It was tough to get up today. I didn't really drink much last night but that still didn't make up for the fact that I only slept about 5 hours. I decided to skip breakfast so I could sleep in. We headed off to work around 9 and I will skip the boring details about work. One of our new friends here arrange for us to have a tour of the Macedonia Museum of History before lunch. We really had a great time at the museum. Unfortunately they didn't allow any pictures inside the museum so I just got some shots outside. We had limited time there but I think we could have spent all afternoon. We asked the guide to take us to the best spots but even then the hour and a half flew by. The first part of the museum that we explored was full of artifacts that had been discovered either on purpose or accidentally during archaeological digs. Some of the things we saw were estimated to have been created in 6000-8000 BC. That is OLD. There were lots of different types of clay pots and jewelry. There were some amazing stone carvings when you think about the primitive types of tools they must have had. Over such a long period of time Macedonia had been occupied by many different people.
Next we went to an exhibit of frescos. A fresco is a type of art that is mostly found in churches and were commonly made during the Renaissance. They were usually painted on the plaster but sometimes they were painted on wood. Many churches during this time would have the walls and ceilings entirely covered with frescos. Each fresco would tell a story. They usually told stories from the bible. They were able to recover many of them from churches that were thousands of years old to display them in the museum. They had many beautiful pieces here that were valued in the millions. I guess some of the pieces had been sent to a museum in New York at one time. Our guide told us that many historians believe that the Art Renaissance actually started in Macedonia. Originally the frescos would depict many of the people from the bibles as something higher than humans and there were particular styles. One of the things that marked the Renaissance was that the frescos began to take a more human form. Their faces would be painted to express some sort of emotion and there was greater detail in the muscle structures. She said that some of the frescos found in churches in Macedonia were from several hundred years before historians say the Renaissance started.
We were running out of time so we sort of sped through exhibits that displayed ancient tools that had been found, and exhibit of clothing that people had worn in Macedonia over the years, and an exhibit filled with these marvelous, intricate rugs that had been woven long ago.
Outside was a building from the 1500's. It had been used in various ways of the years but mostly it was an inn for travelers and it had a courtyard that had seen many parties. I have included several pictures of the inn. The stonework was pretty amazing considering how long ago this was created. Both the museum and the building were next the remains of a fort that overlooked Skopje.
After that we went out to another large lunch. We got back to the hotel early and I was pretty happy because I was tired and starting to fade fast. We agreed that they would pick us up for dinner at 9pm. I laid down for a nap and woke up at 8:55. That is not really a good way to wake up. Fortunately when they say 9pm they always mean 9:15 so I was able to grab a quick shower and change. I still got to the lobby before they arrived.
We went to dinner and of course they wanted to take us to some bars again. Lucky for me they had stayed out later than us the night before and didn't have the benefit of a 4 hour nap so it wasn't long before they were ready to call it a night which was fine with me. The bar we went to did have live music. The lead singer of the band was also a well known local opera singer during the day and moonlighted singing in clubs at night. Once again every single song we heard them play was an american song. After that we went back to the hotel and since I was well rested I decided to get a head start on my packing.
I have included a picture of Laura and I outside of the FX3X offices which is the company we are visiting.
I have also noticed a considerable amount of graffiti around the city so I snapped a picture.
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