she comes here. I realize now that I have turned into my mother--I am obsessive about recycling newspapers and I rinse my dishes and keep them on one side of the sink. (I would like to point out, though that our methods of housekeeping differ greatly, mine being the better way, of course.) I can't think of anyone better to turn into. Sure love ya, mom!

Amy Meets Sagan

I was home in SLC this weekend to celebrate my birthday and meet my new nephew. We had a birthday party for me on Saturday and then we went to Sagan's blessing on Sunday (followed by another party.)

He is a sweet little guy and he's very wiggly. I love seeing my niece and nephews. They are growing up so fast. All of them are obsessed with Star Wars, which is great for me to have them all laugh when I quote the movies. Mason and Ethan gave me a Princess Leia and R2D2 keychain for my birthday but they couldn't stand the surprise and told me on the phone before the party. Megan slept over with me and Grandma Liz on Saturday night and we stayed up late making projects. I don't have a fridge big enough for all the homemade projects I brought home.

For my birthday I got to have lots of Schmidt's Pastry Cottage pink cookies. I love them! I think I ate at least 15 of them over the weekend, some for breakfast. As punishment I spent 2 hours at the gym tonight. I'm afraid it's going to take a lot longer than that to work off the pink cookies. Oh well. It was soooo worth it.

Georgia on My Mind

I just accepted an assignment to go to Georgia (the country, not the state) to observe an election. It's only a short-term assignment this time (thank goodness!) so I'll just be there for about 8 days. I am so excited. This trip is particularly meaningful to me because this summer is the 20th anniversary of my first adventure to what was then known as the Soviet Union. To be going back 20 years later to a former Soviet Republic is more than a dream come true.

This will be my 6th short term mission and I can't even imagine the adventure to come but I'm sure it will be memorable. Besides, Georgia actually has very exciting elections.

Want to know more about Georgia? Click here.

Different wedding, same outfit

Not that anyone cares what I'm wearing but I was pretty impressed with myself that I had an outfit I could wear twice in one week to two different weddings.

Briana's wedding was a blast. Several of us from the Arapahoe County Elections Office attended (in the photo: Judy K, Cheri, Judy M, Gail, Carolyn, Disa, me). Briana looked beautiful and the wedding really was a big party. It was fun to cut loose on the dance floor a little with some of the people from work because the stress level in our office is pretty high these days. Briana and John are going to Paris and London on their honeymoon and we are all jealous!

"You'll have to wait until class is over to shave your legs."

Now there's a statement I never thought I'd say but I found myself saying it yesterday in seminary. I started with the devotional when one of my students whipped out a bottle of lotion and a disposable razor and proceeded to lather her legs and shave them. That's when I uttered the line, "I'm sorry but you'll have to wait until class is over to shave your legs." Her response was, "But I'm wearing shorts and I don't want to have hairy legs." As a woman, I totally sympathized with her. As a seminary teacher who only has four students, however, I could see that one of them shaving could be distracting to me and the others so I had to put a stop to it.

Times like these make me realize what a trip teaching early morning seminary can be. I never know what's going to happen every day at 6:00 a.m. Will we feel the spirit? Will they be bouncing off the walls? Will they all be asleep? Will someone attempt to shave her legs? One never knows...

One of my proudest accomplishments as a seminary teacher is I introduced my students to the second verse of "In Our Lovely Desseret." If you don't know that verse off the top of your head, go look at it. We can't get through it without giggling but they want to sing it all the time now.

Wedding #2 of the year (and counting)

It must be the year of weddings for my friends. My friend Aerie who was in my ward (until she got married and moved) had her wedding reception tonight. She and Santosh got married in December (they eloped!) and their big party was today.

Santosh is Indian so his they did some traditional Indian things as part of the program. His father read seven vows that the couple takes together like being supportive of one another, sharing joy, raising children, etc and after each vow the couple kicks a pile of rice.

Then our bishop made some remarks about how we value marriage in our church and how we believe that marriage brings joy. It was a great evening. I am so happy for Aerie. I love her so much and appreciate her friendship so much. We have spent lots of time on walks together talking for hours and she watched my house while I was in Albania. She is a dear friend.

