June 6-7, 2014

Birds, Flowers, Landscapes and Trains in the Balkans

A. Birds and Other Animals (May 26 Blog)

In Lezhë all of the birds I saw and photographed were either pigeons or sparrows. (Just outside of Lezhë I did find some ducks.) Even when we visited the old city part of Dubrovnik, Croatia, pigeons were prolific. But there are more. Visit the Birds and Other Animals blog for more photos.

a pigeon in Dubrovnik, Croatia

A Pigeon in Nook in the Castle Wall at Dubrovnik, Croatia (15-Mar-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

B. Flowers and Plants (June 5 Blog)

There are many flowers I captured, both domesticated cultivars and wildflowers. Check out the "Flowers and Plants" blog.

a lemon growing on a tree

A Leon Ripens on a Tree in Lezhë (4-May-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

C. Landscapes and Other Venues (June 7 Blog)

Even though we only got out to Shëngjin once while we were in Albania, it was well worth many more visits. And so are many other locations in the Balkans. When I finally get my sample of images uploaded, you can check them out.

me along the Shëngjin beach

Walking along the Shëngjin Beach about 5 km from Lezhë (29-Mar-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

D. Trains (May 26 Blog)

While it took me awhile to actually see a real train in Albania, I was glad I persevered. Look at my photos of sheep grazing across the tracks and other such wonders including Engine 1032 and the cars it pulls in the "Trains" blog.

train man gives the thumbs up sign as I photograph his train

A Train Worker Gives the Thumbs up to My Photographing His Train (30-Apr-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

I'll start up this blog again in August, when (God willing) we return to Lezhë for more teaching and serving the church there.

May 24, 2014

It's a Closing for Now !

Our living in Albania has now come to a close. When we will go back, whether for a short visit or longer stay, is something we will know as God leads us and the timeline for our lives continues to unfold.

As we finished packing and cleaning our apartment, we did take time out on Wednesday late in the afternoon to go to the souvenir shop to buy a few gifts we had not already bought.

souvenir shop in Lezhe

A Last Visit to the Lezhë Souvenir (21-May-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

Then after we finished the cleaning a bit after midnight, we took some time to rest before our 2 a.m. pickup by Dini's brother to take us to the Tiranaa airport. We left there at 4:25 and flew to Vienna, Austria, where we had more than a four-hour lay-over.

waiting for our Austrian Airline flight

In Vienna Waiting for an Austrian Airline Plane to the US (22-May-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

In flight we tried getting a few catnaps and waiting patiently for the 10-hour flight to finish. Once we started, we were eager to get home to see the grandkids and our children and to rest our joints and muscles which were giving us a bit of trouble with our lack of sleep.

Elsie and I inflight

map with flight path

flight data four hours from DC

After we landed at Dulles International Airport, Washington, DC, USA, went through customs and met two of our daughters (Jennifer and Heidi) and Jennifer's and Matt's two boys (Ty and Luke); we found a Red Robin not too far away and had an early supper for them and a good supper for us. It was American-style hamburgers.

Elsie and I eating hamburgers in DC

Finally at about 7:30 p.m., Heidi stopped in our driveway and we unloaded our stuff. The house and living room carpet had been cleaned, deck washed, lawn moved, flower beds weeded, groceries bought, dinner made for the next day, and homemade cookies left to eat.

Soon after marveling at all of the work done, we went to bed. It felt good to get some sleep and to be back in our house.

Now fitting into the pulse and routine of our lives in Virginia is our next task. But first some rest and relaxation! Thank you, God, for our lives in Albania and what is yet to comes here in the US.

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