Skopje

Took a night bus at 20:13 (15 minutes late) from Budva, Montenegro to Skopje, Macedonia. Although it was a long one, the journey was pretty pleasant. We had plenty of food and even some wine from the supermarket - luxury! - and for the last part of the trip we had two seats each which added to the comfort.

We awoke to scenes of Macedonian towns and countryside rolling by. Stray dogs on the streets, old women ın headscarves, men and young boys rattling past on exposed engines and wheels (automobiles completely without shells or framework), snow-topped mountains , litter-drenched rivers. Our bus arrives bearably late at 9am.
We have no arrangements for a place to stay, but we realise we have all day for findıng a place so there is no sense of urgency about it. Ignoring the taxi touts we head in the direction of the centre and even stop for potato bürek with yoghurt and a coffee. At a travel agency at the bus station we discovered this weekend was Catholic Easter weekend. Hopefully this wouldn't mean that everything would be closed all weekend as it was in Split the previous weekend (regular Easter holiday).
After breakfast we continued towards the centre until we came across a sign indicating 'Art Hostel 1km on Tome Arsovski Street'. After getting a little lost we eventually find the place and promptly pay for 2 nights. Great and cosy hostel with very friendly staff.

Today being the 2nd day, Maritza and I went out to explore the city, since we barely left the hostel the previous day. We climbed the shabby fortress, which was half a building site under reconstruction, and took a seat on the fortress walls to get a view of Skopje from a higher angle. We then ambled down into the Old Bazaar. What an amazing place! Alluring sounds and smells were everywhere. Locals playing chess in teahouses, withered old ladies selling spices, endless assortments of absolutely anything available for sale in the stalls- including small, plastic, lip-sticked Batman figurines on motorbikes; raw chicken legs sharing table-tops with mammoth blocks of goat's cheese. Pliers, batterıes, socks and blood pressure measuring instruments. We were constantly amused by the way the market sellers will try to sell you absolutely anything (and would later see so much of this in Turkey, might as well get used to it). We attempted to take a few candid shots in the fruit and vegetable market, much to the annoyance of some local sellers. Then, a loud wailing began from a loudspeaker somewhere, which I soon realised was coming from a minaret across the street (this is also something we would very quickly have to get used to in Turkey).
After a few more tantalising rounds around the bazaar we walked across the stone bridge to the centre of town. What a contrast it was here to the bazaar (bizarre) side of the river. Back to Western civilization and trendy cafe bars. It's amazing how you can get contrasts as large as these over such a small area.