Women from Rural Villages of Radovish Promote the Region Through Their Craft

Spring is coming, the vineyards are being pruned to yield a new harvest, and plans are being made for where to travel in the upcoming period.

One of the regions we may rarely promote on Kajak.mk is the Radovish region, which is definitely not to be underestimated. Neither is the determination of the women from 'NGO OŽ Denica,' who find ways to promote the region through their activities and daily lives.

We spoke with Vera Ristova, the woman who answered our call and painted Radovish exactly as it truly is.

Ristova says that for her, the biggest promoters of the region are and will remain the women who tirelessly work in this area. Their association has been promoting the region in various ways for many years and participates in numerous workshops organized to pass on their knowledge to younger generations.

Radovish is a city with a mix of cultures and ethnicities. Special attention is drawn to the traditional cuisine, which boasts several specialties. The aroma of bread baked on embers, poppy seed salt, and the local sweet treat, tatlija, are all part of the delicious symbols of the city.

Many of you may be wondering what samun or tatlija are, so we'll try to explain briefly.

Samun is prepared from dough placed in a clay pot. After the dough rests, it is torn by hand and shaped into an elliptical form with raised edges. On top, finely chopped pork or chicken, cheese, eggs, or the Radovish specialty Sazdrma are placed. Everything is then greased with pork fat and baked in a traditional oven, which gives it an exceptional taste.

As for tatlija, this specialty is made with fresh cheese, which has an excellent and easily accepted taste. As soon as spring arrives, the people of Radovish start preparing tatlija with fresh cheese. It is most often prepared for Prochka and Easter. The tatlija has a dark color on the bottom and top, with a yellow amber color in the middle, especially when made using the traditional recipe. The old folks say that the longer it rests, the better it gets, but it has a limited shelf life.

Vera shares that the organization 'Women' prepares various types of traditional dishes. The women are most often present at traditional events in Macedonia, Bulgaria, Turkey, and other neighboring countries.

If you want to meet them, you can find them at the Easter gatherings in the monastery village of Oraovica. Every year, in this village, on the occasion of the religious holiday of Varvara, they gather and share bread with a coin inside for each member. The one who finds the coin is designated as the organizer of the event for the following year.

They are proud of the 'Radovish Crafts' event, where workshops for traditional recipes, beekeeping, cheese production, wool processing, basket weaving, pottery, learning about medicinal herbs, and various other local crafts are organized every year.

A member of the organization is a woman from the village of Gabrevci, who learned the craft of pottery from her father.

The village of Gabrevci, in the entire Radovish region, is the most famous and renowned for its developed pottery. In the past, every household engaged in making pottery, and their products were sold in all the villages around Radovish, including the town itself. However, with the development of industry, by 1980, there was only one potter left in the village of Gabrevci. A clear testament to the well-developed pottery tradition in Gabrevci is the fact that during folk dances and games, the dancers perform with a 12-liter water-filled jug on their heads.

Ristova says that a beloved and valued event in which they actively participate is 'Samun and Tatlija,' which the city of Radovish organized until the beginning of the pandemic. This event annually attracts a large number of tourists from both the country and abroad.

According to Vera, the samun, tatlija, and poppy seed salt are the things that attract the most attention from tourists, while 'Radovish Sweet Kadnka' serves as the cherry on top.