Happy Holidays from Albania
After a long and arduous journey fraught with really unnecessary complications, I am now in Tirana, Albania, just in time for Christmas with my family. I was supposed to be here a few days ago, but when I got to the airport on Monday, it turned out my passport had expired this summer, and I'd had no idea. I had to get an emergency expedited passport, and my parents rescheduled my tickets as best they could on short notice--which left me with two layovers, and a lovely 10 hr stay in Vienna between flights.
Ten hours in Vienna could actually have been really interesting, if I weren't so sleep deprived by the time I arrived there. It was also gray and rainy, so I spent most of it in the airport, with coffee and a headache, working on putting together final grades for my classes. Weather got better towards night, and I considered heading into the city, but unfortunately felt too indisposed to be doing much moving about. I was at the stage of sleep deprivation (2 days with almost no sleep by that point) that I was just indiscriminately grumpy at everyone. After catching myself snapping at all the staff, I picked up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and a beer, and sequestered myself to an airport cafe instead.
Good things, though:
*No pornoscanners. Just metal detectors in the US airport, and not too much hassle.
*No one asked me that annoying "business or pleasure" question. In fact, no one asked anything--just looked at the passport, stamped it, and waved me through. So happy about that: I really hate the interrogation part of international travel, especially when I can't tell which questions they are asking because of protocol, and which questions they're just asking because they're being nosy (or out of a misguided attempt at being more "personable").
*My luggage arrived with me. You'd think that should be taken for granted, but my sister's luggage got lost (so she now has to buy a week's new wardrobe here), and so did the luggage of about 20 people who arrived at the Tirana airport along with me, traveling through Rome.
Other things of note:
I found out that the Viennese really love mayonnaise. Really, really love mayonnaise. All the sandwiches at the airport cafe claiming to carry favorite traditional Austrian fare were mayonnaise based. Mayonnaise mixed with pureed tomato, mayonnaise mixed with minced mushrooms, mayonnaise mixed into a paste with herring, and an egg on top... when I ordered salad with Italian dressing at the airport Italian restaurant, it turned out the Viennese version of Italian dressing was likewise to mix it with a boatload of mayonnaise, so my salad came drenched in mayonnaise with a faint Italian dressing flavor. At least it didn't also come with surprise!herring, another food item that Austrians apparently love.
And Vienna Airport was the only airport I've ever been to that had a souvenir meat shop. An entire shop full of cured meats and sausages and pork roasts and veal and such.
----
So far, Tirana is quite nice. It's been rainy here, but the weather has been pleasant and warm. Not summer-warm--it's still jacket-weather--but more like early fall than bitter winter. When we went out to dinner tonight, I wore a thin knit dress and a (faux) leather jacket and was quite comfortable.
My parents' apartment here is gorgeous. It has as many rooms as our house, and most of the furniture and decor was provided by the owners, and it is full of things I wish I owned. It's on the top floor, and there's a balcony running around it, with a porch swing on one end, and a small pool/bath on the other, as well as couches and tables and so on everywhere else. The one downside is that it is above a street full of clubs and restaurants, and the top floor is only the 8th floor, so there is always a soundtrack.
I want to post pics, but tomorrow is Christmas, and then we're going to Rome, so it will have to wait.
Ten hours in Vienna could actually have been really interesting, if I weren't so sleep deprived by the time I arrived there. It was also gray and rainy, so I spent most of it in the airport, with coffee and a headache, working on putting together final grades for my classes. Weather got better towards night, and I considered heading into the city, but unfortunately felt too indisposed to be doing much moving about. I was at the stage of sleep deprivation (2 days with almost no sleep by that point) that I was just indiscriminately grumpy at everyone. After catching myself snapping at all the staff, I picked up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and a beer, and sequestered myself to an airport cafe instead.
Good things, though:
*No pornoscanners. Just metal detectors in the US airport, and not too much hassle.
*No one asked me that annoying "business or pleasure" question. In fact, no one asked anything--just looked at the passport, stamped it, and waved me through. So happy about that: I really hate the interrogation part of international travel, especially when I can't tell which questions they are asking because of protocol, and which questions they're just asking because they're being nosy (or out of a misguided attempt at being more "personable").
*My luggage arrived with me. You'd think that should be taken for granted, but my sister's luggage got lost (so she now has to buy a week's new wardrobe here), and so did the luggage of about 20 people who arrived at the Tirana airport along with me, traveling through Rome.
Other things of note:
I found out that the Viennese really love mayonnaise. Really, really love mayonnaise. All the sandwiches at the airport cafe claiming to carry favorite traditional Austrian fare were mayonnaise based. Mayonnaise mixed with pureed tomato, mayonnaise mixed with minced mushrooms, mayonnaise mixed into a paste with herring, and an egg on top... when I ordered salad with Italian dressing at the airport Italian restaurant, it turned out the Viennese version of Italian dressing was likewise to mix it with a boatload of mayonnaise, so my salad came drenched in mayonnaise with a faint Italian dressing flavor. At least it didn't also come with surprise!herring, another food item that Austrians apparently love.
And Vienna Airport was the only airport I've ever been to that had a souvenir meat shop. An entire shop full of cured meats and sausages and pork roasts and veal and such.
----
So far, Tirana is quite nice. It's been rainy here, but the weather has been pleasant and warm. Not summer-warm--it's still jacket-weather--but more like early fall than bitter winter. When we went out to dinner tonight, I wore a thin knit dress and a (faux) leather jacket and was quite comfortable.
My parents' apartment here is gorgeous. It has as many rooms as our house, and most of the furniture and decor was provided by the owners, and it is full of things I wish I owned. It's on the top floor, and there's a balcony running around it, with a porch swing on one end, and a small pool/bath on the other, as well as couches and tables and so on everywhere else. The one downside is that it is above a street full of clubs and restaurants, and the top floor is only the 8th floor, so there is always a soundtrack.
I want to post pics, but tomorrow is Christmas, and then we're going to Rome, so it will have to wait.