See the hot spots around The Balkans In 60 Days – Stop 23 Skopje, North Macedonia

12-14/9/2028. After Kosovo, I headed to Macedonia (now North Macedonia). This was part of the old Yugoslavia. The bus weaved through mountains and valleys, finally entering the capital of Skopje. I dragged my luggage from the bus station to the city’s main square, where I had booked my accommodation.

Macedonia takes great pride in Mother Teresa. They should, for mothering such a beautiful soul. They also produced someone great, Alexander the Great. Can’t get greater than that. But some are not sure if he was Greek or Macedonian. Great, now we have to argue about who he belongs to.

In fact, there has also been an argument with the neighbors over the name Macedonia. What to do if your neighbors are not happy with the name you choose for yourself? It happens. But understandably, history can be a very private and exclusive thing.

The city square was a kaleidoscope of the city, not only of the present, but also its past; this square encapsulated everything about Macedonia. The sign of hundreds of years of Ottoman rule and the Islamic influence is still visible in the old part of the city. As I walked across the square, innumerable statues swarmed me, as though I was walking into a statue wholesale market. The most prominent, on a very high pedestal, was the statue of … em … I thought it was Alexander the Great, but it seemed too sensitive to mention. Instead, it was called “A Warrior on a Horse.” Huh?

This was a small new nation trying to find its footing, its identity. It has a proud history; this is its rightful place.

12-14/9/2028 又吻别科索沃，旅巴穿山越岭进入马其顿 (现改名北马其顿）抵达首都斯科普里。从车站拉着行李箱沿河到了市中心广场，住宿就这里附近。马其顿以特蕾莎修女 (Mother Theresa) 出生地而自豪，也把亚历山大大帝视为己出，但他到底是马其顿人还是希腊人还存在争议。这国家的名字马其顿也会把邻国希腊惹毛。这真够别扭的，连自己要给自己取的名字邻居也不爽。也难怪，历史是每个民族的自豪和羞辱，牵带着者世世代代的情感，局外的是无法同感的。

人类的情绪真的很脆弱。

这国曾被奥斯曼帝国统治数百年，这历史和伊斯兰痕迹在老城区还很明显。这广场和附近塑像到处都是，从没见过一个广场内布置了这么多塑像 – 亚历山大，圣者，伟人，古代现代都搬出来了，总之就是琳琅满目，看得眼花缭乱，像个雕像批发市场。其中，在广场中心竖了一座大雕像, 托得半天高，我越看越像亚历山大大帝，但官方又不明说，听说会触犯希腊人的感情，只暧昧称之为“在马上的战士”。