A different kind of birthday

This past week's weather in NY has been,to say the least, spectacular with my kind of temperature between 58 to 72 degrees F! Because of it and since the week included also my birthday I decided on that day to decline another luncheon invitation (had 3 last week) and just be outdoors as much as possible.

The morning went by very quickly with phone calls galore, also from Albania and Italy, but in the afternoon I took a ride all the way to the very tip of Manhattan island, and, when there, I couldn't resist getting on board the Staten Island Ferry which crosses the large bay of NY. It was the perfect day to be on the water!





I hadn't been in that area in years and I was very pleasantly surprised about the many changes that have occurred in it, not only in the skyline, but also at the ferry's terminals. They have been completely modernized inside out, with roofs made of solar panels, spacious terraces to relax on, and digital display monitors for the many bus connections at destination.


(solar panels barely visible amidst the highraisers)

The rides scheduled every half hour are one of several free things that NY offers not only to tourists, but also to its residents, many of whom commute this way every day.



The boats remain crowded, as usual, with people armed with camcorders and cameras, and one has to elbow his/her way to the outside railing to be able to snap pictures, especially on the side that faces the Statue of Liberty.


The Brooklyn's commercial waterfront


The old fort on Governor's Island


The Verrazzano's Bridge (= port of NY entry)


The Manhattan's skyline seen from Staten Island


On right, low, flat, Ellis Island against the coast of the state of New Jersey


Liberty Island

Differences noticed on board from the past are the presence of uniformed policemen that patrol the decks, and the fact that the return trip cannot be taken anymore without disembarking. One has to leave the boat at destination and use a different one to get back.


Downtown Manhattan (void of the Twin towers on the left)



By the time I returned home I felt drunk with air since I don't normally spend so much time in the wind and in such bright sunshine that reflects its rays over the water. I hadn't played tourist in my own town in a long, long time and enjoyed it!

Other surprises and a visit in Albania's history

No, I’m not referring to this past Sunday’s historic visit by Pres. Bush to Tirana, which every Albanian, everywhere, has followed with great interest. Thus, I shall explain.

While still in Albania last month, I ordered 3 books that I could read when I returned to NY. They came to my attention from a variety of sources, while googling (what else ? ) online. They all treat historical events in Albania during WWII , in which I’m especially interested in, as I'll elaborate later on.

As soon as I was able to catch up with all the snail mail I found upon my arrival at home, I began to read the first book (“The OSS in World War II Albania” by Peter Lucas), which seemed to be the shortest one. I ended up literally devouring it! I’m so glad to finally get to know some of the real Albanian history of this period, which is still quite unknown, especially within the country, and needs to be taught especially to its younger generations.

Some of my Albanian friends (especially the one of my same age) are just as excited as I am that such documentation is coming to light. We can relate to it so intimately because we were growing up during that time and our families were involved in some of those events and history. Because these events had such an impact on our lives, whether lived inside or outside the country, it comes natural that we want to know more and more of what went on around us in those days.

I am now half way through the 2nd book (“An Englishman in Albania” by D.R. Oakley-Hill) that covers the memoirs of a British officer directly involved for many years in Albanian affairs (covert and not) before and after the dictatorship took over the country. He got to know the country from border to border and learned its language. What fascinating accounts!

But, this past week end I also had a surprise visit by a young (4th level) Albanian cousin of mine, who resides for more than a decade in Michigan. We got together previously during some of my trips to Detroit, but he came to NY this time on an interesting ‘mission’ (the custom of which goes back to ancient times) …..to ‘pick up and escort a bride’, from NY to Detroit, for a wedding that was celebrated there this past Sunday. He was part of a group of people, mostly friends of the groom that, by tradition, accompany the bride from her residence to the future husband’s family. While this was done in the past, in the old country, through mountain trails on horse back, with imaginable difficulties, the modern transport by plane is not less void of its own inconveniences. Last Friday the FAA suffered computer problems that affected many airports including NY and Detroit, so, while waiting for others to arrive, we spent some time together catching up on family news.

To my great surprise he brought along a huge family tree, drawn by him on a large white cardboard (the size of a newspaper), and he wanted me to review some of the data that belongs to my direct family. It’s an amazing reconstruction of different family branches stemming from a unique and common trunk, starting from my great, great, great grandfather.

A few years back I had furnished him some of the original family tree information, dating back to Skanderbeg time, as it was documented by my father and found by me in 1993 in the national archives of my family. He then started documenting the younger generations, going back to the point of where our families were part of the original stem. It’s a great labor of love, which is certainly worth publishing!

Albanians are very good at passing ancestors’ history within their own family, but this is usually done verbally by transmitting the information from one generation to another as they grow up. I’ve used some simple software for more than a decade now to collect and match the data I picked up not only in the archives, but as I met relations of mine on both sides of the Atlantic, thanks to facilities also of Internet. I’ve done the same thing on my maternal side, and have collected so far data on about 670 individuals. Now you can understand why I’m surprised and enthralled by what I continue to find, can add, and relate to what I already know about my extended family, and the history behind it!

Fair time

June among other things is also the time for street fairs in NY every weekend.
As I was trying to reach a friend for lunch I couldn't understand why the bus I needed was delayed more than usual. Finally another one that normally has a different route, arrived and I took it just to shorten the distance to my destination. When on board, I realized the it was re-routed due to a street fair in my own neighborhood.





When I made it to my appointment on time, I found out that my friend had a similar experience in the another part of Manhattan (at the opposing end of mine). After a leisure lunch (we had a lot to catch up with after my recent long stay in Tirana) we decided to walk a bit and digest the rather spicy greek dishes we had ingested.





Since the weather had turned a bit less humid. we strolled for a few blocks to savor the smells and sights of a street fair. Finally I was glad to get home and enjoy my quiet and cool apartment, where, having available quite a variety of fruits myself, I relaxed with an home made, fresh fruit punch, while reading an interesting book that I'll talk about later on.