The Ham Nomads

2 May 2015. <MK> Skopje —

One of the ducks asserting himself!

After a night of nightingale serenade, we woke to the sounds of dogs arriving for the dog show. Much of the campsite had been set up with judging rings, and the owners of the dogs were in the process of grooming or exercising their animals. We met a lovely lady with the most handsome Jack Russell — apparently his sire and dam were both champions, and she has high hopes for him!

We took the bus into Skopje — an adventure in itself. The bus must date from the 1950s, and it bounced along these narrow, overgrown roads into town. We got off at the old bazaar, and walked around its outskirts for a short while. We found a stall selling Mekici (Мекици), a deep-fried batter disk that can be dusted with icing sugar, or cinnamon, or chili flakes. Actually, the batter is something like Dutch poffertjes — you're virtually eating a large flat poffertje!

We went into the bazaar itself. It's the busiest place, with little cafes, and stalls selling just about anything — there are jewellers and goldsmiths, tailors who specialise in Islamic garb, Turkish coffee shops, clothing, fruit and vegetables, flowers — the list goes on and on. Jonno — you would have great fun here — there are stalls stacked high with shoes of every description! Inside the bazaar we passed the Albanian and Turkish Theatre and the Ќose Kadi Mosque. There was a lot more we could have seen, but we then wanted to walk across into the centre of the city.

On the way we passed so many statues, many of gargantuan proportions! This is a city that has taken sculpture to heart. There are monuments, and statues of historical persons and events. The Bridge of Civilization in Macedonia, leading from the city across the River Vardar to the Archaeological Museum of Macedonia is lined with life-sized statues of famous Macedonians from all ages, including (of course) near the beginning, Alexander! Children can come here and see their history displayed in front of them! There are too many eminent Macedonians to fit on the bridge, so the display continues along the north bank of the river in both directions!

Alexander on the Bridge of Civilisation

From the Bridge of Civilisation you get a good view of the Stone Bridge, one of the major landmarks of Skopje. It was thought to have been built in the 15th century, but recent scientific discoveries point to its original construction in the 5th century, although it has been renovated from time to time after that. The amazing thing is that it is still in use.

We went in to the Archaeological Museum. It's a wonderfully set-out display of Macedonian archaeology from about 40,000 BC up to mediaeval times. It really drives home the richness of Macedonia's history! No photos allowed, except in the foyer, unfortunately. By the way, all the public buildings are relatively new. In 1962, Skopje had a disastrous flood, to be followed the following year by a devastating earthquake. Building is still going on. In the original rebuilding, many of the new buildings went up with the 'glass curtain wall' design of the time. Most of these buildings are having their exteriors redone in a style more sympathetic with the city and its history. Oh that some of the other world cities would take the same policy with some of their glass monstrosities!

We went across the Bridge of Civilization and to a restaurant on the south bank of the Vardar, where we had a light lunch of assorted appetisers (were we still in Spain, it would have been called tapas!) and a coffee.

Duly refreshed, we decided to combine three crusades: to visit the Macedonian Gate, the Mother Theresa Memorial House, and to do a bit of a statue hunt around the city.

The Macedonian Gate, based on a Roman triumphal arch, depicts important scenes from the history of Macedonia, from Alexander's time, through the rebellions against the Ottoman Turks and the partisan war against the Germans, but the panel that most expresses hope in the future shows a child reading!

The Mother Theresa House was closed when we got there — on Saturdays and Sundays it closes at 2pm, and we were about 30 minutes late. We decided to come back tomorrow! But in the meantime, we looked at its exterior, and also the new church being constructed in what was once the Mother Theresa Park — a five dome basilica, which will be a most impressive addition to the city — but it's a bit of a shame that an Orthodox Basilica will take the place of part of the memorial to one of the most Catholic of Skopje's citizens.

The rest of the afternoon was a game of 'spot the statue'. It's amazing how many statues are scattered around Skopje — even on the tops of some of the buildings and around their facades!

The Foreign Affairs Building, and Mahatma Gandhi on its roof!

The Defenders

The First Plenary Session of ASNOM

Prometheus

St Cyril and Methodius

Alexander the Great, in the middle of Macedonia Square

Czar Samoil

Justinian I

The Swimmer (in the Dravar River)

Fountain to Motherhood

Then we returned by bus to the campsite — past a wedding couple at the chapel — and into our van for another evening of nightingale serenade!

Distance driven — today, nil; to date, 19,277 miles ( 31,024 km )