Dora the Explorer

Written this past Saturday...

Today is a relaxed Saturday morning – haven’t had one of those in a very long time! Doing laundry, drinking Nescafé, etc.  It’s been a busy week – and while I was hoping to go to Saranda this weekend, it would have made for a very long, tiring weekend and as it turns out, I’m going to see if I can pull it off next weekend – my last in Albania.  Tomorrow, though, I am planning to take a furgon to Berat – a city about 2 hours south of Tirana – which is known for its mosques, Ottoman citadel, etc.  Everything there appears to be open on Sundays, so I will try to get out of Tirana early and head down there to make the most of the day. My boss has dubbed me "Dora the Explorer"...!

Backtracking to last week – it’s been very busy!  Work particularly so – my boss is leaving for the States on paternity leave for two months, and so has been wrapping things up and getting things ready for his substitute – who will be in Tirana for just a month.  There have been lots of transitions in this department during the summer, and as it turns out, I am, as of yesterday, a “senior employee”.  Juste, my colleague to whom I have referred in earlier posts, is the most senior, but suffice it to say that I am being called on to help bridge the gap until two new staff arrives.  So work has been kind of hectic, but very interesting.  Still working on that report on remittances… hope I can get it done next week!!

My new friend Abby, with whom I went to Durres on Saturday, has been motivated to see as much as possible in the evenings after work, so we have done quite a bit together. On Monday, though, I had different plans – to get together with the relatives of some friends of mine back in the States.  Long story short – Genc and Lorraine, a first-generation Albanian couple, family friends since my dad was Lorraine’s chemistry professor back in the 1970s, have lots of relatives back in Albania.  Lorraine gave me multiple names and phone numbers of aunts and uncles in Tirana and suggested I try to get in touch with them.  So on Monday night I got together at a little café with Merkur and Zyhra, a wonderful elderly couple.  My friend Lola came along as a translator, and it was such a pleasure to get to know these people. They shared much of what they had endured during the Hoxha regime – including 18 years of prison and labor camp.  Apparently their families had been somewhat openly against the regime and suffered the consequences.  They got out of the labor camp only in 1990, and as soon as the regime collapsed in early 1991, they fled the country and have been living in Italy ever since.  They return to Albania each summer.   We will plan a larger get-together with the other relatives soon.

Zyhra, Christina, Merkur

Tuesday – Abby and I had decided that we would do a Tirana “must-see” – that is, take the cable car (called teleferik here) up the side of Mount Dajti (overlooking Tirana) and explore the trails on the mountain.  We changed out of our work clothes at her place – the Sheraton – and called a taxi, the only reasonably quick way to get to the base of the mountain and teleferik station.  The driver quoted us a price of 1000 lek ($10), which sounded pricey, so I got him down to 850, and we set off… only to find the gates at the station to be closed!! L.  As it turned out, the cable car was having mechanical problems (never good when it comes to airborne travel) so we struck out L.  Actually, the one beneficiary of this little excursion was, of course, the driver – he did take pity on us and only charged us 1400 lek for the round trip – back to the Sheraton…  Anyway, we made use of the rest of the evening, walked to Tirana’s extensive City Park, and had a bite to eat at the popular “Juvenilja” restaurant.  We got there at about 7:00pm; the restaurant was deserted.  By the time we left at 8:30, it was hopping – just another indication of Tirana’s active night life due to the excessive heat during the day. 

On Wednesday, we decided to tackle the mountain again!  This time we had better luck – my boss called one of his guards, who moonlights as a taxi driver in his spanking new, crème brulée-colored Mercedes. Although he didn’t want to accept payment, we forced 800 lek on him and jumped out of the car at the teleferik station… 500 lek got us each a round-trip ticket on the Swiss-designed cable car (had it been Albanian-designed, I might have been more hesitant), and we were whisked out of the station to dizzying heights above residential areas, pastures, a lake, and up the side of the craggy mountain to the resort area at the top, where we found restaurants, hotels, and paths to explore.  Much of the area was rather run down and it was clear that its heyday was during the Communist era.  A dilapidated and abandoned Pioneer youth camp, visitors’ center, restaurants and old bunkers that had been defiantly painted in lively pinks, greens and blues.  It was kind of sad to explore this area that had fallen from its former glory; at the youth camp, I heard faint echoes of children’s shouts and laughter as they spent idyllic summers in the clean, fresh air exploring the woods, berry picking,  and being indoctrinated with Hoxha’s Communist propaganda.

