MACEDONIA
Country Overview:
“A unique city full of history, nice people, and way too many statues”
Though traveling here during the COVID-19 pandemic and having to adhere to lockdown and curfew rules, I had a great time in Skopje. It’s a fun city, there’s a lot to do (including casinos) and everyone was really friendly. The city, thanks to the citywide Skopje 2014 project, is FULL of statues, monuments, and other bigger-than-life “things” honoring famous Macedonians throughout the country’s history. For someone who runs a blog, it was awesome, but many locals I talked to didn’t like it, and others online have described the city as “kitsch”. Say what you want, but I had a great time wandering around the city and taking in the sights.
Millenium Cross
Let me start by saying that I hate hiking. I hate everything about it. I have no desire to hike and I don’t understand people who do. So let me tell you about my hike today. I take a taxi to the cable car (gondola) area thinking this will be a quick trip. Gondola is closed due to COVID, but guy tells me I can walk. I look up the cross, which looks far away. I start walking. And keep walking. And now I’m sweating but my ears and hands are cold because it’s around 6 degrees Celsius and then the paved road turns into a mountain bike trail and I’m sloshing around in mud and roots in my Vans trying to get up this mountain to see a cross and I’m not even religious. I get up there, have a croissant, and trek back down as the sun is setting. It was freezing, the cross was “ehhhh” in terms of monuments, and I did not expect to spend 2 hours walking up a mountain and then 1.5 hours walking back down. But am I glad I did it? I mean, I guess so.
The Millennium Cross is a 66-meter (217 ft) tall cross situated on the top of Vodno Mountain in Skopje. It is one of the tallest crosses in the world. It was constructed to serve as a memorial for 2,000 years of Christianity in Macedonia and to honor biblical passages citing the evangelisation activities of St. Paul within the region.
The monument is based on a grid design, similar to the French Eiffel Tower and is constructed on a twelve column platform symbolically representing the twelve apostles. Inside the cross there is an elevator to the top level for views of Skopje (also closed due to COVID)
At night the cross can be seen as its covered in thousands of lights.
Old Bazaar
The Old Bazaar is one of the oldest and largest marketplaces in the Balkans and has been Skopje's center for trade and commerce since at least the 12th century.
The Ottoman history of the bazaar is evidenced by roughly thirty mosques, numerous caravanserais and hans, among other buildings and monuments. The bazaar was heavily damaged by the earthquake in 1555, the burning of the city in 1689, the earthquake in 1963, as well as during the First and the Second World Wars and faced various re-buildings following these events.
The Mustafa Pasha Mosque, built in 1492 by Mustafa Pasha on an older Christian site, stands above the Old Bazaar, near Kale Fortress. Considered one of the most elegant Islamic buildings in Macedonia, the complex includes the mosque, the tomb of Mustapha Paşa, the sarcophagus of one of his daughters, a fountain, and remnants of other buildings.
Contemporary Art
The Contemporary Art Museum is one of the largest and most complete national institutions of North Macedonia. The museum was founded in 1963 following the disastrous earthquake that hit the city. The building project was donated by the Polish Government.
Skopje Fortress
The Skopje Fortress commonly referred to as Kale (from kale, the Turkish word for 'fortress'), is a historic fortress situated on the highest point in the city overlooking the Vardar River. The fortress is depicted on the coat of arms of Skopje, which in turn is incorporated in the city's flag.
The first fortress was built in 6th century AD.
Skopje - Day 2
First impressions so far of Skopje, North Macedonia:
Everyone is super nice and most people speak good English
There are a TON of cultural statues and buildings, largely thanks to Skopje 2014.
Everyone wears masks and people take disinfecting seriously. I had to wait 15 minutes to get a SIM card as they disinfected the small shop, and my gym is open for 1.5 hours at a time, then closed for 30 minutes while they disinfect everything, then open for another 1.5 hours, repeating the process until the gym closes.
People online say that Skopje is “kitsch” and while that may be true, it’s a helluva lot more interesting than somewhere like Kosovo or Belgrade. I love all the statues and cultural buildings.
As with Albania, Mother Teresa is a huge thing of pride here, as she lived in Skopje for 18 years. There are statues of her, monuments, placards with her quotes, and every souvenir shop has something with her on it.
EVERYONE wears a mask. Belgrade was about 20% mask-wearing, Tirana was 50%, Pristina was 95% and Skopje is easily 100%.
Macedonia Museum
The Archaeological Museum of Macedonia is a supersized pile of Italianate-styled marble that has been a giant receptacle for Skopje's recent splurge on government-led monuments to boost national pride. Inside, there are three floors displaying Macedonian archaeological excavations.
With more than 6,000 exhibits and using sophisticated 3D technologies, specific light and ambient music, this museum presents the authentic history and culture of the Republic of Macedonia.
The square at the entrance to the Old Bazaar is comprised of four fountains with sculptures, among which is the fountain with the statue of the ancient king (Philip II), towering at a height of 28 meters. The Monument of Philip II of Macedon might no longer be called that for political purposes, but it's difficult for locals and visitors to call it anything else. Locals have become accustomed to the idea of history linked with ancient Macedonia, be they real or imagined. This is another imposing sculpture not far from the largest and most imposing of all, namely that of Alexander of Macedonia, the son of Philip, which sits across the river from this one.
M. Teresa House
The Mother Teresa Memorial House is dedicated to the humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mother Teresa in Skopje, North Macedonia, where she lived from 1910 to 1928. The memorial house was built on the popular Macedonia Street in the Centar municipality, on the former location of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church, where Mother Teresa was baptized.
Fun Fact: According to a Macedonian newspaper, in the first three weeks of its opening, the memorial house was visited by 12,000 people
The last picture on the right is the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia, which is the unicameral representative body of the citizens of North Macedonia and the country’s sole legislature.
Macedonia Square
Macedonia Square is the main square of Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. The square is the biggest in North Macedonia. Independence from Yugoslavia was declared here by the first president of Macedonia, Kiro Gligorov. The square is part of the Skopje 2014 project.
Skopje 2014 was a project financed by the Macedonian government of the then-ruling nationalist party VMRO-DPMNE to give Skopje a more classical appeal. The project, officially announced in 2010, consisted mainly of the construction of colleges, museums, and government buildings, as well as the erection of monuments depicting historical figures from the region of Macedonia. Around 20 buildings and over 40 monuments were to be constructed as part of the project.
The Skopje 2014 project encompassed the construction, from 2010 to 2014, of 136 structures built at a cost of more than $700 million.
Orthodox Church
The Church of Saint Clement of Ohrid is the largest cathedral of the Macedonian Orthodox Church today.
Construction began in 1972 and was consecrated on Aug. 12, 1990, on the 1150th anniversary of the birth of the church patron, St. Clement of Ohrid.
Fun Fact: The fountain in front of the church was a gift from the Islamic religious community. (Though not much a fountain if you ask me)
*The new wide angle lens on the iPhone 12 Pro makes taking pictures of large buildings SO much easier. Highly recommend it.