2024 September 19 - On to Bitola and Violeta!

 Again. I woke up at 3:30 after going to bed at 12:30 am. Again. This happens to me at home as well. I layed in bed for 45 minutes then decided to just get up. I was checking emails - I have hundreds! I was checking Facebook. I was about to check out what was going on with Threads when I heard noises outside in the hallway. It was 6-6:30ish, and JB and Tina were both up. They must have already had coffee because they were packing their last minute things and getting ready to head to the airport. I gathered up all the trash then cleaned out the fridge - they were dropping it all in a dumpster on the way out. I washed the couple of dishes - mostly mine from my yogurt and a drink of Tangerine Schweppes. After they left, I got dressed and packed my last bits into my suitcase. 

JB texted at 9:36 that they were waiting for the car - it would be ready at 10am - $800 for 3 weeks with driving in Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia included. He said he paid 8 euro/day for extra insurance so the deductible would only be $200. That is so much better than Ireland where it costs thousands to rent a car for 2 weeks never mind 3 weeks!

I looked at the weather app - Matka was 60 degrees at that time with a 25% chance of rain expected around 3-4 pm. So Matka might be a go!

JB and Tina arrived around 10:30-11 - one final check around the apartment and we were off! The car was a Skoda wagon - I like Skoda's - they seem roomy enough and we had almost enough room for the 3 suitcases - one went in the back seat with Tina but not on her lap - the knapsacks went into the truck. I was tasked with being navigator - a job I hate because I am also too busy looking around!

Our transportation for the next 3 weeks - outside our Skopje apartment.

We had agreed on driving to the Roman Aqueduct and then heading for Matka Canyon as long as the rain stayed away. I admit to being a little nervous with JB driving for the first time in Macedonia, but he did great. We hit a bit of traffic - Macedonians are speed demons - and we first landed up at a military barracks across the street from the US Embassy. JB reentered the address into the GPS and we were off down a dirt road in no time - the aqueduct is about 3km outside of Skopje center. The road is narrow, unpaved and runs along a small river. We could see the ancient aqueduct as we approached it - it is located in a huge field - piles of trash here and there. JB pulled over before we got there in case there was no other place to turn around. We walked up to and through these ancient arches. There was one other car there - it looked like a couple was picnicking on the distant end of the Aqueduct where you can climb onto and walk along it. 

There are 50-55 arches now - I can't remember if it was this century or last century when a writer counted 200 intact arches! There has been some restoration work done - but more could be done. If this was Rome or Greece, people would be lining up to see this historic monument. 

There are 3 theories as to when it was built - perhaps it dates back to the 1st century AD when it brought water from Lake Lavovec to Skupi, the original town of Skopje. Or perhaps Byzantine Emperor Justinian I built it when he was rebuilding Skupi after the 518AD earthquake. Or did the Ottoman lord Asa Bey build it in the 16th century to supply water to the many hammans/Turkish baths in the Old Bazaar district of Skopje. Perhaps we'll never know. Apparently the aqueduct was active into the 18th century!

During the earthquake of 1963, only 3 arches and two pillars were damaged and those have been repaired. It was amazing to see and touch something so ancient! And imagine it being used just 200 years ago! 

The aqueduct is located near the archeological excavations of the original Skupi, but we decided to save that for another day. Instead we headed for Matka Canyon - rain was forecasted for about 3 pm so we wanted to get in and out of there before the rain started. We passed some really beautiful homes on the way as well as many mosques - only one church. The homes had lovely views looking over toward the canyon.

