Северна Македонија

North Macedonia

FAQs:

• Where is North Macedonia?
  • If you zoom out on the map you will see it shares borders with Greece (yay!), Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, and Bulgaria.

• What language do they speak there?
  • A majority of the people speak Macedonian, a language similar to Bulgarian. Roughly 30% of the population speaks Albanian. Jarek is learning Albanian for his position in the embassy.
• What type of government is it?
  • A parliamentary government with a prime minister, currently Zoran Zaev, and president, Stevo Pendarovski.
  • Fun fact: in an effort to stake a claim on the ethnicity of prominent historical figures, increase nationalism, and attract tourists, the previous president built hundreds of statues throughout Skopje. I’ll post evidence upon arrival!
• Can you travel while you’re there?
  • YES. Travel throughout the Balkans is one of the biggest perks of living in Skopje. It’s about a three hour drive to the beaches in Greece and five hours to Tirana, Albania or Montenegro. Hungary and Croatia are also drivable. We are hoping to fly to Prague and Paris, but one thing at a time.
• What are the demographics?
  • Population: 2.07 million in the whole country (roughly 1/8 of the population of Guangzhou!)
  • The two major ethnic groups are Macedonians and Albanians. There are also significant populations of Turks and Romani.
• Are the boys excited?
  • Since T is only two, he has no idea what is about to happen. He’s a trooper and has always traveled really well, so I’m not too worried. A is excited to live in a house instead of an apartment (that will be new for us)!

That’s all for now. We are learning more about the collapse of Yugoslavia and its effect on Macedonia. There is so much to learn and we are thrilled for this new adventure!

Post in the comments if you have more questions and we will do our best to answer.