Why a Europe trip? Why meet Albanians along the way? Those were the questions I put out during the journey.
In Berlin, I made one of them a small challenge: how long would it take to find an Albanian? In Prague, I had already asked where the community was.
The route gives us cities. The people give us a reason to stop and talk.
Prague: the question becomes a conversation
First came an invitation for coffee. Then a man from Klina who had spent 25 years in Prague. At Karlova 25, I introduced Sweet Corner Candy Shop as an Albanian business. These are moments from our September visit, not a directory of every Albanian business in the city.
I had asked where the Albanians were. Here were people with names, work and years of their own history in the place. The Prague coffee encounters gave that question a human answer.
Berlin: two people behind an app
In Berlin, we met Gentiana and Xhemajl, who had met through dua. They married in 2025. I got to sit with them and share a conversation.
It is one thing to talk about building a product that connects people. It is another to meet two people whose relationship continued beyond that first introduction. Their story belongs to them. You can hear it in their own words in the linked post.
The journey continues towards Hamburg
There are also the small parts between meetings. Laptops, bags and the road from Berlin to Hamburg. A new greeting: moin. Later, 10,000 steps and a little sport beside the water.
Not every stop needs a grand conclusion. Sometimes the useful thing is to ask a question, show up and listen. These encounters are a few stories from the trip, not a picture of everyone in the diaspora.
If you live in one of these cities, what would you want someone passing through to understand about your everyday life?
Related reading and sources: Original TikTok post · Related trip post 1
Onwards to Düsseldorf
On September 24, I shared the route so far: Prishtina, Vienna, Bratislava, Prague, Berlin and Hamburg. Düsseldorf was next. A few days later, we met Fidan and Samira there again, this time for a coffee after previously filming their love story.