One Eventful Fall!

We have experienced some amazing events these last few months and thought we'd share some photos with all of you.

Bajram - This is the Muslim holiday signifying the end of Ramazan. We celebrated by visiting 7 houses, eating tons of sweets at each stop.

Arrival of new Peace Corps Volunteers - We were both selected as trainers for the new group of Volunteers that arrived in September. We joined the local language teachers and Peace Corps staff at the airport in welcoming the PCVs to Macedonia.



Babina (baby shower) - Our friends Hyrije and Amir recently had a little boy. Only women are invited to the baby shower and I was happy to go along! The party is huge with dancing (to super loud music) and eating all night long.

Lake Matka - We finally made it out to this beautiful area where we took a short boat ride and went inside a cave. Lake Matka has a world-class caving system however only certified divers can access most of them as they are underwater.



Bektashi Tekke - I don't think we've ever posted anything about the Tekke here in town, but it is an interesting place to visit and we know the people there well. The Tekke is somewhat akin to a monestary but for the Bektashi sect of Islam.

Treskavec Monastery - We've been meaning to hike up to this monastery for a long time now and we're so happy we finally got the chance. This 12 century monastery in the hills above Prilep is beautiful and sits up in the middle of some amazing rock formations. Only one monk lives there however at one time it was inhabited by hundreds. Visitors are invited to hike up and stay for free. The Monastery can be seen in the movie "Before the Rain" directed by Milčo Mančevski, Macedonian's most famous film director and screenwriter.

*The Prilep area is a big producer of tobacco.

Gathering Chestnuts - Fall is the season for chestnuts and one can buy them roasted from street vendors across Macedonia. Our friends Teuta, Rexhep and Genta invited us out to their village to gather some to take home. Unfortunately Conor couldn't come along, but another Volunteer, Kerry, took his place.

Halloween - The Friday before Halloween we worked in Kumanovo with the new Volunteers, where we dressed up as "Tush Bags". (Tus (pronounced "tush") is a supermarket.) We then held two Halloween parties at the American Corner in Tetovo. Because Halloween was on a Sunday this year and I was gone the Friday prior I had planned on not having a party in Tearce at the school. Well, this idea didn't go over so well as all the students were begging me to throw a party. So, this past Friday we held two different parties and the kids were jumping with joy. :)

Our time has been filled with many other projects at our work sites, which we will post on a little later. :)

**To see more pictures from all these events, click here**

*To see more pictures from the Tearce Halloween party, click here*

*And finally, to see more pictures from the American Corner Halloween party, click here*

Mmmm...wine!

A little over a month ago we experienced one of our most memorable days in Macedonia. Kavadarci, a town located near the center of the country, holds a yearly wine festival called Grozdeber. This year we decided to partake in the festivities and enjoyed taste-testing wine and cheese throughout the evening Friday. As we were with a group of American Peace Corps Volunteers naturally we stood out and at one stand we began conversing with the manager of one of Macedonia's largest wine producing companies, Tikves. Tikves Winery is located in Kavadarci, so the owner invited us to accompany him to one of the vineyards the following day to pick grapes. Of course we couldn't say no to this incredible opportunity, so Saturday morning Conor, our friend Rene and I met the manager, Gligorco, at the winery. He instructed us to each pick out a bottle of wine to take with us, making sure we chose the finest they had to offer. At this point we all thought to ourselves, "but how will we pay for all of this with only 500 denars ($10)?" It was decided we would have to ask to stop at an ATM on our way back through town.

After stopping by a market to purchase chicken, bread and other lunch items, we drove the 30 kilometers to the vineyard, situated in a remote, beautiful location with rolling hills as far as the eye can see. We were served coffee and given overalls and a jacket (mostly due to the fact that we were cold...imagine that) to wear before heading out to work. Rene and I spent the next hour and a half cutting grapes while Conor helped load cartons onto the trailer and truck. (We didn't quite master the business however as at one point Rene and I cut a whole vine of the wrong grapes...)

Our host summoned us to return after we had finished cutting our row of grapes, giving us a brief tour of the land before showing us the garden. Here we were instructed how to correctly pick a plethora of herbs and vegetables, tasting as we went. We discussed the "slow food" movement while carefully selecting fresh basil, oregano, mint, thyme, chives, radishes, peppers, spinach, lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes. After washing them all in the outside "cheshma" we prepared six different delicious salads. These were accompanied by three different types of rakija - a local type of brandy. Little did we know while we were working the employees at the vineyard had prepared a huge lunch for us with chicken, potatoes and spices, which we ate while thoroughly enjoying our three bottles of wine.

We finished up our amazing meal and thought it was about time to head back into town when we were led behind the house, where our grapes were waiting --- ready to be stomped. The previous night I had mentioned my lasting desire to stomp grapes, which apparently was remembered. After pouring our grapes into a tall, plastic barrel, Rene and I took our turn each climbing in and stomping away. We were each sent home with a large 5 gallon bottle of grape juice, yeast, sugar and instructions on how to make our own wine (which is currently fermenting). We were driven back into town, dropped off in the center, and not asked for a single dime!

Our day continued with a festive parade, at which we met a friend (Boris) of another PCV. We had been invited to attend a wine-tasting at his house that was held earlier in the day -- which we missed due to the aforementioned activities. He understood and graciously invited us to a dinner he was hosting with municipal delegations from Serbia and Poland. We spent the following couple of hours eating delicious food and drinking high-quality, home-made wine, which again was free! This day just gives a glimpse into the hospitality of the Macedonian people. Guests are highly valued and shown amazing respect. Much thanks to Boris, Gligorco and Tikves Winery -- which we will forever praise!

**Click here to view all our pictures.**