"See It Now": Skopje in Autumn Blues

An alternate cover for a special
post. On the cover, Tanja St
(Stoimenovska).
Photo by Harald Schenker.

"SEE IT NOW": Skopje in Autumn Blues. Written by Tanja Stoimenovska with photos by Harald Schenker. 

Skopje doesn't have a straight forward narrative. Its a city where carts pulled by horses and Mercedeses pass along the same streets? A friend once told me that Skopje was 'shabby, but charming!' Let me try to scratch under the surface and maybe reveal one or two things about what makes the city what it is-a place of many intertwined small worlds, different, yet compact. 

Ajvar. A traditional Home-made dip.
Photo courtesy of Harald Schenker.

To many Macedonians Autumn means ajvar. It is the favorite home-made dip, if one could describe it as such, made of peppers, aubergine and a great amount of oil. The process of making it is endless, an entire day to bake the peppers, to peel the skin off and then, to cook them again. Soul food, no health benefits. Often people join in producing it, friends, neighbors, families. I never tried to do it myself, but I am a fervent consumer. I can say with confidence that the result of this hard work, ajvar, is irresistible. A red, home-made dip, in garish red color, that goes well with any dish, any time of the day. Or night for that matter.

Making Ajvar. Photo by Harald Schenker.

Debar Maalo, a favorite part of Skopje for many residents. Old houses, small restaurants, green alleys, cars driving slowly...Its a place that is disappearing at a quick pace;

While I write these words a bull dozer is probably working relentlessly somewhere on a new construction site and tearing down a 1920's house making way for a new, grotesquely ugly building. 

Skopje's markets are a world of there own. Hustle and bustle, vendors praising their product, buyers trying to get a bargain...fresh fruits, vegetables, fish, cheese, cakes, clothes, pottery, and screws-one can find everything there. The market is a last resort if your desperately searching for something in shops and fail to find it. They will have it at the market.

MSU: Museum of Contemporary Art. If you want to escape the crowds and the noise of the city, this is the place to go. If you are lucky and the museum is open, as it features some strange hours, you can get a glimpse of Macedonian modern and contemporary art.

But even if its closed, as it is on sunday afternoons, it still has a great location on top of one of Skopje's hills, some what behind the fortress. The view from there on a clear, sunny day is amazing, offering a spectacle of the mountains surrounding Skopje.    

The distant noises of the city make you listen carefully, trying to distinguish the sounds of passing cars, church bells ringing, children shouting, and muezzins singing at the many mosques. The building itself stands as a symbol of the late modernism of the 70's, defying in dignity, the kitsch of the pseudo-architecture of the last few years.

Turska Carshija/Old Bazaar or Stara Carshija. Turska Carshija to me is the place where one can still feel the city's heart beat. It lies north of the river Vardar with its numerous narrow, winding streets where even a resident of Skopje could easily get lost. It stands there with its many mosques and few churches, with oriental bath houses turned galleries, jewelry shops and kebab places. My favorite spot is Kurshumli An, a caravanserai built in the 16th century. It used to accommodate travelers during the Ottoman times. The cattle and horses stayed on the first floor, the guests on the second. Today the place is used for exhibitions, as a concert venue or for cultural events. The mix of the old and the contemporary produces a beautiful, creative atmosphere.

As a final spot, walking down the old bazaar one bumps into a bar called 'Damar'. An island in Skopje, of good music, creative people, fancy dress parties. A world of its own giving color and breathing life into the dullness of the routine of everyday life. 

This will have to do for now. I hope I managed to portray a picture in your minds of this place in the Balkans, striving so hard to change, that at times it forgets what it really is. Love it, or hate it, it is my home. 

If you would like to know more: www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skopje

www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=577584612&ref=ts#!/profile.php?id=577584612&sk=wall 

"Art is the reason. art is the way"