View of the receding teleferik station

On Thursday (I told you it was a busy week!! My social life in Albania is far more active than it ever was in Virginia – grad school doesn’t help, of course…), our goal was to climb the Tirana clock tower, which is only open on Thursday evenings – until 6:00.  Getting out of work late, I made a beeline to the tower and met up with Abby at 5:45.  I had expected her to beat me there and had told her to go up without me, since I’ll have other opportunities to visit.  Still, I found Abby sitting on a nearby bench – not surprisingly, the clock tower was closed!  I’ve found many people to give a qualifier to many explanations about life here:  “After all, this is Albania…”  Yes, not much in Albania can be counted on with certainty – even the well-known English expression about “death and taxes” wouldn’t work here – tax evasion is a common practice J.  Undeterred, Abby and I decided to visit Tirana’s principal mosque, right next to the clock tower.  Surprisingly, “infidels” are welcome (as I have mentioned earlier, Albanian Christians and Moslems are, for the most part, very nominal and are very tolerant toward each other.  There are no tensions along religious lines).  Abby has quite a bit of experience in the Middle East, so she had brought along a shawl to cover her head.  I had forgotten mine at home, so the cardigan in my bag was an acceptable substitute.  We removed our sandals at the door, and entered the main entrance area; Abby’s long pants were acceptable but my knee-length skirt was not, so a man helpfully handed me a sarong-type shawl, which I wrapped around my waist.  I’m sure I was quite a sight in my head gear and make-shift ankle length skirt!! As people were sitting reading the Koran or kneeling in prayer, we walked carefully into the main worship area and were invited by a beckoning old man to go up the winding stone stair case to the balcony area.  This afforded a wonderful view of the intricately painted walls and domed ceiling, as well as the beautiful “lacy” windows.  Abby crouched down in order to take some photos unobserved, but the old man downstairs looked up at us and motioned in internationally-accepted sign language that photos were permitted J.   So we accepted his invitation and snapped many pictures (without flash).

This wraps up the week; last night (Friday), I met up with my friends, the Spieckers, and went to a mini Bible study at a church close to the Embassy.  Followed by a quiet remainder of the evening back at home, where I caught an episode of “Law and Order” (with Albanian subtitles).  Other American shows that appear to be popular here are “Ugly Betty,” “Mad Men,” “24,”and “House.”



Going away lunch for my boss (center)



Mr. Chicken, Mr. Turkey, Mice, Roman and Communist rubble!

Work continues to be busy – lots to do in my office, and I’m having the chance to work on a couple of side projects. The main one is on the question of remittances – the money that Albanian emigrants (primarily to Greece and Italy) have been sending back to Albania to help support family.  This inflow of money is sizeable – since 1991, when thousands of Albanians left the country, remittances have grown to comprise up to 12% of Albania’s GDP.  Now, since the global financial crisis and particularly the economic woes of Greece and Italy, remittances have slowed significantly.  This has had an impact on nearly 60% of Albanian households and their consumption.  In any case – this is what I am researching, along with another intern, in order to prepare a report on the subject.  On Friday, I had a meeting with a director of Albania’s Central Bank, who heads up the country’s monetary policy.  We spent an hour discussing the remittances issue and other economic challenges the government faces, and he very graciously answered a slew of questions in addition to adding much commentary of his own.  On Monday (tomorrow, if I get these posts online today, Sunday the 31^st, as I hope to!), I will meet with the main International Monetary Fund representative in Albania to discuss the same issue.  In addition to work, I found out (after “only” five weeks at the Embassy) that interns can receive two hours per week of language lessons from the Embassy’s Albanian teacher.  Unbelievable – I would have benefited from having language instruction from the very beginning!!  Still, better late than never – I squeezed in two lessons with  Roza, a fantastic teacher, later in the week and it’s made a huge difference.  So much better to learn from a teacher than from reading a book… my vocabulary and grammar have really expanded a lot from those two lessons and we’ve covered a lot.  Oh, and one more work-related thing:  my co-worker, Juste (the husband of the woman I went to Greece with) took me to lunch at a popular restaurant that I’d heard a lot about – called “Mr. Chicken,” it serves chicken gyros and other roasted chicken fast food.  Very yummy!

