Why We Love Macedonia #8

Pastramajlia has become one of my favorite Macedonian dishes. You can get them almost anywhere in the country but the BEST come from a town to the east called Stip (said SH-TIP). I didn’t really believe they could be better from city to city, but I assure you I’ve eaten a lot of pastramajlia and the best comes from Stip.

I know you may think this looks something like a pizza boat, but this nothing like pizza. The meat on board is pork and the crust is cooked with a special oil from the pig that makes it very distinct in taste and… fluff?

Pastramajlia comes in three sizes… large, medium, and small. This one pictured is a medium and as you can tell it barely fits on two plates.

Definitely one of my favorite Macedonian foods and most definitely to be had in the back alleys of Stip.

The Original Greek Gyro

Thought about calling this post “Why I Love Greece #1″ but figured I better just keep on loving Macedonia.

I was there for 6 days and I must have had one a day…oops… one day I had 2!! Welcome to the king of the Greek fast food. And as with all things made within the country it was born… you can’t get a better gyro than the ones you eat in Greece.

Athens, Greece

I met up with my dad in Greece, Thessaloniki to be exact, and we took an unexpected visit to Athens. It’s a very unusual city. Haven’t experienced anything quite like it for good or bad. This rock you see me perched on is a small mountain in the center. You can see a 360 degree view of the Athenian buildings all around. It’s actually very claustrophobic. 6 million people surrounding you on all sides. Horns, shouts, sirens all echoing up to you as you feel the emotional immensity of this city

Here is another shot from the center of the moutain where you see the famous Acropolis nestled behind us. It’s hard to believe this city was once the center for culture and the great thinkers of a time long gone.

To be a bit redundant, it was a great experience and good time with the pops. It’s always fun to see new places, especially ones as famous as Athens. It’s even better when you didn’t expect to go. How often does Athens just fall on your lap… no not Athens, Georgia, that one doesn’t count.

Scissor Queen Lile

My hair has been getting a little out of control lately and it seems I’ve been either too busy or too lazy to go get a haircut. Tonight, I decided to let Lile have a stab at it. Quickly, we set up the kitchen as a barber shop and I must say, for her first time ever cutting hair, my wife did a great job. I am excited about cutting out any future trips to the barber shop.

Why We Love Macedonia #7

Cockta was invented by a Slovenian chemical engineer named Emerik Zelinka. His idea was to create a deliciously refreshing soda using the local herbs. In fact, 11 different herbs were used making the first bottle while one of the more famous being “rosehip”, which was also popular in the local tea brews.

It’s obvious this was an attempt to fight against the Darth Vaderous Coka-Cola, but you have to respect Emerik’s originality in recipe and design. When drinking, it’s very noticeable that Cockta tastes very different from all the other Coke wannabees. At first sip, you want to say there might be a hint of lemony aftertaste… swirl it, swirl it, swish it, NO!… it must be the rosehip.

The first time I tried Cockta was probably a year ago at a Chicken Curry dinner party. That night I probably drank an entire liter by my lonesome… some blame it on the spicy food, I blame it on my #7 reason for loving Macedonia.

Light of Mine

We were set to film this past weekend but FOR THE SECOND TIME we were defeated by rain. Tired of being pushed around by the weather, I decided to shoot a little something else; a concept piece about the life and death of a light bulb. The story was inspired by a picture Lile showed me of a pair of hands cradling a dead light bulb. The bulb had the stereotypical XX over the eyes and proverbial tongue droop you see in most animated deaths. I found this fascinating and immediately the wheels started turning. In a mere few days, shooting began and now as you read this post, “picture lock” will have been sent to my audio guru Eric, who is working on the far the side of the big blue.

It felt good to get this film out. A release from the frustrations and misfires due to rain checks and filming postponements.

This movie is also a movie of firsts for me. It’s the first time I will have used my new camera, The Sony PD-150 (or as I like to call it “P-Ditty”) It’s also the first time I’ll have worked with kids… TWO in fact! A beautiful young Mimi living at 8 yrs old and her zombie loving, ninja punchin brother, Evan, who is watermarked at around 6 yrs and some change. Both kids were incredible and made for a huge directorial learning experience . Another unusual aspect about making this movie is the style. Typically, I go guerrilla and film everything hand-cam. In this one I stuck to going steady and used my cheap tripod.

It’s a fun little film that Lile says borders the genre of (GASP) a kid’s movie. I’ll keep you posted.

Why I Love Macedonia #6

Turkish Coffee… thick, dark, muddy, and delicious.

Making Turkish Coffee is the oldest coffee making form in history. Everyone makes it differently, but all within the same concept. Here’s how I do it.

Take a specially made pot called a gezve , fill up your coffee cup with water, dump the water in the gezve, add coffee on top (no filter here!), and throw in the sugar (the only form of coffee making where the sugar is cooked within the coffee. Every other coffee you add the sugar in after). Some people stir here… I don’t. Turn on the stove and let it all heat up. The coffee and sugar begin to melt and sink down into the bottom where the water begins to boil and mix the flavors together. Once the bubbles have broken through the rising foam… immediately take the pot off the eye. You don’t want it to boil around the surface letting in air and burning the coffee. As I have said before… everyone makes it differently, including my beautiful wife (she’s a stirrer). I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a “How to” video on the matter pretty soon

As you can see from the picture, Turkish coffee is served in specially made cups. Because of their smaller size and rounded corners, it keeps the coffee warmer than your standard coffee cup. Also, because of the strength of the coffee, a larger size is not needed.