I have another wedding next weekend. I have 2 friends getting married in May and I won't be able to attend their weddings because they require travel and I just couldn't work it out. Ashlee is a friend that I worked with at the Utah Elections Office and Leslie is someone I got to know while doing overseas elections. You can check out their websites. Also, my friend Stephanie just got engaged so I am looking forward to another wedding this year!

300 Days of Sunshine?

That's what the Denver Chamber of Commerce will tell you. Not today for Doors Open Denver. This is me on top of the Daniels and Fisher Clock Tower, one of the wonderful historic buildings in downtown Denver. The city is beautiful so it's too bad this happened to be one of the 65 cloudy days.

I worked at this building last year and was fortunate enough to get to do it again. The D&F Clock Tower was built in 1911 as part of a department store. The store was torn down in the 80's but the clock tower was saved. The observation deck is only open 2 days a year--the 2 days of Doors Open Denver so it was packed because everyone wanted to see it.

I spent 3 hours crammed in the elevator shuttling people from the lobby to the 14th floor. It's a good thing I am not claustrophobic or I would have been in trouble. Because there were so many people in line we crammed 13-15 people each ride. Honestly I didn't know if the sun was shining or not because I didn't even step out of the elevator until the day was over.

I love participating in these community events in my adopted home city. Denver is a great place to be!

Doors Open Denver

When I first moved to Denver 3 years ago it was a very difficult move for me because I was away from my family and friends. So that I wouldn't be depressed every weekend, I found events going on in Denver every Saturday and I just went. It helped me learn my way around and got me out of my house. Doors Open Denver was one of the first events I went to.

During this event a lot of the historic buildings open their doors to the public. Most of these buildings are not normally open. During this event I went to the Denver Press Club and heard all about their ghost, toured the Masonic Temple, saw the rooms in the Brown Palace Hotel where the Beatles stayed, toured a Buddhist Temple, and toured many historic mansions. Last year I decided to volunteer and I'll be doing it again this weekend.

Every year the event gets larger and larger. This year I am looking forward to touring a few of the high schools and churches. For those of you who live in the Denver area, I encourage you to check it out!

My new nephew

To see my new nephew Sagan, check out the Didericksen's blog at http://www.didericksenfamily.blogspot.com. I can't wait to meet him!

Congrats Briana

This week we had a wedding shower for Briana Freeman. She is one of my star employees. Briana is getting married on April 26th. Briana was also named "Employee of the Month" this week (she stole my title) so this week was all about her!

Amy and Briana
Pat, Briana and Disa

Rocker Chicks Part II: Bon Jovi

Last night my friend Tarra and I went to yet another rock concert at the Pepsi Center. This time it was Bon Jovi. It was my 5th time seeing them and the show was fantastic. Jon and the boys were in fine form as always. Even though we were in the nosebleed section yet again, the atmosphere was conducive to dancing and screaming. Rock on.

Oh my gosh, it was like totally awesome!

Last Saturday our church "Middle Singles" group had an 80's party. (Middle Singles is an semi-unsanctioned group of 31-45 year olds who get together so we can socialize with people our own age. It's really great.) This is me in my 80's garb with my friend Kevin "Twisted Sister" Earle. We mostly just hung out, kind of like we used to do in the 80's. Most of the girls went for the side ponytail and leg warmers look. I went for the preppy look. Can you see the rolled up pants? You probably can't see that I crimped my hair with a crimping iron that I have actually had since about 1988. It took 30 minutes to heat up but what do you expect from a vintage piece of electronic hair-stying equipment?

CAUTION: FALLING LOIN CLOTHS

Today was the end of the 3rd quarter of seminary. Next week we are on spring break. This morning we did a game to review what we have learned so far this year. I asked the question, "What item fell on Elisha when Elijah was taken into heaven?" The kids struggled for a few seconds trying to come up with "mantle" saying, "Oh, oh, oh, what was that..." until one girl said, "I know! His loin cloth." The visual on that was too much and I burst out laughing. So did one of the parents who was in the room observing. During our fit of laughter she realized she was wrong and her teammate came up with the correct answer--mantle.

Master of Misery

I've been working on this Master's Capstone (project and thesis) for almost a year now (albeit not full time obviously because I have my priorities--work, seminary and salsa dancing clearly come first.) Pretty much on Saturdays I do research and write. Last Saturday I sat for about 8 hours. My hips were very sore the next day. My living room looks like the sticky note factory exploded and I never invite people over because that would mean I'd have to pick the books up off the floor.

