It's a been a few weeks since my last blog post, and it's a rainy day on the weekend, so I figured I was due to write something new. The situation at my primary work site continues to frustrate me, but I'm working on some possible solutions, so hopefully something will come out of that. However, despite that and the infrequency of my postings lately, I've had a lot of interesting and fun experiences that have exposed me to some of the cultural traditions in rural areas of Macedonia and my area in particular.
To start, on the 1st of May (Labor Day here), I went with my host family on a picnic (излет) to the the man-made lake Gradche north of Kocani.
Going on picnics for May 1 is by no means limited to my area- it is a national holiday, so people from all over Macedonia head to the hills and mountains for a day out in nature. Given my affinity for the outdoors, May 1 is already one of my favorite holidays here. So for our picnic, we set up near a fish restaurant south of the dam, and grilled sausages and cuts of pork while sitting around chatting and drinking rakija. On our way back I had a chance to walk inside an old water mill called a воденица which uses the hydropower from the adjacent river to grind up grains to produce flour.
A few days after May 1, another holiday took place called Ѓурѓовден (St. George's Day) and it is tradition in the village of Sokolarci (about 5km from my village in Obleshevo) for the people to hike up the hill behind the village to the monastery (also St. George) and enjoy a day outside with friends and family. I also learned it is common for people who grew up in Sokolarci but moved away to Skopje or other places to return for St. George's Day. One interesting thing about the monastery is that it is on a pretty steep hill, so it involves roughly 200 meters of elevation gain to get to the top. For some people from the village, it was perhaps a day to consider quitting cigarettes.
I did note while I was there that I not only saw people driving their gas-guzzling tractors up the hill, but saw at least two SUVs as well. I felt like I was back home at that moment. Like in America, I think these same people the next day complained about the high cost of gasoline. But overall I had a good time both at the monastery and spending time with some coworkers who live nearby.
Another aspect of life this time of year in my area is that it is planting season for many vegetables, rice, fruits, etc. Given the importance of farming to the livelihood of the vast majority of people who live in Obleshevo, I wanted to get some first-hand experience and try to help out on the fields. So the following weekend after St. George's Day, I went out to my host family's нива (field) to plant peppers. And of course Dundo the dog came with us because he likes running around or sleeping while other people do work.
We arrived at the field around 9am and worked until 4pm, with a few breaks for water and/or sips of rakija. I have to say I was completely exhausted by the end of it. It was sunny and warm, and I spent most of the 7 hours bent down over the furrows to pack the расад (seedling) into the muddy furrow. Since I had minimal to no experience with anything related to farming in the US, I definitely gained a considerable amount of respect for people who farm for a living, and even more so for people like my host parents who are not only schoolteachers but also head out to the field in the afternoon. My hamstrings were sore for a week afterwards.
Instead of taking the next day to rest, I took up an invitation to go hiking with some friends, with the plan to reach the big antenna at the top of Plachovica mountain. Given how frequently I stare at the mountain (directly south of my village) and wonder what the view is like at the top, it was about time that I found out. However before we got there, we had stopped at some really interesting places along the way (and some not-so-interesting places in the middle of nowhere when the car started overheating).
Bargala in particular was extremely interesting, not just for its relative size and history, but also the fact it was devoid of people aside from the four of us, and it seemed well-preserved. According to friends who studied archaeology (somehow I have two of them in my village), Bargala was once an important city in its heyday, not far from the Roman road called Via Egnatia that served as a major transportation route from the modern-day Albanian coast to Constantinople.
After Bargala and a brief stop at Sveta Petka, we eventually made our way to the start of the trail to the antenna tower (called Turtel). It took us about a 90 minutes from the start to reach the antenna area. It wasn't overly strenuous, but a nice hike with lots of beautiful scenery. Living in a flat valley with few trees and greenery makes you appreciate forests and plant life a lot more.
So I finally made it up there. Now my new goal is to get to the top from Obleshevo by foot. It is roughly 30km roundtrip, so if I leave home early enough I should be able to get back by early evening. That'll be another blog post.
I am realizing now this is a really long post, so I am going wrap things up on my experience from Спасовден, which celebrates Christ's ascension to heaven 40 days after Orthodox Easter. In Obleshevo, there is a tradition on the evening before Spasovden and the following day to spend the day visiting friends and relatives. For me, I went to a friend's house the evening before, and then spent basically the entire day on Spasovden visiting people. I really enjoyed it all, particularly because a lot of the conversations involved discussing the cultural differences between how young people live in the US versus those from villages in Macedonia, along with particular family relationships.
Finally, to wrap things up, I finally bought a bike yesterday. It is a second-hand hybrid bike that I can use on some rougher terrain and I naturally took it for a spin yesterday out to the village of Lepopelci and back. I was pretty darn happy to get out on a bike again. I've missed the freedom to extend my range a bit here...no more having to rely on buses or rides from people for short distances. Going hiking and exploring just got a lot easier. Lots of possibilities, all of them good.
To start, on the 1st of May (Labor Day here), I went with my host family on a picnic (излет) to the the man-made lake Gradche north of Kocani.
