tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79747568824937027052024-03-13T08:52:35.701-07:00Gundula's Magic Balkan Travels in August 2015Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-86233171035578881432015-09-10T04:53:00.000-07:002015-09-10T04:53:21.590-07:0017th - 19th August: nearly to Albania<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Hospitality here in Macedonia is interesting. I experienced
mostly the hearty, intense welcome I had met in Serbia, only sometimes the
blank-faced distant reception I found in Bulgaria in the past (though this time
friendliness there had improved drastically compared to my last visit 5 years
ago). I have come across several people who tried ripping me off, would charge overly
high prices, or give wrong information as they couldn’t be bothered, but more
often the people I met showed genuine care and were really lovely and helpful; thus
I received free bus and taxi rides and extra-free vegetables at the market. I
think my attempts to speak in Macedonian (or rather a very basic Serbian)
impressed and opened doors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My furthest venture this time took me to Rado</span><span lang="SR-LATN-RS" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">ž</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">da, the last
village before the Albanian border. Curiosity did tickle me to pop over and explore just a little bit on the other side of the border to this exotic country, of which I don’t know any language or anything else
apart from one song. However, complicated border controls, and a different currency
yet again made me go no further. I only watched the lonely Albanian seagull,
which had probably illegally flown over into Macedonian waters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Rado<span lang="SR-LATN-RS">ž</span>da
is a small fishing village, a very pretty, non-touristic place - on first impression
one would think only men live there, they gathered in various corners and alleyways
for tee and chat. Only after looking
very closely, I did see one woman inside the house, working, and then another
one with her kid…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Automatically I became again the opposite of a tourist
attraction, an exotic walking statue for the ‘sightseeing’ of the residents.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The only spot which was occasionally sought out by visitors is the St Archangel Michel cave church, a little chapel built into the rock, unfortunately
locked all the time it seems, so nobody I met ever saw the inside. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The day finished on one of the lonely beautiful beaches…</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WxJ0vfns-2Q/VfFUASJHARI/AAAAAAAABk0/w0WyLsLLzhg/s1600/rad_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WxJ0vfns-2Q/VfFUASJHARI/AAAAAAAABk0/w0WyLsLLzhg/s200/rad_13.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gY6uPmPVtYg/VfFUBjkDzAI/AAAAAAAABk8/JXVuTmkl_zI/s1600/rad_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gY6uPmPVtYg/VfFUBjkDzAI/AAAAAAAABk8/JXVuTmkl_zI/s200/rad_14.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And my trip ends there as well. I do not look forward to the
cold and damp, and London’s capitalistic attitude, neither giving up the
freedom of travelling, and exploring new places. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zql09ve_dkU/VfFWjN9AZ9I/AAAAAAAABlE/8k87kyGfMFg/s1600/rad_15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zql09ve_dkU/VfFWjN9AZ9I/AAAAAAAABlE/8k87kyGfMFg/s1600/rad_15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zql09ve_dkU/VfFWjN9AZ9I/AAAAAAAABlE/8k87kyGfMFg/s200/rad_15.jpg" width="112" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I’m however, very much looking forward to work through my
newly collected music, indulge into listening, figuring out how to translate
the intricate Macedonian brass embellishments to my violin, and bringing some
great Macedonians tunes back to London, which are not known there yet… </span><o:p></o:p></div>
Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-54431649347313009672015-09-07T14:14:00.002-07:002015-09-10T02:01:51.952-07:0015th - 16th August: trying for some boring holidays...<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The first full day of my main-stream holiday began - with a
breakfast of bran flakes shared, or mis-used as a dance floor by some happy worms for a
lively jig - brrrrrrrrrrrrrr, did I feel like running away? yes, I did !!! </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wshUGnHL2mc/Ve3vBzFupWI/AAAAAAAABgE/ELfGgFOTgtg/s1600/ohrid_11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wshUGnHL2mc/Ve3vBzFupWI/AAAAAAAABgE/ELfGgFOTgtg/s200/ohrid_11.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bzqJXzLHbK4/Ve3vBrdcc8I/AAAAAAAABgA/tt_bf5raUHQ/s1600/ohrid_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bzqJXzLHbK4/Ve3vBrdcc8I/AAAAAAAABgA/tt_bf5raUHQ/s200/ohrid_12.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However, from
there, my new hosts made all efforts to offer me good hospitality, the
cleanliness improved noticeably and the breakfast became varied every day with
homemade or bought Macedonian specialties - no more traces of muesli...</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgt-Tkg7kdc/Ve3wVpkQBUI/AAAAAAAABgY/iaOOJl7vbAA/s1600/ohrid_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgt-Tkg7kdc/Ve3wVpkQBUI/AAAAAAAABgY/iaOOJl7vbAA/s200/ohrid_14.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--u2CTgopkMo/Ve3wVfgKx2I/AAAAAAAABgU/4WTSgjM6OMw/s1600/ohrid_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--u2CTgopkMo/Ve3wVfgKx2I/AAAAAAAABgU/4WTSgjM6OMw/s200/ohrid_13.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ohrid is a lively, unfortunately a bit touristic place but I
discovered a beach far enough from the bulk of tourists, away from noisy beach
bars and only to reach by a steep path, so only a small minority would/could find their way
there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the next few days, I sampled every possible variation of
burek, lots of local veggies kissed by the sun, of course palacinka (Balkan
crepes) and I did lots of swimming in the clear and beautiful waters of the lake. </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yCeElnK_bX8/Ve30d9H20sI/AAAAAAAABhU/kWkMy0ml_S0/s1600/ohrid_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yCeElnK_bX8/Ve30d9H20sI/AAAAAAAABhU/kWkMy0ml_S0/s200/ohrid_18.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1ORsBAkAe0A/Ve30dyaRUYI/AAAAAAAABhI/Cn4aqTsKkl8/s1600/ohrid_19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1ORsBAkAe0A/Ve30dyaRUYI/AAAAAAAABhI/Cn4aqTsKkl8/s200/ohrid_19.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2NybCk9nQuc/Ve30d1vQPgI/AAAAAAAABhE/rIUpy_ZbjSA/s1600/ohrid_20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2NybCk9nQuc/Ve30d1vQPgI/AAAAAAAABhE/rIUpy_ZbjSA/s200/ohrid_20.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I