The sad thing is that I LOVED school. I loved being in the classroom and I really got a good education. No wonder so many people get to this point and give up. It's miserable!!!! The good news? I am making progress...And every month when I pay that student loan payment I try to tell myself that it's worth it.

More Wedding Photos

The happy couple


The bride and groom surprised Megan with a birthday cake.

Congrats Papa Nac and Anita!

I just got back from a whirlwind weekend in Cedar City, Utah. My brother and his family, my sister and her family and I went down for my dad's wedding. It was also Megan's 6th birthday so we enjoyed a birthday party along with the wedding. The grandkids got to march down the aisle too and they looked so cute and sharp and nobody had a meltdown!

Top: The Naccarato children: Callee, Tony, Amy
Bottom: My nephews and niece: Kimball, Ethan, Megan, Logan, Mason

Look at Me! I'm Employee of the Month!

I know this is rather funny but it was very sweet that one of my employees nominated me. I was so surprised because I haven't even worked here for a year yet. Plus, I got 2 hours of comp time! Can't beat that! He he he!

This is what happens to a Seminary teacher's scriptures

I have had these scriptures since my own seminary days (almost 20 years!) They lasted through my mission and have been on many overseas trips. But teaching seminary has finally done them in and the photo doesn't even show that the outside is covered in chalk dust.

I'm afraid I'll have to start using my new set and let the old ones stay by my bedside. These scriptures are full of notes, highlights, insights and underlines and they are one of my treasures.

The soundtrack to my life: Billy, is that you?

Last night my friend Tarra and I went and saw Billy Joel in concert at the Pepsi Center. As you can see we opted for the cheap seats but we were on the first row of the upper bowl. Even though I still feel pretty crappy, it was fun and Billy put on a great show. It was my 4th Billy Joel concert.

If I had to pick an artist who is the soundtrack of my life, I would pick Billy Joel. I have been listening to his music since I was a kid. In fact, I probably knew his songs before I knew most Primary songs. My mom used to keep several of his 8-track tapes (*gasp* can you believe we used to listen to 8 track tapes?) in the car. When my uncles were on their missions, she also inherited several record albums (*gasp* can you believe we used to listen to records?) that we played all the time on the record player in our living room. I remember being so excited when we actually bought "An Innocent Man" on cassette tape (*gasp* can you believe we used to listen to cassette tapes?) because we could actually REWIND the songs.

So for me, Billy is kind of part of the family. In fact, Billy Joel was one of the first American artists to play in the Soviet Union before the Iron Curtain came down. He was there right before I was in the summer of 1988. People were still talking about his concerts. They would ask, "Do you know Billy Joel?" I wanted to say, "Yes, I do know him. He's like family." It was very exciting for me. Here is a list of some other great Billy Joel song moments in my life:

--When we were young we used to go to Yellowstone every summer with our cousins for like a week. Once we were packing up the car to head back home and my uncle had Billy Joel playing while we cleaned and packed. I was always sad to leave Yellowstone but this time was particularly sad because I heard "Piano Man" playing and it finally dawned on me what a melancholy song that is and it made me tear up. I think I was 11 or 12 and when I hear that song I still think of Yellowstone.
--Whenever I hear the song "The Stranger" I think of my uncle Rex and uncle Joel. Not because the song pertains to them but that album must have belonged to one of them and my mom may have mentioned their names every time we played it.
--There is a song called "Christie Lee" which is a rather obscure song off the "Innocent Man" album. I made up a dance to it in junior high, though it was only performed for the fake crowds in our living room. I think I could still do it.
--Back in 1993 I spent another summer in Russia during college. My friend Nathan had some BJ songs on tape and we listened to it over and over. I lost touch with Nathan but when I hear "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" I still think of him and miss him.
--I quoted a BJ song over the pulpit at my missionary farewell..."Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes" from "Say Goodbye to Hollywood." Now my mom and I say that to each other all the time but continue the song..."I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again."
--My first BJ concert was in college with a guy I liked at the time (who shall remain nameless). We bought tickets far in advance and didn't like each other much when the concert came around. We went anyway and it was awkward. I remember that his favorite song was "And So it Goes" and I told him mine was "I Go to Extremes." I must have been mad.
--"We Didn't Start the Fire" makes me think of Stephanie because she loves to scream that song at the top of her lungs (and she knows all the words) on road trips and at concerts.

