Having done my homework prior to arriving in Kosovo in July 2003 – including a close reading of the dire warnings on the Canadian Consular Affairs Bureau website – I may have been forgiven for believing that my plane had taken a wrong turn somewhere over the Adriatic and missed the landing strip outside Pristine altogether. Where was the chaos? the ethnic tension? the remnants of war?
My time in Kosovo was a quick lesson in the difference between the reality on the ground in a foreign place and the sensationalized image created by a story-hungry media. Yes, Kosovo had numerous post-war issues to tackle. Yes, in some places, a tension remained and KFOR military men maintained regular patrols. And yes, remnants of war were visible in burnt-out buildings and freshly engraved headstones. But you had to seek those things out. And for the record, if I wanted to find chaos or violence or good story about an uncertain future, I could find that in the projects of any Canadian or American city, too.
There was so much more to it than the few articles we could dig up in the news. Nobody talks about the incomparable generosity of the locals in Kosovo. About how they would take you into their homes, feed you, and offer to sleep on the floor so that you could sleep on a bed. About how they would spend days proudly showing your around their cities and villages and mountain valleys without any hidden agenda or expectation of compensation. It’s rare to find stories about Kosovar Albanian’s near-obsession with America and Americans (something impossible to find anywhere else in Europe today) – from the American flags hung up in passing cars to the three story poster of Bill Clinton overlooking Bill Clinton Boulevard in the capital. Nowhere are there articles about the gorgeous high-alpine wilderness areas forming a ring around Kosovo, or about the valiant efforts of a dedicated few to save them.
For those considering traveling or volunteering in Kosovo, I can assure you it’s nothing like you read in the news, and that you won’t regret the time you spend there. Just don’t be surprised if you end up staying longer than you anticipated.
