Day 4 - Going home!

So today is our very last day in Macedonia :( It has been an amazing experience, and I still have a few more minutes to absorb that atmosphere of this wonderful place.

(Tulumba)

Today involved a lot of travelling. There was hardly any time to stop and enjoy any food. But once we were back in Skopje (the capital), I was ready to eat anything that came inside my eye line, luckily I didn’t do that. But I did discover some tasty treats. These treats are called tulumba, which is a Macedonia and Albanian desssert. Tulumba is simply just fried batter soaked in syrup but oh my gosh, it is amazing! Tulumba is made out of dough. It is a small tube like shape with ridges running along the side, which is created by a ‘special’ nozzle on a piping bag.  It is firstly deep fried to golden colour then sugary-golden syrup is added while it is still hot, although it is consumed once cold.

(a band at Skopje Jazz festival)

Today we also visited the Skopje Jazz Festival. I can say that personally jazz isn’t my thing but some of the music was actually good :)  The Skopje Jazz festival has been held since 1982. Many people come to see this festival and crowds have grown year after year, with this year being no exception. Many talents from around the world have participated in this festival such as Ray Charles, Dave Holland, Stanley Clarke, Ornette Coleman and many more.

(old Railway Station, the clock hands are stopped on 5:17)

Once we had arrived in Skopje today we were taken to the old railway station. This may sound pretty lame but it is actually a really cool place to visit, but it is very eerie at the same time. An earthquake hit Macedonia on the 26^th of July 1963 destroying over 80% of the village and killing thousands of people. You may be wondering what the old Railway Station has to do with all of this? Well it is eerie for a reason. The earthquake struck Skopje at 5:17am in the morning and the clock outside the building still says 5:17. I guess it is a sad reminder of what happened, but it is now a museum of celebration. It celebrates Skopje!

Well that’s all that I have to tell you. My plane is arriving in 10 minutes so I better go. I am leaving behind 2,042,484 beautiful faces, a million experiences and a culture I will never forget. This has been a trip of a lifetime and I would love to do it again.

Thanks for reading I hope you have enjoyed :)

Alex.

Day 3 - Busy day in Ohrid.




(Arena at Ohrid Summer festival)

Day 3 – Moving Day

It’s nearly the end of our fantastic trip to Macedonia. We are still currently in Ohrid. The ‘Ohrid Summer’ festival was a beautiful festival. There were so many bands and musicians playing just about everywhere in Ohrid. It was great to walk around on a peaceful Thursday night listening to music!

The weather has definitely been turned on for us. I guess we came in a good time, heading into summer over here. Macedonia has very peaceful summers with the temperature reaching around 20° to 23° Celsius. Winter over here, as I have heard, is sooo much colder then back in Australia! I have heard that the weather can get down to a very warm -20° Celsius. Talk about cold!



(Tsar Samuil's Fortress)



Today we visited Tsar Samuil’s Fortress in Ohrid’s old town. Tsar Samuil’s Fortress is situated in Ohrid, overlooking the lake and town. Here is some history about Tsar Samuil’s Fortress. Back in the Byzantine times, Ohrid was a massive city. Everyone knew about Ohrid.  In the 11^th century Ohrid was the capital of the Slavic Empire, which was of course lead by Tsar Samuil. In the 11^th century Tsar Samuil’s Fortress was nearly completely invincible. It used to stand at 16m high and it was 3km long! Now all that is left of the great monument is 18 towers and 4 gates. How I would have loved to see it in its prime! It really is a very good tourist attraction, just like most of the things in Ohrid. It’s going to be sad leaving such a great place.

Today I indulged myself in zelnik (I think it might be my new favourite food) and kebapi.



(Zelnik)



 Zelnik is a traditional pastry dish of Macedonia. Zelnik is made from thin layers of phyllo pastry filled with different things. Like cheese, spinach, some brown meats and eggs. I had some cheese zelnik today. And it really is as good as people say. Did you know that in winter people used to fill their zelnik with brined cabbage, and this is where the name zelnik came from. Zelnik means cabbage in Macedonian. (Macedonian is the language spoken is Macedonia).

