Burden and Blessing

Shote lives in Switzerland and has everything her relatives in Kosovo could ever want: freedom, opportunities and ambitions. Ever since childhood, however, she has felt that something is missing. When her grandmother dies and leaves her a notebook listing destinations in Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and northern Macedonia, the young woman decides to travel alone to these countries to seek clarity about her path in life. On her journey, she not only discovers old anecdotes, tales and myths, but also finds new friends, love and herself.

Shqipe Sylejmani was born in Prishtina, Kosovo in 1988 and has lived in Switzerland since the age of four. She studied journalism and communication in Zurich and has worked as a journalist in Switzerland and New York, among other places. She has been involved in the field of cultural promotion since 2018 and is president of the association "Kulturwerkstatt:Techno". In her debut work, the novel "Burden & Blessing - A tale of two worlds", she looks back on her migration experience and her journeys to her homeland.