Skateboarding in Skopje

Skateboarding is very widespread in Skopje. The level of skaters in Skopje is big and it increases from day to day. The skate group "Grind House" has a big role in skateboarding in Skopje, also ti has a big number of skaters, and a variety of foreign members including members from Serbia, France, Germany and so on. Skateboarding is well known in Skopje, but the city doesn't provide standards for it. Most skaters have to make their own custom skate parks and adjust themselves to their grind boxes, willie boxes and rails that they have made themselves. Contests are organized by older skaters with help from local skate shops. Although skaters don't have standards that the city needs to provide for them, many young people who are motivated by the older skaters, skate  with great commitment in the streets of Skopje.

In this post I will write down the most influential and dedicated skater I know, and the skate group that he created that 99% of the skaters in Skopje have joined.

Viktor "Viksa" Vasilevski

Viktor Vasilevski started skating when he was 15 or 16 years old (I don't know), and he is now 27 years old.  He has influence over many young skaters, and motivated almost every young kid to start skating.He is the founder of the skate group "Grind House", a group that covers 99% of the skaters from Skopje. He makes elements (skateboarding platforms) on wich every skater skates, he organizes many contests, he finds locations for skating, he does preety much everything. He participated in many contests, not just in Macedonia, but in Serbia too, and he has always been solidly ranked. Viktor or "Viksa" as many skaters call him, has always organized everything for skaters in Skopje, and if he's not arround the skateboarding life in Skopje will be lifeless.


Grind House is a skate group (founded by Viktor Vasilevski in 2010) that helps organize and unite the skaters from Skopje, Macedonia and other countries such as Serbia, France and Germany.
Grind House has over 340 members, and all contribute to the group. Well not all but you get the idea.

Grind House Skaters

The group is the most known skate group in Skopje, and Macedonia. I myself am a member of the group. We have a Facebook group (be sure to check it out) that we use a lot, for оrganizing events, organizing where we meet, what location we will go skate on that day and many other things. Thanks to the group the skaters from Skopje are all united. :)

Famous People from Macedonia

There are so many famous people from Skopje, so many singers, actors, directors, performers and so on. But in this post I will list the most influential artists from our beautiful country. :)

1. Kaliopi Bukle
  
Kaliopi Bukle  (born December 28, 1966), more simply known as Kaliopi, is a popular Macedonian singer and song-writer. She is one of the most recognisable names on the Balkan music scene. She is known for her strong voice and a signature high-pitched scream.

Kaliopi Bukle

Kaliopi Bukle showed interest in music at a young age and in 1976, she entered in the Macedonian children's festival "Zlatno Slavejče" with the song "Tebe majka čeka", previously sung by great Tereza Kesovija and secured first place herself.
Kaliopi later toured with the choir of Zapro Zaprov "Razvigorče" through Czechoslovakia, Slovenia (then within their native Yugoslavia) and Austria between 1978 and 1980.

In her later career she participated in the “Opatija” festival as a member of “Kaliopi” and won best interpretation for the song “Leo”, awarded by the journalists of Yugoslavia. The bend published its debut album in 1986 for RTV Ljubljana (radio and TV broadcast) also named after her. That year, the band also participated in the Split Festival in which it was awarded the prize for the best debut performer for their performance of the song “Da More Zna” (If Sea Knows), which was also proclaimed to be the most listened and played song on the radio during that month. The second album of the band “Rodjeni” (Relative (coll.)), issued two years later, recorded in Zagreb reached enormous success, especially with the hit-song “Bato” (Brother). Other hit-songs from the band “Kaliopi” are: “Kofer Ljubavi” (Love Case), “Da More Zna” (If Sea Knows), “Ostani u Meni” (Stay With Me), “Nebo Mi Sja” (The Sky Shines For Me), “Bolero Lora” and etc.

Kaliopi made a comeback in 1996 at SkopjeFest, the country's selection contest for the Eurovision Song Contest 1996, with the song "Samo Ti" ("Only You"). She was awarded with first place from the jury and audience. She was thus set to be the first singer to represent her country at Eurovision since its independence from Yugoslavia; however, being caught up in some controversies, Macedonia failed to participate in the Eurovision contest that year.
Kaliopi as popular Macedonian singer influenced many singers from Macedonia such as Elena Ristevska, Maja Grozdanovska-Panceva, and Verica Pandilovska.

