Chris Banyas
Life Editor
Sometimes we forget how profound the experience of living completely on our own for the first time can be.
Suddenly, all the things that were taken for granted become skills that must be learned and refined in very short order so we may continue to function and meet our other commitments.
Lori Cobani, a biochemistry major originally from Albania, experienced this a short while after arriving at Idaho State University and did so in a country that was still new to him.
“I had to cook for myself, do laundry, go grocery shopping and do everything for myself, by myself,” said Cobani. “That’s not something that’s very exciting but it was a period of time when I learned a lot of things about how life is and how it might be in the future. Coming here and being able to survive by myself without using my native language, without speaking face-to-face with people who speak that language and kind of rebuilding my life over and over again, this has been very difficult.”
Cobani grew up in a city called Pogradec, which sits on the shores of Ohrid Lake.
“It’s in the southeast of Albania, very close to the border with Macedonia and Greece as well,” said Cobani. “We have a very big lake that makes the area famous. When we say that we are from the city, that’s the first thing that people think about.”
The Ohrid Trout, also known as Koran in Albania, is an endemic species that only exists in the Balkan region, and can be found in Ohrid Lake.
“People that come there as tourists, they want to try them because it’s very delicious,” said Cobani.
Regionally, the fish has played such a large role that Macedonia depicts it on the reverse of one of its coins.
Growing up, Cobani worked in a grocery store co-owned by his father, performing a variety of different duties.
“It’s one of those jobs that teaches you how to interact with people, customers and doing it at that age is kind of helpful,” said Cobani. “Starting from the easiest things and doing even more difficult things, working as a cashier when you are able to be more responsible.”
Cobani’s mother is a physical education instructor and was involved with the girls’ basketball team at his school when he was 14 years old.
“It was kind of embarrassing, seeing her around,” recalled Cobani. “The other girls complained, ‘oh, your mother makes us run a lot.’”
One of Cobani’s cousins was already attending ISU at the time of his graduation from high school but that was only part of the reason he chose to attend.
“Over there you don’t have choices, everything is mandatory in high school,” said Cobani. “Even if you choose a major they have a plan and this is the plan that you have to follow. They decide what you’re going to take and when.”
The freedom of scheduling is something that Cobani found very helpful.
“Some people like to sleep in the morning and that’s why I don’t’ like to choose classes at eight in the morning,” said Cobani.
After family and friends, Cobani misses the food in Albania the most.
“Here people grill foods like McDonalds and burgers like that. I don’t know how they survive eating those every day,” said Cobani. “The burgers and the fries that they eat with every meal and also the fountain drinks are something new for me.”
Albania exists in a unique location in the world. It sits at the junction between east and west and foods from all of the surrounding regions are present.
Cobani’s favorite Albanian food is something called lakror.
“It’s something that is difficult to cook. It’s made with dough,” said Cobani. “It might seem like a pizza but there are two layers of dough and in between it can be filled with different things.”
The dough is rolled out very thin using a kind of rolling pin that is much longer and much thinner than those usually seen in the U.S.
Cobani spends his free time following the Italian soccer team Juventus , or playing guitar, but has always found time for the Albanian team.
“As for the national team I always follow their games and I might also skip classes to watch,” said Cobani.
The pace of life in the U.S. compared to his home is one of the biggest differences that Cobani has noticed.
“Here you don’t have time in the morning to get a coffee and sit and have a conversation with your friends or read the newspaper. You have to just grab it and run,” said Cobani. “Over there people like to take things easier, to have more fun.”