did the culture thing too, and went round all the massive and tiny churches on the hills -
to see them from the outside only: due to cooking hot 33+ temperatures I wore
too few cloths to be admitted inside. Some were anyway so</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">tightly
filled with wedding guests, that certainly no additional soul would fit in. The old city wall offers an amazing few all over
Ohrid and the lake.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-60oVDH7I96k/Ve31aII0UlI/AAAAAAAABhg/-SApuFXkO80/s1600/ohrid_21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-60oVDH7I96k/Ve31aII0UlI/AAAAAAAABhg/-SApuFXkO80/s200/ohrid_21.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-clKcmiREVCQ/Ve31aRwpQ2I/AAAAAAAABhk/v0WNLwngjvk/s1600/ohrid_22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-clKcmiREVCQ/Ve31aRwpQ2I/AAAAAAAABhk/v0WNLwngjvk/s200/ohrid_22.jpg" width="112" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-43LUi8x1Bus/Ve31Z4HA_iI/AAAAAAAABhc/DPYZnxQGgTI/s1600/ohrid_23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-43LUi8x1Bus/Ve31Z4HA_iI/AAAAAAAABhc/DPYZnxQGgTI/s200/ohrid_23.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Scared of local rip-off-taxi-drivers, I went to take my excursions
by local transport, which proofed fairly adventurous. Heading off I did with
completely wrong information about bus stops and times given to me at the bus station
info desk. There are no indications or timetables displayed anywhere; most ‘bus stations’
could only be identified by a bunch of people being gathered, seeming to wait
patiently for nothing in particular. I felt so proud, when I finally figured it
all out, when, where, how much, having use every single scrap of my tiny Serbian
language skills. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GDkUIgzvmB8/Ve33aHtO5yI/AAAAAAAABh8/4grex81osh4/s1600/struga_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GDkUIgzvmB8/Ve33aHtO5yI/AAAAAAAABh8/4grex81osh4/s200/struga_01.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-062Kfk_nBI0/Ve33aPnkSiI/AAAAAAAABh4/FsGOOwAL4BA/s1600/struga_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-062Kfk_nBI0/Ve33aPnkSiI/AAAAAAAABh4/FsGOOwAL4BA/s200/struga_02.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This way I went to the next town, Struga, which is lovely, still
touristic, but mostly frequented by Macedonians. The goods at the markets are
about 25% more tacky, 50% cheaper though, and the small-pebble beaches made
chilling out on the beach and getting in and out of the water a lot less painful. </span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9POX45PD3Kk/Ve36Cc_BymI/AAAAAAAABik/diAgXMssewU/s1600/struga_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9POX45PD3Kk/Ve36Cc_BymI/AAAAAAAABik/diAgXMssewU/s200/struga_05.jpg" width="112" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DU6Wbyz14WQ/Ve35eenxX0I/AAAAAAAABiU/q35CxVFOiQ8/s1600/struga_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DU6Wbyz14WQ/Ve35eenxX0I/AAAAAAAABiU/q35CxVFOiQ8/s200/struga_03.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EgO_wcS_cZA/Ve35eUvUNwI/AAAAAAAABiY/Y23z6VapEYA/s1600/struga_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EgO_wcS_cZA/Ve35eUvUNwI/AAAAAAAABiY/Y23z6VapEYA/s200/struga_04.jpg" width="112" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I managed to order and enjoy the best trout I ever had, freshly caught from
Lake Ohrid; though the strange restaurant manager would not permit me to sit next to the water-front, on one of the many empty tables, for no apparent reason… This type of 'can-not-be-bothered' vibe reminded me of a school trip to Eastern Berlin, long before the wall fell, and the way the waiters over there served you your coke...</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXx1Vpvtwl8/VfFG7ZhsI3I/AAAAAAAABi0/IwsGQuYCjA4/s1600/ohrid_24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXx1Vpvtwl8/VfFG7ZhsI3I/AAAAAAAABi0/IwsGQuYCjA4/s200/ohrid_24.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-11990038200944778292015-09-04T14:25:00.000-07:002015-09-04T14:25:04.941-07:00Friday 14th August: sun, beach and water - trying for some real holiday<br /><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Last day in Skopje, and I realise, I actually haven’t seen
much at all, mostly hanging round Shutka. Apart from my new Roma friends, and of course Bojana, I made friends with
an iron monger in the Zelena Bazar (Green Market), who used all his charm, big smiles
through tooth gaps and gold teeth, and his German language skills which outbid
my Serbian ones by about five words, to sell
some of his water taps or shower heads to me - I actually got a bit tempted by the taps, as
mine here in London sucks - the unfortunate weight involved kept his efforts in
vain.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">… off to Lake Ohrid now...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2CgKd67cl0/VeoHx9ufbUI/AAAAAAAABfA/K5OYHoIhOnY/s1600/ohrid_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2CgKd67cl0/VeoHx9ufbUI/AAAAAAAABfA/K5OYHoIhOnY/s200/ohrid_06.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-buWkTfTJsmE/VeoHwCOcWHI/AAAAAAAABeo/fSvRWJeqETE/s1600/ohrid_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-buWkTfTJsmE/VeoHwCOcWHI/AAAAAAAABeo/fSvRWJeqETE/s200/ohrid_02.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q2nJSwP036Q/VeoHwB5JanI/AAAAAAAABek/0pI226e_trM/s1600/ohrid_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q2nJSwP036Q/VeoHwB5JanI/AAAAAAAABek/0pI226e_trM/s200/ohrid_01.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After a 3-hour ride on a cramped minibus, I arrived in
Ohrid. I had read amazing things about its beauty and magic - and found them
all true. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-akWDzRUrm8A/VeoKVbusdlI/AAAAAAAABfc/eu9n-C_JMmY/s1600/ohrid_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-akWDzRUrm8A/VeoKVbusdlI/AAAAAAAABfc/eu9n-C_JMmY/s200/ohrid_08.jpg" width="112" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GH9sZraTU7g/VeoKVR3s2hI/AAAAAAAABfY/TA_vmV2Q_Ms/s1600/ohrid_07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GH9sZraTU7g/VeoKVR3s2hI/AAAAAAAABfY/TA_vmV2Q_Ms/s200/ohrid_07.jpg" width="112" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qcDyPPLWL4s/VeoKVZk9U2I/AAAAAAAABfg/95BCBysbG04/s1600/ohrid_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qcDyPPLWL4s/VeoKVZk9U2I/AAAAAAAABfg/95BCBysbG04/s200/ohrid_09.jpg" width="112" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Upon arrival at the youth hostel I had booked myself in, I had to
learn that the ‘private tent’ I had reserved had unfortunately been destroyed.