2. Vlatko Stefanovski

Vlatko Stefanovski is Macedonian ethno-rock jazz fusion guitar player.


Born in 1957, he started playing guitar at the age of 13. Stefanovski was one of the founding members of Leb i Sol with whom he recorded 13 albums between 1978 and 1991. He currently splits his time playing with his VS Trio, in an acoustic partnership with Miroslav Tadich or composing for film and theatre. He is the brother of dramatist Goran Stefanovski.
Stefanovski has played a wide variety of guitars, including a Gibson SG, a Fender Stratocaster - heavily modified with Schecter and Radulović parts, a Telecaster, a Radulović super-strat and a Pensa-Suhr super-strat. The influence of ethnic and folk music of Southeastern Europe and more specifically of the music of  Republic of Macedonia are recognizable in his occasional use of odd meters (5/4, 7/8) and non-traditional scales.
He played the guitar solo in the song "Za Milion Godina" by YU Rock misija, the former Yugoslav contribution to Bob Gelford's Band Aid.

3. Toše Proeski

Todor Toše Proeski (January 25, 1981 – October 16, 2007) was a Macedonian multi-genre singer, songwriter and actor. He was popular across the entire Balkan area and all around Eastern Europe, and locally he was considered a top act of the Macedonian Music Scene. Proeski was known for his strong vocal performances and trademark quote "Ve sakam site" (I Love You All), and was once dubbed "Elvis Presley of the Balkans" by BBC News. He died in a car crash in Croatia on October 16, 2007. 

Proeski, was born in Prilep, SFR Yugoslavia(today Macedonia), to Dominika and Nikola Proeski from Krusevo, his hometown, where he spent most of his childhood. After his musical talent was discovered at the age of 12, he was chosen to perform at the popular children's song festival Zlatno Slavejče (eng.: Golden Nightingale) in Skopje, performing the song „Јаs i мојоt dеdо“ in Aromanian language. This was his first public music performance; however, his successful career began in 1996 when he participated in the teenage music festival Melfest in Prilep. 

Toše Proeski

In his later years, after spending his time in recording studios in Athens, Greece, Proeski released his third album "Ako me Pogledneš vo Oči" ("If You Look Into My Eyes") on October 2002 in Macedonian and Serbian. After the release, Proeski went on a tour throughout Macedonia doing intense promotion. He also went to Serbia, Bosna and Herzegovina, and Bulgaria for further promotion. Proeski won Beovizija in Belgrade on April 2003, with "Čija Si" ("To Whom Do You Belong?"), a song which became a huge hit in Macedonia and the other former republics. This song was due to represent Serbia and Montenegro in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 but the EBU stated that too many countries wanted to enter in that year and so some would be forced to withdraw.

Proeski also established himself as a songwriter. He wrote several hits for himself including "Ima Li Den Za Nas" ("Is There A Day For Us"), "Slusaš Li" ("Are You Listening"), "Malečka" ("Little One") and "Polsko Cveḱe" ("Field Flower"). In 2004, Proeski composed "Muza" ("Muse") for Martin Vucic, the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest representative for Macedonia. It became the title track for the young artist's second album. In interviews, Proeski stated that he had written over 100 songs but was waiting for the right moments to record them as they were still in demo form.
On October 15, Proeski gave his final interview to the Macedonian Television Station Kanal 5. He talked about his intention to finish his Musical Academy studies, his search for his soul mate, and his new album in the works.
Toše's last concert was held on October 5, 2007 for the Primary Education Project for USAID. The concert raised tens of thousands of euros for the primary schools of Macedonia. The concert was attended by over 35,000 people and viewed all over the world.

