[0:11]Tani do t'ju tregojmë një histori shumë të bukur që daton në vitin 98 në fakt. Para 20 vitesh një çift nga Franca vijnë në Shqipëri për shkak të punës së bashkëshortit në fakt, i cili ka qenë diplomat. Vijnë në Shqipëri për shkak të punës, por në fakt ata vendosin të birësojnë një djalë me origjinë nga Shkodra dhe sot ai djali të jetë bashkë me ta në Francë. Unë sot kam nderin dhe kënaqësinë të kem të ftuar në studio zonjën Klod Viver Legot. E thashë mirë, shpresoj. Mirëmbrëma. Good evening. Mirëmbrëma. Mirëmbrëma. Bashkë me djalin e saj i cili është Korentin Legot. Korentin mirëmbrëma. Good evening. Good evening. Atëherë ne do ta realizojmë intervistën tonë në shqip dhe në anglisht, për shkak se shqipen e njeh pak zonja, apo më mirë të flasim anglisht. Atëherë para 20 vitesh ju vini në Shqipëri me bashkëshortin tuaj për punën që ai ushtronte në atë kohë dhe gjërat morën një tjetër rrjedhë. Çfarë ndodhi në atë kohë? So 20 years ago you came in Albania in order to follow your husband for his job and your life changed. But let's say first of all why you are in Albania. Përse jeni në Shqipëri në këtë kohë? I'm now in Albania because I'm the director of a European federation of education, one of the largest federations in terms of higher education. But I'm working with Albanian private universities, business groups. We help them to raise the standards, European standards, quality of education, high level of curriculum and good professors. Okay. Sa ditë do të qëndrojë në Shqipëri? How many days are you gonna stay here? We are going to stay just two days. We arrived yesterday, and we will leave tomorrow on Sunday. Ëhë, okay. Dhe dua të qëndrojmë tek historia juaj. Në 98-ën deri në 2002-shin, ju qëndroni në Shqipëri për punën e bashkëshortit. Si ka qenë ajo kohë në Shqipëri? From 1998 until 2002 you stayed in Albania. How was Albania in that period? Well, I didn't really stay. I was just traveling from Paris to Tirana, two times a month, and I stayed just for the weekends. In that period, Albania was really different. I remember it was just bad, bad, starting from the electricity. We were doing the washing machine in the morning and praying that it could have done a round circle until the end of the day, due to the lack of electricity.
[2:59]And okay, so this was the moment that you found in Albania. Kështu ka qenë Shqipëria në atë kohë. Ndërkohë ju vendosnit që të vendosët që të zgjeroni familjen tuaj dhe vendosët të birësonit një djalë. Dhe kjo besoj ka qenë fillimisht edhe një vendim shumë i vështirë. Po, përse e vendosët? Si ishte në atë kohë të birësosh dikë? Like okay you wanted to enlarge your family and you decided to adopt a baby in Albania. Why you decided that moment and it was difficult for you? Yes, it's always difficult. I think that for men and women, all the human beings, they want to create their family. And to create your family you need to have children. And at that time unfortunately I was not able to have a child. I was doing a lot of examinations. But my age was going, and I was exaggerating a little bit because I was still in my 30s. And in fact adoption of a child was something so normal for us. Okay, you can have your child. But there are a lot of children waiting for parents. And in fact, it was the moment when my husband was going to come in Albania. It was so suddenly so normal to come here and to adopt a baby. We had no preference for a boy or a girl. It was just a baby. Ëhë. Edhe erdhi momenti që ju erdhët në kontakt me nuk e di dua të ma tregoni dhe në detaje si arrite që të gjeni dhe Korentinin. Okay, so tell me the details. How did you find Korentin? Well, it was a long way with a lot of stones and very, very, very unsafe. They told us that they were going to have twins. They were girls. And you who don't have a baby can suddenly have twins. But they were adopted by an American couple. And now you just have to accept to be part of the family, one of them.
[5:02]Disappointment, the huge disappointment. Oh, no, the family is postponed. One day my husband found me. No, no. In fact, it was not at that time. We were dining with the head of the adoption association. And she said to me, I'm sorry Claude, but we don't have any children at the moment. But next time you come, after two, three or six months, you can adopt a child. I sent her home. When we got out of the car, she turned to me and said, I love you Claude. Have faith. I will find you your little girl.
