October 13-20, 2017
Last year's trips to "places I would probably never go unless my job sent me there" included both Macedonia and Albania, and since Zosia is always keen to join me, so she decided to come to Macedonia. Kosovo is in the neighborhood, and was on the list of "countries I didn't know anything about except that there was war there not too long ago', so we wanted to swing by there as well.
In preparation for the trip, we studied and learned as much as we could about the region, in the most logical way possible; by watching the film "Alexander", starring Colin Farrell, Angelina, and Ice Man. We learned that Aristotle was his teacher, Ptolemy was his homie, and Jared Leto had a crush on Alexander. It was actually a decent movie, if you have 3 hours and nothing better to do.
We flew into Skopje, the capital of Macedonia, and immediately noticed the word "Fyrom" everywhere. I had no idea what it meant, but it was EVERYWHERE. And then I realized I was using CapsLock wrong, because it's actually "FYROM." Further inquiry of the locals revealed that it stands for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. But FYROM seems cooler. Like YOLO or FOMO or MAGA (barf). Because of a dispute with Greece over the name "Macedonia" (since there is a region in Greece also called Macedonia), they weren't allowed to enter the UN under that name. Thus, FYROM was the alternative. And apparently the name might change again in the future.
The next stop was Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. There were a couple memorable parts of Kosovo - one was that it was where Zosia went into a Mosque for the first time. I don't know why that's interesting, but I think it's always nice for people to experience things from other cultures. The mosque was very simple (most mosques are more humble in appearance that Catholic cathedrals, for example), and it was interesting to see the locals going for prayer.
We also noticed a Bill Clinton statue, because they love him for his help during the Kosovo war. We visited an ethnographic museum of an old house (I love these types of "real life" museums), and the city bazaar. Finally we stopped in Prizren, a quaint town with a nice castle close to the Albanian border. Here is where our guide and driver showed us some good Balkan food. And there's not much better than some good food, outdoor seating in 70 degrees and sunshine, with some nice wine to wash it down.
That's where we learned that Kosovo uses Euro for currency even though they are not in the EU.
Macedonia
Of course we wanted to explore Macedonia a bit, so on the next day we drove to Lake Ohrid with Nadya and Petko from work.
Lake Ohrid is on the border of Albania and Macedonia, with the main town of Ohrid on the Macedonia side. We hired a guide to take us around and it was definitely worth it, otherwise we'd be wandering around, not knowing we were looking at a theater from the 2nd century BC, or mosaics from the 4th century. We also wouldn't have felt so dumb because the guide spoke 11 languages, which is at least 10 more than me. We took a small boat ride and had lunch in one of the waterfront restaurants; the lake was so big it felt more like the sea.
According to legend, the city once had one church for every day of the year (365). There are still quite a number of them, but the city has only 40,000 residents. Another legend that Bill Nye would probably debunk is that you can hear St Naum's heartbeat in his tomb, when you put your ear really close to it. I'm pretty sure you're hearing your own heartbeat in your ear.
Last year's trips to "places I would probably never go unless my job sent me there" included both Macedonia and Albania, and since Zosia is always keen to join me, so she decided to come to Macedonia. Kosovo is in the neighborhood, and was on the list of "countries I didn't know anything about except that there was war there not too long ago', so we wanted to swing by there as well.
In preparation for the trip, we studied and learned as much as we could about the region, in the most logical way possible; by watching the film "Alexander", starring Colin Farrell, Angelina, and Ice Man. We learned that Aristotle was his teacher, Ptolemy was his homie, and Jared Leto had a crush on Alexander. It was actually a decent movie, if you have 3 hours and nothing better to do.
We flew into Skopje, the capital of Macedonia, and immediately noticed the word "Fyrom" everywhere. I had no idea what it meant, but it was EVERYWHERE. And then I realized I was using CapsLock wrong, because it's actually "FYROM." Further inquiry of the locals revealed that it stands for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. But FYROM seems cooler. Like YOLO or FOMO or MAGA (barf). Because of a dispute with Greece over the name "Macedonia" (since there is a region in Greece also called Macedonia), they weren't allowed to enter the UN under that name. Thus, FYROM was the alternative. And apparently the name might change again in the future.
View of Skopje fyrom inside the fortress
Kosovo
We got picked up on Saturday morning for a tour of Kosovo, and the education continued. Our driver, Robert, was Macedonian, but spoke Serbian and English. Our guide, Valon, was Albanian, but also spoke Serbian and English. Robert and Valon spoke to us in English, but to each other in Serbian. It was fascinating and confusing at the same time.
I had always heard about the war in Kosovo, so it was nice to put some different ideas about the country in my head. The first important fact is that singers Rita Ora and Dua Lipa both have parents from Kosovo. And because of that fact, I get them even more mixed up. They both have super short names, sing poppy songs, and are Kosovoanese (though from England). And then I learned that there's no such thing as "Kosovoanese". First of all, because I invented that word, but second of all, most people there are Albanian by blood, and they identify more with their ethnicity than their nationality. That means Rita and Dua both come from Albanians from Kosovo. Got it?