During the early morning of October 16, 2007, at 6:20 a.m., Proeski died in a car accident on the Zagreb-Lipovac highway near Nova Gradiska, Croatia. He was a passenger along with his manager Ljiljana Petrović in a Volkswagen Touareg driven by Georgij Georgijevski. The Touareg crashed into the back of a truck and then into the median barrier, killing Proeski instantly, crushing the third vertebrae of the neck, although the truck sustained no damage. Proeski was asleep in the front passenger seat at the time of the crash. Of the other two passengers, only the driver suffered serious injuries (head trauma).
Proeski's body arrived at midnight in Skopje by helicopter of the Macedonian army, and was transported by car to his home town Krusevo. Grieving citizens gathered to pay their last respects at the airport and also in Macedonian Square. The Embassy of the United States of America, the USAID and the Diplomatic mission of the European Union published official statements on the death of Toše Proeski. October 17 was pronounced a national day of mourning in Macedonia. The three days following his death were pronounced days of mourning in the City of Kruševo.
After his death, the government of the Republic of Macedonia, gave him the title "Honorable citizen of Macedonia"

4. Igor Džambazov

Igor Džambazov (born July 15, 1963) is a Macedonian actor, showman, TV host, singer, songwriter and director of music videos. He currently is the host of the TV show Trkalo na Srekata ('Wheel of Fortune').


Igor Džambazov was born in Skopje in a family of actors and musicians. His grandfather Petre Prlicko was an actor and his father Aleksandar Džambazov is a conductor and composer. In his autobiography Toa sum Jas ('That's Me') he states that the first music he had ever heard was his father's schlagers and at first he thought that it was the only music in the world, but later he figured out the con and started listening something modern.

Igor Džambazov

He formed his first music group 'Pop' at only 12 years in 1975 and was actively engaged playing in the garages and bomb shelters around Skopje. Fifteen years later, he becomes member of Havana band which had the luck to be promoted by, in that time, an eminent Macedonian politican Vasil Tupurkovski. Igor with the other two members of the bend Zeko (Зеко) and Piže (Пиже) recorded three songs: Daj mi, žiti sve... ('Give me, please') , Nema spas ('No relief') and Štok mi bejbi ('Shtok me baby') in only few mounts of the existence of their band. The songs were recorded in the studio of Tose Pop Simonov. Havana band had one of their most notable appearance on September 8, 1991, the night when the Macedonian people celebrated their liberty. Then the band fell under bankruptcy, with the desire of the three, one day, to return to music.
In the years that followed he participated in several national musical festivals, for which he acknowledges, is his biggest mistake in the field of music. From the national festival 'MakFest', from 1991, the song Ljubov zapej ni ('Love sing to us') which Igor recorded with, the sisters, Tanya and Lydia Kocovski and John Ilija Apelgrin, became the most performed song between two festivals in Macedonia. In 1992 he recorded two of his hits Čija si ('Whose are you') and Grev ili špricer ('Sin or sparkling wine'), and again participated in 'MakFest' 1992 in which he performed the song Vreme za plačenje ('Time for crying') and received the second prize from the audience. Also, he won the sixth place on InterFest, a music festival from Bitola in 1994 and in the same year published his first solo album called Greatest Hits. It was recorded in studio ROSS on tape and was produced by Robert Sazdov (Роберт Сазадов) with the program and arrangement made by Darko Mijalkovski (Дарко Мијалковски). The complete author of the songs is Igor Džambazov, except for one which was inspired by the song Dancing in the Street by Mick Jagger and David Bowie.

I just want to say that Igor Džambazov is my favourite and best artist from Macedonia. He's my idol :)

5. Milcho Manchevski

Milcho Manchevski (born 18 October 1959 in Skopje, Macedonia), usually credited as Milcho Manchevski, is a film director and screenwriter from Macedonia.


Milcho Manchevski wrote and directed the feature films "Before The Rain" (1994), "Dust'" (2001), "Shadows" (2007) and "Mothers" (2011).
"Before The Rain" (1994) won an Academy-Award nomination and thirty awards, including Golden Lion for Best Film in Venice, Independent Spirit, FIPRESCI, UNESCO, best film of the year in Argentina, Italy, Sweden, Turkey, and other awards in Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Poland, Puerto Rico, Russia, etc.
The New York Times included "Before The Rain" (1994) on its list of the best 1,000 films ever made.
"Dust'" was the opening-night film of the Venice Film Festival. Both "Shadows" and "Mothers" were the Macedonian Academy Awards entries, with "Mothers" screening in the Panorama section of Berlinale 2011.
Manchevski's films have screened at more than a hundred festivals, and have been distributed in close to 50 countries (theatrically, TV, cable and video).
His films are part of the curricula at numerous universities worldwide, and have been discoursed at a number of conferences. The University of Leipzig (Germany) and the European University Institute in Florence (Italy) hosted academic conferences dedicated, respectively, to "Before The Rain" (1994) and "Dust'."
Manchevski won awards for best experimental film (for "1.73") and best MTV video (for "TENNESSEE", which The Rolling Stone placed on the list of the 100 best videos ever).
He has published fiction, essays and op-ed pieces in New American Writing, La Repubblica, Corriere Della Sera, Sineast, The Guardian, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Pravda, etc.
Manchevski has staged performance art with the group 1AM and by himself.