I was offered a place in the open, which shocked me so much, that the host
quickly arranged a private room for me, and even paid the taxi which took me
there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GXTv3FPoc-E/VeoHwOUkWUI/AAAAAAAABfE/WNd6Kgcr5I8/s1600/ohrid_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GXTv3FPoc-E/VeoHwOUkWUI/AAAAAAAABfE/WNd6Kgcr5I8/s200/ohrid_03.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n7H0y3WoFbE/VeoHxKIBCtI/AAAAAAAABe8/ZDYNsxAkXBo/s1600/ohrid_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n7H0y3WoFbE/VeoHxKIBCtI/AAAAAAAABe8/ZDYNsxAkXBo/s200/ohrid_04.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kpYQOt-6JVc/VeoHxWu7eBI/AAAAAAAABfM/PWmUjGDKgE0/s1600/ohrid_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kpYQOt-6JVc/VeoHxWu7eBI/AAAAAAAABfM/PWmUjGDKgE0/s200/ohrid_05.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I could not wait to dig out my swimming suit and towel, and
run over the hills through the town to find a bit of beach to swim - herrlich
!!!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NwDMi06F-Dw/VeoLB_YLdvI/AAAAAAAABfw/Fff1mOpJ8tU/s1600/OHRID_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NwDMi06F-Dw/VeoLB_YLdvI/AAAAAAAABfw/Fff1mOpJ8tU/s200/OHRID_10.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-39437343265079948062015-09-02T09:03:00.002-07:002015-09-02T09:03:56.455-07:0013th August: Hajde Hajde, Bashalen Romalen !<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Since leaving London for the Balkans this time, I have not
once been soooo full of amazing food - traditional Macedonian cuisine, with
veggies and potatoes from the own garden - I had been invited to Bojana’s
parents for lunch. Bojana’s mum indulged us in proper Balkan hospitality
fashion, full of love, amazing tastes and calories.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">... and not one picture I took :-( </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After that we went back to Shutka for a musical venture. We met Asan on the main street. A long walk through the labyrinths of the
residential Shutka followed. Everything is very narrow, very interleaved and
close together, very very cozy. One can find a big mixture of attributes and qualities;
little houses painted in bright purple and green next to slum-like dwellings,
messy alleyways followed by clean-swiped
passages. People seem very open, going about their chores in the middle of
everyone, sharing their lives very much with the community around them. We were a
rather exotic bunch walking along through those alleyways, me with my violin case and my colours sticking out even in those surroundings - once more a ‘resident’s
attraction’ (<span style="line-height: 115%;">as opposed
to ‘tourist attraction’</span>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Once arrived at Asan’s courtyard, we settled down in the
open-air sofa next to the pigeon’s shed - my Serbian wasn’t enough to ask if
they were letter-pigeons. Accompanied by their purring, we started getting the
instruments out, and some more musicians joined.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #e06666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">...only a couple of pix here, from before the real thing started...</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E9ihiWg5wFE/VeYZZs7VM4I/AAAAAAAABd0/r8ytYxGVRKM/s1600/shutka_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E9ihiWg5wFE/VeYZZs7VM4I/AAAAAAAABd0/r8ytYxGVRKM/s200/shutka_10.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UEATCVZ03dM/VeYZZmCQOqI/AAAAAAAABd8/KoYSUjRbLBA/s1600/shutka_11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UEATCVZ03dM/VeYZZmCQOqI/AAAAAAAABd8/KoYSUjRbLBA/s200/shutka_11.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5TY80WlYv30/VeYZZhqypII/AAAAAAAABd4/7PGOnVYcdgI/s1600/shutka_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5TY80WlYv30/VeYZZhqypII/AAAAAAAABd4/7PGOnVYcdgI/s200/shutka_12.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Our music making
session turned out to be a huge exchange of notes, music and ornaments. In our
search for common repertoire, I ended up teaching some of my Roma repertoire to
my new musical colleagues (hahaha, didn’t I come here to actually learn, and
not teach :-)?). </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--L1OumWJqFw/VeYZsV5OoAI/AAAAAAAABeM/XQkfHexYwJ8/s1600/shutka_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--L1OumWJqFw/VeYZsV5OoAI/AAAAAAAABeM/XQkfHexYwJ8/s200/shutka_13.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Anyway, bit by bit we gelled and found lots of pieces and songs to jam through,
from common classics, to unknown stuff, even some klezmer, Sephardic and Israeli
repertoire - I received huge compliments for my interpretation, how well I