We got picked up on Saturday morning for a tour of Kosovo, and the education continued. Our driver, Robert, was Macedonian, but spoke Serbian and English. Our guide, Valon, was Albanian, but also spoke Serbian and English. Robert and Valon spoke to us in English, but to each other in Serbian. It was fascinating and confusing at the same time.
I had always heard about the war in Kosovo, so it was nice to put some different ideas about the country in my head. The first important fact is that singers Rita Ora and Dua Lipa both have parents from Kosovo. And because of that fact, I get them even more mixed up. They both have super short names, sing poppy songs, and are Kosovoanese (though from England). And then I learned that there's no such thing as "Kosovoanese". First of all, because I invented that word, but second of all, most people there are Albanian by blood, and they identify more with their ethnicity than their nationality. That means Rita and Dua both come from Albanians from Kosovo. Got it?
Kosovo has had a long history, but most recently declared independence from Serbia in 2008, after war tore the country apart. Like other conflicts in the region, it seems to have been caused by one ethnicity (not country) trying to control/avoid control by another ethnicity. Even in the current time, their status as a country is still disputed. Serbia, for example, doesn't recognize the Republic of Kosovo.
Our first stop was the 14th century Gracanica monastery, which included original frescoes that were being cleaned by highly qualified scientists. It's something I never really thought about, but you can't just take a sponge and Windex to the walls inside these ancient sites. It requires a specific expertise in how to clean and what materials to use to prevent any damage.
Our first stop was the 14th century Gracanica monastery, which included original frescoes that were being cleaned by highly qualified scientists. It's something I never really thought about, but you can't just take a sponge and Windex to the walls inside these ancient sites. It requires a specific expertise in how to clean and what materials to use to prevent any damage.
The monastery
Got peppers?
The next stop was Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. There were a couple memorable parts of Kosovo - one was that it was where Zosia went into a Mosque for the first time. I don't know why that's interesting, but I think it's always nice for people to experience things from other cultures. The mosque was very simple (most mosques are more humble in appearance that Catholic cathedrals, for example), and it was interesting to see the locals going for prayer.
We also noticed a Bill Clinton statue, because they love him for his help during the Kosovo war. We visited an ethnographic museum of an old house (I love these types of "real life" museums), and the city bazaar. Finally we stopped in Prizren, a quaint town with a nice castle close to the Albanian border. Here is where our guide and driver showed us some good Balkan food. And there's not much better than some good food, outdoor seating in 70 degrees and sunshine, with some nice wine to wash it down.
That's where we learned that Kosovo uses Euro for currency even though they are not in the EU.
Maybe we'll have a third wedding in Kosovo
Do you think maybe we ordered too much?
Inside the mosque
Prizren
Macedonia
Of course we wanted to explore Macedonia a bit, so on the next day we drove to Lake Ohrid with Nadya and Petko from work.
Lake Ohrid is on the border of Albania and Macedonia, with the main town of Ohrid on the Macedonia side. We hired a guide to take us around and it was definitely worth it, otherwise we'd be wandering around, not knowing we were looking at a theater from the 2nd century BC, or mosaics from the 4th century. We also wouldn't have felt so dumb because the guide spoke 11 languages, which is at least 10 more than me. We took a small boat ride and had lunch in one of the waterfront restaurants; the lake was so big it felt more like the sea.
According to legend, the city once had one church for every day of the year (365). There are still quite a number of them, but the city has only 40,000 residents. Another legend that Bill Nye would probably debunk is that you can hear St Naum's heartbeat in his tomb, when you put your ear really close to it. I'm pretty sure you're hearing your own heartbeat in your ear.
Cruising around Macedonia
Lake Ohrid
Nice view of the lake and monastery
Back in Skopje, we finally felt like we were in a big city. There were big office buildings everywhere, wide boulevards and walking areas, and giant statues. The city was destroyed by an earthquake in the 60's but has done well to put itself back together. However, there is a feeling that a lot of corruption is behind the rebuild, with the most recent expansion costing nearly 10 times the original estimate, and certain construction companies seemingly the winners of most of the contracts.
There is a big dispute over the "Equestrian Warrior" statue in the middle of the city, which is obviously supposed to be Alexander the Great. They can't specifically call him by his name, or it would annoy Greece even more. The Greeks feel like Macedonia is stealing some of their history, and there are even talks now about removing the statue completely. I don't even know what to believe about it, but the truth is that it's a cool statue!
The city itself felt more Turkish than European, which makes sense considering the Ottoman influence over this part of the world. The food was either Turkish-ish, or seafood, and we were happy with both. The ayvar was awesome and the bread was crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Everyone we came across was very friendly and open, without making you feel like they wanted something from you, or wanted you go to into their restaurant or ride in their taxi. Even though that's usually what we wanted to do!
This one is called "King and his selfie stick"
There is a big dispute over the "Equestrian Warrior" statue in the middle of the city, which is obviously supposed to be Alexander the Great. They can't specifically call him by his name, or it would annoy Greece even more. The Greeks feel like Macedonia is stealing some of their history, and there are even talks now about removing the statue completely. I don't even know what to believe about it, but the truth is that it's a cool statue!
The "Equestrian Warrior"
Touching Alexander's water
