Stobi – once the capital of a Roman province named Macedonia Salutaris, was originally built around 500BC, and annexed later, around 200 BC, by Philip V of Macedon. Covering an area of around 25,000 square meters, the town housed around 20,000 people.
There is a magnificent bath house with mosaic floor featuring deer and dedicated to Psalm 41:2, “As the deer longs for fountains of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.”
I was so proud of myself – I went climbing around the site like a mountain goat (thanks to my trusty sticks) for almost two hours until my legs finally could go no further.
I also thought it was wonderful that I was able to chat with the guide (btw, my driver and I were the only other people in the entire ancient city complex archaeological site!) – anyway, chatting with the guide about Isis and Osaris, and Horus, and Enki and Enlil… and corinthian columns, and the properties of pink marble vs white marble… I was even able to fill her in on some things, such as certain Roman building practices known as ‘bonding’… and how when she said that the archaeologists had recently discovered fabric-making equipment and purple dye in one area, I was able to explain to her how the Romans made purple dye (it’s from snails!)… and she was able to tell me so much about how the site changed over the years, all about the market place, about the amphitheatre that seated around 7,000 people, how it operated, where everything went… It was SUCH a wonderful discussion for almost two hours! What joy!
Who knew all my seemingly useless trivia would come in so handy!
Oh, and keep an eye out below for the one-eyed old London double-decker bus!
