As soon as we got to Tirana we met up with one on Jean-Louis' friend from the assosciation for handicapped Albanian children (for which the van was brought). Okay, so not quite as soon as--in Albanian time a hour means three and a minute means ten. We are staying with him for the time being which is very nice, he is showing us around the town. At the second I am out doing touristy stuff but all of the museums are closed for seista until 5, so we're having an internet break. It is a great relief to have my banking problem sorted. It took Wells Fargo about a week of withdrawls in Germany and Serbia to figure out I was doing unauthorized foriegn activity (I forgot to tell them I was leaving, I guess) by which time I had paid for my course and taken enough dinars to last the three weeks, so I didn't realise my card didn't work until I got to Monetenegro. I send them a desperate message online and they were nice enough to remove the hold without talking to me in person, since the way the phones work here there is no real way for me to call them. All the cards last about 1 minute. Tomorrow I think I am going to the south of Albania, which doesn't seem like very promising land for internet use. As always, don't worry if I seem to disappear from the face of the planet. 
Sat Aug 12 2006 07:35 PST Wet paint in Tirana:
Now I am here in Albania. I have to admit to being plesantly surprised at how nice Tirana is, although maybe that has something to do with low expectations to begin with. Actually I am not sure if nice is the right word, but anyway I am enjoying myself. There's a strange feeling about this city, as though it is being built, and all in a hurry. Last night we ran into some friends (not my personal friends, obviously) and chatted with them on the street for a while when we realised the blue line we were standing one had been freshly painted. Everything is under construction. Driving into Tirana was like driving onto a huge construction site. We think it has something to do with the mafia. There is a sarcastic tourist slogan that goes, "Come to Albania, your car is here already." Something like 70% of the cars we see on the street are Mercedes. There seems to be no rules for the road. You just go where there is a potential opening and hope no one hits you; walking is much the same.