Herne. A city in the Ruhr area that most people have never heard of. For me, it's the place that shaped who I am.

I'm Edison Luta, born in Kosovo. When I was one year old, my family moved to Germany — to Herne, right in the heart of the Ruhr region. That was home for six or seven years. Then we went back to Kosovo. And in 2017, I returned to Germany once more — this time to stay and build a life. In 2022/2023 I found my path with dua.com — and everything made sense.

I'm not the exception. The story of Albanian families moving back and forth between Kosovo and Germany is a story that hundreds of thousands of people know by heart.

A Community That Has Grown

Over 300,000 people of Albanian origin live in Germany today. Most came in the 1990s — after the war in Kosovo, after the collapse of Yugoslavia. They came to cities like Herne, Duisburg, Dortmund, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich. They came, worked hard, sent money home — and stayed.

Today, the second generation has grown up. Young Albanians who were born in Germany or came as children, who speak both languages fluently, breathe both cultures, but often ask themselves: where do I belong? To Germany? To Kosovo? To Albania? The answer I always give: to both. That's not a contradiction. That's a strength.

What It Means to Be Albanian in Germany

It means knowing the smell of fli from the kitchen on Sunday mornings, while Herne or Hamburg or Berlin still sleeps outside.

It means dancing at Albanian weddings that last three days, while German colleagues ask if that's normal.

It means having two languages in your head, two sets of values, two ways of seeing the world — and understanding that as a gift, not a burden.

It sometimes means standing between two worlds without fully belonging to either. And that's exactly where community comes in.

The Connection That Remains

As a content creator, I travel through Germany today, speak with Albanian people, do street interviews, show what life between two worlds really looks like. And I keep learning the same thing: the Albanian community in Germany is strong. It organises itself, sticks together, never forgets where it came from.

"Kurrë mos harro" — never forget. That's more than a saying. It's a way of life.

dua.com — For Albanians Looking for Someone Who Truly Understands

One of the biggest challenges for Albanians in Germany: finding someone who truly gets how you think. Not just the language — but the culture. The values. The family stories. The feeling of thinking about Kosovo at Christmas.

That's exactly the kind of person Valon Asani built dua.com for. A Kosovo-Albanian himself, a diaspora child — now based in Zurich, with a platform of over 1.1 million users helping Albanian singles around the world find each other.

In Germany, dua.com is exactly what many have been looking for: a way to meet someone who doesn't need an explanation of why family is sacred. Who knows what Besa means. Who laughs at the same joke.

Herne Is Everywhere

In the end, it doesn't matter whether you grew up in Herne, in Berlin or Munich. If you're Albanian and living in Germany, you know the feeling: you belong and yet you're different. You're German and Albanian. You're here and there.

And that's a good thing. That's our story. And I keep telling it.

If you recognise yourself in this story — follow me on Instagram.