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Kostas comes from Albania ; he was born in 1971 at Tropoja and came in Greece for the first time in 1991. At the time of the interview his worked as a 'Owner of a fast food shop'.
Interview date: 01/06/2005
Researcher who did the interview: Alexandra Siotou
Subfield of the interview: Labor
The interview was conducted in the university building. Kostas was born in 1971 in the city of Bajamtzouri, near Tropoja. When he was 18 years old, he moved to Tirana in order to study in drama school. However, he didn´t complete his studies, since when he was in the third year of his studies he decided to migrate to Greece, mainly for economic reasons. He describes in full detail his adventurous journey to Greece. He first came to the Kanalia village near Volos, where he worked in the fields. He managed to gather some money and he also brought his wife to Greece. They both worked for some time in a restaurant in Keramidi. Then a Greek man, who was also a fan of Enver Hoxha, helped his wife get a job in a private hospital in Volos. As a result, they moved to Volos where Kostas worked at a pizzeria for four years and then at a fast food shop for seven years. Now, he owns his own fast food shop in Volos. He describes the difficulties he faced when he first opened his shop due to bureaucracy but also to racist attitudes towards him. He also talks about the riots after the football match between Greece and Albania in 2004 and his involvement in these events. He doesn´t think much of the communist past. He doesn´t believe in religion, but he goes to church and his two children have been baptized. He talks about the Canun and Albanian music. He notes that although he mostly feels Albanian, he doesn´t intend to return to Albania.
