Around the World with Veralana…Part One

Before my children were born I worked in international health, and had the opportunity to travel to many of our projects overseas. I thought it might be fun to pull out some of my old photos from those trips and share a little of my travels. These are all scanned images I took with my handy APS film camera.

The first in my series is Albania. The poorest country in Europe, Albania has a rich and interesting history. When I went there in the early 2000s, they were still suffering from the aftermath of living under the Hoxha regime (when it was isolated from both the East and the West) and the difficulties of converting from a socialist to a market economy. The image above is from an area in the hills near the capital, Tirana.

My work in Albania was mostly in improving primary health care, women’s health services, and emergency medical services. One of the major challenges was the lack of medical supplies and aging facilities. The image below is on the grounds of one of the main hospitals in Tirana.

I miss traveling, but I wouldn’t change my decision to change my career focus so I can spend more time with my children. I’m hoping that as they get older I can combine my photography with my background in international development, maybe taking photos for international organizations. But in the meantime I will search through my box of photos for some more images for my series. Check back soon for images from India.

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