We’ve lived in Albania for more than a year. In that time, we’ve shopped a lot, cooked a lot, and measured distances a lot. Albania uses metric units. That means United States Customary System units don’t work here. Neither do…
Long time, no blog. Things have been rocky. Now Jennifer and I are feeling that blogging urge again. Barry at Death’s door — the real deal I spent four days in March in the hospital. Crippling pain. Enormous infection of…
Where does the time go? Last night, 06 November 2025, Jennifer and I celebrated our one-year anniversary of moving here. We had dinner at Restaurant Berlin and dessert at Laguna. Jennifer had gelato. I planted our candle in a cheesecake.…
Albanians have holidays, right? Of course! I tried to explain Thanksgiving to a young Albanian woman. But I don’t think I got the idea across. Well, here are the basics. Our American myth… Our myth is that the Pilgrims celebrated…
JENNIFER AND I ARE IN ALBANIA TO STAY. She wrote a trip summary. I started this summary months ago, but lots of “getting settled” tasks stopped or slowed progress on it. Now it’s time to finish it up and publish…
Here’s a great place to eat — The Kitchen in the Blloku district. I had to go to the bank (Union Bank) and the all purpose health/beauty store (Rossman & Lala) so why not stop for lunch? Here’s the exterior…
From Reuters — without edits. Barry’s opinion at the bottom. Albania appoints AI bot as minister to tackle corruption PRISTINA (Reuters) -A new minister in Albania charged to handle public procurement will be impervious to bribes, threats, or attempts to…
Traditional dinners in Albania are a treat, and we expect that they will cost a lot. In the future we will go to a classic place like Oda. But for now, we’re eating that traditional meal for $10.00 We went…
Men’s bags are common in Albania. It seems like almost everybody carries one. As you’ll see, a bag is a necessary accessory. What about pockets in pants, you ask? Sweatpants are the national uniform for Albanian men, and there’s no…
My 77th birthday was on August 12. So we spend the 11th, 12th, and 13th in Pogradec — a lakeside beach resort on the east side of Albania. THIS IS JUST THE SETUP, FOLKS. The full story comes soon. We…
In other posts, you’ll find me going on about the outstanding produce in Albania. And the dairy products are outrageous, with major quantities of white cheese. AND THE EGGS! You have never seen yellower yolks, thanks to the carotenes coming…
Tirana seems to be a theft-free town. I sat down at a cafe and found a phone at the table. I ordered my coffee and drank it. The phone’s owner didn’t return. The café owner didn’t seem concerned. When I…
The adventure continues… We came to a beach town to go to the beach We came to Durres to do nothing, and we did a lot of that. The hotel room rental included an umbrella rental and the right to…
Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans. — Incorrectly attributed to John Lennon. It actually goes back to at least 1957. The road to Albania wasn’t straight. Far from it! I was doing something else…
Time passes. One day you’re taking vows (July 10, 2019) and the next thing you know you’re taking bows (July 10, 2025). Yes, we have had six years of marital bliss. When we lived in Lodi, an anniversary was typical.…