Recently!!

Restaurant in town!

мачки

Overlooking the houses

The other volunteers and I went to a great restaurant for a fellow volunteers birthday! It was such a great time with great food!

There's been a lot of dog love on this blog so here's a picture of some cute cats!

Such beautfiul houses and red roofs throughout Macedonia!

риба

Pretty Church!

Lunch from a recent holiday, when my host family does not eat meat, so we had fish!

The architecture here is so beautiful and is reflected so through religious buildings such as this church!

Beautiful town!

Just another picture showing off the beauty of my host town!

Slava!

A traditional Macedonian Orthodox Christian celebration honoring a family's or village's patron saint. My family just celebrated their Slava which was so incredible to be a part of!

Recent Camera Roll

Crosses at the top

A pretty accurate preview into my camera roll: google translate screenshots.

I’ve visited four different cities in North Macedonia so far and have noticed that each has a cross positioned at one of the highest points overlooking the town. In some places, these crosses are illuminated at night and serve as visible landmarks, as well as symbols of Macedonian Orthodox identity.

More of Macedonia!

A Dog named Otto

Sunsets!!

Favorite time!

My host town has so many great dogs, and we have started naming all of them. This is Otto, I don't know?

The sunsets here are so magical and come in a variation of colors!

Love a good dusk picture plus these amazing umbrellas in the center of town!

фудбал

Kačamak

Watched a local soccer team play on Sunday with other volunteers! So much fun to see and root for our town's team!

Every Saturday morning the TV is playing traditional Macedonian music and sharing traditions. The word Kačamak was on the TV and I asked what it was, after explaining the dish to me my host family made it for lunch the following day! No shortage of gestures and food here!

Puppy love!

The puppies that were living by our school have all been officially adopted. Although it is sad not to get our daily serotonin boost during our visits, they are in loving homes!

Sunset over the town!

One of my favorite pictures that encapsulates such a beautiful time of day over my host town that I love!

Lunch time

Chess board!

My host mom made this incredible meal for lunch! It is a pig meat hamburger (no beef around here) wrapped in bread with sauce inside! So good!!!

There is a chess board in the middle of town, so of course we had to partake in a little sunset game!

Dogs & food galore!

Sandwichessss

Rainy days!

Flowers & Sunshine

An incredible sandwich called a Toct from a local sandwich shop with ham, kashkaval, fries, ketchup, and mayonnaise.

It was a cold, windy, and rainy week but seeing glimpses of joy in forms of umbrellas holding hands!

Pretty flowers and a view of Shaggy from the table where we take breaks during language class!

калинки

Puppy Love

Pomegranates from a neighbors tree! A little sour but addicting!

There are four puppies right by our school that we have been loving recently! Some volunteers might be adopting...

Sunset!!

A very pretty sunset on our way back to our host community after training!

More pig meat!

My host dad has been diligently smoking pig meat for the winter.

More puppies!

манџа!!!

Another sweet puppy that we've been hanging out with during breaks and after class.

This stew changed my life. Another volunteer's host баба invited me over for lunch, and this манџa is made with pork and cabbage from their farm!

Host town fun!

Walk home!

LUNCH

Hi Shaggy

Such a gorgeous walk home from class and the gym or anywhere!

This was the first part of one of our lunches this week! Consisting of Shopska salad, pickles, and cooked liver.

I have way too many pictures and videos of this dog in my camera roll! But she's so cute!

Bday Celebrations!

More Cobblestone

So fun to celebrate birthdays during language class!

The streets are a mixture of paved and gravel walkways!

Neighborhood Houses!!

Gorgeous houses and architecture in my host town!

Breakkkkk

The volunteers and I get to enjoy a 30-minute break at this table in the sun, sharing food that we brought from home!

Pig Meat

Lots of walking!!!

I got to try pig liver and kidney this week as my host dad is smoking and making around 100 pounds of pig meat.

My host town has this gorgeous path, which has been so fun to walk on!

Arrival in North Macedonia!

Shaggyyyy

Night Life!

Coffee, coffee, coffee

Meet Shaggy, the local dog that lives near our school. She is the sweetest dog and seeeing her run toward us before lessons and during our breaks truly brightens my day.

A great view of a bridge at night during orientation in North Macedonia!

Absolutely love the coffee and tea culture in North Macedonia!