THE MISADVENTURES OF A SOCK LEAD TO NEW FRIENDS & A TRIP TO KALISTA

Paul decides to bring in the laundry that hangs from a rack over our fourth-floor balcony, fumbles and drops one of my socks which falls to a first-floor balcony.  

Later the next day we accompany the lonely sock down to find its mate…and we meet Sami and Rozi, such incredibly lovely people.  This day we talk in their living room for a couple of hours while sipping wine.

Sami and Rozi are Albanians, who as a young couple, knowing no one and no English fled to the United States via a camp in Italy and finally landed in Connecticut.  They worked hard, raised a family and now can return here for six months every year.  Besides their apartment in this building, they have three apartments in Vlore on the Albanian Riviera which they rent out for part of each year.

Sami is briefly interrupted by a neighbour who needs his assistance.  He is Mr. Fix-It of the building.  The one on whom everyone depends.  He returns limping.  He has aggravated a sciatica problem and needs crutches for a couple of days.

We meet one of their sons and his boys who are visiting from Connecticut.  They love it here and the son has also just purchased an apartment in Struga.

Sami & Rozi give us  tips on what to see here in Struga and in Albania.

In a couple of days, we check on Sami to see how he’s doing and he and Rozi say they are taking us out for some sight-seeing and coffee.  They clearly love the history of this area and love showing people around and telling stories.  Rozi grew up in a village not far from here and knows all the little villages well.

We are heading to the Monastery of Kalista.  Just outside of the monastery is a hotel and restaurant built into the rock.  Sami thinks the back wall of each room is like this, built into the rock and the fronts face the lake.

The monastery is a complex that has four churches, including an ancient cave church.  The grounds are lakefront and stunning.  Before the water levels in the lake fell, people used to arrive by boat for their worship services.  The grounds here are lovingly maintained.  Apparently, the monks still use the monastery in the winter.

There is a magnificent 700-year-old maple tree on the grounds.  It looks so strong and resilient and healthy, it just draws you to admire it, be close to it, to touch it.

Inspecting the plaque about the tree

There is a souvenir shop here that sells wine made on the property along with religious icons and other items.

We are let first into the St. Athanasius church which is beautifully painted like all of the Orthodox churches we have been into.  This church was built in the 14^th. century and its frescoes remain fresh looking.  The artwork here is purported to be the greatest collection of medieval fine art in the country.

Before entering the church there are the wood doors to admire and the mosaic above the doors.

 The new church on the grounds – the Nativity of Holy Mother of God was rebuilt in 1977, keeping the foundation from the 18^th. century.  Sunday services are held here regularly.

There is a legend here of the Icon of the Holy Mother of God that during WW II was thrown several times into the river and each time returned on its own.  This icon is painted with a black face and clothing and holds a black Jesus.

Then Sami pays a small fee and we are let in to explore the ancient cave church … a place where monks hid in times of conflict.  It’s amazing.  This church is completely authentic.  No restoration work has been done here.  The whole east side of the church is a stone wall, so the church was built according to the dictates of the dimensions of the cave.

Up a set of stairs, then duck to get into the church and up more stairs.

First, we see rooms that monks would live in.  They could hide here in times of conflict.

The original frescoes too are untouched:

Even after leaving the church in the cave, our 'heads' are still there, so we linger here on these lovely grounds a while.  Then to coffee. 

We go to a place owned by Sami’s second cousin.  On one side of the road of this village is a small, new hotel that they built about five years ago.  Across the road is the campground they built at the same time.  Probably the prettiest campground we have ever seen, right on Ohrid Lake.

Trees and flowers have been planted.  

There's a coffee shop with a nice selection of beverages and snacks.  

Campers can eat at the hotel across the street.  They can bicycle into Struga on the free new bikes provided to get supplies or kayak also provided at no charge.  Behind the hotel, there are washing machines for their use (no charge).  Each site has electricity and there is one dumping station for all to use when needed.  The washrooms and showers are sparkling clean.  We still miss RV-ing and this is a place we could settle into for a while.  Of course, we meet the family.  Lingering over coffee here, with these lovely people is so relaxing.

When Sami drops us off, he insists on driving us to Ohrid tomorrow, to orientate us to the town, show us the fortress, a church and where to get tickets for the boat ride to St. Naum.  

As we walk back to the apartment building, Roszi is calling out to someone on a balcony of a nearby building – her cousin.

What a great morning it’s been.  We change into our swimsuits and head the two blocks to the lake, but alas vacation season is now in full swing and there is not a chair to be had.  We linger here over a beer and there over ice cream so we get a bit of sun, then it’s off to the library for some Wi-Fi time.

And all ends well for the socks, happy to be reunited.

Thanks, Sami and Rozi for a great day