A Retrospective

After many many years, too many of them really, I'm leaving the job that introduced me to the Balkans and the countries of the former Yugoslavia. I'm not sorry to be leaving the job but I am sorry to lose the trips to see my friends in Serbia and Kosovo. I have been incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity to come to know these countries and people (and the food!). They're what kept me at my job for so long and I will miss them.

 Belgrade Parliament

 Jewish Cemetary, Belgrade

 Kalamegdan, Belgrade

 Radnom side street, Belgrade

  

 St. Mark's Belgrade

I can't believe I've never been inside

 Busy cafes, Novi Sad

 Novi Sad

 Mocaccino from my favorite coffe house, Belgrade

 Dinner at Iguana with friends, Belgrade

 Skadarljia, Belgrade

 Mother Teresa museum, Skopje

 Old city in Skopje

 Yummy yummy meat, Pristina

 Prizren, Kosovo

 Prizren

 Prizren

 Sarajevo

 Bas Carsa, Sarajevo

 Sarajevo, BiH

 Sarajevo, BiH

 Old city in Dubrovnik, Croatia

 Old city in Dubrovnik, Croatia

 Kotor, Montenegro

 Cetinje, Montenegro

 Cetinje, Montenegro

However all is not lost. My new job comes with vacation, which I'm hoping I'll get to use more than every other year, and I will return! Even Bill wishes me well and hopes I'll return soon :)

  

 Pristina

Adventures in Skopje

Skopje was an interesting city. This is the fourth of the former Yugoslav republics I've had the opportunity to visit. While Sarajevo and Belgrade are my favorite cities, Skopje definitely had some things to recommend it. A very nice pedestrian shopping area:

Interesting sculptures

 And very nice restaurants.

(Hehe, 'Amigos!')

My favorite part about the restaurants and coffee houses? In January 2010 Skopje went no smoking. No Smoking!!! After coming from Belgrade and Pristine, which is basically like living in a cigarette, this was awesome.

 Like Sarajevo, Skopje has also retained an old city that harkens back to the Ottoman empire's occupation.

 View from the old Stone Bridge

Fortress

A hamman which is now a museum

They also have some fabulous dress shops. There are a lot of these in Kosovo too so I know where I'm going for my dress if I ever get married.

They are not very shy about some things.

Even though the weather was pretty crappy while I was there and it was a rushed trip full of far too much working, I enjoyed myself a lot and would very much like to be able to visit Macedonia again. When it isn't snowing and sleeting and freaking freezing cold that is.

Visiting with Mother Teresa

Already in Serbia for a week and a half with the rest of that week to go and another week in Kosovo ahead of me, I was asked to extend my trip by a few days so I could "stop by" Skopje, Macedonia. I won't bore anyone with the details of why and what a mess rearranging my flight was (although an aside to say I am most definitely not looking forward to my 5:20 AM multi stop flight home in coach). My only tourist desire for my lightening stop in Skopje was to get to see the Mother Teresa memorial and museum.

After driving around Skopje for about 40 minutes trying to find my centrally-located, everyone knows where it is hotel, we finally did find it. If you're in Skopje, the Best Western is a good choice. Squishy beds and pillows (and you don't know how awesome that is) and located right in the middle of the pedestrian area. Right across the way from the Mother Teresa memorial and museum. It was like a sign. The memorial, what was built on the sight where once stood the church at which Mother Teresa was baptized on August 27, 1910 as Gonxhe Bojaxhiu (Gon-zha Boy-a-zhu).

 

  

 

 

The center has several levels, on the ground is the gift shop, under ground is a small multi-media presentation space, and one level up is the memorial gallery which includes pictures, furniture from a typical Macedonian house of Mother Teresa's age, and other mementos from her life.

 

First constitution of the Missionaries of Charity, handwritten by Mother Teresa

Pictures of Mother Teresa in her missionary work (left and top right) and with friend Pope John Paul II

 
 

Mother Teresa's Glory Be prayer 

 

The highest level of the memorial is a chapel built in the honor of the Blessed Mother Teresa. I personally do not care for modern churches at all, but this is one of the most stunning chapels I have ever been in. I hope I can finish my meetings early enough on Wednesday to attend the 5 PM service in it.

 

 

 

 

In addition to the memorial there is a Mother Teresa museum. Behind the memorial stands an old tower left from centuries past in which a room is dedicated to her. Filled with photographs from her early life as well as her life as a missionary, art, and mementos, the museum is a lovely room. It was closed when I got there and of course would not be open on Sunday. However, I seem to have made friends with the guy who was minding the gift shop (which was still open). D. is a local artisan working in pottery. For the gift shop he makes busts of Mother Teresa, crosses, and icons as well as replicas of ancient Macedonian pottery. Because I'm so pretty he opened the museum for me :).

 

 

This is my favorite picture-the Missionaries of Charity crucifix against the sari

 

  

Examples of D.'s pottery

 

I was so happy to have been able to visit these places honoring Mother Teresa. She holds such a special place for so many people, Catholic and non Catholic alike and is much admired in her home town of Skopje. I was much saddened by her death, even more so when it was overshadowed by the death shortly thereafter of Princess Diana. On October 19, 2003, Pope John Paull II, her good friend and great admirer, had her Beatified, the third step in being declared a Saint by the Catholic Church.