Rita Ora has hailed Albania’s independence day celebrations as “incredible”.
Rita Ora has hailed Albania’s independence day celebrations as ‘incredible’
The singer, 33, who was born in Kosovo and whose parents are Albanian, was in the country to toast the day with her film director partner Taika Waititi, 48, which also fell on her birthday on Sunday (30.11.23.)
She told Kosovan Prime Minister Albin Kurti during the celebrations: “This is an incredible way to spend my birthday. I’m 33 today and I think we have done such inspiring work so far.”
The Albanian leader later said: “This has been an incredible Sunday for me. I have to watch the video (of our meeting) afterwards to make sure it was real.”
Rita added her “trip and this meeting made me so excited about the future”.
The performer is one of Kosovo’s most famous ambassadors, and in 2018 headlined a concert to celebrate 10 years since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, when thousands of Kosovars packed the main square of the capital covered in the blue and yellow colours of the nation’s flag.
A video published by the mayor of Pristina, Perparim Rama, showed Rita touch the ground and move her hand to her heart when she touched down in the Kosovan capital at the weekend.
Rita’s family fled Kosovo in 1991 to escape the repression imposed by Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic after he stripped the former province of its autonomy.
In 1998, war erupted between Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian rebels and Serbian troops that left 13,000 people dead, most of them Albanians, and Belgrade withdrew its forces the following year after a NATO bombing campaign against Serbia, with Kosovo declared independence in 2008.
Meanwhile, Rita and Taika have reportedly splashed out on a £5 million mansion in the director’s native New Zealand after buying a new property in Auckland.
The sprawling property boasts four-bedrooms, a swimming pool, veranda, private gardens, large garage, sundeck and stunning views across the bay, according to The Sun.
The dark grey house is situated on a three-storey clifftop pad and is set on two thirds of an acre, with its own beach access.
A source said: “Although Taika and Rita spend a lot of time in and the UK, New Zealand is still a huge part of his identity and their lives together.
“So having a place they can call home is really important for him and his family.
“They have already started decorating and buying furniture to fit the space. They can’t wait to spend some time there.”
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