Ohrid – A Home for the Disciples of St Cyril and Methodius (Just What I Needed)
Stumbling into my home, tired from a hard day’s work; I took a beer from the fridge, sat down in my dimly lit living room, put a record on and kicked my feet up on my table. The world had moved on since I had completed my trip of a lifetime in 2017, reminiscing I looked over my old travel diaries. I had left them untouched in the time since and I was curious to see what had changed in the last two years. Back then I had wanted to start a travel blog but I had neither the time nor the patience to do it. I quickly jotted down some sentences in my notebook and the crux of this blog post materialized almost effortlessly. The choice of subject came easily to me, Ohrid, a small city in Southern Macedonia and the object of my deepest affections. Being passionate about Byzantine history I had planned for a day or two but that quickly went out the door as I extended my stay, the city had a magnetic allure that made it difficult for me to leave. Instead I used the place as a base to explore southern Macedonia including Bitola, but I will keep those adventures for a separate post.
Table of Contents
- Background Information:
- Tirana to Ohrid (The First Night):
- Exploring the City:
- By the Lake:
- Saint Naum of Ohrid Monastery
- Struga and the Hike from Hell:
- Additional Galleries
- Conclusion
Background Information:
My “Slavic Jerusalem” lies on the shore of a lake of the same name. This lake, the deepest in Europe is known for its clarity and perfect bluish hue. The craggy coast boasts beautiful marshes and, as I was there in the spring, the large chain of mountains encircling the lake were still partially snow-capped. The region has been inhabited by many peoples and empires; Ilyrian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Bulgarian, Serbian and Turkish to name a few, giving the town a beautiful blend of architecture. The city, known for its many beautiful churches and monasteries built in the byzantine style, also contains a wealth of merchant houses built in typical Turkish wood construction. Today the city is the most popular summer destination for Macedonians who come here in droves.
Tirana to Ohrid (The First Night):
I arrived in Macedonia late at night, it was pitch black and I was exhausted from my long bus ride from Tirana, Albania. The road was torturous, winding its way through the mountainous territory by way of a two-lane road. The border crossing had been longer than anticipated and quite tense. I wish I had picked up more of the language to understand what the commotion was about as we were escorted off the bus and our possessions searched. Finally the stern looking officers did a sweep of the bus with sniffing dogs. Eventually we all got back on the bus and I had a new stamp on my passport. Unfortunately, the connection from Albania terminates outside the nearby city of Struga and at this time a night it would be impossible to make it to Ohrid without a taxi. As expected a few were lined up waiting for passengers but they would charge more than the ones in town. On the bus ride I had made friends with a few Turks and together we wandered away from the station to one of cabs parked further away in town. We bargained an impossibly low price and we were driven to Ohrid.
The taxi dropped us off in the center of town by the bazaar, the main thoroughfare of which is saddled between the famous Ohrid hill and the low-lying new town. Bidding my new friends goodbye I found a kebab stand and having satisfied my craving began the climb uphill to find my hostel. If you ever find yourself in Ohrid I would strongly recommend it, the place is called Sunny Lake Hostel and the host Gjoko is a great guy. The hostel has a small back yard with some hammocks and a balcony with one of the best views in town. By the time I had checked in and put away my bags I was exhausted, but it was a Friday night and I was hellbent on doing something. I quickly made friends and we went out to a bar by the lake. There I ordered a few pints of “Skopsko” a Macedonian beer that turned out to be quite enjoyable. To my surprise there was a Bulgarian cover band playing AC/DC songs and they were absolutely incredible. It had been a few weeks for me without listening to western music so I stayed till close while others we were with filtered back to the hostel.
Exploring the City:
The next day I rose from bed and set my sights about exploring town, I had breakfast on the rooftop balcony and what a view it was. I hadn’t seen the full splendor of the place due to the darkness and I couldn’t wait to get out. I quickly made my way down the hill back to the bazaar intersecting with the domed Ali pasha mosque, it was still early and the area was quiet compared to when I had arrived the night before. During this walk I ran into people from the hostel and we spent the next few days together. I followed the main street to the waterfront, there I took a pretty boardwalk along the water that leads to the most iconic sight in town, the Church of St. John at Kaneo. Overlooking the lake, it offers a panorama that is considered by many to be the most striking view of the city (by that I mean the one that can be found on all the fridge magnets in town).
Uphill from the Church of St. John is the Church of Saints Clement and Panteleimon, the site is littered with archaeological excavation and is well worth a walk around. It was the site of an earlier roman basilica and restauration/excavation has been ongoing since the early 2000’s. It is believed that the Glagolitic alphabet, the first Slavic alphabet, was first taught here by the disciples of two Byzantine monks St. Saints Cyril and Methodius. For those of you familiar with the history of the Great Moravian Empire (the ancestor to modern day Slovakia and the Czech ), St. Cyril was sent to the Moravians by the Eastern Roman Empire. Sometime after having the pope agree to them preach the liturgy in early Slavonic, they were forced out of the country by the spiteful Germans (Frankish Kingdom), the perennial enemies of the Slavic peoples, leading to an exile in Ohrid where it developed as a center of learning.
From there we visited the 10th century Bulgarian castle founded by Samuel of Bulgaria, the path to it being inundated with spring caterpillars. Entrance to the castle is 30 Denar, well worth it for the view but unfortunately it comes up short on the the history of the structure due to the lack of panelling or a museum.
Other points of interest in town were several churches, the old Hellenistic theatre and the plenitude grand old houses, some falling apart. While in town look out for old Yugoslavian era cars, they are very charming and add to the atmosphere of the place.
