The really important stuff

Food!

So far, I've been eating really well and have not been struck with "Balkan belly", as one of my new co-workers refers to it. Skopje has more of a variety of restaurants than you would think. There's an Indian restaurant that's pretty good and of course the ubiquitous Chinese and Italian places.

I'm still getting a feel for Macedonian food, but it seems to involve a lot of meat. There are also various dishes cooked in earthenware containers. I had some beans that were cooked that way, and also a stew. Here's a picture of the stew in its little pot. I meant to take a picture of the beans too, but I ate them before that was possible!

There's also a salad that's typical of Macedonia, called Shopska salad, and it's basically tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions covered with grated white cheese. The cheese is salty and tastes a lot like feta. I'll post a picture of one later.