Skip to main content

Another Use for Raki

Yesterday's Scotsman carried a Reuters story about Skender Prushi from Lac who owns a miniature copy of the Koran. Those who want to handle the little book have to wash their hands in raki first.

The National Examiner has a story about Rubena Sukaj, an Albanian volleyball player, now playing in the US.

Thanks again to Stephen Tanghe who drew my attention to a couple of pieces from the New Yorker. The first is a short story by Kadare, 'The Albanian Writers' Union as Mirrored by a Woman', and the second is an interview with Kadare.

Stephen also supplied a link to a series of articles on Albania from the Atlantic Monthly, published over a thirty year period from 1963-1993. Unfortunately, a subscription is required to view these articles, but local libraries may have access.

Finally, Paddie Holdsworth sent me a piece on Kruja that she wrote for the Yorkshire Gazette & Herald.

Comments

© DAI - 2004-2014 said…
Alwyn:

The other day I tried in vain to send you a comment about your great pics of "Autumn in the park", but had Internet problems......Anyway, I was suggesting that they were worth celebrating with a shot of raki (the home produced one, of course! ...;-)

Thanks for the great work of yours about the news collection about Albania!
3:51 pm
our man said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
6:02 pm
olli said…
Your welcome. Sorry I haven't been in touch - food poisoning. Maybe I need some medicinal raki.
6:06 pm
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dy Rame Per Tirane

I was watching Top Channel last night, first the news, then Fiks Fare. According to them Tirana's citizens now have a choice not only between Rama and Olldashi, but also between Rama and Rama. A minor right-wing faction, Parti 'Balli Kombetar' , submitted papers to the election authorities registering their candidate, Akile Rama. The people on Fiks Fare got hold of the papers and sent a reporter and camera team to the address listed for Mr A Rama. After much ringing of the bell the gate was reluctantly opened by a middle-aged woman who refused to speak to the reporter and tried to close the gate on her. Back in the studio Saimiri and Doctori - the two presenters of Fiks Fare - revealed that Mr Akile Rama was 73 years old, in hospital, and did not know he was now a candidate for mayor. They also compared two documents - the papers submitted on his behalf, and a genuine document he had signed. The signatures were not even remotely similar. There was an interview with the lea...
4 comments
Read more

Only Way is Up

Chatting with a taxi driver while back in Belfast a few months ago, he was intrigued when I told him that I was living in Albania. Did I think it was worth investing in property there, he enquired. Not unless you're prepared to risk losing your money, I replied. By the end of the journey he was considering Bulgaria instead. Despite the risks, some people are starting to invest in Albanian property. The Daily Telegraph reports on Ian Warburton who recently spent 29,000 GBP (around 40,000 EUR) on a one-bedroom apartment in a new development in Tirana. "Given its location, I don't see how it can fail to work," he said. The development is called Terra Nova and the apartments are being actively marketed as an investment opportunity by Barrasford and Bird , a UK property company. Here is their sales pitch for Albania: Albania shares the same stunning coastline as Croatia and Montenegro. However, Albania has better weather and prices are about a quarter of those compa...
15 comments
Read more

Big in Albania

Ask me how much I knew about Albania before coming here and my list would be a short one: Enver Hoxha, bunkers and Sir Norman Wisdom. I have no idea when or how I acquired this extensive body of knowledge, but the association of Norman Wisdom with Albania was by far the most interesting part of it. I remember watching Norman Wisdom's old films on British television. My parents were fans of his wholesome, slapstick comedy, but apparently missed the ideological significance of Pitkin's relationship with Mr Grimsdale. Pitkin, the downtrodden and oppressed representative of the workers, triumphed every time over his capitalist oppressor, Mr Grimsdale - and he got the girl. It took a theorist of Hoxha's insight and profundity to discern this deeper political message. It always seemed tremendously unlikely, yet the story of Sir Norman's fame in Albania has been reported in worthy sources like the BBC , the Guardian and the Daily Telegraph . According to the Guardian, when Wi...
22 comments
Read more