After a month in Skopje, we ran out of ideas, until we realized that was right in front of us.
We pride ourselves on finding things to do in “boring” countries. North Macedonia has a reputation for being such a place. Like the rest of the Balkans, the people are perfectly friendly to outsiders, as long as you don’t talk about regional politics.
After enjoying a free performance by a concert pianist in the park, exploring an abandoned fortress, admiring monuments that culturally appropriated Alexander the Great, and going to the bazaar, there wasn’t much left to do besides the mall – and we weren’t in a shopping mood. Our business wasn’t doing great. There’s no safety net abroad. We were scrambling to finish a book while dipping into our savings to cover the rent.
But right in front of our apartment, there was a courtyard. We passed through it every day to go grocery shopping. It was shaded by trees and had a few dilapidated benches. But, there was something special about it. The courtyard was inhabited by a family of orange cats. There were at least three generations of them. We nicknamed them the House of Orange.
Every morning we would go outside to spend time with them. It set the tone for the rest of the day and calmed us as we struggled to make ends meet. During a heatwave, we brought them water and made sure they were cool. They eventually adopted us into their clan.
There was one cat in particular who stood out. The kitten.
Whenever we came down to the courtyard, she would run up with the others to greet us. When we sat down, she would jump in the air and land like a fluffy cloud in our laps and purr like a lawnmower.
During the day, she would lie outside the supermarket and nap. People would stop to pet her no matter how grumpy they looked or how much of a rush they were in.
We named her Joy to remind us that no matter what happens, Joy was easy to find. In this case, it’s right downstairs in the courtyard.
One day, she lifted her tail and we found something out, Joy was a boy. It’s easy to misgender cats. The name stuck though.
We really wanted to adopt Joy, but he had a family. The rest of the community loved him too. It wouldn’t be fair to take him away from his home (although we were very tempted). So Joy travels with us in our hearts. And he’s the inspiration for this blog.