picked up their music and phrases by ear, and for my trills (how chaffed did it
make me to be praised by the masters !!!!). </span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/a3VL9_vk-Eo/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/a3VL9_vk-Eo?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #a64d79;">A little vid of the first few minutes, - when we were in the thick of it I was too busy to record anything... </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Going there with the aim to take some music lessons, we ended up learning lots of new tunes, and we formed a new
band, which will go touring through Europe (!!?!!)… currently a fata morgana
and still, I’m really excited about it - lets see what happens :-)</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-34271260621778679152015-09-01T05:11:00.002-07:002015-09-01T05:11:51.947-07:0012th August: Roma Town Shutka<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Shutka today ! A suburb of Skopje, it is Europe’s biggest Roma
settlement, a proper little Roma town. The full name is Shuta Orizari<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18.3999996185303px;"><b>.</b></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B1chx8fGW4I/Vd5yLuEco-I/AAAAAAAABdA/4qHQcAh0wPA/s1600/shutka_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B1chx8fGW4I/Vd5yLuEco-I/AAAAAAAABdA/4qHQcAh0wPA/s200/shutka_05.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OnI7LUA_OtM/Vd5yMWaQnUI/AAAAAAAABco/w-DomzB9q5I/s1600/shutka_07.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OnI7LUA_OtM/Vd5yMWaQnUI/AAAAAAAABco/w-DomzB9q5I/s200/shutka_07.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WPDqB7-rw9k/Vd5yL3tF5tI/AAAAAAAABck/hrsCbKkYEAg/s1600/shutka_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WPDqB7-rw9k/Vd5yL3tF5tI/AAAAAAAABck/hrsCbKkYEAg/s200/shutka_06.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We met up with the lead
trumpet player of the Cherkezi Orchestra, Asan Rashid, who took us through the markets.
Yes, I did have in mind buying some nice handcrafted Rom souvenirs, but what
did I end up with: 2 stage outfits. Trying and choosing them resulted in a
whole audience of spectators, gathering around the stalls, commenting on which
styles suits me best, and then taking ‘promotion pics’ of me for their goods.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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the red one<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r8nNVcfzJmo/Vd5yHPmrtbI/AAAAAAAABcU/9FGAtY4Ny10/s1600/shutka_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r8nNVcfzJmo/Vd5yHPmrtbI/AAAAAAAABcU/9FGAtY4Ny10/s200/shutka_01.jpg" width="149" /></a>or the blue one?<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XF1cd9NdixA/Vd5yLMRkuZI/AAAAAAAABc8/lDrIgaeDRSY/s1600/shutka_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XF1cd9NdixA/Vd5yLMRkuZI/AAAAAAAABc8/lDrIgaeDRSY/s200/shutka_02.jpg" width="149" /></a></div>
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The blue one it is:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nGxOg2Q5TTQ/Vd5yLNTMFII/AAAAAAAABcs/Rf7xjM_5YWM/s1600/shutka_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nGxOg2Q5TTQ/Vd5yLNTMFII/AAAAAAAABcs/Rf7xjM_5YWM/s200/shutka_03.jpg" width="149" /></a></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">One of my new outfits is a mild one for smaller occasions,
but the other one, well, it certainly will shock my musicians… and amazing
device of some kind of trousers and a vest top made of generous amounts of
burgundy satin and gold… Anyway, our new Roma colleague got the best prices out
for me. </span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NW7Sh18oJbo/Vd50E7aATzI/AAAAAAAABdM/0z_QXnqaeMo/s1600/shutka_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NW7Sh18oJbo/Vd50E7aATzI/AAAAAAAABdM/0z_QXnqaeMo/s200/shutka_04.jpg" width="149" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We also had the obligatory coffee and lemonade at some bars there,
talked about music, and fixed a jam session/rehearsal for the next day, where
some of his colleagues would join us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My first impression of Shutka: I only saw the main road and
the market, which looked like a busy road, not too different from some roads in
East London. </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ngwg_QCO04M/Vd51QLTOHUI/AAAAAAAABdY/6R4Roly7yMs/s1600/sutka_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ngwg_QCO04M/Vd51QLTOHUI/AAAAAAAABdY/6R4Roly7yMs/s200/sutka_08.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The atmosphere was very lively and bubbly, and I only saw happy
faces, open and friendly to us. Can’t wait to dive deeper into this place
tomorrow…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One thing I really regret: I have not taken pictures !