 This weekend (hooray, I’m getting caught up!!) has been another Tirana-area weekend).  Two more left before I leave Albania – my plan is to travel during both of them!  But more on that later.  On Friday, a short-term staffer at the Embassy (she’s only here for two weeks) called me and asked if I wanted to do some sightseeing with her, which I gladly accepted.  Abby gave me her cell phone number and we decided what we would do on Saturday.  This led to a funny (albeit disconcerting at the time) occurrence later that evening…  On Friday evening, Jorid (my Norwegian friend) and I strolled down to the Bllok district of Tirana.  This is the part of town where all of the communist party leaders, including Hoxha, once lived. It has now been transformed into Tirana’s trendy & fashionable hangout with restaurants, bars, night clubs, etc. Not that we were going to enjoy Tirana’s night scene per se J, but we did visit a French patisserie and enjoyed a great ambience over flaky pastry and tea. 

Jorid and Christina at the French cafe

So afterward, I called Abby to finalize plans for Saturday.  But an Albanian guy answered the phone.  When he figured out I was not Albanian, he switched into pretty decent English and said he knew Abby (but the way he said it, it didn’t quite sound like Abby) and that she’d be right back – he asked for my name and said she’d call me back.  OK… I was thinking, “How has Abby gotten to know an Albanian guy so soon after arriving??”  At this point, I texted Abby’s Embassy point of contact to confirm the phone number she’d given me.  My phone rang a few minutes later; it was Abby’s “friend,” Denis, again.  He explained that she had gone off somewhere urgently but that I could meet up with him and his friends at the Millennium Center where they were hanging out.  Ri-i-i-ght…  Thankfully I finally got hold of the real Abby and we made our plans, but Denis called again, confessed there had been a misunderstanding and he knew someone with a similar name; he expressed his hopes that I understood and invited me again to meet him and his friends, which I politely but firmly declined.  Quite late that same night, I heard from Denis one last time, via text message, reassuring me that he was not trying to mess with me earlier, and that he and his buddies would like to be friends – in which case I was to reply via text – but if not, he wrote, “have a beautiful life!”  Needless to say, I opted for the “beautiful life.”

Saturday – yesterday – Abby and I went to the train station, where we jumped on a furgon (mini bus) to Durrës, Albania’s main sea port and very ancient city – the beginning of the Via Egnatia, which extends from Albania through Greece (I walked along it in Thessaloniki) and Turkey all the way to Constantinople.  So Durres was the beginning of a heavily traveled thoroughfare for commerce, military, and personal travel.  It is thought that the Apostle Paul almost certainly visited Durres and perhaps even was at the Roman amphitheatre there – and it has been speculated that another apostle, Titus, was martyred there at the amphitheatre. Impossible to be certain about this, but apparently there is some historical record that makes this conclusion plausible. Durres is now a major beach destination for Tiranans, as it’s only about 15 kilometers or so away (maybe a bit farther), and it remains very active as a commercial sea port.  But we wanted to see the downtown area, explore the amphitheatre, go to the archaeological museum, and see the Adriatic Sea.  We got to do all that – our first stop was the amphitheatre, which we got to explore for only 300 lëk ($3.00) apiece. One thing I have found is that in Albania, archaeological treasures – whether open-air ruins and castles, etc., or in museums – are entirely unprotected.  Virtually no effort is made to keep people from clambering on them, grabbing a chunk of this or that, or touching millennia-old artifacts, mosaics, and statues in museums.  In a way, this is refreshing – if we were in the U.S., this stuff would be only viewable at a distance, or behind bullet-proof glass.   The amphitheatre was truly fascinating – seating 20,000 (the Durres population was about 25,000 at the time, from what I’ve read), it was a very major venue as Durres was an important Greek, and later Roman, outpost.  Abby and I were able to explore the tunnels and lower levels of the amphitheatre under the seating area, see the stables where the animals were kept, and also go down a long tunnel that was the chariot entrance (for the wealthy who were coming to the amphitheatre), and see the ramps that the lions came down as they entered the arena area to make sport of the poor people who had been condemned to death – or as the gladiators made sport of them (the lions)…

