North Macedonia – Less Car, More Life

Walking across the border from Albania to North Macedonia, on Lake Ohrid.

When we decided to do all our Albanian travel by bus and an occasional taxi, we knew it wasn’t going to be the easiest way to travel, but as we say to each other “We may see fewer places, but we will experience more”. The trip to Lake Ohrid was a great example of more experiences.

See more of less. Ooooh, travel motto t-shirt? Have I loved every bus trip? No. They have their ups and downs. Occasional motion sickness, drivers who smoke. But the pay off is that we both get to sightsee, we get to experience the same transportation the locals use, and you never know what your day will be like. Seamless? Almost seamless? Complete mess? Who knows? So off we go.

Pogradec Albania, the bus station where we arrived from Korçë. Step one.

Loading our bags into a taxi. Or just a car. Not really sure. Step two.

We walked to the bus station in Korçë, and quickly caught our bus to Pogradec. A town at the foot of Lake Ohrid. When we got off the bus in Pogradec, Albania, and walked towards the street, the driver of another bus asked us “Tirana?” No, Ohrid, we replied. He hooked his thumb towards another guy, “Ask him, he’s the boss.” The Boss agreed to drive us to the border for 1,000 Lek, or $10.00. Albania is a fascinating contradiction of confusing yet surprisingly hassle free. Tourism is still pretty new here, so bus schedules are not set in stone or well documented, but there seems to be very little scamming or property crime directed at tourists. This was a good example, we didn’t even leave the bus parking lot and the first person we interacted with sorted us out. A bit gruff, but helpful.

A welcome sign at the North Macedonia border.

The Boss dropped us right at the border and we put on our backpacks and lined up behind a car and three day tripping Italian tourists (no luggage), and had our passports stamped. Then it was about a kilometer long walk to the North Macedonia border control.

Approaching the North Macedonia border control on foot, step three.

Taking a trail down off the road to Monastery Saint Naum, where we think we can catch a bus to Ohrid.

Crossing the springs which feed into the lake and are a destination and popular sight.

The minibus was easy to find. Second and final bus of the day! Step four.

Step 4.5, try to get in to apartment. We didn’t have cell coverage in Ohrid so Rich had to buy a coffee and use a cafe WiFi to reach the apartment manager. And walk down and back up the hill again.

And a cup of tea on our balcony overlooking the lake. Successful transition.

We were excited to get out and walk the streets, first stop was the Church of Holy Mother, Kamensko.

No photos inside, but the outside was beautiful.

With a sweeping view across the town to the mountains.

The main street is a lovely pedestrian promenade. And the evening walk, xjiro in Albanian, is popular.

Hanging out by the ferry dock as the sun sets.

We had originally planned on 3 nights in Ohrid but switched to 4 nights for two main reasons, we liked our little apartment, which had a kitchen shared with two other units, and we were meeting up with other travelers from a Facebook group I belong to, Go With Less. We’ve done meet ups a few times and it’s always been really fun. You automatically have so much in common with other constant travelers, you get to trade tips, and share stories without having to explain what it is you’re doing.

The traditional old buildings in Ohrid have increasing floor space on each level, leading to this fun streetscape where the top floors of buildings across the street from each other are almost touching.

I like the streetlights which mimic the building silhouette. Some people thought they were a bit cheesy, but not me.

Ohrid is an UNESCO Cultural World Heritage site and has enough fascinating places to keep a visitor busy for several days, more if you enjoy walking the hills and coastal path, as we did. And if you like friendly cats, this is your town.

Up to Samuel’s Fortress (Самоилова тврдина) for a view over the city.

Rich surveys the town. N. Macedonia wins the big flag award. They fly impressively huge flags, very eye catching.

Down a trail and we pass by the Church of Saints Clement and Panteleimon (Православна црква „Свети Климент и Пантелејмон“).

And the Church of Saint John the Theologian (Црква „Свети Јован Богослов“). Are you starting to understand how many churches there are in Ohrid? Apparently at one time there were 365 churches, one for each day of the year.

The stone paved coast path is a lovely walk.

Back to the main street for a snack. Our old friend from Turkey – a Simit! Called a gjevrek here.

Checking out the promenade south of town, also a great space.

And a break for tea and coffee at the cafe where we used the wifi.

And discovered how friendly some of the cats are.

That night we had dinner with fellow travelers Doris, Ron, Peter, and Karen – all super nice Canadians. We met up again the next evening as well.

Get ready for a lot of cat photos. Our final day’s walk involved so many cats who were happy to be pet, to be picked up (unusual for free roaming cats), and would purr in my arms.