Humanistic Portrait Busts in Thessaloniki Archeological Museum

I'm so used to seeing Roman portrait busts in museums, that I was surprised by these Greek busts and bas-reliefs in the Thessaloniki Archeological Museum. They seem to me to be much more human, more individual and vulnerable, than those of Roman emperors and nobles. The Roman sculptors copied from the Greeks, but they missed something along the way.

Thessaloniki Archeological Museum

Thessaloniki is Greece's second largest city. It's a lively, interesting place, with several excellent museums. We went first to the Archeological Museum, where I was struck by the reddish-brown chiaroscuro and dramatic shadows of many of the exhibits.

Thessaloniki Graffiti

Our Balkans Odyssey tour ended in Skopje, but we wanted to explore remnants of Jewish life in Thessaloniki, Greece, just a couple of hours to the south. So we were driven to a hotel in the center of the city and spent a few days wandering around. We were immediately struck by the liveliness of the place, as evidenced by the vigorous graffiti. (With a few exceptions, I would not call most of it "street art".)

Museum of Macedonia

The Museum of Macedonia in Skopje was being remodeled, but we were able to see some of its exhibits, notably the elaborate displays of ornamentation in traditional wedding costumes of mountain peasants contrasted with the threadbare clothing of Greek Macedonians forced to flee Greece for their new homes in the mountains to the north.

Skopje - Walking Around

While walking the streets of Skopje I took photos of miscellaneous pieces of walls, doors, and windows that intrigued me for one reason or another. They all have aspects of Jay Maisel's trinity of "light, color, and gesture".

Politics in Kosovo

When we arrived in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, one of the first things we saw in the center of the city was this statue of Bill Clinton. Nearby was a women's clothing store named after Hillary Rodham Clinton. These memorials were presumably in recognition of the Clintons' help in getting Kosovo its independence after a bitter conflict with Serbia.

A memorial to the first President of the Republic of Kosovo.

Mother and son of a family we visited, who told of their experiences in the war with Serbia. Two of their family were victims of Serbs living in Pristina.

Building the Skopje to Pristina Highway

Once ensconced in Skopje, we took a day to visit Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. Riding our bus along the old highway (and shooting with a fast shutter speed), we could see a new elevated highway being built in the deep, curving valley along our hillside route. An impressive piece of engineering!