[5:41]And I say, Da Leah, I will never forget her name. And I tell her, Da Leah, what does it matter if it's a girl or a boy? I just want to create a family. And she tells me with surprise, You're ready for a boy? And I repeat, what's the matter?
[6:08]A few hours before she said, you're going to have a family, maybe in three months, in six months. And suddenly she said, but you're going to be a mother. So I was really in a shock. And of course, I will come to Korentin because I want to know all the story. Dua, do të shkoj dhe tek pyetjet tek Korentini, sepse vjen një moment që e adoptoni me gjithë këto burokracitë që keni kaluar. Por dua të ndalesha pak tek emri. Emri që i keni vendosur ka një kuptim. So, what about the name of his, of your boy? Like you found something in our vocabulary in Albania. Can you tell me what's the meaning of the name? I think that all the girls when they are little, they think about how they will name their child. I am from the western part of France, from the Gallic, near England. There is a legend, the legend of King Arthur, with about 79 round tables, which were called Lancelot.
[7:16]So it was said that in my dreams, if one day I am a mother, if I have a boy, he will be named like Lancelot, this knight so powerful, so romantic, with the lake because it's Lancelot of the lake. So with the powerful, romantic, like the lake more or less, because Lancelot was the lake. So it has to do with water. And my husband said to me, but you know, there is a little photo. I only know his date of birth. And he was born on the 21st of April. I said, okay. So I said, okay, there is a boy, 21st of April.
[8:18]And I was like on a little cloud. I said, it's him. What a coincidence. Yes, great coincidence. Okay, Korentin. No, my name is not Lancelot. No, I wouldn't prefer the name Lancelot, absolutely. No, I wouldn't prefer the name Lancelot. Megjithatë Korentin, më trego pak, a je i lumtur që të ka birësuar një familje franceze, e cila nuk të ka lënë gjë pra i ke të gjitha. Like are you happy that is the French family that like that adopted you and now you have everything that you wanted in life? Yeah, I'm really happy that it's a French family because, first of all, France looks a bit like Albania. We have mountains, lakes. Of course, it's a bigger place, but I feel like I'm in a bigger Albania.
[9:09]I come here to Tirana and I go back to France, but I feel good here. It's good. A ndjehesh shqiptar? E ndjen gjakun tënd shqiptar? Do you feel Albanian? Like your Albanian blood? Do you feel it anytime? So when I'm, I'm always proud to say that I'm from Albania, but deep inside me, I feel Albanian. What do you know about Albania? Like the language, the culture? So I don't know much, sadly. I'm, I'm trying to learn a lot, especially now, about politics and geopolitics. It's not the best, I know, but I'm a journalism student in my last year, and I'm doing a project more focused on Albania this year. So I'm trying to talk about this country, especially with a political aspect as well. Sa herë ke ardhur në Shqipëri? How many times have you been in Albania? It's my third time, I think now. Okay, I don't remember much, but it's my second time exactly that I'm trying to discover this country for real.
[10:23]I want to ask your mother before we started the interview we had this talk about the moment that you told him that he's adopted, but you said there was no moment. He always knew that. Tell me about this process.
[10:53]Well, it's not so difficult because he was just two years old. And when I came back home, I was trying to talk to him in half Albanian, half French. Unfortunately, he was too young to learn Albanian. But again, I thought that if he understood me better, he would achieve it. We have always had a lot of friends in Albania. Oh, I remember, you were four years old when you came for the first time. You came because you were baptized here by your godmother, who is Albanian. So from the first start, oh, yes, you came back when you were four years old because you had your, you were baptized here, you were baptized here, you were baptized here. So, we have always lived with this. We always knew that he had come from Albania, and we accepted that we were his heart parents, but not his blood parents. It was just like normal for him.
[11:56]Yeah, because he was a little boy. Korentin, patjetër shumë njerëz besoj të kanë bërë këtë pyetje, përsa i përket kuriozitetit për të gjetur anën tënde, prindërit biologjikë. E ke kërkuar ndonjëherë? Like many people have, I think they are very curious to know if you have ever searched about your biological parents. I tried to search and it's really hard.
