20 18 Balkans (7) North Macedonia-Skopje

On May 25th, 20 18, we took a long-distance bus from Pristina, Kosovo to Skopje, the capital of northern Macedonia.

North Macedonia is a small country in Eastern Europe, with a territory of more than 20,000 square kilometers and a population of only 2 million. But 2,400 years ago, during the Warring States Period in China, the Macedonian Empire was a unique superpower in the world, and its commander Alexander the Great was regarded as one of the greatest militarists and politicians of all time. Alexander studied under Aristotle, an ancient Greek scholar. At the age of 20, he succeeded to the throne after his father Philip II was assassinated, and quickly put down civil strife. In 335 BC, Greece was unified. The following year, he led the army eastward, swept Asia Minor and the Middle East, annexed the Persian Empire and occupied Egypt. Later, he moved to Central Asia and conquered India. He is invincible on the battlefield and has never been defeated. 13 years, its territory expanded to 5 million square kilometers, spanning Europe, Asia and Africa, making Macedonia the largest empire in the world at that time. He promoted the spread of Greek culture to the east and profoundly influenced the course of human history. During his campaign, he also built many cities around the world, among which more than 20 cities are still named after him, such as Alexandria, the second largest city in Egypt. 20 14 visited this beautiful coastal city when traveling to Egypt, leaving a very good impression. Alexander died in Babylon, Iraq in 323 BC at the age of 33.

North Macedonia and Greece both consider themselves as the inheritors of the culture and spirit of ancient Macedonia, and the dispute over the name of Macedonia has also started. 199 1 year165438+1October 20th, North Macedonia became independent from Yugoslavia, and its name was named "Republic of Macedonia". When applying to join the United Nations in the same year, Greece strongly opposed it and asked Macedonia to change its name. Macedonia had to change its nondescript name "The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". When Macedonia applied to join NATO and EU in 20 19, Greece did the same thing again, and Macedonia was forced to change its name to "North Macedonia" again.

Skopje, as the capital and largest city in northern Macedonia, with a population of 500,000, may not be as big as an ordinary county town in China. But when I walked into the city, it made my eyes shine, as if I had come to a beautiful urban sculpture park. Romanesque buildings, hundreds of statues, colorful hotels and casinos in the city center are dazzling. No wonder some people describe the city as "half Rome, half Las Vegas". These are all due to the "Skopje 20 14" plan launched by the local government in 20 10, aiming at improving the city appearance and revitalizing the tourism industry. In fact, I think the real purpose of this plan may be to promote national culture and spirit. After all, North Macedonia and Greece are secretly competing on this issue. Most of the sights seen in the city center today are the result of this plan. Due to disputes and financial problems from all walks of life, the plan was not completed and was stopped.

Located in the center of Macedonia Square in the city center, stands a huge bronze statue of Alexander the Great. The bronze statue is 14.5 meters high and stands on a white column. There are eight bronze soldiers guarding the bottom of the column, and there are eight bronze lions beside the fountain pool around the column, four of which are equipped with nozzles, which will make music when spraying water. This bronze statue was cast in bronze by Ferdinando Marinelli Art Foundry in Florence, Italy, at a cost of 7.5 million euros. The bronze statue was completed on September 8, 20 1 1. Due to the pressure from Greece, the statue was named "Warrior on horseback" when it was completed. Later, a nameplate was added to the statue, "Dedicated to Alexander the Great".

On both sides of the stone bridge along the river in Macedonia Square, there are two horseback riding statues, Georgi Delcev and Damian Groues, both founders and leaders of Macedonia's internal revolutionary organization (IMRO). IMRO, founded at the end of19th century, is an anti-Ottoman revolutionary organization. They fought guerrilla warfare and advocated Macedonia's independence. Their motto is "Freedom or Death". 20 10 the ruling party in north Macedonia is the national United democratic party, an internal revolutionary organization in Macedonia, claiming to be the successor of IMRO. Many statues of IMRO leaders in the city were built according to the Skopje plan put forward by the party.

There is a monument to Justinian I in the northeast corner of Macedonian Square near the Valdar River. This is a white marble Justinian I sitting on the throne, holding a scepter, hand-carved by the sculptor of the Bazzanti Art Museum in Florence. Justinian I was born in Skopje, and served as the emperor of the Roman Empire from 527 to 565, and was one of the most important emperors in the later period of the empire. He fought in the south and expanded his territory, laying a solid foundation for the Byzantine empire that lasted for thousands of years. His Code of Justinian is a masterpiece of Roman law. After more than a thousand years, it has become the blueprint for many European countries to formulate laws. Justinian I, like Alexander the Great, is listed as one of the1000 figures who have influenced the course of human history.

Several main streets in the city center radiate from Macedonia Square. One of them is called 65438+1October 1 1 Ri Street, which is the anniversary of Macedonia's anti-fascist uprising. The Macedonian Gate, also known as the Arc de Triomphe, is located on this street not far from Macedonia Square. The gate was built in 20 12 to commemorate the long history of Macedonia's struggle for independence. It is 2 1 m high and has 32 reliefs carved on the outside. The carving is very fine, depicting the main events from prehistoric times to Macedonia's independence. The arch has two floors, including a souvenir shop and a gallery, with an observation deck at the top. The construction of the Macedonian Gate cost 4.5 million euros, and it is said that the monthly interest repayment alone is as high as 20,000 euros.

