Skopje

Skopje is the capital of Macedonia.

Get in

By plane

By train

By bus

See

Most people in Skopje just see the concrete buildings and run away, but if one looks deeper one will find some excellent examples of Ottoman architecture. Most of the sights in Skopje are concentrated in and around the old bazaar.

Kale fortress - it stands on the highest hill in the Skopje valley and it offers great views over Skopje. The oldest section of the fortress is within the present-day fortifications. It is 121 meters long and is built in opus qvadrum style (huge stone blocks on the outside and small stones inside). It was built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian who was born in the village of Taorion near Skopje. After the great earthquake of 518 when ancient Scupi was destroyed, Justinian decided to to something for his birth-town and built Justinijana Prima on the site of presentday Skopje. Unfortunately no major archeological work has been done for discovering the remains of Justinijana Prima. Most of the present-day fortifications originate from the 10th century (the square tower) and 13th century (the round tower). It was reinforced during them Turkish rule when the number of towers was up to 70 (today there are just 3 standing) and the fortress went down to river Vardar and up on the hill where today the Museum of Contemporary Art stands. The small gate from the side of the bazaar is the only gate still standing and it was built in 1446. The fortress was badly damaged in the fire if 1689 and even more with the earthquake of 1963.
Stone bridge - The stone bridge was built in the 6th century by the byzantine Emperor Justinian. Since then it has been the symbol of the city and every ruler tried to leave a mark on it, even our last major who has been restoring it for 10 years now. The biggest reconstruction of the bridge was made in the second half of the 15th century by Sultan Mehmed II. The stone fence and guard tower were added then. Unfortunately the guard tower fell down during the most recent restoration and is waiting to be reconstructed. It still is the main connection of the main square and the old bazaar. While walking over it try to notice the 6th century big stone blocks (most visible in the last third of the bridge). The bridge has 13 arches and is 214 meters long.
Old Bazaar - Even though large parts of the old bazaar have been destroyed for making of streets, parking lots and similar, it still is the largest one in the Balkans. It has developed and changed during the centuries but it still has its original use as a shopping place. The old bazaar was never used for living, it always was a shopping area and contact zone of the Christian and the Muslim population as they lived in separate quarters of the town. It is a structure of many streets lined with small shops. The crafts were divided between the Christians and the Muslims (and they were not allowed to practice eachothers crafts). All the shops used to be same size no matter if they belonged to a Christian or a Muslim. Each street hosted different craft, and all stores from that craft were on one street (for example gold street, shoes street, pots street, dress street, etc) The craftsman belonged into unions, the union set the prices and all the prices were same for a certain product and the competition was in quality not price. If one was caught cheating the union had a right to kick him out of the bazaar and take away his store. The stores were closed with wooden shutters which were lowered when the stores were opened and the goods were displayed on them. The bazaar was surrounded with markets. Hygienic care was taken and different markets were placed on opposite sides of the bazaar (for example the food market was on the opposite side of the bazaar from the animal market; milk, milk products and honey market opposite from the wood market etc). Except the stores there were other objects in the bazaar like amams (Turkish baths), hans (hotels) and mosques. Their outside walls usually were surrounded with stores so no space would be wasted. Even today it is hard to spot some of this object.
Kapan han - is one of the three remaining medieval hotels still standing in the old bazaar. The ground floor used to house the horses and the goods of the merchants that visited the bazaar and the city, while on the first floor were the rooms where they slept. The han was built in the 15th century. Today it houses a nice restaurant.
Suli han - a medieval hotel, was built in the first half of the 15th century by Ishak beg. It was badly damaged during 1963 earthquake and today it houses the arts faculty of Skopje university. It also houses the Old bazaar museum.
Kurshumli han - is the largest and the most beautiful of the three remaining medieval hotels. It was built in 1550 by Mula Musledin Hodza, son of Abdul Gani scientist on the court of Sultan Selikm II. Both the ground and the first floor are made of stone and beautiful arches line the courtyard. The han has two courtyards, the second one was used to house the horses and the goods of the merchants and the guests, while the rooms around the first courtyard both on the ground and the first floor housed the guests. There is a water fountain in the middle of the first courtyard. The roof was covered with lead, and that is how the an got its name (lead is used for making bullets, and bullet is called kurshum in Turkish). Next to the an a mosque and an amam (Turkish bath) used to stand, they both suffered in the big fire of 1689 and the earthquake of 1963, so today the mosque is gone and the amam stands in ruins. Today Kurshumli an is on the grounds of the Macedonian National museum and houses the lapydarium. You can visit it without visiting (or buying ticket for) the museum.
Daut Pasha Amam – National gallery - Daut Pasha was the grand vesir of East Rumelia in the second half of the 15th century. He was based in Skopje and the legend goes that he built the amam (Turkish bath) for the needs of his harem. Before he left, he donated the amam to the city. It was a double bath both for males and females (who bated separately of course), the male and the female part going parallel next to each other. The two big domes in the front covered the two dressing rooms (male and female) which had water fountains in the middle. Each of the small domes covered a separate room for bathing. The heating room was on the end. Today the bath serves as a National gallery with a great collection of late 19 and 20 century art, and even if one is not interested in the art should go inside to see the elaborate decorations of the domes.
Double Amam - The double amam was built in the middle of the 15th century by Isa beg. It was used as both male and female bath, but unlike Daut Pasha amam where both parts go parallel to each other, here the heating room is in the middle and the entrances are on the opposite sides. Today is used as a gallery for temporary exhibits.