[12:18]I came to the conclusion that I don't want to know anything more about them. I have my parents, and even if they're not blood-related, it doesn't matter. They're the people who were there for me, who taught me many things. And yeah. Of course. Çfarë do të kishte ndryshuar nëse ti do i gjeje prindërit? What would have changed if you ever found them? Nothing, nothing because, just to face it once, but it wouldn't change anything. I don't even think I would talk to them. Okay. Çfarë informacione ke për familjen tënde biologjike? What information do you have about your family? Like a few one. I have, so on this birth certificate there was a name written on it. This is all I know about them, only from the mom's side, not from the dad's side. And there is a year as well. So that's the only information I have, only from the mom's side, not from the dad's side. Your mom, how old was she? She was 16 years old when she gave birth to me. Okay. Mamaja ka qenë vetëm 16 vjeç kur e ka lindur. It's a beautiful and strange story, on and on. Okay, tell about his education. I know he's like he likes journalism, sailing, is it right? Ai i pëlqen atij t'i pëlqen të studiojë gazetari dhe më duket edhe lundrimin apo jo? Tell about these passions. So I, but this is coming from my mom. I've always loved to travel since I was little. My mom used to take me on a boat for holidays. I kept taking classes during the summer. And one day when I was 16, I decided to become a sailor. And when I was 19 years old in England, I decided to stop my studies for six months and do a sailing training called the yacht master, which means that I'm a like a professional sailor. Okay. Dua të di pak kush ka lidhjen më të fortë me Korentinin, ti apo bashkëshorti? Who has the most, let's say, the most strong connection with the, with the son, you or your husband? Both. Both. I want one. You can ask. No, I think I have more with my mom I have more connection like in the fact traveling, discovering things. We always 100% like we always do many things. So on this I'm more like my mom. Okay. Duke njohur tani shqiptarët dhe francezët, ku beson që ngjan më shumë ti, si je i ndarë nga shqiptarët dhe nga francezët, karakteristikat që ke marrë nga të dyja palët? Now you know both cultures, I think, French of course and Albanian. What do you find from Albania and what do you find from French in your character? Be honest. I'm not stressed and I think this is from Albanian blood. You are not stressed. Shqiptarët bëhen pak vonë, më shumë se francezët. Gjithashtu mendoj se dhe tek francezët e gjej veten shumë. Dashurinë për ushqimin e kam marrë nga të dyja vendet. Oh, you know if he's French or Albanian?
[16:03]But apparently I'm very late most of the time. Okay, we are late. And, and I think what I took from France is discovering many things. Okay. Like the, and the good food is from both countries. I think we are lucky for that. So different but good food. Claude, I want to know now about your work with your son. Were you prepared the moment you adopted him? Did you know what to expect, because it definitely has its own difficulties. I know that the moment that you decided to adopt, it was a process, a psychological process. Were you ready to do this thing? Yes, I was very ready. When deep inside you feel that you are going to create a family, when you notice that this is what you want most, it looks exactly like a cure.
[16:51]When the doctor says you're not having a baby by your own, you try endlessly with treatments until you understand that it's not possible. Therefore, the question of a possible adoption was not at all a question. The doctor tells you that you cannot have a child. So I linked the child with adoption. It was an immediate approach. There was no blood or heart division. You say just switch the mind for me. It was so easy, not the blood, the heart, just switch, switch, of course, and now you have a son that loves you and he's making you proud. Dhe tani keni një djalë që ju bën krenar apo jo? I'm very proud of him because the first impression was if I was going to have him in my body, he was supposed to be in the lake, in the water, in the city where I found him.
[17:50]So he came from the water. He likes sailing and he's even much better than me.
[18:00]Not much better. Yes. Oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah. A little bit better than me. Yeah. Okay. For example, when France played Albania during the European Championship, I supported Albania very much. Oh, good. Mum, how do you feel when he makes like he's a fan of the Albanian team?
[22:45]What do you think when he supports Albania? I have definitely no issues with that because I'm not a big fan of football. But if he was a tennis player, I would tell him that they should win together.
[23:03]Okay, so I want to ask you so many questions but like I have to close the interview and I'm glad that you're here. It was a pleasure to talk to you. Thank you for being here and thank you for showing a great example of I don't know, culture, let's say. It's really nice and in fact, I would like to congratulate them for the example of civilization and culture they have shown. Last message to say, what could you say? The last message. The last message to say is that Albania should be part of the European Union, because it's easy to create a family because we have common values and we have European values. When Korentin is here in Albania, when I am here in Albania, we feel at home because we share all these values. Oh, great. It's true. We feel at home when we come here. We are in Albania. Thank you very much. Thank you very much once again. We will cut for a few minutes of commercials. We will see each other in a few moments. Stay with us.
