Mavrovo’s Monastery of St. John the Baptist

On our way out of the Mavrovo National Park, heading back to Skopje, we made one last pit stop at Sv Jovan Bigorski, or the Monastery of Saint John the Baptist. Originally constructed in the 11th century, this church set high in the hills is one of the most popular in all Macedonia.

We were surprised by the amount of activity going on around the grounds of Sv Jovan Bigorski. This wasn’t so much a quiet place of reflection, but more like a work zone. The church was heavily damaged by an electri...