The clock seems to be ticking faster and faster, and it is only a few days before this journey officially begins.
It seems like only yesterday that I was stalking packing blogs and racer videos, but holy cow, it’s really happening!
On the 28th, I will be hopping over to Atlanta for launch for a few more days of training, and then our squad will be flying out on July 1st to head to our first country, Albania!
We will then split off into our teams, and we will be placed in our first ministry assignments. My team consists of six other fantabulous ladies, McKenzie, Whitney, Anna C. Morgan, Emma, and Corinne!
I am so excited to begin this adventure in a country full of so much history, and I can not wait to get to know the hearts of the Albanian people. Just for fun, here are 11 facts about Albania!
1. Albania had 3 million people but only 3,000 cars at the end of the communist era in 1991 because private cars were illegal.
2. Albanians nod their head “yes” when they mean “no”, and vice versa.
3. Mother Teresa was Albanian.
4. There are more Albanians outside of Albania than within. Albanians residing abroad are anywhere from 7-10 million, mostly in other Balkan countries. The number of Albanians actually living inside Albania? Around 3 million.
5. From 1944 to 1985, Albania was under communist rule. Dictator Enver Hoxha cut the country off from the rest of the world, allowing trade only with China.
6. Islam, Albanian Orthodox, and Greek Orthodox are the leading religions.
7. Albania is one of the only majority Muslim nations in Europe. More than two-thirds of the population in Albania is Muslim.
8. The local name of Albania is ‘Shqiperia’, which can be translated to “Land of the Eagles.”
9. Albania is one of the poorest and least-developed countries in Europe.
10. Tosk, the southern Albanian dialect is the official language of Albania. The northern Albanian dialect is Gheg. There are seven other spoken languages which include Greek, Vlach, Romani, Macedonian, Aromanian and Serbo-Croatian.
11. Albanians greet each other with a kiss or a hug, even between the same genders. Albanians consider two men or two women walking hand-in-hand to standard behavior, however, while Americans smile freely at strangers, in Albanian regions this is considered a little strange and sometimes impolite.
Well, my bags are packed and I am (almost) ready to go! I am experiencing so many emotions, I don’t even know which one to pick.
A lot of people have asked me how in the world one packs for an 11 month trip, so I put together this little time lapse video! Believe it or not, it is possible to fit everything you need for almost a year in just two backpacks.
Once again, I want to thank everyone for all of the support you have shown me. I can’t wait to get out on the field and share love with the beautiful people of the world, and I could not do it without the prayers and support of each one of you.