(kebapi)

In Macedonia, kebapi’s are made out of both pork and mince. In Australia, kebapi’s are better known as skinless sausages and really that’s all they are! Kebapi are usually served with chopped onion, flat bread and various dips.

I think it’s about time I go to bed, today was a big day and I’m sure tomorrow will be even bigger. Anyway, talk really soon.

Alex.

Day 2 - Ohrid is the place to be!



(Polneti Piperki)



So it’s now day 2 of our trip and I wouldn’t want to be in a nicer place. Right now we are in Ohrid gearing up for the Ohrid Summer festival, and I can’t tell you how excited I am! It’s around 2-ish here, which means I have already had lunch. Today I had Polneti Piperki. Polneti Piperki is a dish in which capsicum’s are hollowed out and stuffed with just rice or just meat or in my case both. It really is quiet delicious. Well I couldn’t help myself and I just had to try some deserts. Now Macedonia doesn’t really have a lot of desserts but, from what I tried today they were amazing. At lunch I tried palacinki or in other words a crepe (a flat pancake). I topped my crepe off with some jam and it was sooo yummy, I really would love some more!



(Lake Ohrid)



The locals here have such colourful personalities. Yesterday we visited Lake Ohrid and it really is something! The way that the Lake just lays in between the mountains it really is a panoramic scene, something in which it is breath taking.


 

(Ohrid's Old Town)

Also yesterday we visited the streets of Ohrid’s old town. Many people had told us about this tourist attraction and yet, I did not believe how lovely, aged and peaceful it was until I was standing right there. Ohrid’s old town is filled with cobblestone streets, old houses, churches, gardens, fortresses and old roman amphitheatres, which have been beautifully preserved for us to explore. There are lots of churches in this old town too. One that is well worth the visit is St. Jovan’s. St Jovan’s has a breath taking scenery. You see St. Jovan’s was built on a cliff which overlooks Lake Ohrid, and it is just so amazing! There are nooks and crannies to every street and it’s so beautiful. I would recommend visiting!



 I’m off to Ohrid Summer (the music and theatre festival) soon. Well I thought I would fill you in on some history. Ohrid summer started way back on August 4^th 1961. On this day a shimmer of light sparkled under the arches on St. Sophia (a church). The glitter of that sparkle marked the birth place of the demonstration. People say that God choose this to be the start of Ohrid Summer. Ohrid Summer has hosted the world’s best artist year after year (with this year being no exception) more than 3000 visitors are said to visit this week as it is the 50^th edition of this festival. With more than 100 performances sent to lighten the stage, it should be a wonderful experience!

I’m so excited. I can’t wait and well that’s all I have to share with you now.  I’ll keep you posted.

Alex.





Day One - I'm finally here!



(Macedonian Money)



Day 1



After many days of counting down, I am finally here. In the wonderful country of Macedonia! I have arrived in the capital of Skopje, ready to spend some denari (denari is Macedonian money, it is worth 0.0224090139 Australian Dollars).



(tavce gravce)



I have just had lunch, it was sooo yummy :)  I ordered Tavče Gravče, it was recommended by the waiter. I then found out that it was the national dish of Macedonia. It consists of mainly beans, but it is mixed in with onion, oil, red dry pepper, black pepper, salt and sometimes parsley.



Now we are off to Ohrid, a medium size town in Macedonia. Ohrid is home to the largest lake in Macedonia (it is also one of the largest lakes in Europe). Lake Ohrid runs along the Southwestern border on Macedonia and along the Eastern border of Albania, and it runs along the mountains. From the pictures I’ve seen its quiet a breath taking scene and now I can’t wait to see it myself! (i'll post some photos soon)

Anyway that’s all from me now. I will keep you up to date with all my plans

Alex.

(this is where macedonia is. It's in Europe)