Riding the Rails

 

At this point in our lives, where we are still young, unexperienced, and our souls still long for the unknown and the desire of trying new things still yearns within ourselves, why not use every second of our passing life to try and feel new emotions? So, that’s what I did on the 16th of March, which happened to be a Thursday.  I experienced something that I have never had and that was my first train ride. Since the firsts are always special, I wanted to share my experience with you.

Knowing that I will be traveling by train, made me lose most of my sleep the night before. I met with my friends, and I found myself at the train station. It had these beautiful murals on the outside, but once I stepped foot on the inside, I felt somehow abandoned- because that’s what the station was, no one was working there and I could see papers and pens left behind in the receptionist desk. It looked like they left in a rush and they never came back. My traveling mind got cut off by the loud sound of a crackling railway, it was the train that was coming to a halt right before my eyes. I took the train at 07:50 from Prishtinë to Drenas- a city I have never been to. I sat down, my face facing the window as I was so eager to see, hear, smell everything my senses could catch. As I was observing the train and its people inside, I heard a breathless voice of a man informing his friend that he caught the train on time and that he also got a seat- which I assume he was also surprised by how many people were there. The train was moving, though my body was still, my mind wasn’t. I remembered stories that the elders have told me, about the war and how they left their dear country by train, with a heavy heart and tired bodies. While I was still hearing crackling sounds under my boots, outside the window my eyes were noticing the beautiful, long, greenish fields which were filled with pits of water here and there, it just brought a sense of appreciation to me for our nature and how lucky we are to be a part of it. By the loud honk of the train, I noticed that we stopped at a station into which more people came in. Into that crowd of people was an old lady with a blue scarf wrapped around her head to protect her from the cold. This old lady came and sat across the seat from mine. I watched her from time to time, because her wrinkly cold hands and her skin tone reminded me of my grandmother, her hands that have fed, healed, and held me. The old lady was having a chat with a younger lady that was sitting next to her and they turned out to be from the same village. How I love this of us Albanians, wherever you go, you will always run into someone who you somehow have a connection with. 

The train was moving in a normal rhythm. We passed through a pitch-black tunnel and then after a couple of seconds we were in broad daylight again. It made me think of how every dark time ends and how we push ourselves for the better each day. Not everything bad lasts forever. Everything must come to an end, such as this train ride, which will be a memorable experience for me.

Photo taken by: Vildane Kçiku

                                                           

                                                         Rona Avdyli