Post B5rAlTjpYQZ6AN1pKq by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
(DIR) More posts by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
(DIR) Post #B5qZGC8tEEVWJRy9rM by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Well, I'm awake in...Prilep (had to think about hat one for a moment) and a little stiff and out of sorts after spending most of yesterday wet and overdoing it a little bit with my pack, but the sun is shining and hopefully drying out the wet dirt from yesterday. Going to get my day started and see if hiking up to Marko's Towers is possible. There are a number of medieval monasteries and churches in the area if plan a is a bust or if I still have energy.
(DIR) Post #B5qZGCNQMC8L2WllVw by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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The town also has a bazaar and an interesting Spomenik if there is still any daylight left and I have any juice left in my legs towards the end of the day. I think I'll be heading on to Bitola tomorrow regardless of what is left unseen.
(DIR) Post #B5qZGCZTdNm5duPOIi by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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There is an access road at wines around to the back side northernly approach and that's probably safe to walk regardless. I'm mostly just worried about the slipperiness of the site itself and the final stretch of path up to it. The citadel seems to be mostly on the northeastern section of the rock face and you can't really see much of it from where I am now. There's another major section of walling and some lookout towers on the southwestern side and I bet those are visible from down below.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlTjpYQZ6AN1pKq by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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All I've actually seen of the castle thus far are the towers of the southern saddle/trough which block up that approach. I showed pictures of them yesterday from late in the day. The image in the bottom right of the prior toot in this thread shows what they look like from satellite point of view.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlTxej1ckrFUrsu by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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I've managed to shower, eat a couple chocolate croissants, take my meds and lace up my boots. Took me an hour. Moving slowly these days. Think I'm going to bring my 7 pounds of camera gear with me and my cap, gloves and sweater. It might be colder and windier up at the top. The hills surrounding Prilep still have snow on them. I'm telling myself that the views are going to be worth it.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUAlwG7FVvdLKS by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Headed out the door and then turned right around recalling that I had not packed my Emergency Snickers.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUKhLM3W0iHGng by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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The hike begins. This elephant-shaped rock is the official start of the hiking trail. I think I'm going to not try and live to this one and instead just concentrate on where I'm putting my feet. I'm not sure this one is as treacherous as Soko Grab, but if you guys hear nothing from me in say 6 hours it's probably cuz I fell off a cliff and you might want to call Prilep S&R.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUTun5QcTIadAO by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Lol, there's a guy just jogging up in shorts.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUcmG8W8umjhyq by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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The goats and cows are also not having any trouble at all. It's just me.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUjrpmBlGm3N20 by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Having a Snicker bar next to one of Prince Marko's towers. There's a posture gate that's hidden behind two boulders with a tower built over the top. Neat. Plant some bushes and stuff in front of it and you've got a secret way in and out.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlUt5HVYrjMMjOi by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Well, I've made my tour and I'm back down the mountain. The path is pretty good from here on out so if you don't hear from me I've just had a heart attack not actually falling off the mountain, or maybe I've dropped my phone or something. But either way a call off search and rescue. I'm good. I'll try to post a bunch of pictures and see if I can illustrate how the place worked from a defensive standpoint, but that can wait until I'm back in my room and done for the day. Monastery next.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlV2IjEvyBwg5lQ by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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If I see a Yugo. I must stop and take a picture of the Yugo. It's a rule.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlVCa719ohpUImu by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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Visited the monastery. It's dedicated to the Archangel Michael and is a very early date of foundation. There is an inscription Stone found on a pillar with a piece of Slavic on it that is thought to date to the 10th century. Most of the present remains are newer than that, but still I think mostly 14th century and earlier. They've got a patchwork of frescoes on the interior of the church, and also some in a crypt below the church, which was locked and not available on the day of my visit.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlVQPHcDTOhxLKy by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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It's presently a female monastery and there are five nuns who live there, one of whom spoke a little English and showed me to a laminated book with some information about the frescoes in various languages, including English. She also let me fill up my water bottle. She watched me like a hawk as I moved about. They don't allow any photography inside the monastery including exterior shots of the building. So you have to step off the grounds to take pictures of it. The dress is full black habit
(DIR) Post #B5rAlVc6a7ZdyzQgZU by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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There are a bunch of medieval churches in Varoš, the town/village below the hill on the side of the monastery. I visited all of them. Sadly they all had locked gates and doors so didn't get to see any of the interiors really. Online several are noted to have 12th through 14th century frescoes. The exteriors with ornate Byzantine style brickwork are a nice consolation prize though for all the walking. Put on 17,000 steps for the day and a lot of that was going up and down hills.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlVnnscvoZGu1o0 by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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This one has a high stone wall around it. It is dedicated to Saint Nicolas and dates to 1298.
(DIR) Post #B5rAlVwJMzjkzesp4C by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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This church is dedicated to St. Demetrius. It's late 13th century and newer and supposed to have some very nice frescoes inside. There are also stones embedded in the fabric of the church and displayed in the yard which indicate that it's a. Rebuilding or refoundation of still older church
(DIR) Post #B5rAlW6aklxbVXh25g by piggo@piggo.space
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@Infoseepage the brick patterns are so nice. They look all ornate and fancy even when falling to pieces
(DIR) Post #B5rPJT79mKgxR52bFg by Infoseepage@mastodon.social
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@piggo There are several architectural styles that seem to become more beautiful with weathering, age and repair. I know that there are several Asian philosophies that embrace change/renewal and decay as a deliberate artistic aesthetic, but I'm not sure the west has ever put so much thought into questions of what will this look like in a thousand years?