One of my favorite public places in the city includes the small square by the Chinar Olive Tree. The cafes that line the street offer a beautiful contrast between the mosque minarets and church spires competing for airspace.
By the Lake:
While in town I also tried my first Ćevapi, a Bosnian dish that can be found all though the Balkans (more on this in my Sarajevo post). I would spend the rest of my trip seeking it out wherever I could. The dish is simple, its just sausages, bread and onion but its so good.
Having bought my newfound dish in the bazaar, I followed the main street past the city square all the way to the lakes edge. There, the pedestrian street culminates in roundabout that leads to the port of Ohrid as well as a a lakeside boulevard with tree lined park. I found a bench by an imposing statue of St-Naum (more on him latter) and looked out at the water. This is a good place to get a boat-ride on the lake or if you are so inclined or to sit down at a restaurant. As with most cities located by the water, sunset dining by the lakefront is a must and Stobi wine would be a good choice of accompaniment. The bottle can be easily be recognized by its logo a peacock. If you are looking for a more relaxed evening out I would recommend the little Jazz club by the lakeside, I spent quite some time there and it was very cozy.
The side of the port with the boulevard is the new town, the other is an older section that leads to the Church of St John. This part of the city is home to the traditional wooden houses mentioned earlier connected by passageways forming the roads under them. There are great places to eat in this part of town! It is also where the lakeside bar from my first night is located. Other sites are the old medieval city gates, the Robevi family house as well as a host of galleries and museums. The Robevi house serves as the city’s de-facto ethnographic museum displaying items from the city’s past as well of a history of the family that built this architectural gem.
Finally, no trip to Ohrid is complete without waiting for the sun to set over the mountains, throwing the last of their golden hue over the lake.
Saint Naum of Ohrid Monastery
Of all the day trips that can be done from Ohrid the one that is most impressive is the Monastery of Saint Naum. I would dedicate at least half a day of your time to it if not more. Located 30km from away on the southern shore of the lake, the Monastery borders Albania and was part of a land exchange between King Zog of Albania and the old Yugoslavia. If you can find friends its is possible to bargain a taxi for cheaper than the bus or if you have a car there are plenty of sights to see along the lake. These include the Bay of Bones Museum (reconstruction of a prehistoric village on the water), a roman fort, Tito’s summer house and Galichica National park. This park offers view of both lake Ohrid and its twin lake Prespa from the tallest vantage point in the area. From the monastery the snow-capped mountain tops provide quite the contrast with verdant lakeside.
The short walk up to the monastery from the drop off area offers many places to grab a bite to eat. It also offers the clear waters of the “Crn Drin” stream that can be boated on, a grassy plaza and the most pristine sandy beaches on the lake, although I do warn you that the lake waters are frigid. Most importantly the get in the monastery a path goes up and around to a gardens filled with… Peacocks and lots of them at that. These big birds roam the monastery grounds and are known to be quite aggressive if not left alone.
The monastery, founded in 905 AD, sits on a rocky outcropping by the lake. At its center is the burial ground of St-Naum, a disciple of Clement of Ohrid and an important figure in the Bulgarian orthodox faith. The original part of the monastery built in byzantine style and still displays its ancient painted frescoes. I’m not a religious man by any means but I was moved, I had waited a long time to see this and I could not believe how well preserved it was. Having survived the herd of peacocks, I retreated back to the lakeside to grab a bite to eat in the sun.
Struga and the Hike from Hell:
On my last day in town I did two things: I hiked to the cross overlooking the city while heavily hungover and I explored Struga. Although it was a pretty bad idea in my state, the long hike was well worth it. Located on the east side of the lake the path take you through old ruins and some of the local flora. Eventually the paths spill out onto local roads or unmarked trails that bring you up the mountain. As you climb to the more remote villages the asphalt turns to gravel, and the occasional farm animal may block the road. On the way up there are several small churches and chapels worth checking out without encountering a single tourist.
I realized when I was at the cross that I had exhausted my water supply and I was quite happy to fill my water bottle when I got back into town
The second part of my day consisted of a well-deserved nap and biking to Struga 15km away, the bikes courtesy of the hostel (I slept well on the bus to Skopje the next day). Lake Ohrid is supplied with the cool waters of Lake Prespa, a mountain lake located on the eastern side of Mt. Galichica, through St. Naum Springs. From Struga the lake waters make outflow to the Adriatic Sea though the “Black Drin/Drim” river that runs through the center of Struga’s downtown. Before reaching the Adriatic, this powerful stream meets up with the “White Drin/Drim” to form the Drin/Drim River. Not far from the lakefront I caught the dying sunset and dinned on the savory (and fresh) Ohrid Lake Trout, a relative of Salmon, for supper. In all honesty, there is not much to do in Struga, it’s a pretty area so just soak up the lively atmosphere with a walk around town. There are some great restaurants and it can be relatively cheap to dine here.
Additional Galleries
Although I tried to include as many pictures as possible in this post, I feel as if I missed a few things. Feel free to browse though this gallery to see more of my favorite travel destination.
More Pictures of Ohrid
More Pictures of the Monastery of St. Naum
More Pictures of the Hike From Hell
More Pictures of Struga
Conclusion
Ohrid is my favorite travel destination so far and sometimes it feels as if I left a piece of my in that corner of Macedonia. If you make it out to that famed lake, I hope you have as much fun as I did. One day I will be back, hopefully sooner rather than later. Those spring nights, beer in hand by the lake were exactly what I needed.