Also as seen in the picture, you will notice the famous Turkish Coffee Foam that rises to the surface. When pouring coffee for more than one person you never just poor one cup then another. Always poor a little into each cup so the foam is equally shared. Think of it like changing a tire. You never tighten all the nuts at the same time… a little on each one until everything is securely even.

When most foreigners talk about this coffee, the conversation immediately turns to the bottom of the cup. A thick sludge of coffee mud is always left at the bottom. But worry not… if your coffee has been made correctly, you will never feel a thick or gritty texture in your drink. Think of the sludge as the butt of you cigarette, the stick of your lolly pop, the shell of your peanut; you don’t consume this part even though it’s an important part of the process.

I have been drinking a cup of this black magic everyday since I moved here and definitely a reason why Lile and I love Macedonia!

PS. Keep in mind I am new to this ancient process and don’t boast that I know the way. I only know what I have learned.

Movie Making Heartbreak

“Kamen” is based off a short story Lile wrote back in February. It’s a retelling of Mary Magdalene and her encounter with the stone throwing pharisees. We set our story in a timeless age with an impoverished look of 60 years ago or maybe even 60 years into the future… doesn’t matter… we wanted our story to not have a timeless “lost” feel to it.

Our version of the story focuses on 5 main characters. Maria, the convicted “whore” caught in the act of adultery. Toni Popov (Victim, Creatures of the Night) plays The Accuser, a jealous political figure who was in love with Maria but unfortunately his love was in vain. He uses his power of manipulation to turn the small village against her. Next would be Aleksander, the unfortunate man who instigated the adultery and in an attempted escape is shot down and left for the wolves. This character’s wife is one of the more controversial characters and adds and interesting balance to the concepts of forgiveness and cheek turning. Last but not least is The Drifter, a foreign traveler who wanders the globe with no home, no destination. This strange man stumbles into Aleksander, dying deep in a mountain ravine. The man recounts his sins as he slowly slips away. The Drifter ventures into the village on the day of Maria’s stoning, compelled to intervene.

Lile and I have been planning this movie for more than 6 months. Working and reworking the script, the story, the actors, the props, and the equipment. Paul, one of my best friends from Virginia, agreed to fly over and play The Drifter, as well as take up a strong behind the scenes presence in shot listing and working through the staging of scenes. The first three days he was here, we spent all afternoon hopping coffee shops and story boarding.

On the day of filming, I awoke to the the sound of rain. We pushed on through, transporting a bus of mob members and stone throwers to the distant mountain village. We could have filmed in rain… we could have filmed in wind… but we were unable to film in both the wind and rain. It was impossible to keep my equipment dry. The actors and crew were amazing though. Despite the desperate conditions, EVERYONE was in high spirits and looking to the sky for a break in the weather. Not one person complained or gave up. We sat huddled under shelter the entire day… attempting twice to set up the first shot… it was impossible.

Lile, Paul, and I were very disappointed at first. Our hearts were broken. We had invested so much time, energy, and money into one single day… the one day this month that had to have horrible weather. We left for home wet, tired, and emotionally exhausted. By the end of the night though, our spirits rose again at the prospect of a spring shoot. We agreed that the extra time would benefit the film greatly. We saw mistakes we made in our planning and now we have a second chance to do everything right. So… we are excited again and can’t wait for another shot at one of our most ambitious projects to date. And besides… I have a couple other stories up my sleeve to buy my time till then.

Why We Love Macedonia #5

Ahhhhh BOZA… something that most foreigners detest but most natives find a refreshing treat. I take pride in the fact that I am one of the few foreigners who love it. I could drink liter upon liter of this most unusual beverage. I remember when my parents came down for our wedding… I took my dad, the notorious pastry lover, to a shop for some Boza and eclair. I think he expected it to be like chocolate milk. Needless to say he barely took a sip. Everyone else I bought for that day (Mom, Chris, Kat, Sis) almost gagged.

In describing the taste I would say it’s something like rotten donuts blended into liquid form. Boza is a drink made from fermented flour. Different Balkan countries make it from different things. I think the Albanians even make it from corn.

The beautiful thing about Boza is that every shop makes it different. No two brands taste the same. The recipe is secret and is passed privately down from shop owner to shop owner. It goes best while eating something sweet… my choice usually an eclair. While walking through Skopje you will see old men sitting alone with a large mug of boza while forking into a moist cake of some sort. Lonely men just sticks into my mind but most everyone drinks it. Lile has fond memories of her parents taking her and Nik on boza and eclair every Sunday. Her parents actually met while her mother was working in a sweet shop that sold the stuff.

If you go to a shop you can bring your own bottle, they plug it into a draft spout and fill you up for almost half the price. There is a shop just around the corner from where Lile and I live so when we have guests I like to frequent the place. I have yet to find my foreign equal in appreciating this Macedonian refreshment.

PS. Beware… there is a low alcohol level… hence the fermented flower.

Why We Love Macedonia #4

Yet another reason why we like Macedonia is “ajvar”. This Macedonian delicacy comes from The Turkish name ” havyar”, meaning “salted row”. Interesting enough, this unique food shares an etymology with caviar… wtt?

In September, everything in the country revolves around the preparation of this delicacy. It’s the month for making ajvar. If you walk down any street all you’ll smell is the roasting of peppers. For Macedonians, it has become a “ritual”. A ritual passed down through the years from grandparents to parents, parents to children.

The process of making it is difficult and involves a great deal of manual labor. You can read about it in the next post. It’s made from a special kind of red paprika that comes from the south of Macedonia in a town called Strumica. You can buy ajvar in stores and shops in Macedonia but we all know that the best is made domestically.