SP campaign in a village. 

A pit-stop with our bus. 

Meeting for a Dutch drink (with 1 German) at the RNE. 

400 STOs packed for briefings 

Albania revisited / the elections (2)

So part 2 of the elections. We started again at 7.00 taking over from B team to observe the counting of the ballots. That is for sure the most dreadful job I have ever done and experienced. It was just sitting at a table, look from a distance to what the counters are doing and have a chat with one's neighbor. Happily there were lot's of complaints from the (ruling) Socialist Party (SP) and the small parties. The SP at one moment even called it's counters (there were counters from all parties in every Counting Team (CT)) to leave the gym. The ZEC posted a policeman at the door so the SP members couldn't leave and then they just simply refused to count anymore which also delayed the counting process. The SP figured it was going to loose (so far that seems true) and tried some delay-tactics to make alliances. The small parties on the other hand accused the CTs of stacking or stealing of votes. To take the unrest in the gym away, we suggested to move from behind the bar to the counting tables itself. As we were OSCE the ZEC allowed us to do that, although the observers of the Albanian Youth Council, ENEMO and party observers were not. This move, calmed down the small parties, but gave me the shock of my life. You have to know, that it is now allowed to change anything or interfere with anything as an observer, as you are simply there to OBSERVE. Well, when you see the votes of 5 small parties (all with 1 to 10 votes) being put on one pile and counted for one party, you really have to blink with your eyes to really understand what just happened. At 16.00 our shift was over and B team relieved us till 00.00.

Our zone had 57 VCs and when we returned at 00.00 only 3 more VCs had to be counted. It took them till bloody 5.30 to do that. What happened was that all the CT members got tired and went home to get some sleep after they finished their last box. Unfortunately also the CT of the very last box did that. So only the chair of the CT was still counting and when he wanted to hand it all in, it was refused by the ZEC, as the other members didn't sign. So they had to get them back, but when they finally got back, they didn't want to just accept what the chair had done and started to count all over again. I was so bloody tired at that point as it was so utterly boring...

After getting some 2 hrs sleep, we paid our driver and interpreter and got on the bus back to Tirana. At the end of the day there was a "thank you" and "farewell"-party at the Sheraton, which I survived. After that we went to the (new) Living Room (one of the hottest clubs in town) to party a little bit more, but after a little dancing I crashed at 23.00. I just sat down and stared into nothing till 00.00 when I decided to go to bed. I got a cold from the open window on the way back (still have it), had a headache and could hardly walk anymore due to lack of sleep.

After a terrible night, of hardly any sleep, I had a coffee with a very good friend first, went to the embassy to say goodbye and (finally) get my recommendation, packed and left for the airport. I was happy that Cas' driver brought me, as the bus that picked up the other delegation at their respective hotels was late and when we were already in the plane we feared that they wouldn't going to make it. They did and we had a safe flight back (else I wouldn't be writing this, ain't I?).

It was a great experience and for sure for a next time as well (although I'm not excepted in our ministries pool of STOs), but it was hard. But hey, no reward without a battle. :) Till next time, my lovely Albania. Falemenderit for everything.

Albania revisited / the elections (1)

I just love this post's title, as I also just loved to be back in Albania again. When Cas picked me up from the airport and we drove to Tirana (at night) it really felt like being home again. Strange how you can get attached to a place so easily. But I'm rushing things, let's start at the beginning.

As most of you know I had a traineeship at the Royal Netherlands Embassy (RNE) in Tirana, Albania last summer and that I enjoyed it very much there. The people, the country, the city, the work and what more. When I left in October, I knew that the parliamentary elections would take place somewhere this summer, so I already indicated at the embassy and the ministry of foreign affairs that if there would be an observation delegation, I would love to be in it. Well, there was indeed an OSCE observer delegation and after long begging, bribing, crying, emailing, writing and lot's of other indecent crap I was put on our ministry's list. Thanks to Cas and Simone for that! Although everything was a little late organised our team left last Wednesday (30/6) for Albania to return a week later on the 6/7. Simone and I slept at Cas' place with a magnificent view over Skanderberg Square and having our own bed- and bathroom.