Lake Gradche (also called Dam Gradche "брана Градче" because of the dam at the south-end of the lake)
Sitting at our picnic in the shade.
A few days after May 1, another holiday took place called Ѓурѓовден (St. George's Day) and it is tradition in the village of Sokolarci (about 5km from my village in Obleshevo) for the people to hike up the hill behind the village to the monastery (also St. George) and enjoy a day outside with friends and family. I also learned it is common for people who grew up in Sokolarci but moved away to Skopje or other places to return for St. George's Day. One interesting thing about the monastery is that it is on a pretty steep hill, so it involves roughly 200 meters of elevation gain to get to the top. For some people from the village, it was perhaps a day to consider quitting cigarettes.
On the way up.
View from the top looking across the Kocani Valley
I did note while I was there that I not only saw people driving their gas-guzzling tractors up the hill, but saw at least two SUVs as well. I felt like I was back home at that moment. Like in America, I think these same people the next day complained about the high cost of gasoline. But overall I had a good time both at the monastery and spending time with some coworkers who live nearby.
Another aspect of life this time of year in my area is that it is planting season for many vegetables, rice, fruits, etc. Given the importance of farming to the livelihood of the vast majority of people who live in Obleshevo, I wanted to get some first-hand experience and try to help out on the fields. So the following weekend after St. George's Day, I went out to my host family's нива (field) to plant peppers. And of course Dundo the dog came with us because he likes running around or sleeping while other people do work.
Preparing the бразда (furrow) for planting. That jug in the back is filled with water. The tractor creates the furrow while it is filled with water. This didn't work. We ended up using underground water from a hose instead.
The field. We planted peppers for about 3/4 of this by the end of the day.
We arrived at the field around 9am and worked until 4pm, with a few breaks for water and/or sips of rakija. I have to say I was completely exhausted by the end of it. It was sunny and warm, and I spent most of the 7 hours bent down over the furrows to pack the расад (seedling) into the muddy furrow. Since I had minimal to no experience with anything related to farming in the US, I definitely gained a considerable amount of respect for people who farm for a living, and even more so for people like my host parents who are not only schoolteachers but also head out to the field in the afternoon. My hamstrings were sore for a week afterwards.
Instead of taking the next day to rest, I took up an invitation to go hiking with some friends, with the plan to reach the big antenna at the top of Plachovica mountain. Given how frequently I stare at the mountain (directly south of my village) and wonder what the view is like at the top, it was about time that I found out. However before we got there, we had stopped at some really interesting places along the way (and some not-so-interesting places in the middle of nowhere when the car started overheating).
Bargala- an archaeological site containing an ancient Roman/Byzantine town from the 3rd or 4th Century
A monastery from around the 11th Century a short walk from Bargala.
Sveta Petka, a beautiful monastery in the middle of Plachovica.
Bargala in particular was extremely interesting, not just for its relative size and history, but also the fact it was devoid of people aside from the four of us, and it seemed well-preserved. According to friends who studied archaeology (somehow I have two of them in my village), Bargala was once an important city in its heyday, not far from the Roman road called Via Egnatia that served as a major transportation route from the modern-day Albanian coast to Constantinople.
After Bargala and a brief stop at Sveta Petka, we eventually made our way to the start of the trail to the antenna tower (called Turtel). It took us about a 90 minutes from the start to reach the antenna area. It wasn't overly strenuous, but a nice hike with lots of beautiful scenery. Living in a flat valley with few trees and greenery makes you appreciate forests and plant life a lot more.
The trail.
The view from the top at about 1650m. To the right is Kocani.
The antenna that I see from my house everyday, up close. Kinda creepy in a sense because the facility appeared abandoned. They should film a horror movie there.
So I finally made it up there. Now my new goal is to get to the top from Obleshevo by foot. It is roughly 30km roundtrip, so if I leave home early enough I should be able to get back by early evening. That'll be another blog post.
I am realizing now this is a really long post, so I am going wrap things up on my experience from Спасовден, which celebrates Christ's ascension to heaven 40 days after Orthodox Easter. In Obleshevo, there is a tradition on the evening before Spasovden and the following day to spend the day visiting friends and relatives. For me, I went to a friend's house the evening before, and then spent basically the entire day on Spasovden visiting people. I really enjoyed it all, particularly because a lot of the conversations involved discussing the cultural differences between how young people live in the US versus those from villages in Macedonia, along with particular family relationships.
Typical food on Спасовден. Since you are visiting different people all day, the best tactic is to snack lightly so you don't pop by the end of it. Same goes for drinking rakija/beer...
Finally, to wrap things up, I finally bought a bike yesterday. It is a second-hand hybrid bike that I can use on some rougher terrain and I naturally took it for a spin yesterday out to the village of Lepopelci and back. I was pretty darn happy to get out on a bike again. I've missed the freedom to extend my range a bit here...no more having to rely on buses or rides from people for short distances. Going hiking and exploring just got a lot easier. Lots of possibilities, all of them good.
Looking down at the flooded rice fields near the village of Lepopelci. I dumped my bike by a tree and hiked up a hill to get this view.
In case people aren't aware I'm an American, my bike gives away the secret.
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