Villa Vodno Skopje

... in Macedonia is centered around the south and it would have been an extra couple of days getting down there and seeing anything.

We spent most of the day sat in a cafe that did very impressive cappucinos so it wasn't all for nought!

Other than that all we really was a "Turkish Bazaar" and some ruins of an old castle.

... as a particularly good naming system personally) and soon found myself face to face with a Mother Teresa statue. She was apparently born in the city. Just behind her forbidding figure is quite an old tower featuring the Mother Teresa room (she really is big business in this part of the world- Tiranas international airport is named after her too). On one of the walls just behind the tower is the "Mother Teresa" prayer. I am not a religious person in the ...

Wednesday: Got up normally.. ate breakfast, showered, got ready. We went out to do some more shopping and looking around. Marija took to me see the central church called Sv. Kliment. Sv. Kliment is big in stature but really no different than any other of the churches I have seen. Marija thinks that it is nothing special except that it is in the center of the city. It is big and beautiful though. Driving and walking around Skopje ...

... soup( the noodles were not home made- I was told), Cumumber and tomatoe salad with olive oil - they call it sopska! Marija tells me its not the original recipe, she has it to her tasting. I was also presented with fresh baked bread, which we picked up at a local bakery before coming home. Marija has a cat named.. Sinisha- Sino means blue and when she first took him in he had blue eyes... well she couldn't just name him ...

... pretty delicious, but too much. Couldnt finish. 19/20th: shot in an apartment. Didnt take a single photo. Nothing too interesting and the lighting is pretty, well, meh. Ana took me out to a really fancy cuban resaurant and I had some amazing lamb with some wierd salsa. Maybe the best thing Ive had here so far. Shooting in the apartment tomorrow too so probably wont have much else going on.

... it does lead me through many winding backstreets, past a group of men ogling over a new motorcycle and a fruit vendor hosing down his sidewalk. I'd like to report that I bought a banana from this man, but fruit has never been my forte and truth be told, I actually purchased a Snickers from the kiosk next to him. I never eat Snickers at home, but there's something about that mixture of salt and caramel and peanuts that ...

... be the so-called public opinions. As a foreigner I generalize all the time but what can i really understand? Not much but even that is better than nothing. At least i hope so. On last weekend I visited my ex-flatmate Barbara and her boyfriend Saso in Gostivar. it was lovely to see them again. And Gostivar is cool, it is a real town, maybe a bit messy but interesting. More Albanians than Macedonians are living there and alongside there is also a pretty big Turkish ...

APPROX 8:23 AM - Our train to the Croatian capital of Zagreb was supposed to leave Thessaloniki, Greece. According to the ticketing agent in the station, it is not usually a crowded train, so we had our own room with semi-comfortable couches and bunk beds above. Our route was to take us through the heart of the Balkans and the former republics of Yugoslavia, which literally means "union of the Slavs". The former country is comprised of many different regions, many different ...

... night train to Belgrade, but I realized that I would have to get more Macedonian Denar from the ATM so I could eat while in Skopje. Upon arrival in the Skopje bus station, I saw that a bus to Belgrade left in 40 minutes. I quickly got in line, used up all my remaining Denars to buy a ticket, and hoped on a bus. Part one of the adventure went off flawlessly.

... panoramic views.Our mediaeval army of footmen and mules trudged on,illuminated for the first time by the moon,which we now only saw when we had nearly got th**e....to the Dark side of the moon ,that is.Just a little furth**,but back into the und**growth,each man swinging a lighted cigarette butt in his hand as we finally put sev**al hours of blind man's buff and pin the tail on the donkey behind us.Making the final approach through thick mud,-I almost ...