A turkey greeted us at the amphitheatre...

A short walk from the amphitheatre brought us to the museum.  Approaching it, we saw amongst tall weeds and rubble, the museum’s “front yard” littered with broken pillars, capitals, and Communist-era bronze statues.  It was very eerie and desolate – a cemetery of multiple bygone eras.  Upon entering the museum, the woman behind the information desk greeted us in English.  I jokingly asked, “How did you know we’re not Albanian?”  J  She laughed.  I in my shorts, and Abby in her sneakers, plus our natural blonde hair – wherever I go I stand out, and people assume that I am American.  As I have mentioned, people generally love the US, so sometimes I get stopped on the street by people who are curious and welcoming.  But back to the museum – it was small, but worthwhile – more amazing artifacts from several centuries BC to early AD.  Many artifacts touchable (I didn’t), and all of the artifacts in nearly perfect condition.  Huge clay urns three feet in diameter; smaller vases, intricately engraved and painted with geometric patterns and images of ancient people going about their daily business.  Absolutely amazing.  We really wanted to take some pictures, and actually did dare to snap one or two without flash, before the reception lady told us it was not allowed.  L Not surprising – but we hadn’t seen the “no cameras” sign earlier, so we hadn’t knowingly broken the rules… sometimes it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission…!! Upon leaving the museum, we walked around to the back, where we found more discarded ancient trash and ventured out on the rubble-strewn yard area, examining the refuse and taking some close-up pictures of the Communist era “Workers of the world, unite!” man who was sprawled out on the ground, clenched fist still raised high 20 years after the collapse of his utopia.

Can I fit one of these in my suitcase??

Although we didn’t make it to the main sunbathing part of the beach, we did enjoy a nice walk along the waterfront and had lunch in a café on the boardwalk.  This area was pretty much deserted – it looked like an abandoned amusement park: 1980s-style European techno music was blaring to no one, and we wandered around the few battered looking rides. (We did hear that the area perks up in the evening, when it's cooler) 

The menu said "salad with mice" - e.g., corn (maize) :-)

Adriatic fisherman

Driver, Abby and Christina headed back to Tirana

Grabbing a furgon back to Tirana, we decided to check out the history museum (for a second time for me; I’d been there last weekend, but had been quite rushed in going through the three floors of exhibits so I was glad to see it again) and later, walking by the art museum, we checked to see what its hours of operation were since Abby wanted to see it before she leaves next week.  It was already closed, but as we were standing there, a guard popped his head out the entrance door, motioned us in, and indicated that we were welcome to enjoy the museum – for the usual fee of 200 lek.  He didn’t give us tickets, though.  We concluded that he had been tasked with closing up the museum that evening and that by letting us in (along with a few others), he was earning some extra pocket money…   We had heard that some old Communist-era statues had been warehoused behind the gallery, so after our visit, we walked around the building to the back, where we indeed found a distinguished, if tarnished, Stalin, and Lenin, whose arms had been broken off – in addition to another proletariat worker and a woman with an AK-47.  The day ended with another walk to the Bllok – the swanky district – and a nice meal of salad and pilaf followed by akullore (ice cream).

