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I had been looking forward very much to my ex-SIL's visit, but not without a bit of trepidation -- yes, we're very close, but we hadn't seen much of each other in the last five years, and thus spending three days in each other's company might have been a little awkward. I am very glad to report that those worries were entirely unfounded, and we had a fantastic weekend.
Renate arrived on Friday around 1 p.m., and after having a little snack, coffee and a nice long chat, we set off for a walk down to the river and into the city centre, where we had a beer at one of the places on the quai and then returned home by taxi. Since two friends of Irene had arrived on the same day (and on the same flight, so we could have them picked up and delivered to us by the same driver), the five of us had a very nice (and extremely yummy) dinner together at Vodenica, where we stuffed ourselves with delicious but healthy food.
On Sunday we had a long, lazy morning, left around 11 and went to see the old part of the city. The weather was just right for that kind of thing: warm but not hot, sunny with a few clouds, slightly windy. So we strolled through the streets, marvelling at the displays of horribly tasteless ball and evening gowns, impossibly high-heeled shoes in gaudy colours. As luck would have it, we stumbled upon a camera crew shooting a scene for some period thingy, so Renate took a few nice pictures. After a tour of the Bit Bazaar (enormous market where you get literally everything, and the fruit-and-veg part is amazing) we had coffee under the giant tree on the Old City's main square and then went home to change into our tennis garb. We played from 3 to 5, and afterwards I cooked dinner, and Renate entertained me by reading out loud the society pages of an Austrian magazine. We were both rather tired, and so we opted for staying home and watching a movie.
Yesterday -- lucky again with the weather -- Vlado the driver picked us up at 8.30, and off we went to Ohrid. On the way we stopped to visit the monastery Sv. Jovan Bigorski (old, very well kept and renovated, and situated high up on the mountainside), then in Struga, and around 12.30 we arrived in Ohrid.
There are 365 churches in and around the city, some of them very old. Lake Ohrid is vast and the deepest in Europe. The old part of the city is dominated by the citadel, which was built by some Slav prince and then overrun by the Turks. They stayed for 500 years and fortunately didn't destroy all the churches but merely used them as stables for their horses. Only at first, though, for as the Ottoman empire grew bigger and bigger, they became, well probably not more tolerant but more stretched, and thus left the people in peace. Right after conquering Ohrid, though, they took out both eyes of the commanding enemy officers, and one of the surviving soldiers.
We saw the three most famous churches -- two before lunch, and the oldest one, which dates back to the 9th century, after we'd had salad and Ohrid trout on a terrace at the lakeside. The third one was truly marvellous, the frescoes stunningly beautiful, and the location -- maybe 200 metres above the lake -- really beautiful.
We returned to Skopje by a different route, with two short stops along the way, one of which was dedicated to buying tomatoes, cucumbers, peaches and ajvar from the farmers offering their produce at the roadside.
It was already 9 p.m.when we got home, so I fixed us a quick spaghetti dinner, and then we stayed up talking till after midnight, i.e. till neither of us was able to keep her eyes open anymore.
Today Renate flies back to Vienna, and I have the morning off work. Good, because I need to get my hair cut and dyed, and also because I didn't sleep a lot this weekend, so a short working day will be just the right thing.
Later, at 6.30, there will be Pilates (only me today, as both Irene and Stefanie are away), and an early night I think.
Piccies of our trip will be posted once Renate sends them to me.
*yawns and waves*
Renate arrived on Friday around 1 p.m., and after having a little snack, coffee and a nice long chat, we set off for a walk down to the river and into the city centre, where we had a beer at one of the places on the quai and then returned home by taxi. Since two friends of Irene had arrived on the same day (and on the same flight, so we could have them picked up and delivered to us by the same driver), the five of us had a very nice (and extremely yummy) dinner together at Vodenica, where we stuffed ourselves with delicious but healthy food.
On Sunday we had a long, lazy morning, left around 11 and went to see the old part of the city. The weather was just right for that kind of thing: warm but not hot, sunny with a few clouds, slightly windy. So we strolled through the streets, marvelling at the displays of horribly tasteless ball and evening gowns, impossibly high-heeled shoes in gaudy colours. As luck would have it, we stumbled upon a camera crew shooting a scene for some period thingy, so Renate took a few nice pictures. After a tour of the Bit Bazaar (enormous market where you get literally everything, and the fruit-and-veg part is amazing) we had coffee under the giant tree on the Old City's main square and then went home to change into our tennis garb. We played from 3 to 5, and afterwards I cooked dinner, and Renate entertained me by reading out loud the society pages of an Austrian magazine. We were both rather tired, and so we opted for staying home and watching a movie.
Yesterday -- lucky again with the weather -- Vlado the driver picked us up at 8.30, and off we went to Ohrid. On the way we stopped to visit the monastery Sv. Jovan Bigorski (old, very well kept and renovated, and situated high up on the mountainside), then in Struga, and around 12.30 we arrived in Ohrid.
There are 365 churches in and around the city, some of them very old. Lake Ohrid is vast and the deepest in Europe. The old part of the city is dominated by the citadel, which was built by some Slav prince and then overrun by the Turks. They stayed for 500 years and fortunately didn't destroy all the churches but merely used them as stables for their horses. Only at first, though, for as the Ottoman empire grew bigger and bigger, they became, well probably not more tolerant but more stretched, and thus left the people in peace. Right after conquering Ohrid, though, they took out both eyes of the commanding enemy officers, and one of the surviving soldiers.
We saw the three most famous churches -- two before lunch, and the oldest one, which dates back to the 9th century, after we'd had salad and Ohrid trout on a terrace at the lakeside. The third one was truly marvellous, the frescoes stunningly beautiful, and the location -- maybe 200 metres above the lake -- really beautiful.
We returned to Skopje by a different route, with two short stops along the way, one of which was dedicated to buying tomatoes, cucumbers, peaches and ajvar from the farmers offering their produce at the roadside.
It was already 9 p.m.when we got home, so I fixed us a quick spaghetti dinner, and then we stayed up talking till after midnight, i.e. till neither of us was able to keep her eyes open anymore.
Today Renate flies back to Vienna, and I have the morning off work. Good, because I need to get my hair cut and dyed, and also because I didn't sleep a lot this weekend, so a short working day will be just the right thing.
Later, at 6.30, there will be Pilates (only me today, as both Irene and Stefanie are away), and an early night I think.
Piccies of our trip will be posted once Renate sends them to me.
*yawns and waves*
