Brass Band

This statue piece was one of my absolute favorites in Skopje.... always sure to inspire a joyful smile on my face! That is until one by one each piece dissappeared! It was so sad to see the lone trumpetman playing without his buddies... little old ladies would pass by and shake their head and tsk at the shame of the loss.... then just a few months later all that was left was the concrete slab. =(

I think the one I missed the most was the guy in front with the big puffy cheaks blowing with all his might... kind of reminded me of the guy in the picture below from a local concert of the Philharmonic orchestra (guest musicians pictured):

Well, in the past few months several new statues have been appearing all over Skopje (pics and blogs to come).... and so imagine my joy to see that they replaced my favorite statue with the same basic "Brass Band." It's definitely not exactly the same, but that's OK, because like an old friend it's good to see it and it always brings a smile to my face when I pass by. =)

Bugs o Buggin'

This was the site that welcomed us after one worship team practice last month, when it was still quite warm and muggy outside.... They were everywhere and you just couldn't slap them away... There's a reason they're called "bugs"! Funny thing is that just 1/2 mile away and 15 minutes later at my home the street lamps were clear of these bugs... barely any at all... I'm thinking that this phenomenon must be related to proximity to the city park.... Who knows! I'm just glad that the seasons have changed and so no more bug 'o buggin!

A New Decade & "Revealing" Trip to the Embassy

When my brother saw the picture in my passport he teased me mercilessly! "Ha ha, Carol! You're stuck with THAT for 10 years! Ha ha ha!" Well, yesterday that passport was nostalgically placed in a drawer and a new decade begun, though not without first making an adventurous... and... er.... revealing trip to the US Embassy.

There's a new US Embassy here in Skopje and boy is the security tight! On my last trip there to submit my passport renewal application I learned that bringing less is more. So, this time I thought I was so clever and full of fore-thought as I left my purse in the car and walked up to the security checkpoint carrying only my keys and passport.

Well..... as you will see, it turned out that I was not as clever as I'd fashioned myself to be.... as I completely didn't pay attention to what I was wearing and how it would affect getting through security....

You see, I was wearing boots for the first time this season.... and the metal "fashionable" strip on the bottom inevitably tripped the alarm... "Beep!" To which I then had to unzip them.... and reveal the fact that not only was I wearing unfashionable white ankle socks, but also that... er... my legs were in need of shaving!

But even more embarrassing was that I was wearing a belt! Again, for the FIRST TIME this season.... So I'm having to... er... discretely put my hands under my shirt and remove the belt.... through the scanner it goes... then on the other side I get to put it back on. Can I just say that it's REALLY disconcerting to stand there and re-zip up boots over hairy legs and then re-loop and buckle a belt whilst a couple of (really cute, btw) guards watch my every move??

The whole time I just kept laughing to myself and my "cleverness." Mental note: next time go beltless and wear slip-on shoes... oh, and SHAVE YOUR LEGS! I must say, though, that the guys were really nice and courteous and I know that they were just doing their job. =)

Perhaps the funniest part, though, was that for the first time in my life I was asked to put my glasses through the scanner... so I was pretty much blind through all of the above!

After my "revealing" trip I picked up my new passport and what was left of my "clever" pride and blushed my way past the cute guards and headed home. =)

The upside of all this? My new passport is really sweet... especially love all the pics and quotes. Oh, and I'm pretty sure that even my brother would approve of the picture. Thus I begin a new decade..... and did I mention that I'm turning 40 soon? A new decade in more ways that one! lol.