I could go on and on but I will stop there. Billy sang some great ones last night: "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", "Only the Good Die Young", "Allentown", "You May Be Right", "Still Rock and Roll", "Zanzibar" (a nice treat!), "She's Always a Woman" and several others. In the middle of "The River of Dreams" they launched into a cover a Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountani Way." All you have to do here is mention the Rocky Mountains and people go nuts. The crowd was worked up into a frenzy before they even got to the chorus. I used to find it annoying but now it's kind of an endearing thing about Colorado.

Unfortunately I had to endure hearing my 3 least favorite songs "Captain Jack" (utterly depressing), "The Entertainer" and "The Ballad of Billy the Kid." Fortunately Billy redeemed himself with many other great songs including the obligatory "Piano Man" sing along for his final number.

I hate going to the doctor!

So why is it when you go in for a sinus infection that they have to weigh you? The nurse also took my pulse and my temperature but the only one she announced was my weight. Next time I'm going to say, "Didn't you notice that I closed my eyes when I stepped on the scale? That means I DON'T WANT TO KNOW!" Or maybe I could say, "Please don't tell me my weight but I'd really like to know what my pulse is."

I found out that I do have a sinus infection and since I had some swelling in my neck the infection had apparently gone into my lymph nodes. I don't even know what a lymph node is but my neck and throat are really sore. I have to be on some nasty antibiotics for two weeks which cause me to be really nauseated. Maybe the nausea will help with the aforementioned weight issues. :)

Oh capitol! My capitol!

I was in Utah over President's Day weekend and I got to see the Utah State Capitol. It just reopened at the first of the year after being closed for 4 years. I worked in this building for several years and I loved going to work here every day. It's a shame my old office is now a conference room, but the capitol building looks fantastic. It's great to see it open again and to see the hustle and bustle of the Legislative session.

Some of my favorite memories in this building...
--Conducting the 2000 Electoral College live on CSPAN. (We had to rehearse so we didn't look unorganized on national t.v.)
--Sliding across the rotunda in my stocking feet and pajamas on election night. (If I could only get those security camera tapes...)
--Rozan's special capitol tours for Boy Scout troops. "If there's an earthquake your gonna die in here! Those columns are not anchored." (They are now!)
--Elections office birthday parties were the best!
--The day they announced Gov. Leavitt was accepting the appointment to the EPA and they told the staff. Then we were whisked down the secret back stair case to avoid the press congregating outside the Governor's Office.
--Hearing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing at several inaugurations.
--Echoes of "When I say 'go' you say 'fight'" through the vent. (Those of you around for the 2004 candidate filing know what I mean.)
--Hearing "Light the Dream!" nine million times during the Olympics.

First Place!

I got first place in a Valentine box decorating contest. Okay, there really wasn't a contest but my staff gave me a ribbon. Look what I got in my box!

If you make a Valentine Box...

People will put stuff in it! I made it known at work that I was going to bring a Valentine box. No one believed me. My creative juices were flowing and the box turned into a Valentine Monster (not what I set out to do). On Monday everyone thought I was crazy. By Tuesday people were putting valentines in the box and by Wednesday, three people set Valentine boxes on their desks! See what fun a quirky boss can start in an office? Happy Valentines Day everyone. I can't wait to open my box.

Is my life really boring?

Welcome back to the blogging world for me! And yes, my life is really boring because I started this blog while I was in Albania last year working on an election. That was much more exiting than my daily routine of work and life. Oh well. Really I started this blog because everyone I know seems to have one but me. I gave in to peer pressure!

So yesterday I volunteered at the All About Kids Expo here in Denver. I'm just on the list of volunteers for any event here and I just do whatever they ask me to do. This event was sponsored by Radio Disney so I got a t-shirt that says "Disney VoluntEARs." I was greeting at the door when a mother came up to me with a question. Here is how the exchange went.