Matka Lake is an artificially made lake built in 1938 by damming off Treska River - the lake is about 4 1/3 miles long. We found the dirt road with some difficulty - signposting hasn't caught on yet outside Skopje. None of the vlogs or the guidebook discuss how far into the canyon you can drive. We passed the Fish Restaurant on the way in - we actually parked not too far from it. Then we walked and walked - it was a cloudy humid day. When I saw the uphill walk to the dam and then the path would go further, I gave up.  I had known that there was a chance I couldn't make it to the boat launch.  When I saw that incline and when I heard myself wheezing, I decided I would turn around and head back. I insisted that JB and Tina continue on and take the half hour boat ride. They quite reluctantly went on - I'm not sure if they thought I would collapse or be kidnapped, but it took some persuading to get them to go. Anyway as I headed back down, cars were passing me in both directions - cars could drive as far as the dam! If we had known that, JB could have drive to the dam and I could have walked up that incline. Now we know for the next time! I walked down to a little shop and bought a bottle of Schweppes Bitter Lemon - they even had ice and a slice of lemon. I sat outside and watched lots of people walk by in both directions. I was just beginning to get annoyed by mosquitoes when JB and Tina arrived. They had made it to the first boat ramp but there were no boat trips in the off season. They said it was a long walk from the dam so I was glad that I didn't try to go that far. 

We had already walked quite a while when we came to this steep incline - this is when I gave up! 

This was the only signpost that I saw - it was about halfway from where we parked and the incline to the dam.

Very nice area along the Treska River - several men were fishing.

Fish Restaurant

We walked back to the Fish Restaurant which was pretty busy - there is another restaurant but it was already closed for the season.  

We sat just inside the window on the left.

My chicken skewers are the 2nd item down the page - they were supposed to come with mushrooms, peppers, and onions but they had run out of them. They were 350.00 Macedonian denars - $1.00 is about  55.12 denars - so the chicken was about $6.25.

The Macedonian salad is top of the list - it has tomatoes, roasted peppers, cucumbers and onions compared to the Shopka salad which has tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, shredded cheese. It costs 280 denars which is about $5.

The flatbread was on the top of the list. Basket of flatbread cost 30 denars so about $.54.

The white rock growing out of the wall or a restaurant growing out of a white rock!

The kitchen is behind the counter above. The owner told Tina that he and his wife have been in business for 39 years. Tina overheard the wife who was preparing all the food say "What the fuck - they all arrived together!"

We all split a Macedonian salad - tomatoes, cucumbers, and diced onions. I had chicken kabobs, Tina had chicken stuffed with cheese, JB had the Macedonian dish with what looks like sausages - we also had French fries and a plate of flatbread which was more like a loaf of Italian bread only heavier. The few French fries I tried were out of this world!

My chicken kabobs came with shredded beetroot, cabbage, and carrots - no salad dressing but oil and vinegar were on the table. 

The only downside to the restaurant was the toilet - it was out the back and up the hill - this was not a good sign - Tina went first and came back saying it was too disgusting to use - we would wait for a rest area on the highway. Now we know that as soon as someone says the toilet is out the door - just walk away!

We got on the highway south to Bitola where Tina is from. We stopped at a service place that had lovely clean bathrooms - and toilets - Tina said that some restrooms have a hole in the floor for the toilet - I saw that in 1978 in Italy - I was shocked then and I'm still shocked that something like that is in use today. I can certainly roll with the punches, but nowadays I need a clean somewhat decent bathroom! 

We stopped at another service area a bit further on because we were all getting tired - Tina found me a small cold can of mild coffee which wasn't too bad. It was around 4 o'clock when I normally have my daily instant coffee. It wasn't bad. But it didn't really help - I kept nodding off on those twisty mountain roads as well as the road into Bitola and the road to Tina's. Not even the thunder and rain could keep me from dozing. (That place had the hole in the ground - thankfully I didn't need it.)

We arrived at Tina's about 7ish - it was dusky. Tina's family was all there - mother, father, and brother. Violeta had a delicious supper waiting for us - salad - grilled chicken, beef patties, and kielbasa - homemade French fries, coleslaw. Tina's father offered JB some homemade Rakia - JB rarely drinks but he had 2 shot glasses of it - it is supposed to be sipped to aid in digestion. The food was so fresh - all local. Then Violeta brought out a container of home made Baklava and a Macedonian coconut dessert - both were finger licking good!

We talked for a while and then headed off to bed.