G'day gang!
And that's a wrap for North Macedonia 2022. Tonight (2am) I will be heading to the airport to begin the long journey home. I got my COVID test back (negative) and now I am fit to travel. I will Macedonia but am happy to be coming home as hopefully the next adventure (Uzbekistan) is just around the corner.
I had intended to blog about session 2 but there was not much to report as I had to stay locked down in my hotel room in quarantine as I had tested positive for COVID and missed all of the skiing with the second group. Thankfully we had excellent local guides to guide the group when i was away so the guests did not miss out on any of the skiing. This is what transpired.....
On the 16th of Jan, all of the guests needed to take their Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT) as part of the requirements for travel back to the US. I decided to take a test just to see how the process worked. There is a lab (Biotek) about 1km or 13-minute's walk from the hotel in Skopje, costing 1,000 dinars or about $18. Results are available by email in about 30-minutes. My test came back negative.
After everyone left, on the 18th, the day before the second group arrived, I decided to take another test, just to make sure I was negative. The test came back negative but later that same night, I started to develop a scratchy throat which turned into a strong cough. I didn't sleep that well that night, so the next day, I decided I should take a PCR test, just to make sure. I had two guests already in country (staying at a different hotel and I had no contact with them) and then two more guests arriving in Skopje on the morning of the 19th (our official start date for the trip).
I sent the group a message by WhatsApp and advised them they should go up separately to Popova Sapka whilst I got tested again. The transport picked everyone up whilst I got tested (20 dinars/$36) with the PCR test and it took about 3-hours to get the results by email. Unfortunately I had tested positive. It was decided that I would do my quarantine in Popova Sapka so it would be easier for Meto (owner of the cat skiing operation) to liaise with any help I needed.
So he organized a driver (driver knew I was positive and was fully-vaxxed and masked up as I sat in the back, double masked with the windows open) and they transferred me up to Popova. I went straight to my room at the Scardus and then began the quarantine. Thankfully the Hotel Scardus had given me a much bigger room so I could be more comfortable. By this stage I had flu-like symptoms with a cough, congestion, headache and body aches, but nothing too bad.
Meto gave me some at-home Antigen test kits and on the 20th, did another test to see if the tests were picking up the infection and the result was positive again, so at least I knew I could trust the results. Then it was just a case of play the waiting game and get better. I felt that it was best to wait till I received two negative test results before leaving quarantine. The hotel brought me food each day so I was well looked after.
I was feeling a lot better in a couple of days so I tested again on the 22nd but was still positive. I kept feeling better each day and I tested again on the 24th and this time I was negative. I tested negative again on the 25th so now I could leave quarantine. That was the last day of skiing for the group, but I didn't think it wise to sit with them in the cat (plus my strength and fitness was wiped) so I met the group in the evening for dinner and didn't ski with them.
It was great to be out but it felt a bit weird being out in public again and I found myself being hyper sensitive to anyone else around who were coughing. To be expected I guess. On the 26th it was time to head back to Skopje around noon and then we met a local guide for a tour around the city and a big lunch. It was pretty much the same tour Meto had given us previously, but with a few new sites and facts thrown in for good measure. Then we had our last night's dinner at the Kamnik Winery and another lovely time.
That was a wrap for the trip as most of the guests left on the 27th. I had an appointment that morning at the dentist for some cosmetic work to be done on a discolored tooth. Meto had recommended me his dentist in Skopje and I had heard that North Macedonia is one of the cheapest places in Europe to get work done. Sure enough, I was there for 1.5 hours and the results were great. It only cost me $75 all up and I was really happy. North Macedonia Ski and Dental Trips might have to be the next program! Ha ha.....
I had a nice morning trip to Matka Canyon again with the last remaining guest (his flight to back to San Francisco via Istanbul had been delayed due to snow in Istanbul) and then I had a meeting with a new guide (US military serving at the US Embassy in Skopje) about launching our potential Siberia program in November.
Then on the morning of the 29th, I tested negative again for my pre-departure testing to be able to return to the US. Now I am getting ready to leave at 2am for my flight from Skopje - Vienna - Chicago - Denver. Looking forward to getting home again. I have 10-days until the trip to Uzbekistan and hopefully a bit more skiing this time. I do have to work on my fitness again when I get back to Granby and get back into shape.
I'll post more of the high-resolution photos and video from session 1 in North Macedonia, when I get home. All the best everyone.
- Matt