Usually I photograph all and everything, but firstly, my camera broke, and I don’t
like taking pix with my phone, AND when I’m so involved I forget to take pix…</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-36168070334613760382015-08-28T04:29:00.000-07:002015-08-28T04:29:02.241-07:0011th August - Sooo exited to be in Macedonia !<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My first proper day in Macedonia :-) :-) :-) How many years have I been
waiting for that moment? </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I had a great greeting yesterday by my friend Bojana, who
picked me up with 3 good-looking men, and we went to an Irish pub, haha ! I still
stayed faithful to my Macedonian mission and drank Rakja and ate Shopska Salad.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ar0RP_lQ17E/Vd2lSS6xrOI/AAAAAAAABYw/h7ReL4KehFQ/s1600/04_skopje_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ar0RP_lQ17E/Vd2lSS6xrOI/AAAAAAAABYw/h7ReL4KehFQ/s200/04_skopje_05.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T-yMHIP3G4g/Vd2lRWP7-AI/AAAAAAAABYs/aXUXTe3LF0A/s1600/04_skopje_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T-yMHIP3G4g/Vd2lRWP7-AI/AAAAAAAABYs/aXUXTe3LF0A/s200/04_skopje_02.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BiWdLS0mnUc/Vd2lRcguLcI/AAAAAAAABYo/G_pcbdIu0cM/s1600/04_skopje_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BiWdLS0mnUc/Vd2lRcguLcI/AAAAAAAABYo/G_pcbdIu0cM/s200/04_skopje_01.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Skopje on a first scroll is lovely lovely! The Vardar River
goes right through the city, unfortunately I couldn’t talk Bojana into singing
with me ‘Jovano Jovanke’ whilst sitting on the riverbank…</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QDCRYsa1l6A/Vd2lSBtq6EI/AAAAAAAABY8/PGmf0SAupe0/s1600/04_skopje_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QDCRYsa1l6A/Vd2lSBtq6EI/AAAAAAAABY8/PGmf0SAupe0/s200/04_skopje_04.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QhbyOEc2gCw/Vd2lS4NiJpI/AAAAAAAABZA/YIQ_zODD95o/s1600/04_skopje_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QhbyOEc2gCw/Vd2lS4NiJpI/AAAAAAAABZA/YIQ_zODD95o/s200/04_skopje_06.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G5wrpRUG2f8/Vd2mRM1W_6I/AAAAAAAABZQ/pHBThJlxt_Q/s1600/04_skopje_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G5wrpRUG2f8/Vd2mRM1W_6I/AAAAAAAABZQ/pHBThJlxt_Q/s200/04_skopje_08.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GbPYec2jHYI/Vd2n8oijGNI/AAAAAAAABZg/nE4A6OYlrtc/s1600/04_skopje12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GbPYec2jHYI/Vd2n8oijGNI/AAAAAAAABZg/nE4A6OYlrtc/s200/04_skopje12.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">They are doing a lot of major renovation and new buildings
in the centre</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- the major of Skopje definitely has a love for massive statues with
gentle smiles and big curves and muscles…</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9Iv5rSbsZM/Vd2n8tT5wcI/AAAAAAAABZo/uBCd_9tEHco/s1600/04_skopje_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9Iv5rSbsZM/Vd2n8tT5wcI/AAAAAAAABZo/uBCd_9tEHco/s200/04_skopje_09.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oXn8HMp-Sio/Vd2n8lwBWoI/AAAAAAAABZc/30yDeGuokAQ/s1600/04_skopje_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oXn8HMp-Sio/Vd2n8lwBWoI/AAAAAAAABZc/30yDeGuokAQ/s200/04_skopje_10.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hFn7zJlz_ds/Vd2n937dEwI/AAAAAAAABZs/Ig3tSq354as/s1600/04_skopje_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hFn7zJlz_ds/Vd2n937dEwI/AAAAAAAABZs/Ig3tSq354as/s200/04_skopje_12.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lutCvINLsRY/Vd2pVl-rYCI/AAAAAAAABaM/bhI_4DVh-uk/s1600/04_skopje_12a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lutCvINLsRY/Vd2pVl-rYCI/AAAAAAAABaM/bhI_4DVh-uk/s200/04_skopje_12a.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The old town is a huge mix of cultures. I used all of my
scraps of Turkish and Serbian, and was asked why I don’t speak any Albanian (I only
had a song on offer o that front, which bought me a free peach in the old bazar) but actually most people speak English and German.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MHnc0nNPtb8/Vd2pVaKDi0I/AAAAAAAABaU/BGuT1Ncv3LA/s1600/04_skopje_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MHnc0nNPtb8/Vd2pVaKDi0I/AAAAAAAABaU/BGuT1Ncv3LA/s200/04_skopje_13.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PdunO2vPkbY/Vd2qVWImpOI/AAAAAAAABaw/nLNu8--Nxjo/s1600/04_skopje_16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PdunO2vPkbY/Vd2qVWImpOI/AAAAAAAABaw/nLNu8--Nxjo/s200/04_skopje_16.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pYe3a_9s_QM/Vd2pVtzTAMI/AAAAAAAABag/0YkrD6l9WDQ/s1600/04_skopje_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pYe3a_9s_QM/Vd2pVtzTAMI/AAAAAAAABag/0YkrD6l9WDQ/s200/04_skopje_14.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I could have bought two suitcases full of stuff, but luckily I had
misread the zeros when getting money out, and so had only the equivalent of £10
which was spent in coffee, burek, tomatoes, raspberries, of course coffee and