On one side of Macedonia's gate is the National Parliament Building, and on the other side is the Warrior Park, which contains many statues of historical figures, the most striking of which is the statue of Pietu Guli riding a horse and the group sculpture of the meeting of Macedonia's internal revolutionary organization (IMRO), of which Pietu Guli is also a member.

After the death of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian Empire fell apart. Alexander's conquest did not bring any benefits to Macedonians. In the next two thousand years, Macedonians were constantly ruled by other forces and suffered great pain. After the Balkan War in the early 20th century, the Ottoman Empire collapsed, and Macedonians failed in their attempt to establish their own country, and their residence was divided into Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia. These countries tried to assimilate Macedonians, forcing them to give up their language and culture and erase their memories of their nation and history. After the beginning of World War II, Serbia and Greece asked Macedonians to help them fight fascism, and promised to make them independent after victory. After the war, Serbia fulfilled its promise, and the Macedonians of Serbia established the Republic of Macedonia, which is now North Macedonia. Instead of fulfilling its promise, Greece banned Macedonians in northern Greece from using Macedonian and forced them to change their place names and names to Greek, which caused dissatisfaction and resistance from Macedonians. The picture below shows the tents and slogans built by local people in the Warrior Park to protest against the genocide of Macedonians by the Greek authorities in Greece, but these protests are weak.

Another street radiating from Macedonia Square is Macedonia Street, which is a pedestrian street. At its intersection with the square, there is a monument to Tsar Samuel. Tsar Samuel established Macedonia in 976 and was defeated by Byzantines in10/8. The monument was carved out of white marble, and Tsar Samuel sat on the throne with a scepter in his hand. The carving is very fine, and the pattern on his clothes is clearly visible. This statue was also carved by the sculptor of Bazzanti Art Museum in Florence. 20 1 1 completed at a cost of 3.5 million euros.

There is a memorial hall for Mother Teresa on the street of Macedonia, which was transformed from the church where Mother Teresa was baptized for the first time. The museum introduces the life of a local-born Catholic charity worker and Nobel Peace Prize winner, including her handwriting and the white and blue ribbon clothes she often wears.

Walking along Macedonian Street to the end is the famous former Skopje Railway Station site, which has been converted into Skopje City Museum. The railway station was destroyed together with 70% buildings in the city in the earthquake of 1963, and the clock on the outer wall of the railway station still stayed at the moment of the earthquake. At that time, more than 80 countries participated in the earthquake relief work, including soldiers from the Soviet Union and the United States. This is the first cooperation between the two armies after the end of World War II. Skopje was awarded the title of "Great Unity International City".

There are three bridges on the Vardal River in downtown Skopje, among which the stone bridge connecting Macedonian Square is the most famous. It was built in the15th century and has been destroyed and rebuilt several times since then. The other two were newly built after the implementation of the Skopje 20 14 plan. A bridge named Eye Bridge has 28 sculptures, all of which are ancient figures. The other is called Art Bridge, which has 29 sculptures, all of which are modern figures. These sculptures are very beautiful, but unfortunately I don't have time to distinguish them one by one.

An elegant wooden mast boat is moored on the Vardal River. This is a four-star hotel called Senigaglia. I looked it up online. The standard room is 80 dollars per night. The room is small, but unique.

We crossed the Valdar River along the ancient bridge. There is a museum of Macedonia's struggle for independence on the north bank, which shows the history of Macedonia's struggle for independence and founding. Next to it is the Macedonian Jewish Holocaust Memorial Center, which shows the life of Jews in Macedonia from ancient times to World War II. 1943 In February, more than 7,000 Jews living in Macedonia were driven to concentration camps in Poland by the Nazis, and most of them were killed.

There are many beautiful modern buildings on the north shore, such as the Macedonian Opera House, the Ballet Theatre and the Foreign Ministry Building. Macedonians really have a soft spot for statues. Even in front of a government building like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are four exquisite statues of people.

The former National Theatre was destroyed in the 1963 earthquake and was rebuilt on the original site as part of the "Skopje 20 14" project. Some artistic statues in front of the theater are very lively and interesting.

Walking north through the Valdar River via the stone bridge, you can see the bronze statue of Philip II. Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great, was king of Macedonia from 359 to 336 BC. During his more than 20 years in office, he transformed Macedonia from a small country with civil strife into the leader of the Greek city-state, which prepared sufficient conditions for his son Alexander's great conquest militarily and economically.

Behind the statue of Philip II is the old market in Skopje, which is one of the largest markets in the Balkans. There is the Mustafa Pasha Mosque built in 1492, the bell tower in16th century, a medieval business inn and a Turkish bath. The ancient Bazaar criss-crosses, and there are various coffee shops and gift shops along the street, which is full of rich Ottoman style. After all, the city was ruled by the Ottoman Empire for 520 years.

There is a Keller Castle on the hillside near the old city, also known as Skopje Castle. The castle was built in the 6th century, and now only the city walls are left. The vast green space inside the wall is the favorite place for local people to relax and have a picnic, overlooking the magnificent scenery of this thousand-year-old city.