400 Short Term Observers (STOs) from all over Europe and some other places were to see to fair and transparent elections (more about that later). We gathered at the Sheraton on Thursday to be briefed about the country, minorities, parties, electoral system, regions etc. My partner Susan, was an American from the Carter Center and we got the area/city of Kukes as our zone. Zone 12 (of 100) was our hotzone and it turned out to be a rather interesting one. After the general briefing we got a specific briefing of our region from our 2 Long Term Observers (LTOs) who were responsible for zones 9-12.

Kukes is a city in the north eastern part of Albania, next to Kosovo, and is considered a remote area. Believe me, that I have experienced first-hand. A lousy 200km from Tirana to Kukes, took us around 7 hrs! Bloody darn bad roads! The scenery was magnificent, no doubt, but after a while you get to know the bumpy road, the curves and the ups-and-downs. So it took us all Friday to get to our hotel in Kukes. Luckily we had the city and some villages around it as our zone, as the other teams had to travel even further (some stayed the night in Kosovo to get faster to their area).

Saturday we drove with our local guide and interpreter around the area and went looking for some Voting Centers (VCs), to easily get there on Sunday. The rest of the day we slept as we had to get up early on Sunday to observe the opening of a VC. Some villages were a bit further than anticipated, as we had some in our zone that were still 4 hours driving and only some 30/40 km away. Do I need to mention that we skipped those?

Sunday, E-day, we got up at 5, left the hotel at 5.30, and arrived at the first VC at 6.30. The VCs would open at 7, so that gave us time to witness the opening of a VC. Looking if the Voting Center Committee (VCC) would go through all the procedures, set everything up fine etc. The rest of the day we visited another 13 VCs to witness the voting process. I won't mention every VC, but will just give some examples of what went wrong:

• family voting = the husband (Albania is still a macho country) went in the booth with their wives and crossed the candidate/party or told the wives what to cross.
• HUGE family voting = one man went in the booth with his wife, she came out and entered the ballots, then his 28 (!!) other family members came in and the guy also crossed all their forms!
• no signatures on voters lists = no clear if someone voted already or not.
• no usage of invisible ink or check of it.
• no check of IDs.
• big muscled men outside the door of the VC = sign of intimidation.

Enough I think so, don't you? For a country that wants to become an EU member, still a lot has to change. What I heard from some other STOs: people carrying a bunch of ballot sheets on the street to fill them out at home, people asking for more ballot sheets and the VCC answering "you will get some some when the observers are gone". Go figure...

The last VC we visited was also the observation of the closing of a VC, as all VCs should close at 19.00 if there wasn't a queue anymore. After counting the used ballot sheets, closing/sealing all the boxes, we drove with the VCC under police escort to the Counting Center (CC) to hand over the ballot boxes. There we had to wait for an hour as there were already a lot of VCs waiting in front of us. Do we finally get to the point where we can hand in the ballot boxes, the Zone Election Committee (ZEC) refuses to take our boxes in, as one of the boxes has a different seal number than the ZEC has on their list. The ZEC handed out the boxes and seals, so they must have made a mistake noting all the numbers. The boxes are declared irregular and will be send to Tirana. Our VC happened to be the biggest one in our zone, that's why we picked this one last...

Then our job is finally done and B team takes over for the counting shift. It's 23.00 when I get into bed and we have to releave B team at 7.00 again...

Back from Albania

Ok, I'm back after an exhausting time, travel and night. Hardly slept as I had a cold and my nose kept running. Went clubbing till 00.00, but was at 23.00 so tired that I sat down on a couch and just stared to nowhere. Must have been a terrible date... :( Had to get up this morning early as well, as I had some coffee dates and had to go to the embassy. Will take another pill now and go to bed. Will sleep till I wake up. Might be afternoon. More stories about the elections and observer things in Albania soon.

