July 17

Hello again,

On Monday afternoon Jill and I both had two studies. Jill had her first study with one of the Christians at the Durres beach church. They are studying Proverbs. I had two studies with my two non-Christian friends, Igli and Myfit. We have finished the material about the prophets and other Old Testament material and are now studying the life of Jesus. Please take a second to pray for Igli's and Myfit's hearts to be open the message.

Amelia still has a fever. She is spending most of her time resting on the couch and watching American cartoons dubbed in German. I didn't know Sponge Bob was bilingual. With Amelia being home-bound, one of the adult Martin's has to stay at the apartment. Quinton and Helen are quite helpful with the care giving. Today, H. and Q. are at one of Helen's student's apartments as she need help moving and setting up some computer equipment.

We had our devotional this morning at 9:00. Alfred and Adriana were not in attendance as they were checking on some air conditioners for the church building. The building is in desperate need of air conditioning -- especially in the evening.

Last night after my studies Igli and I rode in his father's car to Durres city. At the main bus stop we picked up Myfit and then headed up some rather narrow and dilapidated streets until we arrived at our destination at one of the highest points in Durres. We parked near the top of a hill and then continued to walk up the hill about 100 yards to the base of a grand mansion. According to Igli and Myfit, this grand home was constructed in the 1920's by Albania's king. The home is "off limits" to visitors; however, Myfit persuaded the uniformed guard/soldier to allow us to enter the home. (Myfit has a friend who previously worked inside the home. Somehow this connection helped get us special access to the home. It may have also helped that they were showing an American the great city of Durres.) The guard pulled aside a bar gate wrapped in some nasty looking barbed wire and we walked up the driveway to the home.

Now that I had a better view of the home I could see some graffiti on the ground floor walls and most of the windows were broken out. The view of the Adriatic from this vantage point however was magnificent. Another soldier escorted us into the home. (Before going inside he was kind enough to take a picture of my friends and me as we stood in front of the Adriatic.) Once inside the mansion I couldn't believe what I saw. The home was absolutely ruined. The wooden floors were ripped up or badly damaged, what little paint there was on the walls was peeling, tile was broken, chandeliers were missing, and the marble staircase was falling apart. As we began our ascent on this staircase it creaked. I stopped in my tracks and questioned the safety our our home-tour. Igli assured me it was okay. Thus, we ventured up to the second floor and out onto a terrace. Here I took more pictures of Durres and the Sea. We proceeded to climb stairways and access terraces -- I took pictures on every level. At one point I saw the open elevator shaft and carried its former homeowners to any of the homes 4-5 levels.

After climbing a second narrower staircase to the top, we stepped out onto the roof. The roof of this grand mansion is now the home to no less than 15 satellite dishes and antennae. Cell phone and communication companies found a wonderful spot to post their equipment and apparently the Albanian government thought the price was right. We climbed yet another small iron staircase to the utmost point on the roof. We were surrounded by antennae and support cables as we stepped out on the roof's ledge for the best visual vantage point. At this point I broke out my video camera as well as my still camera to get a panoramic shot of the city, coast, and sea. The sun was also just about to set over the Adriatic--quite pretty. After a few minutes on the roof we began our descent and finally exited the home.

Igli told me the house was ransacked in 1997. Apparently the citizens of Albania has reached a breaking point about the downfall of the economy of other issues and took it out on this government building. I would estimate the home is some 7,000 square feet. It rests on a high hill overlooking the Adriatic and the city of Durres. Can you imagine the value of this home if it was is good condition in America? It seemed strange to be walking around such a grand mansion that was in such horrible condition. In a way it is a microcosm of Albania itself. Albania is a beautiful country with lots of potential but has been beaten down by wars, communism, a misdirected dictator, and economic difficulties. Lord willing, it will rise again and the church will grow in this beautiful country.
Take care,
Darin