Bedesten - The most precious goods, like silk, spices, jewelery and perfumes, were sold in a bedesten, an object within the bazaar, with gates which were closed in the evenings so the goods would be protected. Evlija Celebija who visited Skopje during the 17th century wrote that the only bigger and more beautiful bedesten from the one in Skopje was the one in Damascus. It was covered with 12 valutes and it held a whole bazaar inside. Unfortunately that bedesten was destroyed in the fire of 1689. After the fire Skopje became much smaller and lost its importance as a trading center, so somewhere in the beginning of the 17th century the present bedesten was built. It is small and it is not even covered, but it still has a lot of atmosphere in it. It has just 5 short streets, small shops and four gates. In the past it was covered with wine grape, so it would protect the shoppers from the sun and the rain.
Macedonian National museum & Icon gallery - it is divided in three departments:Archeological, Historical and Ethnological (same ticket covers them all). I highly advise visit to the ethnological section, since it is a very good one. It has about 70 original national costumes from different parts of Macedonia, all decorated with highly stylized patterns. Look for the wedding dress from Mariovo, it is 40 kg heavy, and the wig that the bride had to wear for a month after the wedding as a symbol of her virginity. Also different customs are explained, and there is also a good presentation of traditional architecture through models and photographs. The archeological has a rich collection of objects from the neolithic 5000 years BC up to the 7th century. Unfortunately many artefacts have been taken to Belgrade or Sofia through the years and they have never been returned. The highlights are the Tetovo Menada figurine (from the 6th c. BC) and the prehistoric figurines of the Great mother. Unique are the 6th century terracotta icons from Vinica (icons like this have been found only in Tunisia and Macedonia). The historic department is less interesting, but also presented here are copies of the best frescoes from all around Macedonia (which is good if one is interested in Byzantine art but doesn’t have time to travel around). The Gallery of icons is also here, it has icons from the 10th to the 19th century, and even some of them are the best ones from Macedonia (including the Bogorodica Pelagonitisa) the Ohrid collection is still much nicer and more valuable.
Mustafa Pasha Mosque - it stands on a plateau above the old bazaar and is the most beautiful Islamic building in Macedonia (in my opinion). It was built in 1492 by Mustafa Pasha, vesir on the court of Sultan Selim I. The mosque is quite elegant and intact, and no additions have been made through the years. The interior is beautiful, simple and spacious. Take few steps back to observe the game of the domes of the fountain, the porch and the mosque. In the turbe next to the mosque the daughter of Mustafa Pasha is buried. The mosque has a pleasant rose garden and it offers fine views over the bazaar. Free entrance
St. Saviour church (Sv.Spas) - Just few steps below Mustafa Pasha mosque. The church is tiny and it has a pleasant courtyard. In the courtyard is the grave of our greatest national hero who was leader of the national movement for liberation from the Turks and Macedonian independence. Instead of explaining who he was and what he has done I’ll just write a quote from what he has said: ”I understand the world as a field for cultural competition among the nations”. There is a small (boring) museum about him in the buildings around the courtyard (you have to enter the museum to buy a ticket for the church, and when the lady insists that you take a look around politely say that you are in a hurry). Among the paving of the courtyard there are some 18th and 19th century gravestones. Turks didn't allow building of new churches during their occupation, but as the empire was weakening in the 18th century they started giving permission for building of churches to keep the population happy. There were many rules to be followed like the exterior had to be without decorations and the floor of the church had to be at least one meter below the ground so the church wouldn't dominate the skyline of the city. St.Saviour church is example of this churches. It was built in the beginning of 19th century on the site of a church destroyed in the 1689 fire (as you enter turn right to see remains of frescoes and the level of the earlier church). The church is famous for its interior and wood carving. The iconscreen is work of Petre Filipovski Garkata and Marko and Makarie Frckovski, the best wood artists in the 19th century in Macedonia. In 1926 British museum offered a blank check for the iconscreen, the state to fill in the amount if they decide to sell it. The beauty of it is that it is a deep wood carving from whole wood boards (the figures are not attached to eachother), and it is not covered with golden paint, as it is tradition in Orthodox churches so the game of light and dark shades is quite dramatic (the doors into the altar and the cross on the top are covered with gold paint, so you can compare). The iconscreen was made from 1819 to 1824 and is 10 meters long and 7 meters high. There are scenes from the old and the new testament. The figurines are 7 cm tall. Look for the creation of Adam and Eve on one of the columns next to the doors of the altar and the dance of Salome, where she dances for king Irod so he would give her the head of St. John the Baptist (she is dressed in traditional dress from Galichnik). All around there are flowers and animals typical for the region presented. On the far right look for the selfportrait of the artists presented as they are working on the iconscreen. The icons are some of the best of the byzantine revival.
Bit Pazar - it is the biggest (but not the nicest) of the food markets in Skopje. It begins where the bazaar ends and has existed on this spot for hundreds of years. A walk around can be fun, but you can also get here cheap, fresh fruits, vegetables, salads, cheese, teas, spices and flowers. Another good food markets to visit are the Green market (Zeleno pazarce) near the Parliament building and Bunjakovec market near the Cathedral. On this two there are old ladies selling handicrafts.
Clock Tower - Every bazaar in Macedonia has a clock tower. As Muslims had to close their stores couple of times a day to attend prayer, working hours were introduced in the bazaar, and no one had a chance to work and earn more than the other. So the clock towers were built. Skopje’s clock tower is across the street from Bit Pazar. It was built from 1566-72. It has more Islamic appearance than the other clock towers in Macedonia. The clock was brought from Szeged in Hungary. Unfortunately the clock disappeared during the chaos after the earthquake and today is in a clock museum in Switzerland.