German ELSA NCM Frankfurt/Oder

Well, I went to FFO last Saturday and it took me a bloody 13.5 hours, as I missed 1 train and one other had a delay. It should have taken only 8.5 hours... Ah well, am now sure that ELSA NCMs are not really for me anymore, as I hardly knew any people and the parties aren't that good anymore as they used to be. I might also get old... :)

Christina was voted unanimously with 122 votes as the new president of ELSA Germany and I am positive that she will do a great job for Germany and internationally. Hope also that she will kick the IBs ass, as there always stays a kind of Cold War between Germany and the IB. Very fun though. I once suggested to stop all the payments from Germany to the IB (around 15.000€ of a the IB's budget of around 120.000), but my board considered that too harsh. :)

Anyway, will see how many ELSA things I will visit. Think my days are really over now.

OSCE Mission Albania

Finally went to the ministry today to get my documents, money and tickets. They booked us a very shitty flight, as we arrive tomorrow at 23.55 at Tirana and fly from Schiphol at 20.05. Will be back the 6th at 19.20, so if someone wants to pick me up?

The Dutch delegation will consist of 8 participants, of whom I am the youngest by far. The others are not only older, but also experienced in observer missions. They've been in Kosovo, Bosnia, Serbia and more for that already. The only advantage I have, is that I know the country and the backgrounds of some issues and problems, due to my working experience at the embassy last summer. Will do my best and see how it will go. At least it's a great opportunity to go back and do something completely new. I applied for the internal MFA pool for observer missions, so I need to have some experience and this will be good to get in. I am most curious where I will be placed and with whom, as you are sent in couples.

Will try to keep you all updated, but since I don't know yet where I will be placed, I might not have any interenet around. Will see. Will for sure post a review after I have returned. For now, goodnight and till next week! :)

Did I mention it was a convertible? 

Great Ass!!! 

The cute monster 

Z4

A few weeks ago I had a BMW Z4 for a (long) weekend in my posession. I won a contest at CCDrive (my work) a long, long time ago and was finally able to cash the prize in. It was the perfect weekend for it, as the sun was shining, the weather was great, and Christina was here. My god, what a great car that is. It has hardly any space inside (although it has a big trunk), but the cornering is fantastic, the stability is superb and the looks are perfect. I am happy to live near the Germany border (no speed limits there), so I took it for a spin and got to 230km/h... It's a kind of car where I very well could get used to... :) It's also a car that when you drive it, everyone looks at you, thinking "some rich yupp" or "rich daddies son", but it was great. Drove through inner roads to Pieterburen and watched some seals, back through Lauwersoog, Bedum, Haren, Glimmen and other rich villages where the Hamptons would easily could stand the comparisation. Too bad that I had to hand the car in at the end of 3 days superb touring and fully enjoying. God, ain't I blessed? :)

My university 

The fresh BA (middle) with entourage. 

What a player... 

Bert as Wigger... 

Bert caught shopping! (see the face...) 

Election observer

If all goes well I will be in Albania next Wednesday. I have been trying to get into the election observer mission of the OSCE/ODIHR for the parliamentery elections on the 3rd of July, since I left Albania last year October. I knew that this would take place and that I would be a great opportunity to get back (for free) and see the country and everyone again. As I was/am not in the election observer pool of our ministry (you have to apply for that and I just did, as I had to wait for the annoucement to do so), I had to use every contact I got in Albania and here on our Foreign Ministry. Sometimes life is all about contacts... But I can say that it worked and that from the 29th of June till the 6th of July I will be somewhere in Albania helping counting votes, observing the election process and what more... God, I'm looking forward to that. I might not have been graduated yet, but I've done so many crazy and special things already. I really love life. :)

Lonely Planet

Today at 11, my doorbell rang. I didn't expect anyone, so I was suprized to see the postman standing for my door with 2 packages. As I didn't order anything and didn't expect anything, I was really curious what it would be. The label said Lonely Planet which confused me even more. In both packages was the same: the new Cityguide for Istanbul. I am confused, as I have no clue why they sent me 2 copies of Istanbul. I have never been there and also don't have plans to go there. The only things I can think of are that I participated in another contest or that this is my reward for commenting on the LP of the Transsib. The first I cannot remember, the latter was right after I travelled, so that's quite a long while ago. So I called LP, to figure out what was the deal. (Believe me: I love presents, but I want to know why and don't need the same twice...) They didn't know as well, but would try to figure out why I got them. In the meantime I have 2 copies of Istanbul: anyone? :)