They've seen happier times...

Today – Sunday – has been more relaxing; laundry, church with Lola followed by lunch at her house, catching up on e-mail (at the Spieckers’ since I don’t have internet at my place), etc.  Looking forward to another busy work week, a few more exploring excursions with Abby after work (up the mountain overlooking Tirana on the cable car), and next weekend – planning a trip to the city of Saranda, in the south of Albania, where the Adriatic and Ionian seas meet and right where the Greek island of Corfu lies.  I hope it works out!  It will be seven hours on a furgon…

***Note: tomorrow is the beginning of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month.  All of the mosques have hung large banners reminding people of this fact.  In this country whose population is 70% Muslim (albeit nominally), I will be interested to see if there are clear manifestations of the observance of this period.

Tirana's mosque advertising Ramadan

Exploring Tirana & a visit from old friends

Over the weekend, I was looking forward to receiving guests!  My friend Celeste, who became a close friend while we were both working with Calvary Chapel in Russia, is now living in Pristina, Kosovo with her husband Mark and 4 year old daughter Isabella.  I hadn’t seen them in nearly seven years, when I was a bridesmaid in her wedding.  So Mark and Celeste decided to drive out to see me on the new highway built between Kosovo and Tirana and finished just last year.  What before was a treacherous journey through the mountains on really bad roads is now a pretty quick trip of four hours.  They were going to come on Friday evening, but as it turned out, they all came down with a nasty 24 hour flu bug so they decided to come on Sunday evening instead.  So with the prospect of a free day to explore, Anya and I decided to go out on the town.  First stop:  the National Gallery of Art, featuring all Albanian artists from the mid-1800s (when the Ottomans started to let private citizens dabble in art, apparently) up to the 2000s.  A part of the exhibit was a fascinating series of color photographs taken by the British photographer, Martin Parr, in 1990 – just as things were loosening up in Albania – and in so doing, he provided a bird’s eye view for the rest of the world into life during the Communist period – in color, no less.  Color photography didn’t exist (or was very rare) in the Communist bloc of countries and didn’t become really widespread until the mid-1990s.  Displays of art that had been banned by the Hoxha dictatorship (and the artists imprisoned); huge tableaus of Communist propaganda depicting the idyllic and technologically progressive lifestyle the country was moving toward, and later modern art of the 1990s and 2000s. 

A stroll down the main street leading to Tirana’s Scanderbeg Square (commemorating Albania’s national hero, about whom I have written earlier), which is under major construction and is nothing but an eyesore at this point, unfortunately, and on (after a lunch of salmon and caviar cream risotto) to the National History Museum.  Unfortunately, these museums have very few captions in English, so we couldn’t read a lot, but we got the gist of things – artifacts, statues, mosaics, etc., dating hundreds of years B.C. from Greek vintage and earlier – amazing!  Several floors of exhibits provided a tour of Albania’s history, to independence in 1912, and up to the 1990s.

Tirana's mosque and clock tower

Detail of mosque

Scanderbeg on Tirana's main square

Sunday morning, I joined my long-time Albanian/American friend Lola for church followed by lunch.  Her American pastor and his wife were extremely gracious – they drove Lola and me to the restaurant overlooking the base of Dajti mountain and beautiful view overlooking Tirana, and then after lunch, picked us up in their Landrover and drove us up cratered, narrow roads almost to the top of the mountain.  More beautiful views of Albanian pastoral and mountainous landscapes!

New Hope Baptist Church

Lola treated me to a delicious lunch with a beautiful view!

Roasted veggies!