other mosques:

Sultan Murat Mosque - it was built with money donated by the Sultan himself and when ever adjustments or repairs were needed it was his responsibility (Sultan Suleiman the Great donated money for the repairs after the fire of 1537, and Sultan Ahmet III for the repairs after the fire of 1689). It was built in 1436. The unusual 3 naved basilica shape and the flat ceiling (instead of domes) comes from the fact that it was built (or adjusted) over St. George monastery, the main monastery in Skopje before the coming of the Turks. It stands on a plateau next to the clock tower. The fortifications of the monastery still stand around the plateau. The main architect of the mosque was Husein from Debar.
Ishak Beg Mosque - On the end of Bit pazar is Ishak beg mosque, built in 1438 by Ishak beg a commander in the Turkish army. He leaded the army that conquered Macedonia and after he retired he settled in Skopje. The mosque was beautifully decorated with glazed tiles in different shades of blue, but it suffered greatly during the fire of 1689, and was rebuilt afterwords without the tile decorations. The six sided turbe (grave mausoleum) that stands next to the mosque didn't suffer in the fire and it still has the tiles. Turbe was built just for the aristocracy, usually for the one who donated the money for the mosque to be built or for members of his family, but Ishak beg was so grateful to his accountant that he built this turbe for him.
Isa Beg Mosque - Isa Beg mosque was built in 1475 by Isa Beg. It is the only seljuk mosque in Europe. The difference of this mosque is that it has two main domes (two joined rooms). It has a 5 domed porch. It is situated behind the Cair hospital across the street from Bit Pazar.
Jahja Pasha Mosque - it is in the beginning of Cair quarter close to Bit Pazar.It was built in 1504 by Jahja Pasha commander in the Turkish army, son in law of Sultan Bajazit II and vesir on his court. The mosque is interesting because the roof is in the shape of a pyramid instead of the usual dome. The minaret is the tallest one in Skopje and it has 50 meters and it has been hit by a lighting twice.

other sights:

