Settling in
Our first weeks of September in Sarande, Albania
Our first weeks of September in Sarande, Albania
Two weeks…
Two weeks is what it took for us to notice the fruit trees lining the street by our apartment. We both were like, “what the heck, how did we miss those?” They turned out to be mandarin oranges and pomegranates. Who knew, right?. But think about it. We only knew the absolute basics of getting here, ya know, things like cell phone services to use, where the nearest bank was to get money, and… where the local expats bar was so we could ask all the important questions(help! we’re lost! lol) we had from the people that spoke english. That was a total godsend as we needed clarification on the drinking water situation here.
So we opened up our maps apps and basically wandered around. We checked out the markets the expats recommended, coffee shops (we’ll chat about that in a minute), the local farmer’s market, and started to figure out what we really needed to make life feel more settled. And even though our apartment said it was “fully furnished” there were still things we had to buy to help with cooking(a cutting board for instance) and not falling on our butts(bath mat) stepping out of the shower. We walked…and we walked…and we walked even more… because we chose not to drive anywhere. We decided our health would be so much better walking(did I mention Sarande is built on a hill?). And it is. We still don’t drive. Taxi once or twice, but no driving. We’re very settled-in to that decision.
Now about that coffee…
Coffee in Albania is… different. Obviously, we expected that. You can buy espresso shots, plain coffee which they call “filter” coffee, a cappuccino, latte, etc. but no syrups. Sugar yes, but no flavors. Here’s the deal though; the roast is meh. We’ve tried them all, even a local roaster and it just doesn’t work for us. We’ve even tried Turkish coffee. That’s like drinking coffee flavored sand. No thanks. Honestly, we had to settle for straight espresso shots or Nescafe instant Gold because…coffee…and well…coffee.
The wonderful thing about here is you will never go hungry. As I mentioned in my last story, there is a small local market with fresh fruits and vegetables on nearly every block, making it super easy to go every couple of days. That also makes it much easier to buy and haul gallons of drinking water to the apartment too until we find a water filter pitcher. And there are plenty of good restaurants that cost a pittance for a healthy meal.
All in all, we’re settling in, making new friends and slowing wayyy down. So far so good.
Now off to karaoke.
