Macedonia: Skopje

Skopje, Macedonia: paradise
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From Kosovo I hopped on a bus to Skopje, the capital of Macedonia and a fairly short ride away from Pristina.  Jeanne, a Princeton student and Kosovo Law Center intern, came with me as she had a late afternoon flight to catch from Skopje.

We cruised through customs, although I was quite upset Jeanne got her passport stamped by the United Nations authority and I did not (she had a French passport, which doesn't exactly explain things).

Birthplace of MoTo

Skopje, Macedonia: a dramatic setting
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We arrived at a surprisingly modern, massive bus terminal and dropped off our luggage so we could check out the city.  I had heard numerous reports that the architecture in Skopje was bleak and post-modernist, although some people find it to be brilliant (in a Brasilia way).  Regardless of one's opinion, there's no other city in Eastern Europe that has taken such risks, albeit some ill-advised, in respect to its urban architecture.

We walked towards the downtown along the aesthetically displeasing Vardar river.  The street that lined the river was full of pleasant outdoor cafes.  We arrived at the main square, surrounded by numerous shops and souvenir joints.  Just off the square was the Mother Theresa museum which happened to be closed.

Skopje, Macedonia: whatever that is
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Mother Theresa was actually born in Skopje in 1910 to an Albanian family.  Another famous resident of Skopje was Justinian I, 6th-century Roman Emperor.  The city itself has over 500,000 residents, making it the largest city in Macedonia by far.  A friendly local pointed us to the marker where Mother Theresa's birthplace used to stand.  Today it is in the center of a heavily commercial district, but the small garden and memorial to Mother Theresa (aka MoTo) was pleasant enough.

Skopje, Macedonia: skopje's most famous resident
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Across the bridge and up the hill was the city castle, so we took a walk through a severe dust storm for sweeping views of the city and its futuristic skyline.  The castle was no more special than any other of the hundred castles in the Balkans, but, again, the views were enough to hold your eye for a few minutes.

Numerous mountains (or, rather, large hills) hold fort around Skopje, framing the city nicely.  In between the communist era apartment blocks stand the wacky science-fiction structures which reminded me of the library in Pristina.  Definitely a suitable location for an architecture student's dissertation.

Skopje, Macedonia: jeanne and a local
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One major controversy that still fires up the locals is the naming of the country.  After the former Yugoslavia collapsed, Macedonia became independent using the name - you guessed it, Macedonia.  Well, Greece didn't take to that kindly, as there is a region in the north of Greece called Macedonia which dates back to the Kingdom of Macedon, and they find the name to be integral to Greece's culture and identity.

When Macedonia entered the United Nations in 1993, they bowed to the powerful Greek lobby and used the official (cumbersome) name "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia," or FYROM.  Pretty absurd, I know.  However, today, most countries, including the United States, Russia, and China refer to the country as the Republic of Macedonia.  The dispute lingers on to this day.

Skopje, Macedonia: not mother theresa's birthplace (i hope)
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Before our brief time in Skopje was over, we jumped in a cab and took a 25 minute journey into Suto Orizari, or Sutka, the world's largest Roma settlement, described in my next entry.