Biding my time before the night train
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Tetovo,
Macedonia
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Saying farewell to Kosovo, I've come back to Macedonia for one last, short visit. Since Skopje didn't rub me right the first time through, I decided not to bother wasting the day here. Instead I got into town, got some quick lunch and a ticket for the night train to Belgrade, then hightailed it back out of town. The bus from Prishtina arrived at about 1:30 even and I was already on the road again at 1:55. The destination this time: the Albanian-majority town of Tetovo, just 40-50 minutes away to the west.
Well, as it turns out, Tetovo isn't much of a tourist destination either. As a matter of fact, it's a pretty butt-ugly place, dominated by charmless apartment blocks and clunky Communist public buildings. There are two notable exceptions though . . . three if you want to be generous. Oddly enough, bland, provincial Tetovo is home to probably Macedonia's most beautiful Islamic monument - the elegantly decorated Sarena Djamija, or colored/painted mosque. This alone makes a visit worthwhile, as it's a real stunner (and at less than €2 each way, it doesn't cost much to get there). The other standout monument is the Bektashi tekke of Baba Arabati, set at the foot of a hill on the outskirts of town. A tekke is basically a monastery for dervishes of the Bektashi sect, and apparently this one is the largest of its kind left in Europe. Other than that though, the only other historic structure of note that I saw was a rather forgotten-looking hammam on the edge of the town's river, the Pena. The rest is basically all concrete and none too attractive.
I can't think of a more perfect "daytrip" town. In fact, a "daytrip" is more than is really necessary, as realistically it doesn't take any more than a couple of hours to see everything the city has to offer. My bus got in at about 2:45 and I had essentially walked the town and seen the lot of its historic remnants by 4:45. And I took my time; no taxis, no public transport of any kind, lots of slow ambling from one place to the other (courtesy of the directions of a couple locals). Really, the Sarena Mosque is the gem of the town - it really is an amazing building and among the most unique Islamic monuments I've seen. The tekke, while interesting, wasn't especially remarkable, although the atmosphere about it was very tranquil and relaxed.
That's it for my visit through Macedonia then. I have to say that out of all the countries I've seen in the Balkans, this one is the least interesting and attractive as a destination. Ohrid is really about the only thing the country has going for it as a real tourism site. Everything else has been basically OK (or just blah and ugly, like Skopje). It's not an awful place by any means, but I can't see myself going out of my way to get back here again. Looking around Lake Ohrid some more would be about the only thing that'd draw me in. Maybe there are some lovely little villages around in the countryside; perhaps the other lakes and Pelister National Park are more engaging. I guess I just expected more out of the place. It's been enjoyable enough, but hardly the highlight of my trip. Oh well.
Off to Serbia tonight. I've got some CouchSurfing lined up from the 10th in Belgrade. The trick now is working out the day before. Novi Sad is already packed with people ahead of the Exit Festival and the hotel I contacted in Subotica hasn't bothered to reply to my reservation request. I guess it's going to be one of those "get into town and figure it out" things. I'm sure something will work out, preferably without too much expense.
