Part 4 - Macedonia (Skopje, Pelince)

As they cross the border, they examine the sign which says “Section 25” and ask the man in the tollbooth where is Section 1. He says it is on the Slovene border with Austria where they began their journey. As from now, the former Brotherhood and Unity motorway is called the “Alexander the Great” motorway until the Greek border.
The flag of the Republic of Macedonia was adopted on 5 October 1995 after a one-year economic blockade imposed by Greece in order to force the Republic of Macedonia to remove the ancient Macedonian Vergina Sun from the flag, thus it is one of the world's newest flags.
The new eight-rayed sun represents "the new sun of Liberty" referred to in the national anthem of the Republic of Macedonia, Denes nad Makedonija ("Today over Macedonia").

The Stone Bridge (Macedonian: Камен мост) is a bridge across the Vardar River in Skopje.
The bridge is considered a symbol of Skopje, and is the main element of the coat of arms of the city, which in turn is incorporated in the city's flag.
The Stone Bridge connects the Macedonia Square, in the center of Skopje, to the Old Town of the city and is considered a symbol of multiculturalism in Skopje.

In Skopje, they meet with Pasko Kuzman, a prominent archaeologist and senior official of the Ministry of Culture. He is a leading proponent of the theory that today’s Macedonians are descendents of the Macedonians of antiquity.
The three of them at the square in Skopje, where the 30 metre statue of Alexander is to be erected.

Pelince (Macedonian: Пелинце) is a village in the Republic of Macedonia near Kumanovo and the border between the Republic of Macedonia and Serbia. The village became popular among the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia in 2004 when a new national commemorative of ASNOM was built in the village, where the annual celebration of the Macedonian statehood (The Second Ilinden of 1944) has taken place ever since. This decision was brought due to the countinious refusals by the Serbian Orthodox Church authorities to allow Macedonian delegations to visit and celebrate the holiday in the actual venue of ASNOM, the Prohor Pčinjski monastery which is on Serbian territory near the Macedonian border and near the village of Pelince.
In Pelince, our two writers meet with journalist and editor Ana Petruseva. Together, they comment on how history is interpreted in Macedonia today and how the authorities plan to erect a giant monument dedicated to Alexander the Great, called here Alexander the Macedonian, in the centre of Skopje.
Discussion goes over Macedonia’s row with Greece over its name and with Bulgaria over its refusal to recognise that Macedonian is a separate language and its people a separate nationality.


The Yugo crosses the border into Greece. Their journey has taken them from one corner of the EU to another. When will the countries they have passed come to terms with their past?
European integration also involves the integration of memories and history... They decide to leave the Yugo behind and get moving.

Part 1 - Austria, Slovenia, Croatia

Part 2 - Croatia (Vukovar), Bosnia (Brcko)

Part 3 - Serbia (Belgrade, Presevo)

Portraits along the road

Driving the Yugo

Documentary

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