Plusses & Minusses (1)

Some of the disadvantages of traveling across the oceans are the discomforts of jet lag, and poorer communications, but, in return, many are the advantages of new experiences, and, among these, I always find the one relating to food most intriguing.

Every time I get back to Europe, and I am exposed to local foods, my taste buds are revived by the great flavors especially of fruits and vegetables that don’t have to travel long distances to reach the consumer. Yesterday, here in Tirana, I shopped, as usual, at the open door green market that is a short block from where I lodge. Some of the many stalls are manned by little old ladies in their black robes and white head scarves, who are always enticing the customers with welcoming smiles. Their products look fresh and tempting, and they are so easy to cook. It’s true that they require some old fashioned cleaning before consumption, but, once on your plate, they surely reward you with a smell and taste that is not easily described and is no longer known in most modern societies.

Among the vegetables that I like here there is a type of string bean that I have never seen back in NY. They are about 8/10 inches long, very flat, about one inch wide, and have tiny little beans inside. They cook in no time and don’t need to be steamed first. Carrots are sweet, and deliciously crunchy, and the thin skin, light green, elongated peppers are part of a daily diet among Albanians, along with leeks and eggplants. A special type of the latter is an eggplant the size of a long finger, who is treated with great care and lots of labor to produce a very interesting and delectable dessert!

Citrus fruits are forever present in Albania, and most households grow them in their own backyards. The tiny, little mandarins, have a thin peel and they are very sweet. Lemons are always served at every meal, and their juice is ‘a must’ even in some Albanian soups. Yesterday, my dessert was a cup of strawberries, so red, sweet, and juicy! They brought back memories of when I was a child in Albania.

Our new residence then, a 2 story villa with 14 rooms, was built in the newest part of town, and the planting of our garden and available land was planned by an Italian firm (still in business today) that specialized in horticulture. My mother could not believe the size of the fruits and vegetables that we harvested from this, then ‘virgin’ soil. I can remember large bowls of huge strawberries that mother would prepare almost every day with just some lemon juice (or, instead, a bit of good red wine vinegar – try it it’s delicious!).

After such pleasantries, I should write about some ‘minusses’, but it’s time for some house chores and lunch, and, hopefully, I should get back online with part 2 a little later.