Sweetness of Spring~~~

This morning I had the door open to my balcony, and I was sitting on the couch reading.  Suddenly, I noticed the sweetest fragrance.  I have never smelled this before...I can not fully describe it.  I discovered the lemon tree in my yard is blooming, and filling the air with the sweetness of spring.  

Wow...what a special gift from God...!

Back to school...

Today I had the opportunity to attend a physical therapy class for 2nd year students. The class was cardiac pathology/physiology...and yes it was all in Albanian. I understood the discussion.  (latin is the same everywhere) The teacher was a cardiologist, and the students only knew him by his first name....Zamir.  

The students sitting in the front of the room next to the teacher, came to class late...those were the only chairs left in the room.  Note to self..."don't be late to class!"

I found it very interesting.  Any student that came to class after 9am...knocked quietly on the door, opened it, and asked for permission to enter...the teacher then waved them into the class room.  I don't think I have ever experienced that kind of courtesy at the college level.  At one point this teacher made a comment about a few students that were talking...they were respectful and stopped their conversation.

This class was a review of hypertension and hypotension (high or low blood pressure) and the teacher involved the entire class...there were even a few moments of humor when they were discussing that men could drink more alcohol than women before having an influence on blood pressure.

I was a little nervous that I would be asked a question...what if I didn't know the answer...???

It was fun to meet the students, future physical therapists...

always an adventure...

Good morning...Tirana

This is the orthodox church bell tower near my apartment in Tirana.  Every morning at 7 am...I get to hear the chapel bells.  Later in the day the tower plays another tune...but not near as special as the one first thing in the morning.

Enjoy....

Xhuxhmaxhuxhat...???

Last weekend I was visiting a dear friend in Prishtina, Kosova, she was my first Albanian teacher in Prishtina in 2008.  Her daughter, Lidia, asked me to read her a book....Snow White and the Seven 
Dwarfs.  Of course the book was in Albanian and it was a challenge for me to read to her. I love to read books to children changing your voice to make it more exciting.  I was having trouble getting through some of the unfamiliar words....words like, xhuxhmaxhuxhat.   The thing that made me laugh is that Lidia...3 years old...was correcting my Albanian pronunciation of the words in the story.  I tried to skip a few words, my tongue was in knots already, and she corrected me. She knew the story very well.  Towards the end of the book, Agnesa, Lidia's mother came into the living room, and Lidia asked her to finish reading the book.  To be honest...I was relieved...I didn't think I could say, "xhuxhmaxhuxhat" one more time. 

So...are you curious how to pronounce it...???

"xhuxhmaxhuxhat"

xh=j in jaw
u=u in put
m=m in make
a=a in father
t=t in toy

stress the second syllable.  Good Luck!

oh yes...the word means "dwarfs" in this case.

Always an adventure, to have your Albanian pronunciation corrected by a 3 year old.  Still learning...