View of Tirana

Skinny Albanian hay stacks

The beauty of the Balkans

By the time I got back home after my time with Lola, it was almost time for Celeste and Mark to arrive so I started preparing dinner… when the phone rang.  It was Mark – their Land Rover had broken down about 40 kilometers north of Tirana, on a fairly unpopulated portion of the road but miraculously across the street from a mechanic’s shop.  It turned out to be the water pump that had broken, but spare parts only in Tirana and not on a Sunday.  So – with no taxis in sight out there, I called my faithful driver, Imer, and he picked me up & together we drove out to rescue my friends.  On Monday, Imer took Mark (who is fluent in Albanian, which is also spoken in Kosovo) around to spare parts places and back to the car, where he got it fixed.  I got off work a couple of hours early and was able to spend the evening with them, and they left the following morning.  Not really enough time to spend with good friends whom I hadn’t seen in seven years, but it was so wonderful to see them and enjoy catching up, even if the visit was brief.

Isabella, Celeste and Mark

Busy work week – week of July 18th in review

I continue to fall behind in posting!! The past couple of weeks have been almost as much of a whirlwind as the trip to Macedonia.  Work is definitely busy, with plenty to do within my own department in addition to opportunities in other areas.  On Tuesday (almost two weeks ago now), I took a trip with the Public Affairs Office up to the city of Shkodër, about two hours north of Tirana.  The Embassy has had a State Department Fellow up there for the past couple of years; Elizabeth has been teaching English at the University of Shkodër.  Apparently the Embassy works to cultivate relationships with educational institutions in order to encourage English language study and to promote opportunities for Albanian students to apply for scholarships to study in the U.S.  So the purpose was to meet with the Director of the University and with the English Language Department faculty.  I was just along for the ride. I have gotten quite adept at taking photos from a moving vehicle, and since this trip was neither leisurely nor for pleasure, “drive-by tourism” would have to suffice.  One of the public affairs officers who was on the trip is knowledgeable about Albanian archaeology, and as we passed through the town of Lezhë on the way to Shkoder, he asked the driver to slow down long enough for me to snap a picture of a castle at the top of a hill, with an interesting ruin down below.  He explained that this was one example of three layers of history:  Ottoman on top of Roman on top of Greek.   Pretty amazing – and I wish I’d have had the time to jump out and check it out more closely. Shkoder has a castle at the top of a mountain, too – I think it is of Ottoman vintage. I only saw it from a distance.  There are really castles everywhere…  Up in Shkoder, we had a great visit over lunch with the English language department – a group of mostly young women –very congenial, and with excellent English despite the fact that most had never been to an English-speaking country. 

I should mention that joining us on the drive to Shkodër was an American man named Clarence – he is an actor and university professor who somehow got connected with the Albanian theatre scene.  He is working on putting together a production of “The Diary of Anne Frank,” and had flown in to Tirana to work with the Tirana Drama Theatre (not sure that’s what it’s called). What I learned from him was that Albania, during World War II, did a lot to protect the Jews from the Nazis.  At great personal risk, under the Italian and then Nazi occupation, Albanian families hid Jews just as many in western Europe did. To this day, Albania is very supportive of the nation of Israel.  Accompanying Clarence was a man from the Albania-Israel Friendship Association; they were going up to Shkoder to meet with the university’s drama department.

Wednesday was another special day. A man who works for the US Department of the Treasury in an advisory capacity to the government of Albania connected me with the General Director of Albania’s Public Debt Directorate, Mr. Xhentil Demiraj (pronounced Genteel Demireye). I got a chance to sit down with Mr. Demiraj for about 45 minutes; we had a very interesting exchange about Albania’s debt issue (debt is currently at about 60% of GDP), what the government is doing to reduce it, and how the recent financial crisis has affected Albania.  I was a bit intimidated going into the meeting, and had asked my US Treasury contact to make it clear to Mr. Demiraj that I am far from being an expert in economics!  I was relieved to discover that he was very down-to-earth and willing to explain a lot of what his role is in counseling the government and what many of the challenges Albania faces in terms of its economic development. 

On the way to Shkodër - in town of Lezhë

Beautiful mosque in Shkodër



English language faculty from University of Shkodër



Whirlwind introduction to Macedonia!

