Welcome to North Macedonia, the former Yugoslavian successor state that took 28 years to settle on its name. Yes, it’s likely that if you’ve heard anything about North Macedonia it’s the drama around its name. 

Neighbours often have disputes about seemingly unimportant things, but in the case of Greece and North Macedonia there have been decades of wrangling over who can use the name “Macedonia”. Greek governments were concerned that North Macedonia being referred to simply as Macedonia would spark some kind of territorial dispute. I really don’t understand it. Either way, in 2019, Greece and North Macedonia finally came to an agreement that North Macedonia would be known as North Macedonia. Great compromise.

This meant that North Macedonia was now free to join NATO in 2020 and start thinking about EU accession. Previously Greece had vetoed North Macedonia’s membership of NATO due to the naming dispute.

Despite all of the naming drama, North Macedonia is the only country of the Former Yugoslavia that gained independence without violence. It is also a fantastic place to grow opium. In fact, North Macedonia’s opium quality is considered so high it’s viewed as a potential way of growing the economy. For pharmaceutical, not recreational use though.

I’ll round up today’s visit with a little religion-based trivia. Mother Theresa was born in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. Skopje is also home to the 5th largest cross in the world Skopje Millenium Cross at 66 metres in height.