Sorry for going off topic Elvis. Please do not show this movie to Albanian children. I’m sure no one will know what the hell I’m talking about but here it goes. This change the world by dalai lama sounds like new age religion BS. Having learned and studied what the New World Order and New Age religion is, I do not wish my fellow Albanians to be conditioned to accept and expect the coming change.

It’s funny that some posts above coincide with the issue of change. Most Albanians, including myself are not happy we are losing our culture. Having lived through a culture with strong family ties and moral codes, we know whats at stake. No sane person would chose change and immoral society vs stable and moral society. Living in America, I noticed people are brainwashed(in schools) to believe change is equivalent to progress. Meaning if you don’t oppose change, you are smart, you are modern. If you do, you are a neanderthal redneck, allergic to science. Just look at presidential campaign CHANGE!! Obama promising change brought a positive reaction from the conditioned masses. Sadly I saw the same slogans in the Albanian 2009 elections. Shqiperia po Ndryshon. Clearly same propaganda at work.

To end it, in America, the most friendly folks from my experience have been country/farmer folks(the evil rednecks you guys never met, but hollywood told you to hate) and religious folks(also portrayed as weird loonies in hollywood movies). I myself am not religious(grew up in commie Albania), but their kindness and the way they trust people reminds me of Albania. These people come from stable families and stable healthy communities. The same pattern as Albania, the contaminated qytetar vs the virgin fshatar. I hope I convinced some of my fellow Albanians that the coming changes will not be good, nor will you like them. They are contrary to everything we hold dear, family, culture and traditions. Reject the New World Order.

Best,
Elvis

I could say a couple of things about the first given that Elvis’s friend is from Lebanon.

There is no doubt that Albanian hospitality is unique, however when it comes to foreigners we tend to get a bit nervous as we are unaware of the customs, eating habits of the guests, the manners and so on. I find that in honoring our guest, we also want to make a good impression on them(i remember from the socialist times that we would go to borrow from the neighbours something that may had been missing on the table at that time of the month… raki for example) The fact that we are more and more aware of the living conditions of foreigners and the rest of it may add a bit more to this ‘nervousness’… the Albanian living conditions haven’t changed a lot..

To add to this I ‘am pretty certain that your friend from Lebanon would have had meals with Albanians in restaurants and his Albanian friends would have paid(of course to honor him and to show him the hospitality) without having to feel presurized..

Congratulations on the blog.

I am going for a Fulbright Grant to Albania and Lithuania fall 2009 to spring 2010. My proposal in short is: I will show my Dalai Lama Short (Cannes 2008 Short Film Corner Movie; WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD ( with Lithuanian and Albanian subtitles, separately for each country)) to children of the respective countries and film the children’s responses to the film and how they would “change the world,” and focus on the different and the same responses from the children of Lithuania and Albania respectively. I need to contact an institution in both countries for moral and verbal support as required for the Fulbright Grant Proposal. I will be asking for support from the Albanian Short Film Festival; Tirana International Film Festival, Cinema Short Film Festival ( I will also be entering my Cannes short into that festival,December 1st, 2008). I have the support of the Jonas Mekas Visual Arts Media Center in Hope all is well with you and yours! I am filling out my application for a Fulbright Grant (October 2009 to May 210) to Lithuania and Albania respectively.

If you have any suggestions for any other institutes in Albania that would be more appropriate, please let me know. Or if you are or know someone who can help with translation once I am there please let me know. Thank you Sincerely Saandra
saandrasteinfelt@u.boisestate.edu

Anyway, back to the discussion here, I also think that hospitality has changed a lot these years. Sometimes I just miss those times when people were so simple and so friendly (not saying that they’re not so anymore, it’s just a different level or way of demonstrating it). In fact if we analyze some of the reasons of that great hospitality we come up with the fact that at those times people had not much to do, as someone mentioned above. The TV (when people got one at their homes) broadcasted just for a few hours, there were no bars (or very few and not the kind of nowadays). The entertainment for the people was just a walk at the park, visit each-other at home (any time they wanted, without asking for the right time to be received), gather for special occasions (which were very looking forward) such as birthdays, marriages, engagement, recovering from some bad health condition or anything else I’m not reminded to now. Every reason was good enough to show up at your relatives’ or friends’ homes. This is of course a good thing, because it keeps people friendly and hospital (if someone comes to your home often, you have to take care of that person feeling good there).
Oh, I forgot the occasions when someone coming from another city (other than the capital) to study in the faculties of Tirana, just came to your home, staying there for the whole time of studying.

So, if we see, even if it had some good aspects, it was somewhat excessive, boundaries were not very much respected. Privacy was not much respected. Your business was others’ business. So, I think part of the fading of Albanian hospitality has to do with that also. People urged to be free of “obligations” (because some did that also just for moral obligations or just for not being judged) and be free and have their own space, their own things and privacy. As e result hospitality had to suffer some, but I think it was right this way. You just cannot be kind of cooperative, in my opinion, but it’s right to have your circle of friends and relatives with whom you just feel more comfortable and more close.

Of course Albanians are still hospital, but with the ones they just want to and within logical limits. This is the difference I think. One cannot just come to you and say anymore that s/he’s going to stay at your place for the entire study period. You have now other options, you can rent a place, you can stay at a cheap hotel, you can stay at hostels, etc.
Now you can invite someone for the night, for dinner, at e restaurant, for a coffe, etc. people still get together even if not that often due to the daily obligations and many things you have to do.

If I think back to those times, I really miss them, but maybe it’s just nostalgia of childhood times. I rather like more this times, the boundaries we have to respect, people’s privacy and doing things freely whenever and however you like.

A last thing I wanted to stress out. I live in a new building and as you know there are many families living in new building with many floors and many flats per floor. You just get on the elevator and have not much possibilities to meet with your neighbors, except for sometimes on the elevator, but even then just a “hello” is enough, not anymore. I just don’t know many of my neighbors, some of them I have seen, with some I just have exchanged a few word,s others I just don’t know and never have seen. (Quite different from old times when you knew everyone in your building, not to say in your hallway), and I somewhat like it, but I have noticed something. There were some cases when my neighbors needed my help (both of them forgot once their keys inside and had to go in from the balcony, ehh). I was very glad to help them out and invite them in and never thought this was an invasion of privacy )))
So, what I’m trying to say is that privacy is important, but what we should not loose from our culture I think it’s being helpful when others are in need, not shutting the door at their faces.

Ok, since you cannot stop me going on, I’m doing it myself, cause it ended up a roman
Thank you for the time reading my opinion
Have a good summertime and God Bless!

Elvis