Osman and Nimet picked us up at the border promptly at noon in their black Toyota Highlander.  It was great to see them.  I actually didn’t know Nimet very well previously; I had mostly worked with Osman at his store, the European Gourmet Bakery – a really fun side job that I had for a couple of years (2006-2008) until it went out of business. They treated us like royalty while we were with them for 24 hours!  And we were able to experience quite a bit of Macedonia in that time.  Our first stop was the resort town of Struga, at the very northern tip of beautiful Lake Ohrid.  Lake Ohrid is pretty big; 18 miles from North to South, and 945 feet deep. It boasts flora and fauna that are, apparently, unique to it – among these are two types of trout and two species of eel.  It was made a UNESCO heritage site in 1980.

Anya’s two goals in visiting Macedonia were to take a dip in the lake and to visit Skopje, the capital city.  So we packed our swim suits, just in case.  I definitely wanted to visit Skopje too, but felt it was best to go with the flow and do whatever our hosts wanted to do.  Well, as soon as they picked us up, Nimet said, “Let’s go into Struga and go to the beach!”    Yay!  So off we went and “crashed” the private beach of Struga’s principal hotel, the Drim Hotel, named after the Drim (pronounced “dream”) River, which flows from the lake, eventually crosses into Albania, and empties into the Adriatic Sea.  The day was beautiful; perfect for swimming and lying out a bit.  Hundreds of Macedonians agreed with us!  After a couple hours there, we piled back in the car and headed farther down the lake a ways, to the town of Ohrid.  Ohrid is a very charming town, has several churches and mosques, and has a fun market (selling traditional food stuffs as well as souvenirs) and quaint pedestrian street with shops ranging from clothing to jewelry to souvenirs, etc.  We spent the rest of the afternoon there. The city is known for its connection to Saint Clement, a medieval (9^th century) Bulgarian scholar.  It is also known for its “pearls,” created from the scales of the Plasica fish. Apparently the method and “recipe” for making these pearls are a secret family tradition.  Along the pedestrian street we saw lots of fancy dresses and children's outfits for sale too, and photo studios featuring pictures of young boys dressed up in fancy white costumes, fur-lined white capes & hats, etc.  Nimet and Osman explained that these boys are Muslim, and go through a rite of passage at the age of around 11 or 12 -- circumcision.  Ouch!  Whatever happened to a quick little procedure at the hospital at birth??  Well, apparently a part of the tradition is for the boy to remember it... yes, I'm sure he will!

Beach crashers - Christina with Nimet

Anya checking out pottery

In Ohrid... approaching the lake & St. Clement

Although there had been talk of spending the night on the lake, at this point the executive decision was made to make the three-hour drive back to Skopje for the night, stopping along the way for dinner.  Anya and I would take a bus back down to Struga the next day and meet up with our taxi driver.  Fine by me!  It’s just difficult to describe travel in the Balkans.  With no major highways, a road trip can be a lot of fun, especially when you’re experiencing scenery for the first time.  Everywhere we looked, there were beautiful, craggy mountains on every side and lush, green forests – more so than in Albania.  I have heard, and I don’t know if it’s true, that Albania’s dictator, Hoxha, had many of the mountains and hills along the roads stripped of vegetation, for a dual purpose:  to quickly spot any invaders, as well as to target unhappy Albanians attempting to flee the country.  Consequently, in the past 20 years, the landscape hasn’t had a chance to fully recover.  In any case, Macedonia is much greener than Albania.  At the top of the main mountain lying between the lake and Skopje, we stopped at a very popular rest stop – tour buses and cars were pulled over along the side of the road.  We were all hungry, and while we didn’t want to spoil dinner, Osman (the baker!) made a beeline to a little shop that was selling all kinds of baked goods, particularly a Macedonian specialty called “Burek” (pronounced “Boo-rek”), a deep fried yeast bread that is sometimes filled with cheese and other fillings.  We bought several of these large, oblong creations, and couldn’t resist ripping off pieces of the warm, golden, slightly stretchy goodness.  I’m trying to think of something that resembles it in American cuisine but there is nothing… in Albania, they have ‘burek’ too, but it is not nearly as good, but in Russia, there is a bread called “Cheburek.”  Anya and I agreed that this Macedonian bread had the same melt-in-your-mouth consistency and flavor as the Russian version.  We were definitely in danger of losing our appetites for dinner!!  But Osman and Nimet had something very special in mind, so we did our best to restrain ourselves… along the way, as we descended the mountain, we noticed more and more little stands  at the side of the road displaying the word “MED.”  Honey!  Rows and rows of varying shades of amber-colored jars glowing in the evening sunlight captivated me, and so we stopped at one stand and bought ourselves a jar of dark honey… the seller was trying to tell us what kind of flower it was from, but we couldn’t understand him L.

