Every time when I am back in Ohrid I feel full at stomach and worm at heart. If you take in consideration that is my home town, my recommendations would not be taken as objective. I find this opportunity perfect to guide you through Ohrid stories and to show you my perception about it. I hope this will inspire you to visit this spot, which is soft and sweet as cotton candy. If you follow the official guidelines to visit Ohrid, you will miss this side of it. Let me introduce you to Ohrid, the one that makes me always come back, and crave for it when away.
The open market and the old bazaar in Ohrid: the streets that will make you fill your bag with fruits, your stomach with delicious food, your head with pleasant memories and your hear with warm feelings. This are two districts close to each other. Entering the Ohrid open market is a completely different experience than entering the Greek or Serbian market, for example. This is a more silent place, where you can find specialized ceramic pots to make traditional dish Tavche gravche(baked beans). Don’t forget to buy Gjomleze (delicious pastry that is sold as street food) and enjoy it while passing thought the tables full of fruits and vegetables. The sellers are very calm people, that I like to compare with Buddhists. All of them are highly convinced in their products quality, so they don’t put more effort than spraying water on fruits to look fresh. When you buy something they will put a little bit extra in your bag, and greet you with: ,, Со здравје да се јаjт” That means that they are hoping you to be healthy while/after eating it, said in Ohrid dialect.
After the open market, you can easily reach old Turkish bazaar. Here you can find delicious kebabs, baklava, all Turkish delights, and all the mind-blowing tasty food that we inherited from the ottomans. On your left and right side, as you walk towards the hundreds years old tree at the small square, like books on the library shelves you can find shoemakers, barbers, leather workers, pearls makers, graver… and much more stories and stories worthy occupations.
Here time have no value and looks tiny and worthless against the powers of the memories and accumulated experiences in this monumental district in my sweet sweet Ohrid.
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The author
Zlata Golaboska
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