Today was the final day of our conference. After finishing our meetings I set out with Katie, Elizabeth and Gina for some shopping in old town. We visited a papermaking workshop that is very old and famous. They have one of the only two European copies of the Gutenberg press there. We also visited the Antica jewelry store where a family has been making Ohrid pearls for hundreds of years. The pearls are made from the scales of a fish found in the lake by a secret method only known by two families who have passed it down to male heirs. In a few minutes I will go down to the lake where they have planned a BBQ farewell party for us. Tomorrow we leave for Skopje!

After our meetings on Sunday we departed as a group for a tour of Old Town and the many beautiful churches and historical sites there. We visited the Icon Gallery where we saw a collection of icon paintings that is considered one of the best in the world. Photos were not allowed inside any of the churches which is a shame because I saw some truly amazing things including the largest collection of 11^th century frescoes in the world at St. Sophia. Those paintings are 1,000 years old – wow! Our guide who is an export on frescoes showed us some frescoes that prove that the renaissance style of painting began here in Ohrid 300 years before being seen in Italy. St Sophia, or Cathedral of Divine Wisdom, was the seat of the archbisphoric of Ohrid (part of the catholic church) for several centuries and so the portraits of six popes are found there also.

I returned to the Roman amphitheater in the sunlight and sat on stones where the locals sat 2,000 years ago to watch gladiators and dramas (and for a time also some Christians and lions). Some of the benches are still engraved with the season ticket holders’ names from 2 millennia ago.

Two of the most amazing places we saw where SS Clement and Pantheleimon at Plaoshnik and St. John at Kaneo. Both rest in rocks overlooking the lake. At Plaoshnick there is an archeological dig site as it is the site of a 4^th-5^th century Christian basilica. I saw beautiful mosaic floors and a baptismal from the 5^th century. Ohrid (then Lychanidos) has a very early Christian heritage as the apostle Paul came here and baptized people in the lake.

In the evening we has the special treat to visit another country! We went to a small village called Republika Vecani. This village declared itself independent from the state of Macedonia and even issues it’s own currency. It exists like Vatican City, as a state within a state. There we had an amazing traditional dinner or salted meats, goat cheese, beans, stewed pork and sausage and of course shots of raki and pitchers of wine made by the owner of the restaurant in his cellar. I bought a bottle to bring home and he let me see where he makes it!  It was an amazing night with dancing and love music. On the bus ride home we sang songs together with our Macedonian, Serbian, Russian, Ukrainian and Romanian friends. The shared their songs with us and also sang our songs along with us. We sang a lot of Beatles and 80’s music and also took turns singing our national anthems. It was a perfect day.

After our Macedonian dinner on Saturday, Gina, Elizabeth, Nikki and I went out to Old Town Ohrid to see George Benson perform in the ancient Roman Theater. The concert was part of the Ohrid Summer Festival and we got tickets because Nikki and Gina befriended Mike the guitarist and Teddy the drummer while eating breakfast at our hotel. The concert was amazing and in such a special venue.

I am going to post some pictures from our 3 hour drive from Skopje Airport to Lake Ohrid. I was amazed with the environmental diversity and extreme beauty of the country. It is so much more than I could have ever expected. At first the scenery looked very Italian. It reminded me so much of Tuscany with fields of sunflowers, orchards and beautiful mud brick homes with red tile roofs.I can see why they are known as the breadbasket of the Balkans here. Along the way I also so corn fields, watermelon fields and lots of red pepper. They make a lovely sauce out of the peppers and tomatoes that they eat all through the winter to get their vitamin C.

As we started to climb into the mountains we saw vineyards and rivers. The vegetation became more lush and it started to look very similar to the mountainous parts of Maine that I have visited. The main difference is that the houses are very large and all made of stone and brick with red tile. There are also mosques everywhere! They are easy to spot since they all have the tall minarets. The Muslim population in Macedonia is about 33%, but since we are very near Albania ther percentage is high in this region.

We have also seen many Orthodox Christian churches. This is the majority religion. We are going to visit some in the next few days with frescoes that are over 1,000 years old. Isn’t that amazing?

The town where we are staying, Lake Ohrid, has been the center of the Macedonian Orthodox church and also was the seat of an archdiocese in Byzantine times whose power extended all the way to Venice in Italy.

The hotel where we are staying is very nice and right on the water. Today I went for my 8 mile AIDS Marathon run in the hills behind the hotel and then went swimming in the lake. I woke up at 5 am to go run to beat the heat. It is very warm here!  Tonight we will have our welcome dinner and some Macedonian folk dancers.

I have been looking at pictures and it appears that Lake Ohrid, were the conference will take place, is a truly beautiful destination. It is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site so yeah! I can check another one off my list!

I was hoping to extend my trip by visiting Istanbul, but it didn’t work out. However, I am going to spend a few days in the capitol city, Skopje where I hope to see some mosques and the Turkish Bazaar. I have read they have many things there left over from five hundred years of Ottoman (Turkish) rule.

If you know me well then you know that I love all things Greek and Roman. This trip is a special treat for me as Macedonia is the homeland of my namesake, Alexander the Great and was part of both the Roman and Byzantine Empires. I am really hoping that I will get a chance to see some remnants of the Roman Via Egnatia, which passed near Lake Ohrid.

Well I leave early Thursday morning so check back  on Saturday or Sunday for a new post!

A church at Lake Ohrid

Lake Ohrid

A horse-drawn wagon belonging to a waste paper collector waits in front of a McDonald's restaurant in the centre of the Macedonian capital, Skopje. From BBC 2007

Looking at Skopje through ruins

Our spirits were revived by the Pushkin Museum and in particular the collection of impressionist paintings. As we entered each room we gasped with delight as each hall was filled with wonderful works by all of our favorite artists. It is said that the Pushkin has the finest impressionist collection outside of Paris and I definitely believe it. Instead of one or two paintings from special artists, the greats such as Degas, Monet, Van Gogh, Renoir, Gauguin, Picasso, Cézanne, Miro (I could keep going on and on) had entire rooms filled with their art.

After visiting the museum we did some souvenir shopping and then met our new friends, the Moscow DID team, in front of the Christ Savior Cathedral. There was saw long lines of people purchasing blessed Easter breads. The Russian Orthodox Easter is this coming Sunday and so we have seen many beautiful painted eggs and chocolate treats. Easter in Russia is somewhat like Halloween in the states in that children go knocking on doors and say “Jesus Christ is risen” and then people give them candy such as chocolate eggs that they collect in their Easter baskets.

Our friends took us to The Science House for lunch. Today the Science House is a museum and private club for Russian scientists who have won the Nobel Prize and other honors. However, it once was a nobleman’s palace before the Bolshevik Revolution when it was taken by the government and the owner was either killed or fled the country. It was huge and decorated very ornately with mosaics, painted ceilings, marble and gold moldings and beautiful artworks. It reminded me of Hearst Castle inside and made me think about how having these vast discrepancies in wealth in such a close proximity as they used to have in Moscow could have fanned the flames revolution.

After many toasts, and exchanges of gifts and embraces we left our friends and set out for our last night in Moscow. Walking back to the hotel we visited a “Super-Mall.” They had every type of store you can imagine including many American stores like “Build-a-Bear” and all of the top European fashion designers. On the 7^th floor there was an ice skating rink with giant windows looking out across Moscow.

Perhaps the most spiritual moment of the day was just as it was ending. Cheryl, Hasan and I left the hotel and went back to Red Square to see it lit up as in is at night. It was very late so there were only a few people here and there. The square was quiet and peaceful. We stood quietly, almost reverently in the center of Russian culture as the next day began.

The first place we visited in Dmitrov was the gymnasium where our colleague Ivan and his wife work. It was a beautiful school and only four years old. We had a nice breakfast there of pastries and tea and then we were able to meet with students. Unfortunately, we were not given a lot of time to speak with the students, but we used the time well both answering their many questions and asking them our own questions about deliberation.  As with other students we have visited the students wanted to know how people pay for higher education in our country (they usually do not have to pay for it in Russia).

After the school we visited the center for educational instruction where Ivan also works. While there we learned about the function the center plays in the community and also a lot about the region of Dmitrov. Something that makes this region special is that it is a region where many athletes live. Every winter the town hosts ski and other winter sports competitions which bring in thousands of spectators.

When these meetings came to an end we were able to explore more of Dmitrov and learn about the interesting history of the town. The first construction of the town was in the 11^th century and so they have a very long and interesting history that we learned about as we visited all three of the Dmitrov history museums within the city center. The thing I remember most about the city is its beautiful gold-domed church that was built in the 16^th century.

We also had the chance to visit a monastery and a WWII Memorial on our way back to Moscow. The monastery was built in the 1500’s but during the times of the Soviet Union the majority of churches and monasteries such as this were closed. During those years the buildings at this monastery were used as a headquarters for the KGB. Today the monastery is functioning once again.

Last night I ate one of my favorite things that I have had so far. After a very nice dinner of Russian staples such as a beet salad and chicken and potato soup, we all enjoyed blini from Teremok . These pancakes are the Russian version of crepes and can be order with meat, vegetables or sweets inside. I had one with melted chocolate and bananas and it was amazing!

After the Academy we went to Izmaylovo Market were we purchased souvenirs such as matryoshka Dolls and furry hats. It was very fun to haggle over the prices with the merchants.

In the evening we had the privilege of meeting with a local Youth Parliament. This are groups of student leaders (high school and university students from different student clubs) we meet with each other in order to help each other to improve the standard of living in their communities. We were so impressed by the amazing works these students are doing in their communities. The students asked us questions and we had a very interesting and long discussion about democracy, including how it is taught and the challenges our democracies face.

After the meeting we had dinner with one of the students, Sascha (a nickname here for Alexander – like Alex). It was so fun to spend time with a young Russian person and to hear about his life. As I told some students yesterday at 1518, the more I meet Russian people the more I see our similarities before our differences. I wish that more people could have experiences such as this because I know it would make our world a better and more peaceful place.

Tuesday evening we attended the Russian opera, Boris Godunov, at the Bolshoi theater. This is a story by Pushkin, the most famous Russian author that tells that a very dark and interesting tale that is based on true Russian history. The opera was amazing and perhaps my favorite tourist experience so far. The set decorations and costumes were the most beautiful and intricate that I have ever seen. The music was enchanting and luckily for us the words were translated in English and displayed on screens to the sides of the stage!