I've mentioned already that we're great fans of the Vardar, and every Skopje day starts by covering a stretch of its banks:






If you go west, you can go out via the river and come back via an extensive park (or vice versa):




You don't get far into any description of Skopje without reading about "brutalist architecture". So today, inspired by Vito Valentinetti's blog, we went in search of some examples.

Brutalism emerged after World War II. It strives for honesty, simplicity, austerity, and functionality; its trademarks are geometric forms, simple lines, rough surfaces, and monochromatic palettes. Skopje's Saints Cyril and Methodius University is a great example:







All these are very recognizably brutalist. Sometimes you're not sure, though:




Of course, all these explorations need coffee support, which is never difficult to find in Skopje. Opposite St Clem's, there's a branch of Mikel, a Greek coffee chain. The setting is a big Starbucksy, but the coffee was good, as was the apple tart.

Also nice was Coffee Shop 091:


It's hard to believe that we're moving on tomorrow. The time in Skopje seems to have gone incredibly quickly. The Ibis here has been great. The staff are very welcoming, and we've had a reasonably spacious room, equipped with a kettle and a fridge. I loved the buffet breakfasts... I will particularly miss the lentil soup, the sesame rolls stuffed with white cheese and lutenitsa, and the croissants (these are always good at Accor hotels -- we think they send out a master recipe -- but here you can enjoy your croissants with butter and rosehip jam...). We were still owed our welcome drink by this evening, our last, so we drank to Skopje's health with a little farewell bottle of wine down in the bar: