 Project description
Some thirty children whose drawings and literature works had been rewarded at a competition entitled “Mariovo: Ecology, Tradition, Life” were guests of the “Itar Pejo” children camp in Staravina, in June 2003. The children were guests of the inhabitants of Staravina and Gradesnica and could see a part of the rich natural and cultural heritage of Mariovo. They visited traditional workshops for extracting honey and for sheep fleecing; they took photographs, draw and wrote, and their works were exhibited in the Children Cultural Centre “Karpos” in Skopje on an exhibition entitled “Itar Pejo Among Children in Mariovo” and were presented in a brochure as well.
Contact
Mende Trajkovski, environmental association “Kajmakcalan”, 31 Pande Ilkovski St., Bitola; 070/577-906, 047/231-145; ekomariovo@yahoo.com
 Location
Staravina and Gradesnica, Mariovo; southern Macedonia.
About Staravina
The Mariovo region is located in the southern part of the Republic of Macedonia, in the mountains of Nidze and Selecka. The municipality of Staravina (333 square kilometres) represents the Bitola part of Mariovo. This is the most scarcely inhabited area in Macedonia which has been the result of huge migration in recent several decades.
Mariovo is located at 600-900 metres above the sea level. The climate is mountainous; there are large meadows where you can see many white sheep, and a rich forest stock, especially on the mountain of Kajmakcalan. Nature here is especially attractive in spring when the whole area resembles a big flower carpet. Thousands of colourful and smelling mountain flowers, medicinal herbs and teas give this place special beauty and attraction. The region offers excellent possibilities for the development of cattle breeding, beekeeping, village tourism and hunter tourism, wood industry, and the production of healthy food.
 How to reach Staravina?
If you start from Bitola through the Bitola Valley via the Preslapta crossing, you will reach the village of Makovo on an asphalt paved road. From the village of Rapes, there is a non-asphalted macadam road (some ten kilometres long) to the villages of Staravina and Gradesnica.
Where to stay overnight?
In the premises of the municipality of Staravina there are several rooms adapted to offer overnight stay accommodation that also include a bathroom and a kitchen. Visitors preferring the authentic village milieu can also stay in village houses. Local people offer their homes for stay in agreement with tourists visiting the village.
Local specifics
In Staravina, Gradesnica, and in the nearby villages of Orle, Brnik, Iveni, Zovich, Budimirci, and Gruniste you will feel the genuine undisturbed tradition of Mariovo. Of course, you should try local specialties - white and layered cheese, honey, the “brkadanik” with sheep yogurt, the “zelnik” pie, the barbecue lamb, dry peppers dishes, and other specialties.
What can you see in the surroundings?
Away from urban noise and factory chimneys, village settlements exist in extraordinary peace and harmony. Architecture is specific - houses are built of stone, covered with stone boards and straw. While in Staravina, visit the Pesta fortress from the Roman times preserving in itself a part of Mariovo's history related to the personality of a girl called Kales Angja. The church of St. Dimitrija in Gradesnica (XVI century) is a rarity in the Balkans, by its stone altar. In the church of St. Nikola in Gradesnica, you may see extraordinary frescos and several church books that are 350 years old. Local people cherish their traditional costumes as one of the most significant elements in their culture. One should of course visit the Crna river and the longest canyon in Macedonia as well as the beautiful rivers Bela and Gradeska (Kamena), the pride of Mariovo - a mountain river with clean, potable water with no limestone, abundant in fish, especially the trout. The riverbed is composed of large flat stones giving special beauty to it. 12 mills used to work here. The river has been protected by the law as a natural rarity. The stone bridge that in the village of Zovik passes the Gradeska river is one of the testimonies of the grand skilled Mariovo builders.
 |