Makedonija Square and around - Even though most of the interesting sights are on the other side of the Stone bridge, there are couple of interesting sights around Makedonija square. The square has changed a lot after the earthquake, most of the neoclassical buildings are gone except for a small section of houses in the center. Some more are on Maksim Gorki street and around (look for the Italian embassy and the Arabian house hotel). From the main square when you turn to enter the shopping mall look for a marked place. This is the place where the house of Mather Theresa used to stand. She was born in this house and lived here until she turned 18 when she left first for Ireland and then for India.
Parlament - Across the street from the shopping mall is the Parlament building. It was built in 1933 by Viktor Hudak in modernist style.
City hospital - The city hospital is diagonally from the Parlament building. It was built in 1931 by the Croatian architect Drago Ibler and is the most beautiful example of modernist architecture in Skopje.
St. Klement Cathedral - Back on the main square, about 5 minutes walk from it is St.Klement Cathedral. After Virgin Mary Cathedral was burned by the Bulgarians on the end of WWII, and St.Dimitrie church (which recived the role of Cathedral) was unable to meet the needs of the people, building of the new Cathedral started in 1970. The architect is Slavko Brezovski and it is a bold and contemporary interpretation of Orthodox architecture. The Jesus Pantocrator fresco painted in the main dome covers area of 70 meters squared and just his eye is 1,5 meters long.
Feudal tower - Back on the main square, take Makedonija street leading towards the Old railway station. The street has couple of nice cafes. Right after you pass the crossroad look left to see the feudal tower. It is not known when was it built and what was its purpose. Probably it served as a deffence tower on a property of a Turkish aristocrat. Today it serves as a souvenir shop and it you can enter and see it from the inside. Right in front of it on the site of the old Catholic church (destroyed in the earthquake) there is a monument to Mother Theresa.
Old railway station – city museum - The old railway station stands half ruined as a monument to the earthquake of 1963. It was built in 1938 by Velimir Gavrilovik in modernist style with byzantine decoration. Today it houses an exhibition gallery and small city museum (it can be good substitute if you don’t have time for the National museum)
Museum of Conteporary Art - The collection of the Museum of Conteporary Art has a collection of 4800 artworks, out of which 1760 are gifts from artists from 61 countries, including Picasso, Aleshinski, Leze, Sulaz, Lui Can, Hartung, Gaitis , Buri, Millares, Kemeni, Kalder, Vasarely and others. All this artists donated their works to the city after the earthquake in 1963 for the new art museum. The building itself is a gift from Poland. Around 1600 works are from Macedonian artists. With all of this Skopje actually has the most complete and biggest collection of contemporary art in Southeastern Europe. Unfortunatly because the building badly needs repairs just parts of the collection are periodcaly on display.

Outside the city center:

Aqueduct - The aqueduct is situated on the exit of Skopje towards Kosovo, right before the village of Vizbegovo. It is still not known when it was built. Many people claim it is from roman times but it goes opposite of Scupi so that doesn’t make much sence. It was probably built during Byzantine times and it is sure that it was still used during Turkish times when it provided water for the public baths. 55 stone arches of the aquaduct are still standing. Unfortunately it is on ground of military baracks and one might be not allowed to visit it. Photography is not allowed unless nobady is around. Best bet is to try to enter it from the side of the village Vizbegovo.
Scupi - The ancient city of Scupi is not worth the efort to reach it. There is almost nothing left except for part of a street, bath and a bazilica. After the city was ruined by the earhtquake of 518, all the building material was used in the building of Justinijana Prima (one can see almost all of the seats of the Roman theatre incorporated in the Kale fortress). It is interesting that even though the earthquake was very strong and completely ruined Skupi there were almost no casualties. The inhabitans fled the city just two days before fearing from Avar atacks and settled in the small fortresses they had built on Vodno and in Matka.
Vondo mountain - 1066 meters above sea level it towers over Skopje. It is popular hiking place with marked paths leading through the woods and there are couple of rest areas. On the top of Vodno the Millenium cross was built to mark 2000 years of christianiy in Macedonia. It is 66 meters high and it is the highest structure in Macedonia. The building of the cross caused great contraversies in Skopje, there were people who loved it, people who hated it, people who thought that the place is not appropriate, people who thought that the time is not appropriate etc. Now we all got used to it and we don’t even notice it.

Get out

Matka Gorge
St.Pantelejmon Church in Nerezi village
Markov Monastery