Check out this short piece I wrote for Allegra Laboratories on ethnography in Prishtina's cafes! There's more after the link!
EXCERPT: It’s cooling down now, and the weather would be pleasant, except the sun’s in my eyes. The time is approximately 7 pm, and I’m sitting at a table on the crowded patio of a cafe on Zahir Pajaziti square, a large, concrete public space in Pristina dedicated to a deceased Kosovo Liberation Army commander. Grimacing in the light, I order a small macchiato (makiato e vogël), thinking “at least the coffee looks nice” and, with my heart-rate accelerating, I look attentively over the patio. Who’s here, what are they doing, what’s the cafe like, what’s happening? Upbeat electronic music plays in the background, while the waiters, dressed sharply, serve a mixture of makiatos, ice cream, and juices. Many of my fellow patrons at this particular cafe seem to be of middle class backgrounds, with most people sitting in groups of 2 to 6, sometimes more. To my left, I see a group composed of two young men, two young women, and their children relaxing. They are having a political discussion, with words such as “Amerika” and “Thaçi,” Kosovo’s current prime minister, being accompanied by snorts of amusement.
Chris In Prishtina
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Friday, July 11, 2014
Prishtina in Photos, Part 2: Scenes of Change
Buildings near City Centre |
The series of photographs below are some of the changes seen (and often heard) in Prishtina, and, as such, they are only a part of the overall picture. As such, I will be posting more photos soon.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
The Public Sphere in Prishtina: Rhetoric, Relationships, and Urban Space
Prishtina City Centre |
Since arriving in early June, I have
been undertaking my fieldwork in Prishtina, Kosovo, on political
rhetoric and urban mobilisation. I am interested in how rhetoric, as
a “moving force” between culture and events, may influence how
people form their relationships and how they mobilise. My research
then inquires into the reasons through which political actions occur
and how communities form and fragment.
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
First Month in Prishtina!
Makiato, the symbol of my fieldwork. |
Friday, June 27, 2014
Dardania
Dardania |
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Prishtina in Photos, Part I
A number of you have requested that I post photos of my time here in Prishtina. If you were one of this group, I hope you enjoy these photos, which I've taken over the last week. However, these pictures also represent some of my initial impressions of the city, and, as a result, they begin an ongoing series of posts through which I document my fieldwork.
Street leading from Mother Teresa Blvd., City Centre. |
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Back in Prishtina!
Skanderbeg Statue, Prishtina City Centre |
I first traveled to Prishtina in March 2013, when I visited the city as part of my Masters programme at the interdisciplinary Durham Global Security Institute, located at Durham University. We spent about a week there, visiting people and organisations involved in Kosovo's reconstruction and statebuilding. Through this experience, I gained an interest in Prishtina's politics, leading me to conduct my dissertation research there during summer 2013 on communication and Kosovo Albanian identity. Following the course's conclusion, I embarked on a PhD programme in Socio-Cultural Anthropology, also at Durham University, and I began to plan for a year of fieldwork in Prishtina on rhetoric and political action.
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