To Albania We Will Go!
Day 1
Friday, 5 July 2024
Very early this morning, Frieda and I left our home in Harriman, Tennessee on a church mission trip to Albania. This marks the first time we have been back to Europe since leaving Stuttgart, Germany in February 2000 following a three-year military assignment there.
Before getting into the details of Day 1, a bit of background is in order.
When I accepted a full-time consulting job earlier this year, Frieda and I agreed that in exchange for less free time, we would maximize the free time we have on these three priorities: 1) See family as much as possible, including regular visits to Hawaii where youngest son Brian and his family are living for at least the next two years; 2) Support church mission trips; and, 3) See those parts of the world we’ve either not seen, or want to see again.
Our church — Two Rivers in Lenoir City, Tennessee — supports several different mission trips annually and this year, they added a new one to the Balkans. Specifically, we would be supporting Dardania church in Gjilan, Kosovo to make their annual retreat to Vlorë, Albania a success in service of the Lord.
After inquiring about the various mission trips requiring support, our Discipleship Pastor — Tim Bubar — invited us to join the team going to the Balkans and we said yes! It was a perfect fit for our goal of supporting church mission trips and it had the side benefit of seeing someplace new — in this case Albania.
There is not much that is fun about flying anymore but occasionally you see something that makes you smile. Here’s a sign posted at McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville just after you clear the TSA checkpoint:
Joe and Charlotte have been to the Balkans many times over the last 20 years or so and they chose to leave two days earlier than Frieda, Tim and I.
Since leaving Germany in 2000, Frieda and I have lived a second time in Japan (2003-2004) and then son Bill was stationed in Iwakuni, Japan from 2017-2019. Trips across the Pacific are 12-14 hours so today’s much more reasonable trip across “the pond” was a relatively short 7 hours or so.
We chased the sun all across the Atlantic and arrived in Zurich early Saturday morning, where I’ll pick up Day 2.
In the mean time, thank you for following Oliver’s Travels!
oh wow!! With family (and ties) in Greece I'd wondered about Albania over the years, the small obscure balkan country right next door, yet suffering from totalitarian dictatorship from 1945 until recently
Dear Friends
Dave and I will be praying for you during your travels and for the work that you are doing in Albania. I spent several years of my youth working with Albanian refugees. It was a great blessing in my life.
Peace and joy,
Diana