Monasteries and Macedonia

It's been a rather interesting month or however long since my last post.


After Romania, I made it into Sofia, Bulgaria, where I soon stopped asking 'yes or no' questions. Many have heard that Bulgarians nod their heads for 'no' and shake their heads for 'yes', but now, many will do just the opposite for tourists, leaving us entirely baffled. Sofia was cool, though, and the weather was nice enough. In addition to witnessing some random military parade, I stumbled upon one of the more regular features of the city: a giant trinket-market. I found this market to be special for its goods, which might be explained by history and tourism levels. History because Bulgaria was allied with Germany during WWII, and tourism levels since... well, who the hell goes to Bulgaria? So anyhow, the stalls are filled with old Nazi stuff that would have already been snapped up in more visited destinations. Crazy.

The hostel in Sofia was great, as well. In addition to providing guests with two free meals a day (wha??), it's a very social place where I just happened to run into a guy that I toured Vilnius with, as well as a guy from Bozeman, MT (Big Sky boarder). Odd. Along with an Aussie named Tom, we headed off to Rila Monastery, up in the hills of Bulgaria. Purty. There were almost as many tourists as stray dogs, though. The scenery was pretty amazing, but I realized that it still wasn't as nice as the hills at Home. Hmm.

Anyhow, I traded out books and got ready to move on to Macedonia. Aussie Tom was also on his way there, so we latched. Skopje was an interesting city, with a giant cross that lit up on the mountainside at night. Just the kind of thing that might not fly in Alabama, today. Or maybe it might.


After a day in the capital, Tom and I caught a train down to Prilep, in the middle of Macedonia. We dropped our bags at a hostel, got our day-packs and boots, and headed off to the outskirts of town. About 10k from the city, high atop a local mountain, lies Treskavic Monastery. The hike up was amazing. The views were amazing. The monastery... empty. The only sounds to be heard up there were the wind and the rustling of grass. Occasionally, a goat's bell broke the silence. Tom and I climbed the peak just behind the monastery, got some photos, and came down to find the Monk/Father/Priest who keeps the place going.


We were welcomed to stay the night (gratis), and only later in the evening did we run into some other folks who came up to stay the weekend. Our fellow guests were five Macdedonians, who, after introductions, seemed to live pretty normal lives. After thrice declining offers of a giant bag of ganja, however, more of the truth came out about their line of work. So, due partly to their knowledge of English being limited to a small field, we spent some time talking about the drug trade in the region. Interesting.

It was when I started reading the Palahniuk I brought that I realized the odd mixture of the day. A spiritual haven, Drug dealers, and a book about Black Magic. Hmm. Still, the monastery was just incredible, easily the highlight of this whole trip so far.

So, now we're in Ohrid, on the shores of a great lake in southern Macedonia. Gorgeous indeed. Tonight we're off to Tirana, and along with ATMs, internet cafes do not exist in Albania. It might be a few days, so hang tight.