Random mother: Excuse me but there is a rumor going around that Hannah Montana is going to be here. Do you know anything about that?

Me: No. Hannah Montana is not going to be here today.

Random mother(suspiciously): Really? Then why is everyone talking about it?

Me: I don't know but I don't believe Hannah Montana just shows up at places.

Random mother: Well, I have gone outside and circled the convention center looking for her tour bus but I didn't see it.

Me: Ma'am, she's not here.

All the volunteers heard this question a bunch of times. I think people thought we were hiding something and that if they kept probing us we'd spill some kind of secret about Hannah Montana. Not surprisingly, Hannah Montana didn't come. However, some group called the Jonas Brothers (I'm assuming a Disney group) was around somewhere. When their tour bus pulled up across the street from the convention center I watched 50 screaming 10 year olds run across traffic to catch a glimpse. It was very amusing. I guess I shouldn't talk. I nearly hyperventilated when I saw the keyboard player and drummer for Bon Jovi back stage at the 2002 Olympics when I was volunteering there.

Signing Off!

This is my last post from Albania. I am so glad to be on my way home in a few hours. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for reading my blog. I think I have amused myself more than anyone else. I've had fun putting it together and hope that it has been interesting.

I put this photo of my boots on this last post because these have been my "Eastern Europe boots." I have worn them on six elections missions over the past five years and I am finally retiring them. I am leaving them here in Tirana and hoping that someone will make use of them. They have been good boots but their day has passed and it's time to buy some new ones.

See you all very soon! Love, Amy

Leaving Kukes

In about an hour we will "hit the road" and head back to Tirana for our final meetings. Last night we took our driver and interpreter for a nice dinner. (We had to go to Kosovo to do this, of course.) They gave us these nice scarves with the Albanian eagle. I told them I would wear mine around Denver because then I would for sure find out if there are any Albanians living in Denver.

I have very mixed feelings about leaving Kukes. On the one hand I'll be glad to get out of here. On the other hand I've made many good friends and who knows if I will ever see these people again in my life. I have made so many good memories here. I hope that Kukes will have a bright future.

Reunited with my former partner

Max Caller (from England) and I were partners in 2005 in Albania. Out of luck he ended up on my team here. It was great to see him again. I sent him to a tough area because I knew he could handle it. We had a good time dancing together at the disco party. (You can see the disco lights in the back ground. Very cool!)

One half in Kosovo, one half in Albania

Whoever took this photo didn't do a good job but this is me with one foot in Kosovo and the other foot in Albania. The snowball fight occured a few minutes later

Goodbye STOs

Our STOs left us today after 5 fun-filled days in Kukes. The adventure started when I picked them up in Tirana and the bus driver took a wrong turn. Trying to get back on the right road (which never happened--we took a back road) took us 90 minutes out of our way. Then we hit snow on the road. I was pretty stressed out but we made it. Our team worked their butts off starting at 6:00 a.m. on Sunday and they worked around the clock in shifts through Monday at 9:00 p.m. when the counting was finished. They were usually in cold rooms where everyone was smoking. Sometimes the smoke was so thick they couldn't see the people counting ballots. That's Albania!


On Tuesday we were able to cut loose and do some site seeing. The mission would not allow us to go to Kosovo so we had a local expert take us up into the mountains near the border to show us where there used to be mines and talk to us about de-mining activities. The scenery was beautiful. There happens to be a pedestrian border crossing and the border police let us "cross" so that those who hadn't been to Kosovo now can say they have. The event ended with us having a snowball fight at the border. We certainly entertained the border police and made some fun memories. No other observer can say the had a snowball fight on the Kosovo/Albania border. As far as I was concerned they deserved to have a unique experience because some of their colleagues are stationed at beautiful, warm beaches in south Albanian.

The day ended with a party that Matthias and I organized for our team and their Albanian interpreters and drivers. We had finger foods, drinks and lots of music. We danced disco and latin for awhile and then put on traditional Albanian music. Our drivers and interpreters showed us how to dance traditional Albanian dances. It was so much fun. As usual, I am the only one not drinking but the most out of control on the dance floor. My legs hurt so much I can hardly walk. I was sweaty and tired but it felt good after not exercising for 2 months.

This was our last team photo before we sent them on their way to Tirana. We had a great group and I consider all of them my friends.