Milcho Manchevski

He authored a (very small) book of fiction, "THE GHOST OF MY MOTHER" and two books of photographs "STREET" (1999) and "FIVE DROPS OF DREAM" (2010) which accompany the two photo exhibitions.
He has lectured at a number of universities, cinematheques, art museums and art institutes, most notably as a Head of the Directing Studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts' Graduate Film program.

His 2010 film "Mothers" was selected as the Macedonian entry for the Best Foreign Movie Awards at the 83rd but it didn't make the final shortlist. It was also screened in the Main Programme of the Panorama section at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival.


So that's my opinion on the most influential artists from our beautiful country. Hope you liked and enjoyed this post. :)

Biographies Source: "Wikipedia"

Skopje Tourist Attractions

The resilient city of Skopje, capital of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, has seen its share of triumph and disaster since ancient times. Ruled by Romans, Ottomans,

 and the Yugoslav conglomerate before Macedonia's independence, Skopje has taken a beating and continues to come back for more, making it a rich tourist destination with numerous attractions of archaeological, architectural, and cultural significance. The city has reinvented itself twice, once after a scorching fire by a 17th century Austrian general and again after a devastating earthquake in 1963. Visitors to Skopje today find a city actively trying to celebrate and preserve its past while preparing for the future.

Here are my top 10 recommendations for tourist attractions in Skopje, Macedonia.

1. Old Skopje Bazaar

Reflecting Skopje's ties to Islamic culture from its days in the Ottoman Empire, this marketplace or "Carsija" is full of bustling shops that beckon visitors. Balancing a tourist orientation and a practical quality, the Old Skopje Bazaar is where visitors mingle with locals. Shoppers looking for souvenirs can find everything from strong Turkish teas and lovely laces to small tin sculptures and cheap jewelry, but they'll also encounter Macedonians going about their daily lives at shoe stores, bakeries, and sewing shops. Located in the oldest part of Skopje, across the Vardar River from modern-day Skopje, this bazaar is where East meets West. In my opinion, few other Europeans cities have markets with such a special legacy, and no tourist attraction in Skopje blends history and fun this well. Note: the winding, cobbled streets are especially busy when services at the nearby mosque end.

2. Old Stone Bridge

Crossing the Vardar River, the "Kameni Most"

The Old Stone Bridge

is not just any bridge. It represents the connection between Skopje's past and present. With parts of the bride dating back to the fall of Rome, the bridge was restored in the late 1990s, but the guard tower was damaged during this process. Basically, it broke off, leaving an awkward stone splinter that pointed upward. But Skopje residents are used to dealing with destruction, large and small, so they took it in stride. Visitors can walk across the bridge, whose twelve classic arches link the more westernized part of Skopje with the old town, including the Carsija (bazaar).

3. Kale Fortress

Kale Fortress

What European city doesn't have some lovely castle or fortress serving as a primary tourist attraction? In Skopje, visitors can see the "Skopsko Kale," dating from the 6th century, about the same time period as the Old Stone Bridge. Some stone blocks were used from an old Roman city known as Scupi. Digging a little deeper, though, archaeologists recently discovered that the Kale Fortress was built on top of an ancient fortress-like structure built long before Roman civilization. To help showcase this significant site and its views of the Vardar River, Macedonian authorities have created a well-manicured park around this attraction.

4. Kursumli An

Now sharing its location with a national museum for Macedonia, this former Turkish inn features architecturally interesting arches and domes. Because lead was used to top the structure, it became known as the "Lead Inn" (Kursumli An). It is easy to imagine weary travelers and traders from the 17th century staying in tiny rooms and resting their horses in the stables (which are especially well-preserved). This type of structure, once common in Islamic cities, is known as a "caravanserai." Amateur etymologists probably recognize the embedded word "caravan."

