Beautiful Lake Ohrid

---

I wake up having slept well and my headache had gone. I am going to do the boat today. I head downstairs and find the owner on the desk, she directs me to the pink atm and makes me a coffee. I stop and chat for a bit, there are lots more people. Mainly Aussies and kiwis, a girl from Honduras, a guy from London. It is a really friendly hostel but I have a boat to catch so I head off just before ten. I buy my ticket and go to the furthest boat where I get a seat in the sun. Nobody on my boat is very talkative but that’s fine by me. The boat ride across the lake is beautiful and the captain gives an interesting itinerary in between music from last of the mohicans, kill bill and other movie soundtracks.

We get to our first stop Bay of Bones and I am quickly off the boat to buy tickets and head in. It is the recreation of an ancient Macedonian settlement built as a floating Dock on the water. I wander round taking pictures. It is a beautiful setting and very interesting. Back inside the museum there are archaeological pieces to look at but I really want to put my feet in the water before we head off. I stand on the steps at the entrance to the lake and dip my feet. It’s not cold but not warm, it’s perfect and feels amazing. It is time to get back on the boat and we head to the monastery. The boat ride is amazing and I’m in such a great headspace. We are close to Albania when we dock, you can actually see the border line on the mountains. Somehow we are just about the first boat there so I head straight to the monastery. It is lovely with lots of churches, the main one being in the big courtyard makes the perfect photo. I go inside and it is a lot of medieval style paintings very old and colourful. The view from the side is also spectacular and I get some great photos.

Once I am done with the monastery I head outside photographing the beautiful grounds. The flowers are really colourful and there are waterways, streams, fountains and the most ornate intricate details. There are tiny stone bridges you can walk across and I love it. It is starting to get busy so I head out. To my right is a military checkpoint but people are heading that way so I ask and it is fine to go. Turns out its a beach. Really empty and I am able to bag a sunbed. I read my book for around an hour then I go for a swim. The water is cool but not freezing and it is nice to swim again. I do about eight minutes in the shallows, side to side so I can watch my belongings. Once I am done swimming I read my book some more and dry off until I think I am starting to burn so I dress and leave.

I am starving and have only eaten an orange all morning so I make my way looking for food. Instead I find a path that takes you to churches and springs so I put off food and follow it. I find a tiny spring and a woman tells me in Albanian I should wash my face which I do. The water is cold, refreshing and feels like it has minerals in and my skin feels good. I carry on walking to the first church which is beautiful, tiny. There are people there but they are leaving so I head inside, pay my donation, touch the saints face and make the sign of the cross; that is the custom here and its about the third time I’ve done it to today. There are springs behind the church so I wash my face again and then I watch as I continue along the path through lots of wild flowers and beautiful nature but I am being bitten and a buzz of flies are swarming around me. I can hear them and no amount of swatting will send them on their way. The next church is up on a hill with beautiful grounds through a gate. It is so lovely and I wander around taking pictures . A man comes out and asks if I want to see inside, I say no I am in a hurry but as I am leaving he opens it for somebody else so I pop back up to look. It is beautiful but very similar to the ones I have seen and it costs me another 100dinar to touch the guys face.

I continue along the path rushing now as I’m not so worried about eating as I am about missing the boat back. Somehow I miss the third church but that’s OK. I’m a bit churched out. The path turns into a road and the road into a car park. I cross through the entrance and can see the beach and the boat dock. I wander through taking pictures of the tourist shops and beach but I’m glad I stopped where I did, my beach was much more private. I find a restaurant and ask if they can feed me in 40 minutes which is how long I have until the later boat goes. They assure me they can and before I’ve even sat down somebody is taking my order. I ask what is quick and they say burger so I order that. The restaurant looks onto the water and there are the most beautiful flowers and colourful boats. I am fascinated taking pictures. It looks amazing and so beautiful but my food has already arrived. That took literally minutes, fastest service yet. Turns out burgers here are deconstructed without a bun but it is really tasty and I devour it. I now have twenty minutes to kill as the food came so quickly so I connect to the Internet and upload to instagram while I drink my beer. Once I am done I head back to the boat.

I recognise a Brazilian couple from my boat but it looks like everyone else went back on the early boat. We chat for a bit then I move to get out of the sun. I have definitely caught it today. The boat ride back is lovely but I am tired and sunburnt so I read my book for a distraction. The boat goes a direct way and is back by 430. I head straight to the hostel and chat to some people for a bit but I am definitely burnt so I head up for a cold shower and to lie in my air conditioning. I alternate between napping and reading as the wifi is terrible in the room. At just before 8 I head downstairs and quite a crowd has gathered. We enter the common area where a long table is assembled and about twenty of us are greeted with cherries and raki. It is all very cute. On the table are appetisers of every variety, loads of food. I am sat next to Luke from Australia and opposite Eden and Sophie from Dunedan New Zealand. There is an empty seat beside me which is later filled by Tom an 18 year old from London. Demitea from Sydney at the end of the table and Emma, also from Australia joins us later. We work our way through a lot of red wine and good conversation. The main course is a variety of local dishes all amazing and I am stuffed. We drink all the wine and sit until 11 when the decision is made to head out. I go to get fresh air and get to listen to Australian Alex’s boyfriend drama at home. We head out in the direction of an Irish pub a few of them went to last night. Other people in the group are Jamie who is travelling with Dimetra, Carla from Honduras, Jack from Manchester, an American guy whose name I somehow never catch, Erris from Finland, Mark from New Zealand who is travelling with Alex, Chim from France, Alex boy from London, a Dutch guy and somehow we pick up two German girls who came the hostel looking for free WiFi.

The Irish pub is playing a lot of well known stuff and we can sing along but it’s not a very cultural experience. I have one beer and agree with Alex when she suggests we try somewhere else. We head to a local bar but apparently the music isn’t English enough so we head back. The next place won’t allow us to all pay separately. At this point people are peeling off. The Dutch guys phone is charging off the power bar in my bag so I follow him back to the Irish bar. I buy one beer and chat to girl Alex and Emma. Once I am done with my beer I am ready to head so is Alex so we head back together. It starts to pour down on the way and we get absolutely soaked only for it to stop the second we reach the hostel. I have a cold shower and dry my hair before calling it a night but I have probably, sunburn aside, had my best day yet.

---