My name is Marion Vermazen. I am a traveler, hiker, reader, Sun alumnus, computer geek, YouTuber, Spanish and French language student, knitter, weaver and genealogist.
Our train to Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia left today at 5:30 pm. This morning we went for a walk to check out the train station and the town.
This afternoon we read and relaxed in the tower of the hotel. About 4:30 we walked back to the train station.
By the time we got to Skopje it was dark. We took a taxi to our hotel and then had dinner at the restaurant.
Tomorrow I’m looking forward to exploring Skopje.
We are staying at Popova Kula Winery just outside of Demir Kapija. Last night we had a fascinating conversation with the owner of the winery. He came by our table as we were eating dinner and introduced himself. He has an MBA from an American university. We can’t remember which one.
Even though there is almost no one staying here right now he said that in the summer they are very busy. E75 a major European highway that runs from Gdańsk, Poland to Athens is visible from the winery windows. Poles and Serbians who want to vacation in Greece with their families will often spend the night here on their way south.
We had a great breakfast this morning and then did a winery tour.
A bit later we went for a walk to explore the area around the winery. The owner’s dogs led the way on our walk. They were out front until we met a group of other dogs. Then our companions kept us between them and the pack.
The tower in the winery is as great place to sit and enjoy the view
We had another great dinner in the restaurant. Our waiter knew the U.S. well. He had worked on cruise ships and visited a lot of American ports. we were the only people in the restaurant for most of dinner.
Today started the last phase of our trip. For the next month we will be traveling in North Macedonia, Kosovo, Bulgaria and Romania.
We almost always have breakfast included in our hotel stays but we didn’t in Thessaloniki because in big cities it is fun to find a bakery locally. This morning we found a wonderful one. They make their own croissants!
At 11 we checked out of our hotel and stored our bags. Next we planned to visit the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle. On the way there I saw a shop selling silk shawls like one I have and love. I bought a new one for €10. The shop also had a lot of what looked like decorated sticks. I couldn’t figure out what they were. The shop owner explained that on Easter children carry decorated candles to church.
Finally we took a taxi to the train station and caught our bus. At the border the bus driver took all the passengers’ passports to be processed. We were the only ones who had to get off and be questioned. My theory was that that was because they couldn’t quite figure out where we had entered the E.U. (It was a few weeks ago in Africa where we entered the Spanish enclave of Melilla from Morocco). Anyway we showed them our flight details to enter Greece and we were on our way.
We also bought Duke new sunglasses at H&M and then walked to the museum. It was an excellent Museum. All the exhibit explanations had English translations and it provided us with some much needed context for the Macedonian region of Greece that we have been traveling in.
Our bus was scheduled to leave at 3:30 so we found a place for coffee and then killed an hour or so in the lobby of the hotel.
Not far from the border we got off the bus and got a taxi to Winery Popova Kula in Demir Kapija where we are tonight.
Today was the last day of our Greek road trip. We drove from Katerini to Thessaloniki and returned our rental car. Then we took a taxi to our Hotel on the central square, the Electra Palace.
Around three we went out for a walk and stopped for snacks and beer.
We thought we would still have dinner about 8 but weren’t hungry so instead went for a walk and then had drinks at the bar on the 7th floor of our hotel.
Tomorrow we will take the bus to North Macedonia. We have had a wonderful time in northern Greece.
Our plan for today was to hike on Mount Olympus and it turned out to be a perfect day for it. Mount Olympus rises almost straight from the Aegean Sea to a height of 2,917 meters (9,570 feet).
One of the owners of Hotel Dimatis where we are staying suggested we start our hike at an Army training facility on the mountain. They allow people to hike through the base if they show ID first. It was about an hour drive to get there.
There was a rope tow ski lift at the point we turned around. It wasn’t operating
The guards who logged us in had told us we could get a coffee at the restaurant. So on the way down we stopped and enjoyed some coffee.
The mud on the trail was a bit slippery. I managed to slip and sit down not far from the car. I had to wash my coat, jeans and shoes when we got back!
We had dinner at Hotel Dimatis again tonight the food has been really really good here. The owners are excellent chefs!
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