yes, fabrics !!! They’ve got amazing stores there…</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-LLTw-plOg/Vd2pWbHkX3I/AAAAAAAABak/j4pYyjanI_o/s1600/04_skopje_15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-LLTw-plOg/Vd2pWbHkX3I/AAAAAAAABak/j4pYyjanI_o/s200/04_skopje_15.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ztq1CYIa4Sk/Vd2qVf3u_NI/AAAAAAAABa0/ctofOuZBW0s/s1600/04_skopje_17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ztq1CYIa4Sk/Vd2qVf3u_NI/AAAAAAAABa0/ctofOuZBW0s/s200/04_skopje_17.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U4nlGQFepno/Vd2qVbtAJwI/AAAAAAAABa4/x9nu_EPQnBE/s1600/04_skopje_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U4nlGQFepno/Vd2qVbtAJwI/AAAAAAAABa4/x9nu_EPQnBE/s200/04_skopje_18.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Back to the main square of Skopje. All those 'Sissi'-type' buildings are newly renovated or completely newly built (some building sites are still waiting to be polished away). </span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvc2ZOnF3gA/Vd2tAbCEadI/AAAAAAAABbE/Dk7OcarHvPo/s1600/04_skopje_19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvc2ZOnF3gA/Vd2tAbCEadI/AAAAAAAABbE/Dk7OcarHvPo/s200/04_skopje_19.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RCgK08AUS_E/Vd2tAQ7cDnI/AAAAAAAABbI/nGRK4X9inAI/s1600/04_skopje_20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RCgK08AUS_E/Vd2tAQ7cDnI/AAAAAAAABbI/nGRK4X9inAI/s200/04_skopje_20.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KPnu_DJhX10/Vd2tXMpV0ZI/AAAAAAAABbg/7hWtJ4_h7mg/s1600/04_skopje_22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KPnu_DJhX10/Vd2tXMpV0ZI/AAAAAAAABbg/7hWtJ4_h7mg/s200/04_skopje_22.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the evening all is
prettily lit up, and the water fountains play amazing looking visual effects
together with a colourful light-show. When suddenly loud Vienna-waltzing music
started accompanying those water plays, the whole place transformed into a magic
fairytale - unfortunately making it into a little imitation of Vienna rather than of Macedonia,
still, it was beautiful. </span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y3sR5MTuvY4/Vd2vLW2AEgI/AAAAAAAABbo/GWfh8fTYA7I/s1600/04_skopje_23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y3sR5MTuvY4/Vd2vLW2AEgI/AAAAAAAABbo/GWfh8fTYA7I/s200/04_skopje_23.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y_8DgxiCxc/Vd2vLpJx2iI/AAAAAAAABbw/iR_0wslYeNw/s1600/04_skopje_24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y_8DgxiCxc/Vd2vLpJx2iI/AAAAAAAABbw/iR_0wslYeNw/s200/04_skopje_24.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D_AOzkgHJXA/Vd2vLde6VTI/AAAAAAAABbs/1zLyoB5Ypak/s1600/04_skopje_25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D_AOzkgHJXA/Vd2vLde6VTI/AAAAAAAABbs/1zLyoB5Ypak/s200/04_skopje_25.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pnqgi5YHA10/Vd2vStQtMNI/AAAAAAAABcA/5CNJRUcKeu4/s1600/04_skopje_26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pnqgi5YHA10/Vd2vStQtMNI/AAAAAAAABcA/5CNJRUcKeu4/s200/04_skopje_26.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Balkan-bellied gentlemen which started politely talking to me, proofed to be
the secretary to the foreign Minister of Macedonia (or so he said, but his
polished speech and manners implied he could a be politician. He was out for
touristic feedback on their amazing creation for the visitors - unfortunately
he had to listen to my regret for not having Macedonian music played on the
square, and I further shocked him by my planned visit to the Roma quarters called 'Shutka' on the
next day, rather than visiting all the meant-to-be tourist attractions…</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U4nlGQFepno/Vd2qVbtAJwI/AAAAAAAABa4/x9nu_EPQnBE/s1600/04_skopje_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U4nlGQFepno/Vd2qVbtAJwI/AAAAAAAABa4/x9nu_EPQnBE/s200/04_skopje_18.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-65554344979711988152015-08-27T03:09:00.000-07:002015-08-27T03:09:31.703-07:007th – 10th August: Fun and fire in Koprivshtica<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The 5-yearly festival was the reason, why I came back to
Bulgaria this year, and inspired by the tasty reports from last time, 5 years
ago, others came…<o:p></o:p>Last time wild camping, this time in luxury fasion I shared
a room with Olga and Karen:</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B12Upa0jYt8/Vd2RzUgvvGI/AAAAAAAABVk/bf7NeNan-d4/s1600/03_koprivstica_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B12Upa0jYt8/Vd2RzUgvvGI/AAAAAAAABVk/bf7NeNan-d4/s200/03_koprivstica_03.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HY3u8TC76bo/Vd2Rx0Q5jXI/AAAAAAAABVo/ynnH8NFMb84/s1600/03_koprivstica_00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HY3u8TC76bo/Vd2Rx0Q5jXI/AAAAAAAABVo/ynnH8NFMb84/s200/03_koprivstica_00.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Koprivstica is on a normal day already a pretty and
historical town in the centre of Bulgaria, surrounded by mountains and hills.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XDItBGmoxlY/Vd2Rzj2rx6I/AAAAAAAABVg/1swdnJ3Gn4U/s1600/03_koprivstica_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XDItBGmoxlY/Vd2Rzj2rx6I/AAAAAAAABVg/1swdnJ3Gn4U/s200/03_koprivstica_04.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SSatOjHORoE/Vd2RyOanIhI/AAAAAAAABVM/w0DrWH5N_wA/s1600/03_koprivstica_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SSatOjHORoE/Vd2RyOanIhI/AAAAAAAABVM/w0DrWH5N_wA/s200/03_koprivstica_01.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eI_UW0Bpw6M/Vd2Rx7NgWrI/AAAAAAAABVw/2B-4hcow-YA/s1600/03_koprivstica_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eI_UW0Bpw6M/Vd2Rx7NgWrI/AAAAAAAABVw/2B-4hcow-YA/s200/03_koprivstica_02.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One of our highlights we had on the first evening, before
the festival, in THE first restaurant, when Orchestra Zornitsa, my favourite
Bulgarian band played the whole eve and we enjoyed plenty of amazing food and
knotted our feet with Bulgarian folk dances.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The next days we spent mostly up in the hills, strolling
