2024 Balkans Overland Adventure, Ohrid, North Macedonia...

 This morning, I had time to do some more exploring in Skopje and found the Theatre with its interesting sculptures…  Got a nice walk in before hitting the road.    So it’s farewell to Skopje and off to explore another part of North Macedonia…Orchid was our destination driving through Mavrovo National Park with stops at the Monastery of Saint Jovan Bigorski and the Mavrovo National Park. As we climbed higher in the mountains it got cooler and foggy from the low-lying clouds for most of 100km drive. The road was good, but the switchbacks were too numerous to count. Not the best of weather for photos. Marova National Park is the largest of the four national parks in North Macedonia. Located in the west of the country, it spreads over an area of about 300 square miles and is characterized by deep canyons, lakes, and dense forests. It would have been even more spectacular scenery if the weather had cooperated. After a two-hour drive, we arrived at Saint Jovan Bigorski, a Macedonian Orthodox monastery dedicated to St. John the Baptist and located high in the Marova Mountains. Founded in 1020, it is one of the most important religious and cultural landmarks in the country. This revered Byzantine monastery is located, fittingly, up in the gods along a track of switchbacks off the Debar Road. Legend attests an icon of Sveti Jovan Bigorski (St John the Baptist) miraculously appeared here, inspiring the monastery's foundation. The complex went into demise during communist rule but has been reconstructed and today is as impressive as ever, with some excellent views over Mavrovo's mountains. It took another three hours of driving through the mountains to make it to Ohrid.  Ohrid is a lovely place that sits on the edge of serene Lake Ohrid, with an atmospheric old quarter that cascades down steep streets, dotted with beautiful churches and topped by the remains of a medieval castle. Ohrid is known for once having 365 churches, one for each day of the year, and has been referred to as the Jerusalem of the Balkans. Once we found our hotel, climbed the hill and got our luggage in the rooms, we did a get acquainted tour of Ohrid. The hotel is located in old town and close to the Ohrid City Square, which faces the lake and right in front of the St. Kliment Ohridski statue. It seems like every city that was influenced by the Ottoman Empire has an old bazaar, including Ohrid. We took a stroll in Old Town along the Old Bazaar…in Ohrid the Old Bazaar is full of shops, cafes and gelato stands.  It’s the much livelier part of town. We even came across some wonderful dancing is traditional clothing.  We walked to the Town Square at the northern end of the bazaar, a small square host a water fountain and the historic Chinar Tree said to be over 1000 years old. Around the square are also several of the city’s mosques, including the Ali Pasa Mosque. We decided to return in the direction of the hotel as we really were not quite sure of the directions. We stopped for an early diner and returned to the hotel. Thanks to our driver Leo for driving skills and his assistance in getting us situated in the hotel. What can we say…another great touring day through North Macedonia!