How I barely avoided a tear gas riot in Pristina, Kosovo

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(the article below accompanies this video)

Today was a very strange day in Kosovo. I just missed getting caught in an angry mob before police started throwing tear gas and using hoses and rubber bullets to disperse it.

I woke up at 4:30 am, low; my blood sugar was 42 so I ate four cookies and went back to sleep.

Later at 9:30, I was 200. I didn’t think the cookies were that rich, but I guess I only needed two. Masayo was feeling a little better, but still wasn’t in the mood to go out or do anything at all. That tear gas residue she inhaled yesterday really knocked her out.

She did go out of the room to have breakfast downstairs, though, and it was excellent again. I only had a half of a piece of bread this time, wanting to keep the carbs low to see if my BG would behave.

A little while later I wanted to go out. The demonstration two days ago had resulted in several windows in “the government building”, a few blocks from our hotel, being broken with rocks. I had seen video of it happening on BBC News and wanted to go see the aftermath for myself, if they hadn’t repaired them yet.

I left the room and got distracted by a TV that was on in the hotel dining area on my way out. It seemed to be live news, and I could see what seemed to be the Albanian word for “protest” on the screen. A woman was giving an impassioned speech. Was this happening right now? Here in Prishtina? Was it safe? It seemed so; just a speech.

I walked out and followed the roads towards the government building. When I got close, I saw that several police officers were gathered, chatting idly but expectantly. There were barriers and I couldn’t get close to the large government building. I took a photo of the police and the building, but I couldn’t see any broken windows.

I walked a couple streets over and around a corner, and saw a large crowd. People walking around seemed relaxed enough, but I felt an urgency in the air. Perhaps I was imagining it. But then I saw a large part of the crowd start running away from the government building. It stopped soon, but that was enough for me.

I turned around and walked back towards the hotel. Actually, I took a wrong turn and ended up back near the government building, but not really that near the crowd. Anyway, I found my way back to the hotel, safe and sound. Masayo was still resting.

I turned on the TV in our room; the reception was fuzzy but it was a much more violent scene than I had seen on TV when I left: tear gas smoke shot back and forth, people were running and yelling, and the camera was shaking all over in the commotion.

So, I had just avoided this scene, which was unfolding near the government building and along Xhorxh Bush Boulevard. I could recognize some parts of it where we had just been yesterday, like the Western Union office on the corner of the plaza.

I watched, transfixed, and it felt like Masayo and I were reporting from Iraq or something. I didn’t feel like there was any danger. The people on the streets near the hotel were acting normal, shopping and everything. I guess that’s what happens while a riot is going on in one part of town — life goes on elsewhere.

I checked my BG and was 293. Strangely high after breakfast. I didn’t feel it was “stress” that had made it high, but maybe. I had a small cereal snack and some Humalog.

Later before dinner I was down to 86. The Humalog had done its job! The TV news showed that the fracas had died down, and though the area was fairly empty and debris-strewn, it looked safe. The rubber bullets (which I read in a news story had been used) and tear gas had worked.

I went out to get dinner for us — to the bakery across the street, where I got some burek for both of us. It was good; we ate it in the room and tried to forget about the feeling of violence a few blocks from the hotel.

Unfortunately something happened, and my BG at 10 pm was a really high 389. I’ll blame the ups and downs today on the stress of excitement plus the boredom of sitting around the room.

Masayo and I decided in the evening not to go anywhere else in Kosovo right now. We had wanted to see some of the famous Serbian monasteries, but they have been a point of contention themselves, and since a recent news story said that protests were going on “across Kosovo” we decided to find our way to Macedonia tomorrow.

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