We woke up about 10 trying to make it to Fazz’s for 11-12 for a traditional Albanian lunch. Will, Mark and I all struggled to convince ourselves it would be a good idea to get up, knowing that at some point last night’s beer and dancing were going to take their toll. After needles messing around, showering and whinging we leave the flat and wonder down to the bakery, as is now customary. Mark continues the trend of over paying but this time tries to take someone elses food… they were not overly happy.

 We eat the chocolate buns and progress to what we thought was the bus stop, we waited and nothing happened. Unsure we walked further down the road. Causally parked half on and half off the pavement was a man shouting ‘Podejeva!’ Will and I assure Mark that ‘it will be fine. He looks nice enough.’ We hope in and wait. The driver tries to make some last minute sales by shouting at people as they walk past, sometimes he uses the surprise softly spoken attack, luring people into a false sense of security so they are seduced into going somewhere they didn’t originally think they would. It costs us a euro each and we get to Podujeva.

We meet Fazz, Agroni (Fazz’s Bro), Lu (Argoni’s girlfriend) and another cousin for a coffee. We are presented with art and exhibition catalogues that are outstanding. Fazz had talked about the quality of work his artists produce but I had no idea just how amazing it was going to be. ‘Fragile State’ exhibition really illustrates and reflects the people’s emotions about the political situation in the country. Using steel left over from weapons a face was created by one artist that is terrifically horrific. It really showed the mutilation capabilities of war and the exposure people had to the events that took place – I suggest that you try and get hold of the ‘Fragile State’ booklet to see what I mean.

After the coffee and the art talks we were whisked off to Fazz’s mum’s house for a traditional Albanian lunch. The house itself was an art exhibition. I forgot to say that Agroni is an artist, Fazz’s father paints, so does his uncle and all to an incredible standard. It was amazing to see it all. After 10 minutes the food started to come. Soup, then a plate of cheese and pastry, bread, chillies and tomato, yogurt and all in vast quantities emerged from the kitchen. A feast fit for kings. We chatted about the customs of Kosovo, how to behave at the table, what was acceptable in bars, that sort of thing, in an attempt to look cultural. We ate and ate and ate. I was curry full, ready to pop and when the fire got going it was perfect napping conditions, so I lay back and took 20 minutes out of my day to rest my eyes.

After the food Fazz suggested that we go and see his uncle’s art studio. A classis eccentric artists hang out. Up a track and in all alone so there were no distractions, perfect for focussing his thoughts and getting the art just how he wants it. When we went the sun had set and there is no electricity, so by paraffin lighting we saw some of the works and established that only Will and Fazz would be happy to live there. Mark and his OCD would not last a week! Then we came across some shells, tank shells, large solid steel tank shells that were found and picked up. Once again we were reminded of the conflict, it is now hidden and but does occasionally show its face. It was a very sobering experience. But as they say life goes on and now there is much to do, so all we can do is agree and take that same approach, much healthier if you as me then dwelling on it.

After the mini adventure we got a lift back into Podujeva and the bus back to Pristina, we all fell fast asleep and woke up just in time for our stop. Being lazy and because of the rain we got a taxi. Back in the hostel will messed around then Yole, a Fin was on the computer outside our door so we invited him in. Yole was travelling to Istambul to meet his brother. We went for some food in a café, luckily Mark didn’t choose or we would have been thousands out of pocket. We spoke about the reservation of the Finish and the difference between the two countries education systems, all very high level stuff for a first encounter, but that is what Mark seems to like, cutting the small talk and heading to the head of social problems, much more interesting than ‘isn’t the weather lovely.’ We then got onto cycling and Mark, Will and I all agreed to go cycling around Finland sometime this summer! It turned out that Yole used to be a cycling courier, which not only makes him slightly insane but also an absolute hero in my mind.

We moved bars and Mark and Will got talking to an international policeman from the UK. As Mark introduced himself, saying he was from Birmingham, the bloke replied, without a hint of sarcasm, ‘are there any white people left there?” oh great, that is one way to uphold the multicultural aspects of the UK. They were both taken back by the comment and did not pursue any more conversation with him. After that we then discussed the problems of ethnicity and identity, something that you really can’t get away from in Kosovo, people see themselves as Serbian, Albanian, Kosovan, or a mix, a perfect opportunity for someone wanted to do an incredibly interesting dissertation! Once again time flew past and before we knew it 4 am had approached.

We walked back to the hostel and all fell asleep with new ideas, realisations and problems that are faced all over the world. .

Tags: Kosovo, OXAB Kosovo Exploration Trip