Discord within the Albanian political system, but consensus without: We ♥ George W. Bush!

On Saturday, I decided to visit the small town of Kruja (pronounced “Crew-ya”), about an hour outside Tirana (probably about 20 miles away, if that). Kruja is known for its 15^th century fortress ruins; it is the birth place of Albania’s national hero, Gjergj Kastrioti, also known as “Skanderbeg.”  I was prepared to go solo, take a furgon, a small minibus and venture out on my own.  Still, I didn’t refuse when Jorid suggested that her eldest son accompany me.  14 year old Nathan, already over six feet tall with fiery red hair that he likes to gel up to look even taller, is fluent in Albanian and feels more comfortable here than he does in either the US or in Norway.  He proved to be a great guide, and we jumped on a furgon that was almost full (departure is dictated by whether or not there are enough passengers to justify leaving).  As it turned out, this particular furgon was only going as far as Fushe Kruja, a very small town between Tirana and Kruja.  “Fushe Kruja?”  I asked Nathan.  I couldn’t believe my luck!  This little town’s one claim to fame is that it was visited by George W. Bush in 2007.  And just this past Wednesday, a statue of Bush was unveiled in the town square!  I just had to see it. 

As Nathan and I exchanged a few words on the furgon, a woman next to Nathan asked where we were from.  He explained that while he has lived his whole life in Albania, he and I were both Americans.  The woman leaned back and told her two daughters who were traveling with her, and then asked Nathan if they could practice their English with me.  So for the rest of the way to Fushe Kruja, Anjeza, Sara and their friend chattered away in amazingly good English with me and said they had never spoken with a native English speaker before.  We exchanged names so we could find each other on Facebook, and when we got off the minibus in town, they took us straight to see George Bush, standing majestically in the square across the street from the George W. Bush café.  We took pictures both of him and of us (not all together; the sun was in a bad place to get a good shot of “Dubya.”

George W. Bush, a great friend of Albanians

New friends Anisa, Sara, Anjeza

The girls got us on the next furgon headed to Kruja, and we had fun exploring the town, visiting a museum commemorating Skenderbeg and his valiant struggle against the Ottomans, whom he successfully held at bay for about 25 years in the mid-1400s until his death in 1468, when the Ottomans once again took control of the region.  We also saw a stage being set up for the “Miss Shqiperia 2011” (Miss Albania) pageant that was to be held the next day and broadcast live on television.

Skenderbeg

View from the castle

Stone carvings of Skenderbeg and his men

Miss Albania poster