Cheap Tix {To London and Venice}.

From Skopje, Macedonia, Venice, Italy is a 1 hour and 25 minute plane ride. It also cost approximately 30 euro when flying W!zz Air. We had no problems with W!zz Air at all, and the price is so worth the first-come, first-serve chaos. However, make sure your bags are under 10kg {about 22 pounds}, and you only get 1 carry on total! Also, you get no free drinks, snacks, or entertainment items, so plan in advance.

Same is true when flying RyanAir which we took to London. Always on time and easy, but no frills for no price!

Wine Fest

After unpacking and sharing some homemade rakii with some locals and some other travelers, we headed over to Wine Fest which was happening at the main square, a short walk from Hostel Hostel.

Wine Fest was amazing for several reasons. Here are some of them:

* There was A LOT of wine.

*We got to drink wine underneath The Warrior, Alexander the Great.

*It was packed, and like Kosovo, everyone was extremely nice, young, and welcoming.

*There was beautiful traditional music played throughout the night.

* Our 2 euro tickets included a souvenir wine glass and discounted wine prices at all the booths. {For the record, somehow, I managed to get that wine glass all the way back to Prishtina in one piece.}

* We ran into an expat we know from Prishtina. He's originally from Michigan (hence my instant friendship with him), and we play pub quiz against him on Thursdays ... and now, sometime, we run into him in other countries. For one very quick second, I felt like a really big deal in eastern Europe.

We definitely want to get some more Skopje QT soon!

But now, on to Venice!

For the Record.

All trains from Skopje to Thessaloniki are cancelled. Forever.

Just so you know.

We have been told that although Skopje has a well functioning bus system, the same is not true for the train system.

Kristin and Natalie learned this lesson for us and had to make a few adjustments to their previously planned trip to Greece.

Skopje, Macedonia

So, about 3 hours after boarding our bus in Prishtina, we arrived in Skopje.

Birthplace of Mother Theresa.

First country I have vacationed to since moving to Europe.

Host of T-mobile, McDonalds, Burger King, Holiday Inn, and a really big mall.

Home to Hostel Hostel which was our accommodation for the evening. I am not much of a hostel fan -- been there, done that -- but when I began living on 1000 euro a month, hostels became surprisingly inviting. And Hostel Hostel is one of the best that I have stayed in. For 8 euros a night, guest get amazing hospitality, good company, free wifi, and computers in case you need to borrow one, decent bedding and beds, multiple {and clean} showers and bathrooms, coffee and tea all night long, beer/wine/rakii for purchase, 24 hour security, and free dinner and breakfast. Extra bonus: the girl working knew we had to catch a plane in the morning, so she had our breakfast to-go style and had a cab waiting for us. {Our cab cost us 20 euro -- we hear it can cost as little as 15 euro, so make sure to price check before committing to your driver.}

Random information: You can use euros in Skopje, but you usually need to have exact change. The official currency is denars.

From Pristina to Skopje. Bus Style.

We bussed it to Skopje. Travel by coach to Macedonia is very easy and very cheap from Prishtina. It is also very, very long.

Here's the breakdown:

5.50 euro 1 way.

8.50 euro roundtrip. If you buy the roundtrip ticket, keep in mind it limits your travel time options because you must book with the same bus company. If you want more flexibility, pay the price!

The trip took 3 hours and 10 minutes. {Keep in mind, it is a 65 mile trip ... so the bus is not the fastest but is the easiest and the cheapest.}