The Close of Service Ceremony

Friday, April 26, 2019, 11:00pm

I’m so grateful to finally add the Returned to my Peace Corps Volunteer status. It’s bittersweet to say goodbye, which is no surprise. But I’m kind of startled by how excited I am to have completed the two year commitment I made to Albania and to begin a brand-new, unknown chapter of my life.

The Close of Service ceremony is the official the end of every volunteer’s two years in the Peace Corps. Usually a private moment between volunteers, country staff, and a handful of invited guests, the ceremony is short but sweet, an acknowledgement of the hard work and dedication that it takes to serve in the Peace Corps.

This morning as I was getting ready, I put on an outfit completely composed of gifts from my time in service – my dress from my host family in Permet, my earrings from my host cousin in Librazhd, the watch from my students, and my shoes from my sister.

The National Youth Congress Conference

Over the past several weeks, I’ve been working with a group of young people from Permet to prepare for the National Youth Congress conference in Tirana! Everyone did a great job preparing for the presentations and gained valuable skills!

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Friday, October 26, 2018, 9:40pm

O bo bo. I’m utterly and completely drained, but I think all the hard work and travel was worth it, even if we didn’t return home with a prize.

All the hard work and travel was worth it, even without a prize.

Today was the official Kongresi Rinor Kombetare (National Youth Congress) conference in Tirana, the third and final phase of the Kongresi Rinor project. The first phase was the creation of a youth development manual, the second phase was a series of workshops held in the 12 designated regions of Albania, and the last phase was the competition for the best youth activation project.

While I had little to do with the first two phases in Permet, CESVI asked me to find two students who spoke fluent English to be part of the final phase of the project, which was how two high school students, Marjan and Ingrida, ended up at weekly meetings along with other local youth who’d participated in the workshop in Permet. Everyone worked hard at preparing a presentation in English for the final conference, and by the morning of our departure, I felt confident in their abilities and proud of the progress they’d made.

My First 10K at the Tirana Marathon

In the beginning of October, I ran my very first race ever at the Tirana Marathon! The 10k route took me through the city of Tirana, and I pushed myself to complete the entire race without walking, finishing with a time of 1:06:45!

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Sunday, October 7, 2018, 2:38pm

This weekend, I had the opportunity to complete one of my goals for the year: running in a race. And what an amazing experience it was!

I’ve been running 5ks twice or three times per week for months now, but I’ve never had the patience to try a full 10k. But with the looming deadline of the Tirana Marathon, I kicked my exercise regimen up a notch and prayed that I’d be ready when the big day arrived. 

I had a terrible night’s sleep before the race because I couldn’t quiet my anxious thoughts. Even though I knew logically that there was no way I could fail as long as I gave the race my best effort, I was so nervous that my teeth were clenched unconsciously the entire evening.

What if I couldn’t to finish the race? What if there was a mistake and I hadn’t registered properly? What if I woke up too sick to run?

The Southern Albania Road Trip: Part 7, Tirana (FINAL)

On our final day of our road trip, we walked all across Tirana from Skanderbej Square to BunkArt 2, the new bazaar, and the artificial lake! It was the perfect way to wrap up our vacation!

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Sunday, August 5, 2018, 10:51pm

The last day of the Great Haas Family Albanian Vacation has come and gone, and it was truly a lovely way to end he trip! We spent all day walking around Tirana, taking in the sights and sounds of the city and trying to beat the worst of the heat by ducking into museums and shopping malls.

Learning about Albania’s communist past in BunkArt 2

We started the day much later than I anticipated. Mom let us sleep in, and I forgot to set an alarm, so I rolled out of bed at 9:45am, horrified that I’d slept so long. I must have been absolutely exhausted. We all got ready in a hurry, and by about 10:30am, we were out in the hot sun exploring Tirana.

We began our day in Skanderbej Square and headed towards BunkArt 2, which I’d never visited before. As we descended down into the hallways of the bunker, the air grew cooler and the dramatic music made the entire space feel ominous and dark. We traveled from room to room looking through the exhibits, and I shared what I knew of Albanian history as we went along.

The Southern Albania Road Trip: Part 6, Pogradec and Librazhd

Finally heading north again, we stopped in Pogradec to see Lake Ohrid and in Librazhd to see my PST host family! We had a lovely coffee by the lake and a wonderful time visiting with my first host family!

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Saturday, August 4, 2018, 10:20pm

Coffee by the Lake Ohrid in Pogradec

We began our morning bright and early by waking up at 7:00am and hitting the road around 8:00am for Pogradec. With the music blasting in the car and the windows rolled down, everyone felt invigorated and excited for the day to come.

More and more people began playing games in the park, setting up towels along the lake, and walking their dogs along the shady path.

We made good time to Pogradec, snagging a parking space by the lakeside and heading out onto the pedonale for a morning walk. The vendors were just beginning their work day, and many of the beach chairs were empty as we walked along the shore. But as we continued along the boulevard, more and more people began playing games in the park, setting up towels along the lake, and walking their dogs along the shady path. It was lovely to see!

After walking up and down the pedonale, we decided to have a morning coffee at a cafe along the lake. We sat and had a loud and lively conversation, and I felt closer to my sisters than ever – maybe because we only had one more day left together or maybe just because we’re all growing up.