Something nice to say about Prishtina

I have often been a bit harsh about Prishtina. It is too easy to do. Prishtina is such an obvious target for criticism, that it almost becomes cheap. So let's look on the bright side. Today I am feeling in good spirits. Possibly this is because I will be getting away from Prishtina in a few days time. Very definitely it is because I will be getting away from a job I have not enjoyed and a boss I have not got on with. But I also find myself feeling more positive about Prishtina.

It's a nice spring day. Arriving at my office (not to work, it's Sunday, and I was just there to fetch the car), there was a man across the street sweeping up the dust and muck in the gutter. Now that is a step forward. One of the worst things about Prishtina in summer, when it is hot and dry, is the dust swirling around, getting in your eyes, making them sting, and in your throat, making you cough. But now they're cleaning the street. That is a novelty, and very welcome. I think this town is getting better. Another surprise this spring is the sprouting, here and there, of little patches of garden, tended lawns and flower beds. Someone is trying to make the town look prettier. Someone is trying to encourage a new spirit of civic pride among the citizens of Pishtina. Perhaps they might even stop chucking rubbish about.

And there are nice things to do. It's good to be able to say that there are even some things which are really good. For example, Prishtina boasts a really cool cafe, Strip Depo. The quirky decor, with the hotch-potch of furniture, the absence of any sense of theme in the eclectic choice of pictures adorning the walls, it all seems great fun. The music's good too. At one time this was a favoured haunt for younger Prishtina intellectual types, but its popularity has spread much wider now. No point in going in the middle of the day, when it's heaving with people, but in early evening, it's a pleasant place to relax in a deep armchair, with a coffee and a fresh orange juice.

Today I had a walk and lunch (trout with grilled courgettes and carrots and a Greek salad, washed down with Peja beer) at Germia. Loads of people out enjoying the sun and the fresh air away from the town, children running about, screaming with pleasure in the spring warmth. It could be a park anywhere in Europe. Prishtina is coming on. Yes, there is plenty to complain about. Hardly surprising in a place that was recently one of the poorest, least developed backwaters of Europe, suffering under the heal of an Apartheid-like regime. It's all too easy to look on the bad side. But things are getting better. Someone once divided Eastern Europe into the "Europe of Hope", and the "Europe of No-Hope". Kosovo is now part of the "Europe of Hope".