30SEP-1OCT2004 I felt a sense of relief when I reached Macedonia
without incident. The atmosphere was much lighter. And the sun was
out and the temperature was comfortable.
The road markings are pretty vague in Skopje and I managed to get lost.
When I stopped to ask directions, Oliver tried to explain then said he would
show me because he needed to go home which was on the route I was looking for.
He hopped on the back of TBGS and guided me through the maze of streets until we
finally found the motorway. We stopped along the highway and he hopped
over the fence to get to his home. His English was pretty good and he´s
planning to be in the US with relatives over Christmas.
As the sun was setting, I started looking for a place to stay in Strumica.
Naturally, there was no sign of a hotel. I asked for a hotel at a service
station and they said the only one they knew was expensive. I noticed a
comfortable looking patch of green grass next to the station and asked if I
could pitch my tent. Marko, the night manager said okay and I set up my
tent and then spent a pleasant evening at the four-star accomodation. They
sold beer and canned meat and had a television. The movie was in English.
I chatted with Marko and Marissa and had a very pleasant evening.
The next morning I stopped for breakfast at a country inn that, of course,
was only a few miles down the road and not expensive by my standards.