Trends and society

The Old Bazaar

08/05/2008 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

The Old Bazaar is the ancient heart of Skopje. Today it's but a pale remnant of what it once was: a bit dirty and dusty, but still brisk and dynamic. The Old Bazaar, though, is waiting for its next rebirth, and to gain back it's central role in the economic and social life of the city

The Loss of an Icon

07/11/2007 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

Toshe Proeski, Macedonia's greatest pop star died in a tragic car accident, near Nova Gradiska in Croatia, on 16 October 2007. Macedonia lost not merely a star, but a humanist and a unifier, someone who could unify people Macedonians with Albanians, and former Yugoslavs, too.

Kiro Gligorov turns ninety

22/05/2007 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

The history of the indipendent Macedonia is strongly linked to its first president, Kiro Gligorov, who led it during the difficult years of the Yugoslav crisis. Gligorov, still active and respected in his country, marked last week his ninetieth birthday in a Skopje restaurant

Balkans Mystery Tours: The Mine of Alshar

02/05/2007 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

Alshar, an ancient mine located in the southern Balkans, in Macedonia, is said to contain minerals to be found nowhere else on the planet. The rarest of them all - the lorandite, is thought to have the potential to let us understand the work of the sun. Science-fiction or reality?

The Death of Macedonian Village

19/04/2006 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

Silence, desolation, houses in decay, lifelessness. This is a common sight from the Macedonian countryside. As odd as it may seem in a country as small in territory as Macedonia, its rural parts are dying out.It has started more than 50 years ago. But its consequences are more and more visible with time

Yugo - Nostalgics of All Meridians - Unite!

21/03/2006 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

"At the Marshal's", a new place on the map of center-town Skopje, is a house of remembrance and nostalgia, and a unique memorial place which pays respect to Tito, all of this combined with the smell of traditional Balkan cuisine. A restaurant. Dedicated to the Marshal and his country

The Other Side of the Balkans: Cultural Heritage in Macedonia

20/07/2005 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

There has been quite a lot of talk lately of re-branding the image of the Balkans by acknowledging that it is capable of producing not only wickedness and that it can contribute or be the home to also good things.This article is a small contribution in this direction