First day

 First day at work 

I think I forgot to mention the difference in weather from my previous time here, it was 30-degree heat in the height of summer last time, 6 months later Prishtina is covered in snow and ice. I got up for work and wrapped up warm, the office is about a 20 minute walk from my apartment. I was welcomed by my colleagues and friends, Anita, Ana and Donjet. We had a lovely catch up and then they gave me a rundown of the project and what they need help with. They also told me more about what the organisation is involved with, currently they are trying to partner with an animation company that can create interactive videos of the stories they have gained. Hopefully ending with an exhibition.

They are still doing their school house project which they started last summer, this is about the schools that were set up around Prishtina in the 90s to teach Kosovar children about their history. At this time, it was Yugoslavia, and they were not taught their own history in school, so people set up schools in their own homes to teach their relevant history and learn about their own culture. These homes became the object of Serbian attacks as they threatened the oppression of the Kosovan Albanian people.

The team have a few English interviews that they would like me to transcribe for them. This consists of listening to the interview and writing, word for word, what the interviewee has said, including expressions, repetition and gestures. This way of transcribing attempts to gain the realist picture of the story the person is telling through their habits, way of speaking and emotions whilst talking. However, it is quite time consuming, one interview will take at least a few days to transcribe. My first is an interview with Michael McClellen, an American diplomat in Kosovo in the 90s. He helped set up the first American office in Kosovo, when it was still a part of Serbia. This started to create a presence in Kosovo for other European and American diplomats to travel here and bring attention to the idea of independence, meeting with important figures of the time, like Dr Ibrahim Rugova.

I took the evenings to explore my new neighbourhood. I went to a lovely spot that my AirBnb host recommended if I wanted to try traditional food, it was called Bagolina. I had meatballs and rice which was delicious so I will definitely be returning at soon.