OURS FOODIE MACEDONIA DESTINATIONS


It was lucky we’d started with some exercise as that turned out to be ‘three-pie day’


peaceful Duf Waterfall – don’t be put off by the name, it’s a real beauty spot – was rewarded with homemade leek-and-spinach pie washed down with a yoghurt-like breakfast drink, boza. It was lucky we’d started with some exercise as that turned out to be just the first of three pastry-based dishes that day – which we christened ‘three-pie day’. We joined local women in a cooking class in Janche to have a go at making cheese pies in a traditional outdoor oven, then finished the evening off with another home- cooked meal complete with slow- cooked garlicky snails, picked by our host, and (you guessed it) a hearty slice of pie. The moral of the story? A


foodie tour is an undoubtedly enjoyable way to get to know a country and its character, but don’t expect to be able to do up your tightest-fitting jeans when you get home.


w CITY SIGHTS While the rest of Eastern Europe is known for its low-cost city breaks or cheap-and-cheerful sunshine, land-locked Macedonia has so far slipped under the tourist radar. In some ways it has much in common with the region – outstanding value for money, warm but not scorching weather, and cheap flights – but its complex history lends a different colour. Its archaeological sites are as rich in ancient ruins as any in neighbouring Greece, while its history of Ottoman occupation – which began in 1389 and lasted more than 500 years – is borne out in twisting bazaars packed with wooden façade-fronted shops and cafes full of locals sipping Turkish tea. Skopje, the starting point for


the tour, is a prime example, with centuries-old mosques tucked away between modern buildings erected since a 1963 earthquake destroyed much of the city’s infrastructure. The real character lies in the sleepy Old Town, where flat cap-wearing old men sit by cafe windows eating burek pastries for breakfast, and in the Green Market, where lively stallholders offer samples of sheep’s cheese and spicy peppers to entice willing punters to make a purchase. You won’t find big fashion labels or the same big-brand shops common to every major city


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PICTURES: INTREPID TRAVEL/ JOANNA YEE


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