Cows and rallies

This is from over a week ago but it's a great indication of how rural Kukes is. This cow didn't care that 1500 people were gathered in the main square to see the Prime Minister of Albania. He just wanted to get to his trash can at his appointed time. The crowd parted like the Red Sea to let him through.

My team

I thought you would like to see a photo of my team. This is a photo of our interpreter Riza, me (ugh!), Matthias, and Astrit who is our driver.

I am in Tirana for a meeting and to pick up the 18 short term observers who are coming to Kukes. Tonight I had dinner at an Indian restaurant. I also went to the grocery store, which always makes me happy. I am on a quest to find food to cook a Mexican dinner when I get back to Kukes. I found tortillas which was very exciting.

Giant bunkers and sheep on a bunker

Here are more picutres to be filed under "The Bunkers of Albania." The big photo is me in front of a bunker designed for anti-aircraft purposes. They are mostly right by the border with former Yugoslavia. The other photo was too good to pass up. We were driving along and I yelled to the driver, "Stop! I need a photo." This farmer is not letting a cement bunker get in the way of raising sheep. The sheep actually climb on the bunker.

The happy news of the week is that I managed to find a small bottle of maple syrup in a grocery store in Kosovo. It's always an adventure in the grocery store. What will be there this time? What will you never find again? So the last 2 days I have made French toast in the morning and I am so happy. The two Europeans I live with (German and Turk) won't try it because they think it sounds awful. I told them that if they were sure they wouldn't like it that I wasn't going to let them try it. The maple syrup cost me almost $10 and I'm not wasting it on people who won't enjoy it.

Look Mom! There's going to be an election!

Just thought you'd like to see that there really is going to be an election. This poster is reminding people to vote on February 18 and giving them instructions about filling out their ballots.

The other day I attended a candidate forum where the candidate promised that if he was elected mayor, one of the things he would do is keep the farm animals out of the city. He is not happy that they come to eat the trash. My question is: How will he do this? Will he provide free ropes to the farmers to tie up their animals? Will he explain to the cows and chickens that they are no longer welcome? Or will he make the city less of an incentive for the animals by cleaning up the garbage? Hmm...

Election Preparation and Excitement

It's very exciting to see some action surrounding the election. It has been a long 6 weeks waiting for the election to kick into high gear but it's finally happening. Campaign signs are going up all over town, rallies are being held, and the cows are still eating the trash! How exciting!

Here is a list of things we have to check on and have been monitoring the last 6 weeks:

1. The preparation of the voter list. Is it accurate? Is it posted? Are people being left off or removed?
2. Issuing of birth certificates. People can obtain birth certificates as identification for voting. We have to see if procedures are being followed.
3. Meeting with candidates and parties. Do they see problems? Do they think the election is being administered fairly?
4. We have 400 Short Term Observers (STO's) arriving next week. (Only about 20 are coming to Kukes.) We have to hire drivers and interpreters for them and make all kinds of logistical arrangements.
5. We also have to assess the preparations by the local election commissions.

There are lots of other little things we do but that is really the bulk of our work. We have to write weekly reports which is also a huge task. It's so funny here because this country does everything at the last minute. The election is in two weeks and no one seems to be stressed. Somehow it will happen, I'm sure.

A few days ago we went and met with a candidate. We asked him to tell us about his program. He had to pull out his handwritten notes to tell us what he stood for. Matthias and I nearly started laughing. This guy obviously acheived his nomination some way that was not so much on the up and up and he is a candidate because someone wants him to be (and he'll win because of his party.) He has no clue what he's doing.

We also go to government offices during the day and they are all closed, even when the posting on the door says they are open. Where is everyone? You guessed it! In the coffee bar! Usually if we go to the coffee bar next to the government building we will find someone. One government building we went to said the offices were open and no one was there. The sign on the coffee bar next to it said "Closed" but everyone was inside anyway.

I am enjoying my new home in the OSCE field station. I have a nice room that is mostly warm and we have the use of a kitchen. It's nice to be out of Bar Amerika although we are there having these coffee meetings with everyone all the time. I have a new favorite drink in Albania--Kakao (hot chocolate). It's warm and I don't have to keep explaining to people why I don't drink coffee or tea.