On Christmas Eve we walked up to the Qendor (also known as Skanderbeg Square) to sing Christmas carols with the missionaries. We sang for nearly an hour right under the Skanderbeg statue.
The Qendor, Tirana city center, has taken on a Christmas spirit with erected tree and note the lights on the Tirana International Hotel in background.  The opera house is on the right and you can see the 18th Century mosque just at the edge of photograph on right.
Mom really likes the diversity you find on the streets of Tirana. As we were out visiting young single adult families on Christmas Eve day, we came across these cows. Mom took a liking to these two with their big brown eyes. Then we realized they were tied up in front of a butcher's shop. The sign over the door says it all, "Mish I Fresket" -- Fresh Meat.  I'm sure these guys were destined for someone's table on Christmas day.

MY CHRISTMAS EVE MIRACLE, 2008

We were told that in Albania when winter comes, your toes don't thaw until spring.  I had brought my boots from home; but when I had tights and two pairs of thick socks on, they pinched my toes so badly that every step was painful.  The day before Christmas, after we had already walked 5 miles, we were on our way to visit the family of one of our Young Single Adults in the outskirts of Tirana.  Typically, the dirt roads outside the city are very wet and muddy and cold.  When I thought I could not take one more step, we found a tiny, rustic, second-hand shoe shop the size of an average walk-in closet.  Inside, I could barely see two very old wooden tables loaded with a variety of well-used shoes.  On top of one, there was a pair of boots with large square toes and thick rubber soles that looked nearly new.  I tried them on, and they fit perfectly.  We paid the owner 1000 lek ($10), I put my boots from home in a bag and walked back out into the daylight with a sigh of relief.  On our way home, I had the wonderful thought that Heavenly Father did not want my feet to hurt on Christmas Eve.  By the end of the day, we had walked at least 10 miles.  The comfort of the last five miles was part of a Christmas Eve miracle.  When we arrived home after dark, I took off the boots; and for the first time, I saw the brand name on the inside label--"Spirit."  God loves us.  He knows our every need.  Look for daily miracles.