5. Sveti Spas

Balkan countries often delight travelers because they contain both Islamic mosques and Christian churches, and Macedonia is no different. Translating as the church of Saint Salvation, Sveti Spas is located between the

 Old Bazaar and the Kale Fortress. The interior of this attraction is significant in art, as it features a giant iconostasis (altar) carved out of wood. Blending biblical figures and local scenery, the depictions themselves are of topical interest. Goce Delchev, considered a national hero for his involvement in the late 19th century struggle for Macedonian liberation, is also buried here.

6. Daut Pasha Bath

No old city influenced by the Ottoman Empire lacks a Turkish bath (or at least the remnants of one). Now home to the National Gallery of Art, this former "hammam" dates back to the 15th century. Originally featuring six domes with star-shaped skylights, the bath was an almost cavernously huge place for both men and women to relax in the company of their sex. Now it's a place to see the best art collection Skopje has to offer its country.

7. Mustafa Pasha Mosque

With its minaret rising above the old part of Skopje, this place of worship reminds visitors that the city was under Ottoman Rule for centuries. Built in 1519, the mosque survived the 17th century fire that destroyed much of Skopje. Non-worshippers are not always granted access, but the building is at least lovely on the outside, with well-maintained gardens.

8. Railway Station (Old)

When Skopje was rocked by the 1963 earthquake, time stood still for Macedonia. The clock on this old train station stopped at 5:17am, and you can still see the hands pointing to that time. Left is disarray to serve as a memorial, the fa§ade welcomes visitors into a what is now a city museum celebrating Skopje.

9. Millennium Cross

Not all tourist attractions in Skopje are old. The curiously huge millennium cross, built to celebrate 2000 years of the existence of Christianity, stands atop Mount Vodno and overlooks the city. Lit up at night, this monumental cross looks a bit eerie on a hazy summer night, as though it's burning.

10. Mother Teresa sites

Although she was born to Albanian parents, the woman who became adored and respected as Mother Teresa was actually from Skopje, Macedonia. The city features bits of Mother Teresa heritage, including a marker for her

 birthplace and a simple statue. Considering that she was known for working with the poor in India, many believe that only these modest monuments are appropriate for this holy woman.

In addition to these attractions, Skopje offers many other things for tourists to see and do. The new part of the city has some nightlife, so be sure to party it up after you commune with the past.

Today’s Skopje

 Skopje (Macedonian: Скопје) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. It was known in the Roman period under the name Skupi.

The name of Skopje is derived from an ancient name that is attested in antiquity as Latin Scupi, the name of a classical era Greco-Roman frontier  fortress  town of Paeonian origin. In modern times, the city has been known by its Ottoman Turkish name Üsküp  during the time of Ottoman rule and by the Serbian form Skoplje during the time of the Royal Yugoslavia between 1912 and 1941. Under the Kingdom of Bulgaria (1941–1944), the city was called Skopie (Скопие). Since 1945, the official name of the city in Macedonian has been Skopje, reflecting the Macedonian Cyrillic orthography for the local pronunciation. The city is called Shkup or Shkupi in Albanian and Skopia in Greek.

Skopje has a rather loose town planning, which is the result of an earthquake that destroyed 80% of the city in 1963.

The centre of Skopje is formed of two municipalities separated by the Vardar. On the north bank of the river is Čair Municipality in which the Old Town is located, while the on the south bank is Centar Municipality which is the modern part of the centre of the city.

As the center of all events, Skopje is a large construction site. There are a lot of investments in building new structures, setting new monuments and construction of many new roads. The government has made plans to erect several statues, fountains, bridges, and museums at a cost of about €200 million. The project will be finished in 2014, when we will see the new built and rebuilt Skopje.

Skopje Panorama

Skopje is the cultural hub of the Republic of Macedonia and, therefore, is home to many of the country's most important museums. One of these is the Museum of Contemporary Arts which is devoted to the preserving of contemporary art. Тhe museum was created as part of the reconstruction following 1963 earthquake. The International Association of the Plastic arts called upon the artists of the world to assist in creating a collection of works of art by which they would support the vision of the city's reconstruction. The government of Poland held a national competition for the design of the building of the Museum of Contemporary Art and donated it to Skopje. The large park areas, which now contain many sculptures, surround the museum. The Museum of Macedonia, the Natural History Museum, and the Archives of Macedonia are other significant museums in Skopje.

Skopje is a beautiful city that sees a bright future before itself.