When I finally woke up this morning after last night’s debauch, the temperature was at least 20 degrees cooler than yesterday: a splendid day. Adrijana made me a cappuccino for breakfast, and Goran and I then went out to Matka for our day of doing nothing.
Matka is an area just outside Skopje which couldn’t look more different from the city. The rocky canyon of the river Treska (2nd in Macedonia to the Vardar) was dammed; another hydroelectric project. A long lake was created, with the outflow used for bathing and sunning. Meanwhile, one can walk a path to a cafe by the dam entrance, and then walk on a trail above the lakeshore. Or, you can rent a boat for a ride.
We rented a boat and took off. The water flows from up the mountains, and is very cold, about 47 here. We refreshed ourselves by dragging our legs in the water as long as we could stand it. They’ve banned fishing in the lake, but some folks still trawl as long as they can get away with it (police are present). There are also some illegal shacks on the far shore that look like nice, if very basic getaway places. High crags are on both sides of the lake.
Halfway through our trip, our boater stopped us at the Vrelo cave for a look. This is to be the site of an international expedition in a few weeks to determine if it is the deepest cave not only in Europe but in the world. The public can only go a short way in, but it’s always pretty neat for me to get into a cave. I’ve been to the Parma caves in Greece, and Carlsbad in New Mexico. Vrelo was tame by comparison in looks, but it did have bats chirping continuously. We met the lead diver of the expedition outside the cave and talked with him a while. I don’t think spelunking is for me (too claustrophobic), but he talked about the adrenaline rush of exploring. I mentioned what I felt when I was doing rock climbing as a means of comparison.
We returned to the cafe after a hour or so, and escaped the now teeming throngs gridlocking the paths to a different restaurant just down the road. We ordered pastrmka (some kind of salmon look-alike) which were being held in a water trench behind our table. We had to approve the fish, so you know we had a fresh meal. After thanking the fish for their sacrifice, I dove in and enjoyed a delicious and simple meal.
Goran and I talked about a possible tour for him, Adrijana, Bajsas, Stefce, Dragi and me. there are many logistical problems to solve, not to mention financial ones. Without some sponsors for airfare, etc., I don’t see how it can happen. If I were the national Bank of David, I’d be producing more CDs and concert tours, but that bank is not FDIC insured and has very small assets (but at least doesn’t owe billions to the government). We have some ideas and will be talking with Bajsa and Stefce in the weeks to come.
We drove back through the predominantly Albanian villages near Matka, picking up a box of tomatoes for about 30 cents a pound. I wanted to buy a present for Sandra, so Goran took me to the pazar, but it being Sunday, everything was closed. Nice to see the market this way, though, and even though many of the stores are modern, the setting keeps the feeling in the past and different than the states. We’ll see how the soul quotient is when I go back tomorrow or Tuesday.
Instead of shopping here, Goran took me to a mall, of all places, in the city. Could have been anywhere, except for the lettering and the stores. People were gathered here, the rest of the city either being inside or possibly at Matka; no cars in the streets for once. We had some gelato-style ice cream before departing, there being nothing here I could see anything remotely close to what I had in mind.
Dave Golber dropped by as planned by Goran on our return home. He had been studying in Bitola with one of the last old-style Macedonian clarinetists, Stojan Trajkovski, at Goran’s recommendation. We talked for awhile about our adventures, then went out for a boza at the same place that Goran had taken me my first very long night in Macedonia. It still tasted good.
We met up with Gorgi the sound engineer at the BMW Tennis Club, which is exactly as it sounds. He had a few minutes in between baby shuffling to talk with us over zolta (rakia) about another CD project he and Goran would like me to produce. I went through the demise of the National Bank of David with them, but we kept digital production open as a possibility. They don’t want their music produced in Macedonia; a pirated CD will hit the streets instantly. I find this all very ironic.
On our return home, we had some leftover zelka (cabbage stew) Adrijana had made which was delicious (she’s making a cookbook of traditional Maceodnian food, due out in the fall). While eating we watched video clips of Sarievski, Mancevski, and others on YouTube via Goran’s laptop. Things have certainly changed since my last visit to this country! I love Mancevski, by the way.