between the 8 festival stages and lots of folk dance performances. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3QTx8tRXL04/Vd2R4JLW2XI/AAAAAAAABWc/xW37wYoT7M4/s1600/03_koprivstica_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3QTx8tRXL04/Vd2R4JLW2XI/AAAAAAAABWc/xW37wYoT7M4/s200/03_koprivstica_10.jpg" width="200" /> </a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VHV1oqEAviM/Vd2R1NDUMvI/AAAAAAAABWM/rO15W1GXaII/s1600/03_koprivstica_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VHV1oqEAviM/Vd2R1NDUMvI/AAAAAAAABWM/rO15W1GXaII/s200/03_koprivstica_06.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tEE44l8Ii5k/Vd2R1sHjb-I/AAAAAAAABWI/wRWpMPa6Ris/s1600/03_koprivstica_07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tEE44l8Ii5k/Vd2R1sHjb-I/AAAAAAAABWI/wRWpMPa6Ris/s200/03_koprivstica_07.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Some of the
costumes were even for my taste extraordinary.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ukyzeV7_qJ8/Vd2dKUd5vLI/AAAAAAAABYI/X3qBO4y0Y-s/s1600/03_koprivstica_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ukyzeV7_qJ8/Vd2dKUd5vLI/AAAAAAAABYI/X3qBO4y0Y-s/s200/03_koprivstica_14.jpg" width="155" /></a><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HJU_frAWWlw/Vd2R4GvV9-I/AAAAAAAABX8/oYghnLU56ig/s1600/03_koprivstica_11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HJU_frAWWlw/Vd2R4GvV9-I/AAAAAAAABX8/oYghnLU56ig/s200/03_koprivstica_11.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JsDzchqZLi4/Vd2R7op5pAI/AAAAAAAABXk/hKhoq8IDZ3Y/s1600/03_koprivstica_15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JsDzchqZLi4/Vd2R7op5pAI/AAAAAAAABXk/hKhoq8IDZ3Y/s200/03_koprivstica_15.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Good developments of the festival since last time is the
fact that amongst the performers there were Roma people – the children’s dance groups
was one of the best I have seen at the festival, and the Brass band one of the
rare musical highlights.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EEmeVR7ctVY/Vd2R581Rs9I/AAAAAAAABXY/bMmdZCUTJZI/s1600/03_koprivstica_13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EEmeVR7ctVY/Vd2R581Rs9I/AAAAAAAABXY/bMmdZCUTJZI/s200/03_koprivstica_13.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-piOBEKZIQ78/Vd2R5uUEcTI/AAAAAAAABWw/FRlDx5g2c-o/s1600/03_koprivstica_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-piOBEKZIQ78/Vd2R5uUEcTI/AAAAAAAABWw/FRlDx5g2c-o/s200/03_koprivstica_12.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This leads to the bad development: last time I saw many
stunning performances, whilst this time they were alright. Also, I think the
festival has tipped over from being a stunning folk extravaganza into becoming
commercially explored, which is sad :-(<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EBYfsOwOUgE/Vd2R1ld778I/AAAAAAAABWE/s1CmObHgarY/s1600/03_koprivstica_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EBYfsOwOUgE/Vd2R1ld778I/AAAAAAAABWE/s1CmObHgarY/s200/03_koprivstica_08.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zKgWZSvt_cg/Vd2R31VaTmI/AAAAAAAABWY/Dc3C4ow5Uc4/s1600/03_koprivstica_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zKgWZSvt_cg/Vd2R31VaTmI/AAAAAAAABWY/Dc3C4ow5Uc4/s200/03_koprivstica_09.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfortunately I had caught a really nasty cold there –
whilst we had 35 degrees and bright sun all the time ! This here is not a
Rakija drinking feast, but a ‘health ritual’ gurgling some local herbal
medicine I had bought at the Witches’ stall with Bernard, who had to be fit for
his solo in the eve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4U5YQexbAiA/Vd2R73WIANI/AAAAAAAABXA/2ppA_pVsc98/s1600/03_koprivstica_16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4U5YQexbAiA/Vd2R73WIANI/AAAAAAAABXA/2ppA_pVsc98/s200/03_koprivstica_16.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Oi9l_joJYuA/Vd2R8XIs4zI/AAAAAAAABXI/5p3QWZ94DU0/s1600/03_koprivstica_17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Oi9l_joJYuA/Vd2R8XIs4zI/AAAAAAAABXI/5p3QWZ94DU0/s200/03_koprivstica_17.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tYQkkitt8qY/Vd2R9FbbphI/AAAAAAAABXM/tP0r60go40s/s1600/03_koprivstica_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tYQkkitt8qY/Vd2R9FbbphI/AAAAAAAABXM/tP0r60go40s/s200/03_koprivstica_18.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Always on the Saturday evening, the stage in town is
reserved for foreign Bulgarian Choirs – London Bulgarian Choir was and is the
best !!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3_4wjHuI-Xk/Vd2R92l_aHI/AAAAAAAABX4/qlXxJCFfqm4/s1600/03_koprivstica_19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3_4wjHuI-Xk/Vd2R92l_aHI/AAAAAAAABX4/qlXxJCFfqm4/s200/03_koprivstica_19.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">At night time they will perform the old ritual of fire dancing for the tourists, which by tradition should happen in June, and involves dancing on glowing coals. Unfortunately I never managed to see it due to the overwhelming crowds.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IN980B2dNM4/Vd2R-Vfv5jI/AAAAAAAABXc/_m0pQG5VGIo/s1600/03_koprivstica_20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IN980B2dNM4/Vd2R-Vfv5jI/AAAAAAAABXc/_m0pQG5VGIo/s200/03_koprivstica_20.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QeTK6l43374/Vd2R_VDPbNI/AAAAAAAABXo/oE_5TC8j9HU/s1600/03_koprivstica_21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QeTK6l43374/Vd2R_VDPbNI/AAAAAAAABXo/oE_5TC8j9HU/s200/03_koprivstica_21.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sad it was to travel back to Sofia, where would on the next
day distribute to various places, me Macedonia and the other girls back to