On to the restaurant… but first, near the town of Gostivar, a visit to Vrutok Gorge – the source of Macedonia’s largest river. The Vardar River, which first flows North to Skopje, then turns south into Greece and empties eventually into the Aegean Sea a bit West of Thessaloniki.  A beautiful little Orthodox church stands near the source, and the narrow stream has been turned into a tasteful destination:  it flows down a series of steps into pools of water stocked with trout; along one side is a restaurant with outdoor seating where you can borrow a net and catch your own dinner!  The place was pretty crowded, so we stopped at another restaurant, almost just as charming, that had the same theme of catching your own dinner.  Nimet, Anya and I shared one fish, while Osman tackled another on his own.  Needless to say, we were stuffed!!  It was 10 pm before we reached Skopje, and had a good night’s rest in my friends' home after an eventful day.

Our honey man

At the headwaters of the mighty Varda River

Catching dinner!

The following morning – Sunday – breakfast in the garden followed by a stroll through downtown Skopje, and the old town.  Admittedly, there is much of interest that we didn’t see due to lack of time, but the Old Bazaar, called Kapan An, was right in the center of the old town.  Built in the 15^th century by Isa-Beg Isakovic, the ruler of Skopje, it was a major trading destination and also had 44 rooms on its upper levels for guests and traders with their caravans. I was fascinated by the intricate masonry and architecture, and despite the tranquility of this Sunday morning, tried to imagine the bustling activity of 700 years ago…   Oh, and Alexander the Great is a big deal here too.  As a matter of fact, he is called "Alexander Makedonskii" in this part of the world... and the country of Greece doesn't much like it that the country of Macedonia  (formally called the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia or FYROM for short, since Greece won't give Macedonia the right to be just plain "Macedonia") claims him too...

Our hospitable hosts

The ubiquitous Alexander the Great

Justinian - 6th century Roman/Byzantine Emperor

Entering Kapan An (Old Bazaar)

Inside Kapan An

Love this stone work!

We also visited Skopje’s new bazaars – one where fresh fruits/vegetables, meat and dairy, as well as household goods, are sold – and anther, the “Women’s Bazaar,” where brides come to do their shopping for their wedding day.  Brightly colored, sequined dresses, some contemporary, and others traditional Macedonian or Albanian in design; shoes that would captivate Imelda Marcos for days, and costume jewelry.  With all of my craning to take in everything hanging in booths between narrow walkways and suspended from above, I’m surprised I didn’t end up with a stiff neck!

Ooh la la...

Traditional Albanian party get-ups

This whirlwind tour of Skopje was abbreviated by the need to catch a bus back to Struga, so we could make it back to the border to meet Imer at the designated time of 6:00 p.m.  Osman and Nimet waved us off at the bus station, and we settled in to our seats at the very front of the bus, where we enjoyed a great view of the mountains and forests, the honey stands and the rest stop at the top of the mountain (no stop for more burek!! L), and back down to Struga.  With a bit of time to kill before catching a taxi to the border, Anya and I had a bite to eat at café and then made our way back to the Drim Hotel where we enjoyed the view of the beach while eating ice cream.  Then back to the border, where our passports were exit stamped, and at 6:00 sharp came out on the Albanian side, where our faithful driver was waiting for us in his yellow Mercedes.  Back in Tirana by 9:00!

Goodbye to Skopje!