Hold Your Head Up
Today marks one month since I moved to Macedonia… and it has been everything I hoped it would be, and more. Of course, I’ve felt lonely at times, or just off-kilter, and I’ve been challenged by even the most mundane things (like bus schedules) but that’s part of the adventure. Figuring things out is so empowering, and I think it is one of the best gifts of traveling.
Funny story about the buses: there are both private and public-funded buses, and you can tell because the public buses are double-decker, while the private buses are single-decker (is that a thing? is it just called a regular bus then?). Both have electronic signage, but more often than not, they have handmade paper signs in the front window to tell commuters the bus number. Yesterday, I thought I had gotten on the wrong bus, because I couldn’t quite make out if the sign said ‘19’ or ‘79’… someone had attempted to color in the block numbers to make them more legible, but honestly it just made the sign harder to read…. very Macedonian of them though, just working with the tools they have at their disposal. 🙃
One of my favorite things about living here is the wonderful smells of home cooking. The aromas nurture more than just my senses — it feels like a hug, a personal comfort, because even though I’m not partaking in the meal, I know that somewhere close by, people are gathered together to enjoy each others’ company and food, lovingly-made. It’s comforting to know that the people who live around me value nurturing one another. My students remarked on this several times in our first classes together: the times they enjoy the most are the ones spent with friends and family, unplugged from technology and the busyness of life.
Recent R.E.P.O.R.T.:
Reading: Looking for the Afghan
Eating: burek and ajvar
Playing: chess and soon, French horn again
Obsessing over: the dog that lives outside my building (head to Photos to see a picture)
Recommending: therapy and a good sleep schedule
Treating: fresh flowers for my terrace and mid-afternoon espressos
October is flying by, and I’m trying to take every day in with as much awareness and gratitude as possible.
(Song Credit: Argent)