London. </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_sg6AdGnQdI/Vd2R_-MzN9I/AAAAAAAABX0/Ek-uhwxesfQ/s1600/03_koprivstica_22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_sg6AdGnQdI/Vd2R_-MzN9I/AAAAAAAABX0/Ek-uhwxesfQ/s200/03_koprivstica_22.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-82451447104398206852015-08-26T04:20:00.000-07:002015-08-26T04:20:16.289-07:003rd -6th August: Plovdiv on Wings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mgjTQ9owgA4/VdxnULbx2TI/AAAAAAAABTk/XrY0iSrTGVU/s1600/02_Bulgaria_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mgjTQ9owgA4/VdxnULbx2TI/AAAAAAAABTk/XrY0iSrTGVU/s200/02_Bulgaria_04.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nDP5_wWdSIA/VdxnT4-VQ2I/AAAAAAAABTQ/C2ZyM0gE0H4/s1600/02_Bulgaria_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nDP5_wWdSIA/VdxnT4-VQ2I/AAAAAAAABTQ/C2ZyM0gE0H4/s200/02_Bulgaria_01.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oQP8N1gtIGg/VdxnTosWBQI/AAAAAAAABTU/zSeBZiVr93Q/s1600/02_Bulgaria_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oQP8N1gtIGg/VdxnTosWBQI/AAAAAAAABTU/zSeBZiVr93Q/s200/02_Bulgaria_02.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Plovdiv is one of the most amazing places on earth – the old
town it is. It’s soooo pretty and atmospheric. </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hwcLniU43MA/VdxnUbI6qpI/AAAAAAAABTo/hqQOF-djseY/s1600/02_Bulgaria_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hwcLniU43MA/VdxnUbI6qpI/AAAAAAAABTo/hqQOF-djseY/s200/02_Bulgaria_05.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Though sturdy sandals are advisable to manage those cobble stones – or wings <span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B59fNm0qrpQ/VdxpMMEalgI/AAAAAAAABUw/_sVnn-SF-N8/s1600/02_Bulgaria_00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: Wingdings; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="135" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B59fNm0qrpQ/VdxpMMEalgI/AAAAAAAABUw/_sVnn-SF-N8/s200/02_Bulgaria_00.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">For three days we had crazy music making on the menu – being
taught in the day and off to jams, performances and parties in the eve…</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Kcngk0UqMDY/VdxnV7JPTcI/AAAAAAAABUI/-9YLvmUncY8/s1600/02_Bulgaria_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Kcngk0UqMDY/VdxnV7JPTcI/AAAAAAAABUI/-9YLvmUncY8/s200/02_Bulgaria_08.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0fSE2iaDfc/VdxnVDU7JUI/AAAAAAAABT8/u9rluxjFbNo/s1600/02_Bulgaria_07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0fSE2iaDfc/VdxnVDU7JUI/AAAAAAAABT8/u9rluxjFbNo/s200/02_Bulgaria_07.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wuq76n3xVYk/VdxnUwgL0GI/AAAAAAAABUE/ysBN5wXbHss/s1600/02_Bulgaria_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wuq76n3xVYk/VdxnUwgL0GI/AAAAAAAABUE/ysBN5wXbHss/s200/02_Bulgaria_06.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Unfortunately our violin tutor favoured the electric violin
and sheet music, and his own and his friend’s compositions rather than old
traditional stuff. Still, we learned about 50 finger-breaking embellishments,
my repertoire of time signatures was expanded to 13/8 and 15/16, and some of
the tunes were even good <span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pMbfV_on5jE/VdxnXcRJjmI/AAAAAAAABUo/g0K6a2cLMnM/s1600/02_Bulgaria_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pMbfV_on5jE/VdxnXcRJjmI/AAAAAAAABUo/g0K6a2cLMnM/s200/02_Bulgaria_09.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The evening entertainment gave more satisfying results. The
municipality Plovdiv put on free folk/world music and dance performances in the
Amphitheatre.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Mild artistic to crazy acrobatic…<o:p></o:p></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7974756882493702705.post-85892025585961193162015-08-25T06:27:00.000-07:002020-05-02T02:36:36.010-07:00<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><span style="color: #ffd966;">2<sup>nd</sup> August 2015</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Back in Bulgaria after 5 years !</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YPMbwVqEpD8/VdtxiKsIe0I/AAAAAAAABRs/Hx4PhNhvcVI/s1600/01_bulgaira_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YPMbwVqEpD8/VdtxiKsIe0I/AAAAAAAABRs/Hx4PhNhvcVI/s200/01_bulgaira_01.jpg" width="200" /> </a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NP5uY9kZ4HQ/VdtxjatXUGI/AAAAAAAABSI/QUBBR54tYfA/s1600/01_bulgaira_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NP5uY9kZ4HQ/VdtxjatXUGI/AAAAAAAABSI/QUBBR54tYfA/s200/01_bulgaira_04.jpg" width="150" /></a> <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ooD4jtQBLPs/VdtxiCXX52I/AAAAAAAABR4/iH6tlLTvDD8/s1600/01_bulgaira_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ooD4jtQBLPs/VdtxiCXX52I/AAAAAAAABR4/iH6tlLTvDD8/s200/01_bulgaira_02.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The place where people shake their heads to say yes, and nod for expressing no, and the place where I had 5 years ago learned to be unfriendly to
people by mirroring the manners I came across there – I had made a note of
Bulgaria being inhabited by the least friendly people I ever met on any of my travels, being ripped off by bus tickets sellers just after entering the country, and
then charged a nice fine, and waitresses deciding not to serve you if you asked more than one question...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Well, things have changed hugely - This time I have not come accross even one
unfriendly person! Also, contrary to my usually lone travels, I arrived
with Olga, also violinist and friend from LGO times.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We were heading for Plovdiv, to take part a few days at the
Folk Music Seminar...</span></div>
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Magic Violinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16787092581486594136noreply@blogger.com0Bulgaria42.733883 25.48582999999996439.747918 20.322255999999964 45.719848 30.649403999999965